Golden Princess New Zealand 11th to 24th February 2016 - Complete Picture Review!

[riclop]

Thanks for your review.

[hopestotravelmore]

We decided to get some afternoon tea at the International Café, while waiting for sail away. I love the cookies and fruit breads at the international café. We sat in the Lobby Bar (sorry forgot to get pictures of this bar) on the Piazza deck, deck 5 and people watched while listening to Guitar Vocalist Teodor perform. Such a wonderful life isn’t it. I could live the rest of my life like this – cruising from country to country, eating yummy food, listening to beautiful music, drinking divine wine. Who wants to join me?

 

 

Anchor Aweigh – The Golden lifted its anchor at 17.44 and away we sailed towards Wellington and the North Island. We enjoyed sail away up on Deck 15 and listened to a Pink concert on the MUTS.

 

Dinner tonight was in the dining room – Hooray – I got my way for once…smiles. We sat with a lovely bunch of people at a table for 8. I had ordered a bottle of wine ($43.75) on day 2 (I think) and they bought it out for me each evening I went to the dining room. It took me a few days to finish that bottle of wine but I had to behave. Wine does silly things to me and I didn’t want to embarrass myself.

 

After dinner we headed to the Princess Theatre for the 8pm Tribute Showtime Soul Mates. It was called Motor City and it paid tribute to the stars of Motown. Now don’t laugh at me, but I didn’t know what Motown was and had to google it. If there are any dumb people out there like me here is a great link all about Motown - https://www.motownmuseum.org/story/motown/

 

All I can say is you learn something new every day. James thought it was boring and left (10 minutes into the show) me to go up onto Deck 15 and the Tradewinds where he watched The Man from U.N.C.L.E. I thought it was good musical. They are such charming singers and dancers.

 

Our Cruise Director – Neil Rose, born in Kent, England was a very funny man. I used to watch him and his side kick, Corey some mornings on the Wake Show on the TV. Corey was also a scream. Very amusing guys and I often saw them around the ship.

 

We watched the sun set over the ocean and then made our way to the Promenade lounge to listen to the Scottish One before one last smoke (James) on the Promenade deck then we called it a night.

 

 

 

Here is the room service thing you place out your door at night if you want breakfast in your room. I wanted to do this but some meany (and I won’t mention names) didn’t. How sad was that not to experience breaky in your stateroom.

 

[hopestotravelmore]

Cheers, the review is wonderful and the pictures are great as well. Really enjoying it. :D

 

Thank you Mic and Riclop

[Woobstr112G]

After lunch we met up with Tour South for our afternoon excursion. This is what we paid for

 

Tour South - http://www.toursouth.co.nz/index.php

 

“Quick Fire – Akaroa & Eastern Bays

 

Departs twice daily at 10:00 am & 1:30 pm

 

3 hour duration

 

11 Passenger Mercedes Luxury - shared tour

 

$60 per Adult & $42 per Child (4 to 14 years)

 

Get the best of both worlds. Take this fully escorted 3 hour Quick Fire Tour with us and you will still have plenty of time to explore charming Akaroa and all it has to offer.

 

Tour Highlights

 

Historic Akaroa Township - a charming French inspired village

 

Crater Rim Views - stunning views from elevation of the harbour & surrounding areas

 

Picturesque Eastern Bays - secluded haven and rugged coastlines

 

Summit Road lookout - Panorama of the Akaroa Peninsula & "The long Harbour"

 

Tikao Bay Lookout - Dramatic close up views of your cruise ship against the stunning back drop of the harbour entrance

 

On our return to the seaside village of Akaroa, we offer as an added bonus the choice of various drop off points which include .. The Giants House, the markets and shops at the northern end of town, the Historic lighthouse or the tender wharf itself.

 

Worry-free guarantee get you back to the ship before sailing time.”

 

Because our harbour cruise had been cancelled, I was worried that we would cover the same ground as our motor bike tour in the morning. But there was no need to fret as we had a relaxing wonderful afternoon tour with Tour South. Thanks Guys. I regret that I misplaced our tour guide/drivers name. Sorry about that but he was a wonderful man full of interesting facts about his home and you could see the love he felt for his country. I do have a picture of him though. But for now we will call our driver/guide Bluey (cause of his blue shirt).

 

 

Here is a pretty church we visited on our drive around the Banks Peninsula – St Luke’s Church of England Little Akaloa. Such a peaceful location for a church and Churchyard cemetery, don’t you think? Bluey informed us about another guest who loved the tranquil location of the cemetery that she wanted to be buried here. Gee, you learn such fun info from touring with a local, don’t you think? I believe so as that is why I love booking private tour companies in each area we travel to.

