NZ-Aust. Travel Research, Planning; Books & Tools

On the roll call for our Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Celebrity Solstice, 14-day, Sydney to Auckland cruise, there were questions on researching and planning for this trip. I noted that I always get from the public library in Central Ohio a number of books to get ready for these adventures. Or, if your library is smaller and/or more limited in its collection, ask for them to do a book transfer they can process for you.

My leaning is more towards super excellent visual books such as Eyewitness, Insight, etc. The National Geographic Traveler books also do a nice job with very good visuals, maps, details, etc. I pick up and process quicker and easier what I can SEE, visualize and read. The Rick Steves (in Europe), Fodors, Frommers, Lonely Planet, RoughGuide, etc., can also work well, too. In my opinion, no one travel book has it "ALL", perfectly and completely for all of your needs. These resources, especially the visual ones, can help you better figure out your priorities, in advance, for what you want to do and see. That early research is very important. Don't wait until you get on the ship to "GUESS" what might be of interest. I always build a "file" on my laptop computer for each port stop with highlights from that reading and then pulling up stories/articles from the travels sections of the New York Times, Telegraph of London, Wikipedia, etc.

Below are the books I am using from our library right now. I am not reading ALL of these books. Just using each one to dig deeper into the depths for the different options, suggestions, tips, etc., with various ports we will visit.

What are your favorite research resources, books, etc.? Some like better books with more text and those written details. Sources such as Fodors and Frommers have shifted more to include added color pictures, better visuals, etc., as pioneered by Eyewitness/DK books.

And, of course, these CC Boards are excellent, especially if you post good questions with titles that hook in people, use the search functions on these boards, etc.

All of those help to consider your many great options. Amazon can be very good in providing such books at reduced prices, plus some used books websites. Lots of great options!!! Especially in these days of the Internet, it makes things easier to research and plan ahead. Don't know how ALL of these options might work for those who live in Australia and NZ. You can use Google.com for great access to various text items, plus a wide variety of visuals and maps. One option for some private tour and other local options is to contract the tourism office in each of your ports. You can use Google.com and put in the search term such as "city/port name tourism office". Then follow-up to each of those office by e-mail, ask your questions, get their suggestions, options to consider, etc.

As you pull together this info, it easier to go back to read, re-read items, pull out key highlights using the cut and paste computer features, etc. We are doing New Zealand and Australia in early 2014 and I have already pull together over 800 pages of info, news clips, options, etc. Then, there are my photo files. I will search Google.com or Bing.com in the images section to look at visual examples for these key places we are going to visit for the first time. The visuals in both travel books and from the Internet really help get a "picture" for what to do and visit.

Added reactions, suggestions and thoughts?

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 128,673 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

For our upcoming travels “down under”, questions have been raised about how to prepare, research and plan. Below are some visuals to document my approach, tools and resources. First, is a picture of the stacks of books I have checked-out from our Columbus library for just Australia and New Zealand. Also have a big stack for Hawaii in connection with our visits there on our stop enroute south and coming back after the cruise. Second is an example of the covers for the two Insight Guides on these two counties, plus examples on their interior pages with details on Sydney and Queenstown. Lots of nice visuals, good maps, details, etc. on these various options in both countries.:

Here are two visuals for the Eyewitness Guides on these two countries. Second is an example for how these use great maps and provide added details on Sydney. Lots of great visuals, tips, ideas, options, etc., in these DK books from this British-based publisher.: