Help me pick ports

This may sound like heresy on this board, but if you want to see wildlife, why not have a land based holiday and NOT a cruise?:)

This may sound like heresy on this board, but if you want to see wildlife, why not have a land based holiday and NOT a cruise?:)

With 2 kids I've found cruise a better option. While scenery from the ship is appreciated by me and my husband my kids get bored. They love doing their own thing on the ship. Food is another thing we find as a better option. They eat their pizza and pasta while we like to try different things. Also, having to pack every 2 days and drive to a new destination seems hard for us.

I've been doing some research and Sydney and other cities offers some one day trips to national parks which might solve our wild life curiosity. I might give up on my wish to see whales if it means winter and the rest of the trip being cold.

Thank you all so far :)

Thank you all for the detailed answers. So, if we go with the assumption that I want to see whales on a shore excursion and not from a cruise ship I would have to travel sometime in Aug. But then at that time of the year NZ will be cold. So then should I give sight seeing and great barrier reef priority and still stick on my Mar. trip maybe a cruise starting from Perth and ending in Sydney ?

I live on the South Coast of NSW - about 6 hours south of Sydney in an area renowned for it's whale watching & their Southern Migration (the one where the whales have their baby calves with them) season runs mid August to early December.

So a cruise at the start of our Spring (Oct - Nov) would probably be better for whale sightings from the ship.

Your best bet to guarantee you see a koala etc is to go to the zoo, but a day trip where they actually take you to places they know wildlife lives may suit you better - this company has several that may be what you are looking for?

Thank you all for the detailed answers. So, if we go with the assumption that I want to see whales on a shore excursion and not from a cruise ship I would have to travel sometime in Aug. But then at that time of the year NZ will be cold. So then should I give sight seeing and great barrier reef priority and still stick on my Mar. trip maybe a cruise starting from Perth and ending in Sydney ?

You haven't said where you are from, but I'm assuming it is a long way away.

If you are going to travel this far, then you really need holiday weather, i.e. warm weather, to make it worth while.

If I were planning such a trip, I would try to hit NZ in February and Oz in March. Also remember that in summer the days are longer, especially in Tas and NZ.

I might be jaded with regards to whales, I've seen lots and lots of them, sometimes closer than I wanted, while fishing offshore. So I wouldn't go out of my way to see any more.

For land wildlife, even going to a National Park does not guarantee seeing any. Australian animals are very good at not being seen. I'm not saying you won't see any, I'm just saying that it's not like Yellowstone, where you drive in and find a herd of bison blocking the road.

Also when planning a cruise, note that the local P&O and Princess ships are pretty old and tired. So you may be better off on Celebrity, RC and the visiting Princess ships.

Yes it would be a long trip - I'm from MI. Thank you for putting the wild life in perspective. I'll plan for Feb/Mar. Still reading through and worried about jet lag and stuff too.

Another reason to go with the March trip is the choices you will have. Most of the larger family oriented ships reposition to the Northern Hemisphere during our winter leaving your options much more limited. Perhaps try for a whale watching trip in Alaska down the track. You will be able to do a good deal of seal, penguin and even Albatros spotting in Dunedin, Dolphins in various areas too. If you are in Brisbane then Lone Pine and Australia Zoo are both good options as suggested. Perhaps Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary on the Gold Coast may be possible depending on your time in port.

I really do believe the choice of Ship will

make for a better trip for your boys,, and therefore yourselves, which is why I'd push the March option. But have a look at Royal Caribbean rather than the ones you have selected so far. Voyager and Explorer would be perfect for them.

Enjoy planning[emoji4]

Another reason to go with the March trip is the choices you will have. Most of the larger family oriented ships reposition to the Northern Hemisphere during our winter leaving your options much more limited. Perhaps try for a whale watching trip in Alaska down the track. You will be able to do a good deal of seal, penguin and even Albatros spotting in Dunedin, Dolphins in various areas too. If you are in Brisbane then Lone Pine and Australia Zoo are both good options as suggested. Perhaps Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary on the Gold Coast may be possible depending on your time in port.

I really do believe the choice of Ship will

make for a better trip for your boys,, and therefore yourselves, which is why I'd push the March option. But have a look at Royal Caribbean rather than the ones you have selected so far. Voyager and Explorer would be perfect for them.

Enjoy planning[emoji4]

Thank you. We did go to Alaska last summer and saw whales. We ran into a pod of curious orcas and it was an experience of a life time. That is why I wanted to experience it in Australia too but I agree with everything you and other people have said. Warm holiday weather, long days and cruise ship should be my priority. It is getting more and more clear to me now. I'll still have questions but atleast when to visit is becoming more and more towards Mar.

If it helps any, Trip number 1 is during the Victorian School Holidays and will be finishing the day before Easter. This means accommodation afterwards will be at a high cost. Saying that we are booked on this cruise as we still have one school aged child, although much older than your children.

If you do Trip two you are going to have a lot of Sea days.

If you want to see Australian wildlife you will need to go to a wildlife park. At Cairns/Yorkeys Knob you could do the skyrail out to Kuranda and visit the different parks there where cuddling a Koala can occur, as well as feeding Kangaroos. I can tell you as someone who does live out in a rural area where seeing Kangaroos and Emus wandering is normal I have never, ever seen a Koala in the wild and for you to do so is extremely unlikely. If you stop at Fremantle as a final port though, I do recommend that you go to Rottnest Island to see the Quokkas as it is one of the only places that these beautiful little marsupials are found in the wild (and they love having their photos taken)

If you want to see marine wildlife then go for NZ as it has lots of Seal, Penguin and Dolphin tours available. At Akaroa you can also take tours into Christchurch which takes you around to see the damage of the Earthquake in 2011 if you are interested in that sort of thing as well as other sights. Wellington has a really good Lord of the Rings tour if your kids are interested in that. Look up Weta Cave. My boys did that a few years ago and thought it was amazing.

Thanks Suzi66 . Good tip about Easter holiday timings. Will have to look for some more cruises at a better time. Maybe End of Feb.beginning of Mar.

I totally agree re ships. I travel with a teenage boy and suggest Royal Caribbean or Carnival would be much better for your boys. These ships cater so well for kids. Also agree that the city ports wont allow you close up of these animals without visiting zoo. Taronga is an excellent zoo. I have lived here my whole life and have never seen a koala in the wild but five minute walk from my house (in Canberra) and I can see a hundred kangaroos. If you go to the wildlife zoo at Darling Harbour in Sydney you will see the animals albeit not in your preferred setting and it only takes an hour or two rather than the whole day you would spend at Taronga. All the ports you have listed would be good and different to home so worth it but you do need to be ready for cold weather particularly southern NZ in winter. I would suggest just staying on east coast of Australia. Perth/Freo is a loooooooooooong way away.

. Perth/Freo is a loooooooooooong way away.

For anyone travelling to Australia from overseas, anywhere is a looooooong way away. :)

We live in that wonderful place that is hours from anywhere. "Where do you live?" In Victoria. "So Melbourne?" No, As far away from Melbourne as you could be and still be in Victoria. Actually Adelaide is our closest capital city as it is only 450km away.

So for our last cruise which started in Auckland we drove to Melbourne to take son number 2's belongings to his Uni lodgings then flew to Auckland and finished the cruise at Fremantle and the flight back to Melbourne was just as far as to Auckland.

Currently looking at taking flights from here to Sydney and even with the minimum stopover in Melbourne it still takes almost as long as a direct flight from Fremantle. The debate is do we let son 2 catch the 10 hour overnight bus to come home on the same day as we fly or do we drive one way and pick him up on the way home (I know what my husband the driver is leaning towards )

Is your heart set on cruising? If you are really interested in wildlife it might be better to either drive around nz or take domestic flights around Australia. There is the zoo in Sydney for seeing all types including Australia fauna or there are a couple of wildlife parks as well.

You could fly up to North Queensland and snorkel on the Great Barrier Reef, fly into the centre and see Uluru and head up to Kakadu np for more nature.

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Wild kangaroos and koalas? Not likely unless you want to put in a lot of time, which you don't have. People will say they see koalas all the time, but the reality is that even in high koala population areas you only see one now and then. Most Australians have never seen a wild koala, I've only ever seen one. Kangaroos are very common outside the cities, but you don't really have enough time to do much traveling. The further inland you go, the more kangaroos (and emus) you will see, but we are talking hundreds of kilometers of driving.

 

March is warm in Australia, but maybe on the edge of cool weather in NZ.

 

No whales on the East Coast of Oz in March. They run from June to October, with the best time August.

If one wants to see koalas in their natural habitat, camp at Bimbi Park, Cape Otway, VIC. They are everywhere, a very large population in Manna Gum trees.

(Not possible from a cruise ship, unfortunately).

For the OP, I've seen some RCI Radiance cruises going from Perth up around Australia.

Thank you guys for more tips. I am leaning towards cruising because with 2 kids it's just easier logistically. We don't have to worry about where to eat, what to do etc. My boys might get tired of constantly driving or flying every 2 days and we will have to keep packing our things to move around. If it was just me and my husband it would be a different story.

I have read a lot about the rainforest in Dunedin the beautiful landscape around Kimberley and wanted to go up to fremantle but still deciding on dates and cruise ships.

For wildlife - I'm planning on spending a couple of days in Sydney and go to murramarang national park. I've read that people do see kangaroos in the wild there. Whales and Koalas have been struck off my list as the reality of wildlife has set in :)

Thank you guys for more tips. I am leaning towards cruising because with 2 kids it's just easier logistically. We don't have to worry about where to eat, what to do etc. My boys might get tired of constantly driving or flying every 2 days and we will have to keep packing our things to move around. If it was just me and my husband it would be a different story.

 

I have read a lot about the rainforest in Dunedin the beautiful landscape around Kimberley and wanted to go up to fremantle but still deciding on dates and cruise ships.

 

For wildlife - I'm planning on spending a couple of days in Sydney and go to murramarang national park. I've read that people do see kangaroos in the wild there. Whales and Koalas have been struck off my list as the reality of wildlife has set in :)

Fair enough on wanting to cruise, just a quick note on koalas. I agree seeing animals in their natural habitat is always preferable (we have been fortunate enough to do african safari, galapagos etc) but koala's are notoriously shy and inanimate not to mention quite small so hard to spot in the tall gum trees, so don't discount visiting a zoo or wildlife park when in Sydney. The Taronga Zoo in Sydney is a nice place for visitors as it is located on the harbour, the enclosures can be a little small but it is very scenic.

Growing up I used to live near Koala Park but I believe it is now in a very sad state and not recommended, our family have given good reports on Featherdale wildlife park.

If you go north to Queensland, Steve Irwins park the Australia zoo is usually popular.

Fair enough on wanting to cruise, just a quick note on koalas. I agree seeing animals in their natural habitat is always preferable (we have been fortunate enough to do african safari, galapagos etc) but koala's are notoriously shy and inanimate not to mention quite small so hard to spot in the tall gum trees, so don't discount visiting a zoo or wildlife park when in Sydney. The Taronga Zoo in Sydney is a nice place for visitors as it is located on the harbour, the enclosures can be a little small but it is very scenic.

Growing up I used to live near Koala Park but I believe it is now in a very sad state and not recommended, our family have given good reports on Featherdale wildlife park.

If you go north to Queensland, Steve Irwins park the Australia zoo is usually popular.

Yes, will start looking at the best place possible to see koalas and possibly hold them. Just yesterday Nat Geo Wild ran a show on Tasmania. It was amazing, both land and marine animals there are so unique and awesome. The Tasmanian devil is scary !!!

Yes, will start looking at the best place possible to see koalas and possibly hold them. Just yesterday Nat Geo Wild ran a show on Tasmania. It was amazing, both land and marine animals there are so unique and awesome. The Tasmanian devil is scary !!!

sorry if I missed this but where are you from?

a surprisingly good place to see koalas and Tassie Devils was at the San Diego zoo, we stopped in there last year and they had close up enclosures of both animals

sorry if I missed this but where are you from?

 

a surprisingly good place to see koalas and Tassie Devils was at the San Diego zoo, we stopped in there last year and they had close up enclosures of both animals

Detroit, Michigan

https://www.wildlifesydney.com.au/

this is the place I was talking about. You can have your photo taken with a koala and they have heaps of other native animals too. If you buy the pass you also go to the aquarium and the observatory at Sydney tower. You can easily do this in one day and is an easy walk between.

https://www.wildlifesydney.com.au/

 

this is the place I was talking about. You can have your photo taken with a koala and they have heaps of other native animals too. If you buy the pass you also go to the aquarium and the observatory at Sydney tower. You can easily do this in one day and is an easy walk between.

Thank you so much :)

So I picked the following and balcony is sold out !!!

12 Days Australia/New Zealand

Princess Cruises • Sun Princess

Sydney/Australia, Hobart, Burnie, Melbourne, Adelaide, Albany, Margaret River, Fremantle

1 departure date: Mar 7 2017

So I picked the following and balcony is sold out !!!

That trip is one segment of a longer 29 day SYD - SYD or BNE - BNE cruise.

Those full round Australia trips are popular.

That trip is one segment of a longer 29 day SYD - SYD or BNE - BNE cruise.

Those full round Australia trips are popular.

UGH !!! This is going to be so hard.

As your interest is wildlife I would suggest, if you decide on a cruise which includes Adelaide, a must do day trip is to Kangaroo Island. Google the island and just get a taste of what you could experience.

Thank you Happysnapper. Yeah, I read about Kangaroo Islands on someone's trip report as well. Will definitely look into it.