 

 

St Luke’s Church was built in 1906 by a local farmer, John Menzie and has one of New Zealand’s earliest examples of Maori Carvings

 

 

Little Akaloa is a farming settlement about 25kms north of Akaroa. Its stunning bay provides shelter for a number of small boats.

 

Our van hugged the steep and narrow roads, we saw many small coves, lots of remote farmlands and isolated homesteads. The wild landscape was breathtaking.

 

 

We passed minor settlements as we travelled, even stopping for a quick photo of the Chorlton Post Office.

 

 

We even passed through the little Historic Precinct of Okains Bay, comprises of library, school and Okains Bay Maori and Colonial Museum. They were not open the day we passed through.

 

 

Simply amazing pictures. DW and I loved our AUS/NZ cruise in 2009 and hope to repeat it someday.....

 

Bob

Edited March 20, 2016 by Woobstr112G

[hopestotravelmore]

Thanks Bob. Yes hubby and I are the same. This was our second trip to NZ and we want to go back and hire a van for about 6 to 8 weeks and really see the country. Just need the time.

[Woobstr112G]

Thanks Bob. Yes hubby and I are the same. This was our second trip to NZ and we want to go back and hire a van for about 6 to 8 weeks and really see the country. Just need the time.

 

Same here regarding time. I'm still about 1-2 years away from retirement.....:):):)

 

Bob

[MargoK]

Wonderful review and photos.

 

Will post a link our our Christmas Cruise for those who have yet to spot this.

[hopestotravelmore]

Same here regarding time. I'm still about 1-2 years away from retirement.....:):):)

 

Bob

How sad but I have another 10 years before retirement...sad

[hopestotravelmore]

Wonderful review and photos.

 

Will post a link our our Christmas Cruise for those who have yet to spot this.

 

Hello Margo

Thanks for the kind comments. I have been to your website and read about your new zealand cruise while planning this trip. Its a great blog.

[hopestotravelmore]

Wednesday Feb. 17 Todays Weather 23

 

Wellington arrive 8am - all aboard 4.30pm

 

 

We headed up to breakfast around 7am and found that we had arrived in Wellington. The sky was overcast, certainly not what we had been used to since leaving Australia. Wellington is New Zealand’s capital and its population is around 397,700. The Maori have called Wellington home since the 10th century and the city of Wellington was founded by the Europeans in 1840.

 

In planning our day in Wellington, I was unsure what to do. Hubby is the sort of person that is happy to leave all the planning to someone else. I knew the cable car would interest James and the Te Papa museum sounded real cool along with Old St Paul’s Church and of course you had to check out the view from top of Mount Victoria. As a Lord of the Rings fan, I wanted to check out Weta Cave.

 

Actually, I wanted to do a Lord of the Rings Tour while in New Zealand, but I knew James would hate it so I made a decision early on in the organizing to forget any lord of the rings tours. But I don’t count the Weta Caves as a tour. Right…it’s only a shop…right. But how would we get to all these things which were scattered around the city. Thank god for the internet, as I eventually found a small Hop on Hop off van that sounded just right and only cost us $45pp. And don’t forget that we love the idea of a guided tour because you learn such interesting stories from these locals.

 

Wellington Hop On Hop Off Guided Tours http://www.hoponhopoff.co.nz

 

Bookings were essential and it was only a small van that carried 10 of us plus our local guide/driver. And once again I forget to write down his name. But he was extraordinary and such a knowledgeable man on his beloved city. This tour was for 2 hours but you could get off and on if you wish. We decided to stay on until stop 16. There were 17 stops and 4 of those were photo stops (top of Mt Victoria, Weta Cave, Top of the Cable Car and old St Pauls).

 

Since we were allowed to leave the ship at 8am, I made sure we were off the Golden as early as possible. I want to see as much as I can while in port. I am like that wherever I go. You can always sleep back home, I tell James. His idea of a holiday is to tour in the morning and sleep and rest in the afternoon. A shuttle bus was available at the port and cost $5 (which we caught) and can be used all day. It stops at the i-site visitor centre and Cable car at Lambton Quay.

 

We were meeting our van at 10am at the i-site visitor centre. So we had 2 hours to fill in. Cable car sounded like a great idea before it got too busy with tourists.

 

By the way, you know how I said that the times in ports had changed. Wellington was one of them. On our original course we were supposed to be in Wellington from 8 to 6pm. Now we were leaving at 4.30. So sad.

 

For anyone interested, there was free Wi-Fi in downtown Wellington, Aotea Quay cruise terminal or at the Te Papa Museum.

 

When we arrived at the Cable Car there was no line so we brought a one way ticket for $8.00

 

 

The Wellington Cable Car climbs 120 metres in 5 minutes and it’s not just for tourists as we learnt later that students and people who live in the suburb of Kelburn. The cars run every 10 minutes.

 

Martin Kennedy (a business man) came up with the idea for the new suburb of Kelburn. The car was designed by James Fulton and began in 1899 and opened in 1902 carrying over 4000 on its first weekend. In 1933 electricity replaced steam to power the cable car.

 

 

It was a fun ride in the little red car and didn’t take long to reach the Kelburn terminus at the top. We admired the stunning view at the cable car lookout and then when the Cable Car Museum opened we went in for a visit. This museum has 2 of the original cars and all the winding gear that was used to haul the cars up the steep incline. Admission to the museum was free.

 

 

Now this is where things got complicated. We were going to buy a return ticket but the lady who sold us our tickets said we would have time to walk down through the gardens. Please when you have a set time for a tour, do not listen to people like this. Our walk through the Botanic Gardens was rushed especially when a particular person stopped to pat a cute little dog and talk to its owner. No names again please but a particular hubby was not impressed. The gardens are 25 hectares of protected native forest and some pretty flowers and the walk is all downhill. Don’t listen to the brochures that say it’s an enjoyable leisurely stroll that should take about 40 minutes.

 

It was far from enjoyable and leisurely for us. We ended up taking the Te Aroa National Walkway which led us through the Main gate and then headed over Bolton Street and across the Wellington Motorway. I kept telling James that we were going in the opposite direction to what we should have been and it was now 9.45 and I was not a happy woman. Those streets around Bolton Street were so steep even James had trouble. By the time we found the i-site visitor centre we were snapping at each other. We should have gone north. Bloody husband, think they know it all. Smiles. I guess because I had been studying Wellington for weeks before we left, I knew that the Bolton Street area takes you back to the ship.

 

Anyway, we were 10 minutes late getting to our pick up area for the van, but thank goodness they waited for us. Red faced with embarrassment we apologized to everyone for holding them up and quietly took our seats.

Edited March 20, 2016 by hopestotravelmore

[crochetcruise]

We decided to get some afternoon tea at the International Café, while waiting for sail away. I love the cookies and fruit breads at the international café. We sat in the Lobby Bar (sorry forgot to get pictures of this bar) on the Piazza deck, deck 5 and people watched while listening to Guitar Vocalist Teodor perform. Such a wonderful life isn’t it. I could live the rest of my life like this – cruising from country to country, eating yummy food, listening to beautiful music, drinking divine wine. Who wants to join me?

 

 

Anchor Aweigh – The Golden lifted its anchor at 17.44 and away we sailed towards Wellington and the North Island. We enjoyed sail away up on Deck 15 and listened to a Pink concert on the MUTS.

 

Dinner tonight was in the dining room – Hooray – I got my way for once…smiles. We sat with a lovely bunch of people at a table for 8. I had ordered a bottle of wine ($43.75) on day 2 (I think) and they bought it out for me each evening I went to the dining room. It took me a few days to finish that bottle of wine but I had to behave. Wine does silly things to me and I didn’t want to embarrass myself.

 

After dinner we headed to the Princess Theatre for the 8pm Tribute Showtime Soul Mates. It was called Motor City and it paid tribute to the stars of Motown. Now don’t laugh at me, but I didn’t know what Motown was and had to google it. If there are any dumb people out there like me here is a great link all about Motown - https://www.motownmuseum.org/story/motown/

 

All I can say is you learn something new every day. James thought it was boring and left (10 minutes into the show) me to go up onto Deck 15 and the Tradewinds where he watched The Man from U.N.C.L.E. I thought it was good musical. They are such charming singers and dancers.

 

Our Cruise Director – Neil Rose, born in Kent, England was a very funny man. I used to watch him and his side kick, Corey some mornings on the Wake Show on the TV. Corey was also a scream. Very amusing guys and I often saw them around the ship.

 

We watched the sun set over the ocean and then made our way to the Promenade lounge to listen to the Scottish One before one last smoke (James) on the Promenade deck then we called it a night.

 

 

 

Here is the room service thing you place out your door at night if you want breakfast in your room. I wanted to do this but some meany (and I won’t mention names) didn’t. How sad was that not to experience breaky in your stateroom.

 

 

Wonderful photos. I'm on the Golden Princess sailing from Sydney 11/11/2016 to Melbourne. Have noted to get photos of the Lobby Bar, and put another Memory card on my shopping list. I keep a list of what's needed, and watch for the specials!

 

I've got breakfast at Sabatini's but will get Room Service the last morning. Promise to take photos for you.

[hopestotravelmore]

Wonderful photos. I'm on the Golden Princess sailing from Sydney 11/11/2016 to Melbourne. Have noted to get photos of the Lobby Bar, and put another Memory card on my shopping list. I keep a list of what's needed, and watch for the specials!

 

I've got breakfast at Sabatini's but will get Room Service the last morning. Promise to take photos for you.

