Cathedral Caves Walk
Cathedral Caves Walk
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4.0
174 reviews
Excellent
89
Very good
51
Average
16
Poor
6
Terrible
12
santo t
Auckland, New Zealand7,459 contributions
Dec 2019
It is a sea cave made by the power of sea wave, so it has limitation how far it can be made by the power of the wave. In this Cathedral Cave the distance is no longer than 150m, still spectacular and awesome experience to walk along and inside of this cave. Because of the high and low tide dependant, visitors are only able to enter at specific times each day depend on the tide calendar, usually the window time to visit is no more than 3 hours per day per tide cycle. Drive off the main road approx. 2km from Chaslands Highway to the car park, and then walk to the forest for half km and reach the beach front, and finally walk along the beach at low tide along another half km to the mouth of the cave. There are two mouth interconnected each other, you choose which one to start with. It is spectacular structure and fantastic experience to see the roof structure and shape of the cave. However, it is not free attraction, you need to pay the ticket, $10 per adult and $2 per child for the use of car park and entry access to the bush and cave. It is worth to try, do the website check firstly to find the tide calendar each day to avoid disappointment.
Written 6 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
horseymum_11
Cirencester, UK893 contributions
Mar 2020
As other reviewers have said, it's important to check the website for opening times. We arrived in good time, but the car park was already filling up - after paying our entrance fee we were shown where to park as we had quite a large camper (the drive to the car park is a bit steep and windy, especially if you have a largish vehicle, luckily there was nothing coming the other way!) . the walk down to the beach is attractive, and the beach is beautiful. Even though the tide had gone out plenty far enough for us to enter the caves, several large waves did race up on to the beach again, enough to knock the unwary off their feet. The walk back to the car park worked up an appetite for a visit to the Whistling Frog not too far away.
Written 19 April 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jimontour99
Auckland Central, New Zealand18 contributions
Jan 2021 • Family
The caves are open and this is one of the few places in the Catlins that is jammed with tourists. Queues to get in to the to small car park. Privately owned there is a charge to get in. The entry fee has just been doubled to $10 per adult and $2 per child. Caves are ok but wasn’t a highlight of our Catlins stay.
Highly recommend McLeans Falls, Lake Wilkie and Taumuku Beach in this area.
Highly recommend McLeans Falls, Lake Wilkie and Taumuku Beach in this area.
Written 10 January 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jim
7 contributions
Jan 2020
The Cathedral Caves is a unique experience, which allow visitors to explore a title cave. The Cave is not very long and the hike down to the beach is lush and beautiful. The area is very full of tourists, so get there early. There is an entrance fee of $10 per person, but they only take cash unless you have a New Zealand ETFPOS account, which is a small hassle.
Written 5 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Eli B
Sydney, Australia3,548 contributions
Oct 2019
This huge arched cathedral caves are cut back into the cliffs right on the beach. Accessible only for two hours either side of low tide. You can wade like a duck, in one enterence and out the other. From the car park its a gentle 15-min forest walk down to the beach and a further 25 min to the caves.
Written 5 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kieran Murphy
Lower Hutt, New Zealand3 contributions
Jan 2020
If you are visiting numerous South Island locations you will, like my family find this attraction to be a waste of your time and energy. I say this in the context that this attraction has an entry charge which is collected by the landowners, Ngai Tahu. For the quality of the attraction it would be fine if it was a free, but it is not worth the long 20 minute walk down a track and back up again afterwards. For your entry fee you do not get anything else in return apart from access to the caves. The caves which are really one cave with two entrances are just that, one big open cave. We walked away feeling that the land owners were fleecing visitors a bit.
Written 4 February 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
lambertc887
Hamilton, New Zealand45 contributions
Apr 2021 • Couples
There are better bush walks in the area and track isn't particularly well maintained considering the charge implies it pays for the upkeep. Of course the access to the sea cave is the main draw card but there are also other beautiful caves on our shores in NZ that are free to visit. It is a busy tourist spot and the limited viewing time means you will be surrounded with other people. Bit disappointed with the experience.
Written 5 April 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Daria W
Auckland, New Zealand33 contributions
Jan 2020
We absolutely loved this walk! We went on a summer evening, which was a perfect time to visit. The walk from the carpark to the beach takes you through a stunning old forest - so lush and green, with so much to look at. The walk along the beach built the anticipation, as the caves in the cliff slowly came into view.
From the beach, you'll either need to go barefoot, or wear shoes you're happy to walk through water in, because even when the tide is out, there is a bit of water inside the caves.
The caves themselves are really interesting - different colours in the rock, and different profiles where the rock has been carved out by the water over hundreds of years.
Overall, a great place to visit, although the hike back up to the carpark does require a bit of energy! There are basic long-drop toilets in the carpark, but you'll need to bring your own hand sanitiser.
From the beach, you'll either need to go barefoot, or wear shoes you're happy to walk through water in, because even when the tide is out, there is a bit of water inside the caves.
The caves themselves are really interesting - different colours in the rock, and different profiles where the rock has been carved out by the water over hundreds of years.
Overall, a great place to visit, although the hike back up to the carpark does require a bit of energy! There are basic long-drop toilets in the carpark, but you'll need to bring your own hand sanitiser.
Written 14 February 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Pat Fairhall
Masterton, New Zealand83 contributions
Jan 2020 • Family
Although quite a steep walk down to the beach and back, it was worth the effort. I thought at $10 per person was a little steep to view a natural New Zealand setting though. Still I would recommend a visit. The cave is amazing.
Written 7 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
exploringnz
Dunedin, New Zealand27 contributions
Jan 2022
I had always wanted to see the cathedral caves and on this visit to the Catlins we got the opportunity. We got down to the beach after a short walk down the track and those caves were pretty big. There are effectively two caves joined at the back to create one mega cave. Well worth seeing.
What isn't so well known though is that if you continue around the headland there are numerous other caves round there that the official website calls "A few smaller caves are located further along the cliffs" when it says a few smaller caves it is talking about caves just as big as the main one but not joined at the back but also not filled with people. I would recommend these caves too as there is so much to explore around there but you have to be adventurous as it involves going through knee high to waist high water to get to the other beach containing those caves. I also noticed that the water is actually deeper right near the cliffs so it seems to be better to go a litte further out from them (about 20 meters or so). There is one cave there that is like a keyhole that you can see inside but not go inside unless you were some kind of caver I guess. There is another one that is extremely narrow but you can squeeze through to a larger area and another one that is big like the main one. There are probably others but I didn't have time to explore them all as my family was worried by my absence. Overall I would highly recommend those other caves - just don't get drowned!
What isn't so well known though is that if you continue around the headland there are numerous other caves round there that the official website calls "A few smaller caves are located further along the cliffs" when it says a few smaller caves it is talking about caves just as big as the main one but not joined at the back but also not filled with people. I would recommend these caves too as there is so much to explore around there but you have to be adventurous as it involves going through knee high to waist high water to get to the other beach containing those caves. I also noticed that the water is actually deeper right near the cliffs so it seems to be better to go a litte further out from them (about 20 meters or so). There is one cave there that is like a keyhole that you can see inside but not go inside unless you were some kind of caver I guess. There is another one that is extremely narrow but you can squeeze through to a larger area and another one that is big like the main one. There are probably others but I didn't have time to explore them all as my family was worried by my absence. Overall I would highly recommend those other caves - just don't get drowned!
Written 18 January 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello all. The low tide timing in the website for the days where I am planning to visit the caves would be 7:47AM and 8.32AM (two different days)
I was thinking for 7.47AM, is it even possible to visit the caves when they gates would be open only at 7.30am? Or, will they make an exception and open much earlier.
Anyone experienced this cave with an early low tide timing?
Written 4 April 2018
Hi there I am just replying to Judith K's review as she has a number of inaccuracies. The attendant is up at the car park 2 kms away from the gate that is locked. Obviously the time changes each day as it is a tidal attraction so opening and closing is controlled by the sea! And finally and most importantly the Caves are opened not for just 2 hours but actually for at least 4 hours. Its open 2 hours before low tide and 2 hours after, access dependent. If the seas are very high and their is a swell running they may delay opening for a 1/2 hour or so while it is being checked for safety but if the tide is low as it sometimes is due to full moon's influence then they can well be open 3 hours after low tide, oh and the hill you have to walk up thats steep, you actually have to walk down it first, so pretty sure you would know what you can expect while you are walking down it.
Written 11 January 2017
Thanks for that actually I said they can only be accessed close to low tide, so I was not implying it is at the whim of someone. When we went they only opened the gate between 8am and 10am. However the gate was going to be opened again in the late afternoon for the evening low tide. So perhaps if it is only open once in the day it is open for longer. It is good to make people aware before they start out that it is quite steep, so they know before they get there. Thanks for clarifying those things. I gave this attraction 5 stars. I know of a number of people who have missed it due to gate opening times. I wanted people to know how to check the times in advance. It is a real gem and a shame if people miss it.
Written 13 January 2017
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