New Zealand Shore Excursion Choices - Which one?

[blondie1234]

I am most interested in scenery; also one member of the party has walking limitations so we want to minimize any long walks

 

Taurango: There is a half day tour to see a Maori performance; or alternatively there is the tour that goes to see the sheep, the geysers and you also get a Maori performance. is the latter tour a lot of walking at the geysers?

 

Wellington: We were thinking of doing the Storm Coast tour where you see scenery and sheep; and then doing Wellington on our own in the afternoon, going to the cable car. Is this within walking distance from the ship or do you have to take a cab?

 

Akoroa: Choice here is the Banks Pensiula half day tour, the Lord of the Rings tour, the train ride or the on your own trip to Christchurch. We are thinking that the train at $329 is overpriced and probably would not be that much better scenery than Fjordland. So we are thinking either the half day Banks Peninsula (where you also go to some farm) or the Lord of the Rings tour. Any thoughts?

 

Dunedin: We were thinking of doing the train ride, the Takeri one. There is also the Oteri (or something like that), that is a shorter train ride. Which one is better?

 

Any suggestions would be great!

[Aquarians]

I am most interested in scenery; also one member of the party has walking limitations so we want to minimize any long walks

 

Taurango: There is a half day tour to see a Maori performance; or alternatively there is the tour that goes to see the sheep, the geysers and you also get a Maori performance. is the latter tour a lot of walking at the geysers?

 

Wellington: We were thinking of doing the Storm Coast tour where you see scenery and sheep; and then doing Wellington on our own in the afternoon, going to the cable car. Is this within walking distance from the ship or do you have to take a cab?

 

Akoroa: Choice here is the Banks Pensiula half day tour, the Lord of the Rings tour, the train ride or the on your own trip to Christchurch. We are thinking that the train at $329 is overpriced and probably would not be that much better scenery than Fjordland. So we are thinking either the half day Banks Peninsula (where you also go to some farm) or the Lord of the Rings tour. Any thoughts?

 

Dunedin: We were thinking of doing the train ride, the Takeri one. There is also the Oteri (or something like that), that is a shorter train ride. Which one is better?

 

Any suggestions would be great!

Kia ora,

In order to offer suggestions it would be helpful to know the extent of walking limitations, where you are from etc. and more information on the tours you are looking at. Eg. Tauranga, it appears you intend to see Rotorua; which geo-thermal area (Hells Gate, Whaka, Te Puia, Wai-o-tapu etc. etc), are 'the sheep' at the Agro Dome? Wellington is a flat walk from the ship to the CBD, but if there are mobility issues it could be advisable to avail yourself of the (usually) free bus from the ship. I suggest a perusal of previous posts on this board too as I'm sure you will get helpful advice from them.

Aquarians

[kiwijo]

Hey there! I can see the Dawn Princess glistening on Wellington's waters right now. You didn't say what ship you're visiting on, so transport prices do depend a little on that. The cruise terminal in Wellington is a flat stroll from the downtown area - say 30 minutes walk to the Cable Car entrance - for those of average fitness. If there's mobility issues, all the ships have shuttle options from the terminal to the city and it just depends on the line as to the cost. The Cable Car is wheelchair accessible. Actually, the Visitor Centre and lower paths of the ZEALANDIA Sanctuary and obviously Te Papa, the national museum, are all easy for those with mobility issues too. There are cabs just outside the cruise terminal although these aren't always wheelchair accessible.

[blondie1234]

She can walk 5 maybe 10 minutes very slowly with a cane. It is unclear to me from the tour descriptions at Te Papa in Rotorua how much walking it is to see the geysers, etc. and also how much walking is at the Astrodome,

 

The Princess brochure says. 650 yards at Te Papa. But on the tour is that all at once, like you have to walk that much just to reach it from the parking lot or do you stop along the way, so that is where they are getting 650 yards?

 

She has trouble keeping up w the group if it is long walking all at once so we would want to know more about what the procedure is at Te Papa and Astrodome like if the walking is long distances all at once or whether it is a series of short walks.

 

We will be on Diamond Princess next week!

[kuldalai]

In Dunedin do the Trieri Gorge rail tour it is worth every penny,and one of the World;s great railway trips .

 

Take it as Princess Ships Tour and it departs by train from the wharf and returns you there by train right back to shipside .

 

Not to be confused with the Trieri Gorge and Larnach Castle tour which is longer and more expensive, which also takes you by bus to the Otago Peninsula to see the much over hyped Larnach Castle. It is not really a castle rather a gracious residence with a view masquerading as a castle, and raking in every tourist $ they can .

[cjm66]

I am most interested in scenery; also one member of the party has walking limitations so we want to minimize any long walks

 

My comments are based on your later post about the walking limitations of 10 mins slowly.

 

Taurango: There is a half day tour to see a Maori performance; or alternatively there is the tour that goes to see the sheep, the geysers and you also get a Maori performance. is the latter tour a lot of walking at the geysers?

 

I have done the full day tour you describe. Ther walking demands at the Agro Dome (Sheep) are not significant, but I suggest you send an advance party ahead to select your seats while your friend and companion follow. I enjoyed this show. The Maori performance on the full day tour will probably be over lunch and will also only involve walking from the coach into the hotel function room. It could be any one of a few parks for the Geyser and all involve walking - some down and then up a slope. BUT if it is Te Puia park you can see the Geyser from one of the terraces and there is a restaurant area at the top, where your friend could rest while others did the more strenuous walk down and back - or she could try and see what she can manage.

 

Wellington: We were thinking of doing the Storm Coast tour where you see scenery and sheep; and then doing Wellington on our own in the afternoon, going to the cable car. Is this within walking distance from the ship or do you have to take a cab?

 

The walk from where the shuttle drops you to the cable car is short and there is a shuttle back at the other end. Walking back through the Botanic Gardens would be too much - perhaps you could split into two groups for this. If you decide to go to the Te Papa Museum, the walk there is longer than you expect if you take the route along the harbour - take the less scenic one - the I site will give you a map. At Te papa there are wheelchairs for lending out and the I Site has a scooters for hire. Act fast if you want one of these.

 

Te Papa

 

http://tepapa.govt.nz/VisitingTePapa/ServicesAndFacilities/pages/specialaccessneeds.aspx#wheelchairs

 

Scooters

 

http://www.wellingtonnz.com/search/site/scooter

 

 

Akoroa: Choice here is the Banks Pensiula half day tour, the Lord of the Rings tour, the train ride or the on your own trip to Christchurch. We are thinking that the train at $329 is overpriced and probably would not be that much better scenery than Fjordland. So we are thinking either the half day Banks Peninsula (where you also go to some farm) or the Lord of the Rings tour. Any thoughts?

 

Akaroa will be new for us. We have decided against the train - doing the one in Dunedin instead. No idea about the other tours.

 

Dunedin: We were thinking of doing the train ride, the Takeri one. There is also the Oteri (or something like that), that is a shorter train ride. Which one is better?

 

Taieri Gorge definitely.

 

Any suggestions would be great!

 

Hope this helps. We travel with a scooter so have some idea of the accessability and walking sistances involved. Your friend may not enjoy using a wheelchair or a scooter - the options are there is she would.

 

Colleen

[Aquarians]

She can walk 5 maybe 10 minutes very slowly with a cane. It is unclear to me from the tour descriptions at Te Papa in Rotorua how much walking it is to see the geysers, etc. and also how much walking is at the Astrodome,

 

The Princess brochure says. 650 yards at Te Papa. But on the tour is that all at once, like you have to walk that much just to reach it from the parking lot or do you stop along the way, so that is where they are getting 650 yards?

 

She has trouble keeping up w the group if it is long walking all at once so we would want to know more about what the procedure is at Te Papa and Astrodome like if the walking is long distances all at once or whether it is a series of short walks.

 

We will be on Diamond Princess next week!

Kia ora,

Te Papa is NZ's national museum in Wellington & as mentioned, there should be a bus from the ship into town where it is flat walking & wheel chair friendly.

Regarding Rotorua, if it is the AGROdome then there are only short walks. Transport is in 'carts' around the farm area. With regard to the geo-thermal areas, Te Puia would be the easiest but still involves walking (or wheelchair) on sealed footpaths (some slopes). Te Puia has a purpose built marae for cultural shows, as does Whaka which has a 'living' marae. However, even without that there are 'free' geo-thermal areas to be seen in and around the city, such as Kuirau park or Ohinemutu where minimal walking is needed. Trust this helps

Aquarians

[blondie1234]

Yes, it is tu Puia that is the geyser that will be going to, we go there for the geysers and cultural show, then to the Agrodome,

 

So from what I understand the only real walking is at the geysers. She would have no problem waiting for us on a bench or something when we go to the geysers so imagine there would be somewhere for her to sit.

 

I wonder of anyone had been on the Princes tour that goes to these places? Does the tour guide give you a tour of the geysers or is it that they just say here are the geysers, meet me back here in an hour and you walk around by yourself? It is the tour called, Te Puia, Agrodome and Maori cultural show o believe, the 9 hour one.

[blondie1234]

Also at the Agrodome, ww are only going to sheep show. te puia, the geyser place, is the one Princess says has 650 yards walking though not clear if that is all at once or in total with stops to look at things,

[blondie1234]

I figured too that the Larnach castle was not worth paying $50 more for. I have been to many castles in Europe, I do not need more.

 

To poster who decided not to do train in Akatoa: why did you choose the train in Dunedin and not Akoroa? Is it because the train is better in Dunedin, better views I mean?

 

It does not seem to me that the train in Akoroa, which is $329, is worth the cost, I guess Princess has to charter the train so it costs so much, but still, it seems very steep for just a train ride, considering you can do the train in Dunedin.

 

I think that day we will do the all day scenery tour to see lord of the rings, mt. Sunday. Mt Potts, etc

[cjm66]

Yes, it is tu Puia that is the geyser that will be going to, we go there for the geysers and cultural show, then to the Agrodome,

 

So from what I understand the only real walking is at the geysers. She would have no problem waiting for us on a bench or something when we go to the geysers so imagine there would be somewhere for her to sit.

 

I wonder of anyone had been on the Princes tour that goes to these places? Does the tour guide give you a tour of the geysers or is it that they just say here are the geysers, meet me back here in an hour and you walk around by yourself? It is the tour called, Te Puia, Agrodome and Maori cultural show o believe, the 9 hour one.

 

On the tour I did we were assigned to a guide who walked us down the winding path from the restaurant and entrance area past a mud pool and around to the geyser. No compulsion to stick with the group, although they did try. There were limited seats for rests along the way and a good seating area at the top for people to sit, have a drink or snack and shop (of course). The details could vary as it was several years ago. There was time to do your own thing if you wanted. Our cultural show was at a separate site - they were renovating Te Puia at the time. There was a ceremonial welcome at the bottom of the hill in an opena area. I suggest you book and check the details once on board with the shore tour desk so you know exactly what to expect.

 

Colleen