2014: NZ-Aust. Options, Favorites, Tips, Insights??

One of the cruise lines we have used in the past is up now with their early 2014 options. We are getting ready to book this 2014 cruise: Kiwis & Koalas, V4203, Auckland to Sydney on Crystal Symphony, February 2-16, 2014 (14 days). We did the wonderful Symphony in late July 2008 for the Baltics and Russia. It was a great experience!! We have also done great cruise with Seabourn, Silversea and Celebrity. These three lines do not yet have their early 2014 sailings up and posted. We will check later with them.

This 2014 cruise starts in Auckland with four ports stops in New Zealand. This includes Tauranga, a day cruising south along the coast of New Zealand, Wellington, Christchurch/Lyttleton, Dunedin and then a day cruising the Dusky & Doubtful Sounds and then the Milford Sound. There are two days crossing to Hobart, Tasmania, another sea day and then two days and an overnight in Melbourne. There is another sea day before arriving Sunday, Feb. 16, in Sydney's scenic harbor.

Keith and others have made good, helpful comments about this NZ-Aust. routing. I remember well some of his pictures and ship cam shots doing the sounds in the south island of New Zealand, the spectacular Sydney docking, etc. Hope to get a booking made in the next couple of weeks, plus rounding up a few other couples to sail on this adventure with us. I will do a search and scroll back on this Aust-NZ forum. But wanted to ask here for a few quick reactions, suggestions, favorites, tips, etc., in this special region of the world where we have never visited, nor been close.

1. Ship vs. Private Tours: Where on this schedule is it more or less important to do and have private shore tours versus through the ship versus on our own?

2. Special Memories/Don't-Miss Secrets: What stands out for the "best of the best" that really popped up high on your must-sees and to-do's for these scenic areas?

Any other key points or factors to consider? We are planning on booking the starboard side in order to have the better views as we go south along the New Zealand coast, right?

THANKS for any help and ideas! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, 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 68,972 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 details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 62,652 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

I don't recall being able to see much of the coast when we did a similar route - the ship was a long way off of the coast. Cellular reception from the land was pretty good though and this meant I was able to get "free" internet on my NZ phone.

NZ is very easy to do as a tourist; we're a tourist country after all. You will be able to get everywhere very easily if you rent a car in port.

Tiri Tiri Island in Auckland's harbour is worth a day trip before the cruise.

Rotorua is normally done from Tauranga - it's not a long drive. Waiotapu near Rotorua is our favorite thermal attraction.

Milford and Dusky Sounds are nice and the ship goes to both presumably.

Christchurch and Dunedin are both really bases from which to set-off to see the scenery.

When you stop in Hobart, be sure to arrange a tour to, or take a ship's excursion to, Port Arthur. This penal colony played an important part in Australia's history and it is not-to-be-missed.

Whatever else you do in Sydney make sure it includes some time on the harbour - there are coffee cruises etc but just as much fun (but without the commentary) are the ferries which travel to and fro - maps readily available at Circular Quay plus advice from the information booth. Try a ferry trip to Manly, the Zoo or to Watsons Bay. The HO HO bus is a good orientation for land excursions.

Colleen

In Melbourne the city circle is covered by a heritage tram...free..it passes many of the must see sights and you can hop on and hop off...I think one comes every 12 minutes. Plenty of interesting things to see and do in Melbourne, excellent art gallery, old Melbourne Goal where the famous Australian bushranger Ned Kelly was hanged, shopping and Museums. There is also a on hop off bus also free.

In Sydney you should get an all day ferry,train and bus pass available at the Quay near the Overseas Passenger Terminal. Top things to do walk around the Harbour front, past Mrs. Macquaries chair, visit the Art Gallery in the Gardens, take a ferry to Manly/Watsons Bay or up the river to Parramatta. Visit the tourist area of Darling Harbour, walk around the historic Rocks area right near the passenger terminal. There is a wildlife park and aquarium in Darling Harbour too...you can catch a ferry from the quay.

NZ is well set up with tourist offices all offering similar tours to the ships tours but in smaller groups and half the cost. You should enjoy NZ scenic beauty, amazing animals and the wonders of the thermal areas.

Here are some links you might find useful

http://www.visitvictoria.com

http://www.oldmelbournegoal.com.au

http://www.newzealand.com

http://www.sydney.com.au

http://www.sydneythingstodo.com.au

Sue

Hi Terry - You have been giving such wonderful advice (and pictures) that we have all appreciated in other parts of the world (especially Europe), it is nice to know that you are thinking of coming to "our" area and we can possibly give something back.

Rogbypopsie has given some very good suggestions - as have the other posters.

My DH and I did a cruise around NZ this last December. We found NZ very picturesque but rather chilly at that time of the year. February should be the ideal time.

I have the definite impression that you are DIYers and so are we. Most ports in NZ are actually industrial ports - you will see loads and loads of timber at all of them. The NZ Tourist Bureau will have representatives at every port. They are called the I-Site and will be in demountable buildings - often just a container. They might not look "flash" but they are very helpful with information, booking last-minute "private" tours, etc.

What we did in "your" ports -

Auckland - HOHO bus. There are 2 routes - the hub is at the Museum.

We did both routes and this took all morning. We then walked around the dock area and found the Fish Markets where we had the most delicious seafood chowder for lunch and then wandered around the area and eventually back to the ship.

Wellington - We took the shuttle from the ship to the mid-town area and then the cable car to a high point in the city. We then wandered down through the Botanic Gardens - the roses, in particular, were magnificent.

We walked back through the shopping district towards the bay and to the Te Papa Museum. IMO this is a "must do" and one could spend hours in there. One of the most interesting exhibits is the "shakey house" where you get to experience a tremor/earthquake. We caught the shuttle bus from the I-Site office back to the ship.

Tauranga - We booked a last-minute shared tour at the I-Site on the pier to Rotorua. The highlight of this tour was a visit to a Maori village with a cultural show and being able to see the thermal springs and geysers. The Tauranga area is very attractive, but I feel that Rotorua was the "essence" of the Nz that I had learned about in school.

Christchurch - The pier at Lyttleton was severely damaged during the recent earthquakes in this area and the ships have been calling at Akaroa. No one knows how long this will be used as an alternative. It is a tender port, but very pretty. It was a French settlement so is quite different to the other NZ ports. We had a lazy day here and just wandered around the village, but there are tours available. You will find at most ports in Nz that local volunteers are just everywhere and very happy to offer to point you in the right direction or answer any questions.

Dunedin - We did the Taieri Gorge Railway trip which we had pre-booked direct with the Railway Company. The ship will probably offer much the same trip and the train will leave directly from the pier. However, it will be twice the price. There is a bus available to the Railway Station (the building is well worth seeing - it's a fine example of colonial architecture) and the same bus will offer a tour of the town/city on the return to the ship. This train trip is really all about scenery and we really enjoyed it.

You will love cruising through the Sounds - your camera will be working overtime.

I'll leave the Australian cities to those who live there as they will be much more knowledgable - although I have visited each of them.

Sorry if this appears to be rather rambly. Please feel free to ask further questions. I'm sorry that I'm not the photographer that you are and therefore do not have wonderful photos to post.

We look forward to welcoming you "Downunder".

Hi Terry - You have been giving such wonderful advice (and pictures) that we have all appreciated in other parts of the world (especially Europe), it is nice to know that you are thinking of coming to "our" area and we can possibly give something back. My DH and I did a cruise around NZ this last December. We found NZ very picturesque but rather chilly at that time of the year. February should be the ideal time. I have the definite impression that you are DIYers and so are we. Most ports in NZ are actually industrial ports - you will see loads and loads of timber at all of them. The NZ Tourist Bureau will have representatives at every port. They are called the I-Site and will be in demountable buildings - often just a container. They might not look "flash" but they are very helpful with information, booking last-minute "private" tours, etc. You will love cruising through the Sounds - your camera will be working overtime. Sorry if this appears to be rather rambly. Please feel free to ask further questions. I'm sorry that I'm not the photographer that you are and therefore do not have wonderful photos to post. We look forward to welcoming you "Downunder".

Appreciate the super excellent comments and welcoming details from Goldygolfer. Wonderful and great info!! PLUS, all of the excellent items, background and postings from MrYellowDuck, GradUT, Colleen and Sue. I have copied all of these helpful suggestions, tips and information on my laptop file for this 2014 trip.

Keep it coming!! These boards have been very helpful for our past trips in Europe and I look forward to building my file, doing the added research, considering our many options, etc.

I look forward to taking lots of pictures and posting them on these Cruise Critic boards as I have done from the Med, in the Baltics, up the Norway Coast, etc., etc.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, 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 69,286 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 details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 62,978 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

Hi Terry, We live in Columbus area also - northwest of it.

We just came back from Australia last month, we did the cruise with Diamond Princess at Jan.23 to Feb. 4 from Auckland to Sydney, then five nights outback cruisetours with Princess and three nights in Sydney.

This was our first time cruise with Princess and the itinerary were good enough for us. Well, we were not disappointed, even ship's shore excursion - Tauranga, Akaroa and Hobart, unfortunely, we missed the Fiorland National Park due to hight wind after we depared from Dunedin port. We booked only one private tour with Back to Nature in Dunedin and that was wonderful and I am ready to go back there.

I couldn't said it better,Goldyagolfer was right on about your advice on the Europe trip, I saw your suggestion when we were planning the trip to Mediteranen with Oceania Cruise, it was very helpful. Thank you.

Hsiu

I am waiting for the dates to open up next month for our first Australia trip and cruise. I am certain I will be frequanting this board often during our wait.:) Our plan is to do the 18 day out of Perth back to Sydney and will be visiting many of the named Ports. We will then spend 3 days Post cruise in Sydney and right now am thinking Circular Quay will be our best place to stay, any opinions. Thank you.

I am waiting for the dates to open up next month for our first Australia trip and cruise. I am certain I will be frequanting this board often during our wait.:) Our plan is to do the 18 day out of Perth back to Sydney and will be visiting many of the named Ports. We will then spend 3 days Post cruise in Sydney and right now am thinking Circular Quay will be our best place to stay, any opinions. Thank you.

So pleased you are coming to visit...we love visitors. If you do a forum search on "sydney hotels" you will find the threads discussing all the CBD hotels. Sydney's Central Business District is quite small so you will be fine in any of the city hotels they are close to public transport and a short taxi ride from the Quay. Use Priceline to bid for a room so that you can get a reasonable price as the hotels can be pretty expensive.

Personal favourite for reasonable price and central location is the Amora Jamison but there are plenty to pick from.

Sue

Sue thank you for the tips. I also have friends who recently came back from their trip and one is compiling information for me and things they did and recommend. I did notice both the 2012 & 2013 Roll Calls are very small so I hope ours does better for 2014. After our huge TA RC, it might be nice for a smaller one.:)

Gay

Route 555: Free Sydney CBD Shuttle

The free Sydney CBD Shuttle runs every 10 minutes. The service operates in both directions on a loop from Central Station to Circular Quay via Elizabeth and George Streets.

Hours of operation are:

Weekdays: 9.30am to 3.30pm, with a late finish of 9pm on Thursday evenings.

Weekends: 9.30am to 6.00pm.

View a map of the Sydney CBD shuttle service.

http://www.131500.com.au/tickets/upload/docs/555map.pdf

This free bus is handy if you choose a hotel in the centre of the CBD, rather than Circular Quay.

Sydney Visitor Centres, The Rocks and Darling Harbour -

http://www.shfa.nsw.gov.au/sydney-For_visitors-Sydney_Visitor_Centres.htm

Sydney Harbour Federation Trust - walks, etc. -

http://www.harbourtrust.gov.au/things-to-see/exploring/walks/

Just for starters. Enjoy Planning! Terry in Ohio

Good morning Terry and thank you, will copy and print out. It is fun to plan.:) although I best take it easy this time, with a 17 month wait for our TA and handling our huge Roll Call last time, I think I almost burned out. We had something like 470 at the M&M. i told our friends from the TA I think I will sit back on this one, and their reply, " sure right like we believe that". :D The roll Call is still active even now with a few of us.

Gay

Hi Terry, We live in Columbus area also - northwest of it. We just came back from Australia last month, we did the cruise with Diamond Princess at Jan.23 to Feb. 4 from Auckland to Sydney, then five nights outback cruisetours with Princess and three nights in Sydney. This was our first time cruise with Princess and the itinerary were good enough for us. Well, we were not disappointed, even ship's shore excursion - Tauranga, Akaroa and Hobart, unfortunely, we missed the Fiorland National Park due to hight wind after we depared from Dunedin port. We booked only one private tour with Back to Nature in Dunedin and that was wonderful and I am ready to go back there. I couldn't said it better,Goldyagolfer was right on about your advice on the Europe trip, I saw your suggestion when we were planning the trip to Mediteranen with Oceania Cruise, it was very helpful. Thank you. Hsiu

Hi, Hsiu, our central Ohio neighbor!! Appreciate your nice comments on my Med/Europe tips/photos, etc. YES! Would love to chat more by phone on your great personal and recent experiences in NZ & Australia. Let me know if there's a way to hook up and discuss more on what you liked and did; tips and secrets, etc.

We're now booked for our Feb. 2-16, 2014 cruise. It's a long way off, but it helps to get better, early pricing, plus picking cabin locations to fit our interests. Got a couple of other couples, so far, booked and traveling with us. That will make it easier to share some private tours, etc. Have started to building my "book" on laptop with various info items, background, etc., for each of the various ports during the cruise, plus going up to the Great Barrier Reef at the end.

THANKS to Gay, Sue, MMDown Under, etc., for the wonderful insights! Keep it coming!! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, 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 70,895 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 details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 64,304 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

I should use another means to plan our travels other then a folder to separate the differant information. I generally, divide it up with Hotels, flights, Ports & Tours. Now if I had a laptop or Notepad, everything could be stored in that and no paperwork. We haven't booked our Australia cruise yet and already have the small binder going.:). ya think I am rushing this a tad.:D

Gay

Hi Terry, Yes, how about email show.tseng9@gmail.com

I didn't do much planning for our last trip to NZ- AUS, we let Princess Cruise do almost all the arrangement. It was easier than the Med. trip that we took in 2010. You are a top notch organizer and highly skill person, I am afraid that I might not be able to provide any useful information.

Hsiu

Hi Terry, Yes, how about email show.tseng9@gmail.com I didn't do much planning for our last trip to NZ- AUS, we let Princess Cruise do almost all the arrangement. It was easier than the Med. trip that we took in 2010. You are a top notch organizer and highly skill person, I am afraid that I might not be able to provide any useful information. Hsiu

Appreciate, Hslu, your willingness to help AND also your kind comments on my organizing and other skills. My wife views me differently in wishing I would do some home chores as well as the travel items/research gets my attention. I'll shoot you an e-mail and hopefully we can hook up by phone.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, 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 71,463 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

Terry, my DH has the opposite situation once I book our cruises, he loses me to the Roll Calls and endless researching of the ports and organizing. Our last cruise, we had the largest roll call ever seen according to Royal Caribbean and I was almost locked to my computer 24/7, Keeping track of over 250 couples. New arrivals were coming in so fast, I was tracking down information. I had a backup assistant, who would update the spreadsheet and send that out to those who wished it. I also tried something new, and that was setting up another list, showing everyone by their room #'s ( Deck List) Due to the size of our group it made it so much easier to post that list then someone got the fun idea of naming our Decks. We had the 6 Shooters, Lucky 7's, Grand 8's etc.:). Some who visited thought it was a bit dumb, but we had fun with it.

Gay

Terry, my DH has the opposite situation once I book our cruises, he loses me to the Roll Calls and endless researching of the ports and organizing. Our last cruise, we had the largest roll call ever seen according to Royal Caribbean and I was almost locked to my computer 24/7, Keeping track of over 250 couples. New arrivals were coming in so fast, I was tracking down information. I had a backup assistant, who would update the spreadsheet and send that out to those who wished it. I also tried something new, and that was setting up another list, showing everyone by their room #'s ( Deck List) Due to the size of our group it made it so much easier to post that list then someone got the fun idea of naming our Decks. We had the 6 Shooters, Lucky 7's, Grand 8's etc.:). Some who visited thought it was a bit dumb, but we had fun with it. Gay

WOW!!! That's an amazing number of people to have on a roll call. I assume part of it was being a trans Atlantic cruise. Those TA's seem to attract a little different type of cruiser and more interest on making those "connections".

I like to do some posting on these boards, BUT, that level of "work" would be a little too much for me. Glad you did it and I'm sure it was fun and exciting.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, 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 71,734 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

We had a few singles, and the bulk of our CC Members were out of FL naturally since the TA did end in FT Lauderdale, the remaining members were the rest of US, Canada, UK, Germany, Netherlands. Our actuall M&M count was around #470 and we finally ended up in the Sphinx Louge on the LOS. When I said they were coming in fast, we had around 120 in a 1 1/2 weeks on the Roll Call. We had a wonderful group and I had never seen that many and have them all be active. My assistant was a lifesaver, since I was out of commission for a month following surgery and by this time we had slowed down with new arrivals. He set up the spreadsheet alphabetically by screen name then sent the file to me and others who wished to keep track of everyone. One lady started a Web site which helped all of us keep track of the tours planned etc and I doubt I will want to undertake such a large one again, but enjoyed doing it.

Gay

Hi Terry,

one land trip that you should do is the trip to rotorua. it is an unique geothermal area with geysers and mud pools. of course, if you've already seen this in the USA, then it would not be so special to see it in NZ.

the nearest port is tauranga. it was the only port that had rental cars available for hire at the dock.

the fiordland region was magnificent. ah, milford sound!! yes, your camera will be working overtime here. we were fortunate and had a fantastic sunny day for our trip into the region.

Hi Terry, one land trip that you should do is the trip to rotorua. it is an unique geothermal area with geysers and mud pools. of course, if you've already seen this in the USA, then it would not be so special to see it in NZ. the nearest port is tauranga. it was the only port that had rental cars available for hire at the dock. the fiordland region was magnificent. ah, milford sound!! yes, your camera will be working overtime here. we were fortunate and had a fantastic sunny day for our trip into the region.

Appreciate the excellent suggestion from our Sydney friend on the tip about Rotorua near Tauranga. I'm already at 119 pages of various items, ports options, news clips, etc., pulled together for the various aspects on this trip. I had gotten a little info on Rotorua and it sounds very interesting. On Sydney, we were discussing these trip potential and options with our friends last night and had a good "little debate". Sydney is great for the bridge, Opera House and Harbor. Want to see that 100%!!! But, we don't want to just see the regular or average "city" stuff that we've done in many other places in Europe (vis and the USA.

Two-part question:

1. What's really specially and unique that are "can't miss" in addition to the Opera House, Bridge and Harbor for Sydney? Beaches are nice, but not as much in our "must-see" range.

2. What's nearby and somewhat close to Sydney that gives us something really special and unique that has more of the nature, wildlife, etc., side/flavor of Australia?

Since you're from Sydney, Australia, these two questions seem right up your alley and knowledge base. Let us know from you or others your reactions, tips, ideas, etc.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, 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 71,930 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 details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 64,793 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

Hi Terry,

have a look at this thread here on CC about visiting featherdale and the blue mountains.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1608619

for the other person, the advice was to leave featherdale out of their trip as they were already doing other wildlife plarks.

for your travels, going to see the blue mountains and featherdale would be something quite 'australian'. a tour would be the best way to go...no need to find the transport hubs, navigate strange roads etc and you'd be able to relax and enjoy the commentary.

in one tour, you'd see the countryside, the beautiful blue mountains and also see some native animals up close.

if time is a factor, there are other options to see the native animals closer in to sydney...the taronga zoo (via a ferry trip) or wildlife world (smaller scale than the zoo but very easy to get to) at darling harbour

happy to help if you need any more tips

Dunedin - We did the Taieri Gorge Railway trip which we had pre-booked direct with the Railway Company. The ship will probably offer much the same trip and the train will leave directly from the pier. However, it will be twice the price. There is a bus available to the Railway Station (the building is well worth seeing - it's a fine example of colonial architecture) and the same bus will offer a tour of the town/city on the return to the ship. This train trip is really all about scenery and we really enjoyed it.

We are seriously considering the train trip when we dock in Dunedin next March. I'm trying to get some info about the bus tour after. Where does it go? Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Kim

Dunedin - We did the Taieri Gorge Railway trip which we had pre-booked direct with the Railway Company.

With two large ships in port, this tour was only available through the ships since they had fully booked the train(s). The sign in Dunedin's railroad station said: No train today!