 

Crochetcruise, I notice this will be your first cruise to. You will love it. She is a beautiful ship. I miss her so much. :eek::(

If you do take photos of the lobby bar can I grab one or two for my photo book please. I took photos all all the areas except this bar and the childrens area because every time I went they were always locked.

[hopestotravelmore]

Our local guide who I will call Welly gave us some local chocolates and off we went. Welly told us all about Wellington as we drove around the city. The city is built on a major fault line and they also live with the fear of earthquakes. He explained about Building regulations in earthquake areas. Wellington is known as “Welly” by the locals. Here are our stops. Stop one was the i-site where we left from.

 

Stop 2: Courtney Place/Embassy theatre, stop 3: Oriental Parade, stop 4: Mt Victoria Lookout. We all got out here for a photo stop.

 

 

It began to rain lightly while we were taking our photos. You can see Wellington International Airport in the above photo (middle between the bay and the ocean). God it looked small from up Mt Victoria and it’s a dangerous airport to land at. Welly said that there were many planes that tried to land, but would quickly rise into the air again because of the wind and then they would fly to Auckland and land there. Well the small city is famous for its gale force winds after all. So remind me never to fly into Wellington. Mt Victoria is 190m high. Then we all got back into the van and continued on our journey.

 

Stop 5: Wellington Zoo, stop 6: Weta Cave which is another photo stop. We had 10 minutes here before we had to be back on the bus. I wasn’t going to be late after what happened before so I rushed around getting all my pictures. Before we came to New Zealand I had planned to spend an hour here as it takes one hour for the van to return to pick any one up who remained behind. I should explain that the hop on hop off tour has 17 stops and has an hourly pick up schedule for each stop.

 

 

But with the way we were feeling after our time in the gardens, we had enough of walking around and wanted to just take it easy plus we were still a little mad at each other. It was a big mistake on my part because I felt rushed at Weta Cave. It was the one place in Wellington I had been looking forward to the most. I would have loved to explore the shop and examine all the props and collectibles associated with Lord of the Rings. There is also a 30 minute behind the scene film and a shop with a huge range of merchandise. Oh well, there is next time in New Zealand. It was really cool in there to. Entry was free to.

 

 

 

 

As you all know Wellington is famous for its film industry and Welly told us that Peter Jackson has brought so much money to New Zealand that the government always listens to anything he has to say. I would to. I really enjoyed the little time I had Weta.

[MicCanberra]

What a shame about not having enough time at Weta, (I am a LOTR fan as well) but as you say, there is next time. love the ogre shots.:D

[hopestotravelmore]

What a shame about not having enough time at Weta, (I am a LOTR fan as well) but as you say, there is next time. love the ogre shots.:D

 

I know Mic. But next time I will do all the LOTR tours and James can go fishing as he loves to fish.

[hopestotravelmore]

Stop 7: War Memorial/Great War Exhibition. Some people left us here. If we had more time in Wellington I would have loved to get off at every stop but we only have so much time and had to choose a couple of things to do and Te Papa was on that list.

 

Stop 8: Cuba Quarter, Stop 9: Cable Car which was another photo stop. We stopped at the Cable car lookout and for us it was a rest stop, so we both visited the bathrooms. Stop 10: Zealandia, no one wanted to get off here so Welly didn’t even head in that direction. Stop 11: Botanic Gardens, stop 12: Parliament, stop 13: The National Library, stop 14: Old St Pauls and this was another photo stop where we all got out and checked out the inside of this lovely church. Welly came with us and gave us some facts about the church. The church is made entirely of native timber even its nails. It was built in a gothic style in 1866. This cathedral has magnificent stained-glass windows.

 

 

Stop 15: Wellington Museum, stop 16: Te Papa and stop 17: City Gallery. We got off at stop 16 and thanked Welly, as we would not return to the van because we wanted to walk back to the ship by the harbour front. Welly pointed out the way for us to go. The hop on hop off bus was a great way to see the city.

 

Te Papa is called the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (Our Place) and is one of the largest museums in the world and it truly was magnificent. It is spread over 6 floors with interactive displays. General admission is free.

 

Te Marae. Photograph by Norm Heke. Te Papa

Mākōtukutuku wharepuni, Mana Whenua. Photograph by Michael Hall. Te Papa

 

Our first stop at Te Papa was a lunch stop at the café. Then it was time to explore. First was - Bush city which was out in the open and you could see native bush, wetlands, volcanic landscapes. We then went to the Mountains of the Sea where we checked out the 495kg massive squid, which is the largest squid on display anywhere in the world.

 

We also checked out Te Marae (meeting house), Mana Whenua (Maori people), Makotukutuku Wharepuni (sleeping house) and Treaty of Waitongi exhibitions. My photos didn’t work out to well, which is a shame. We also headed outside and took a look at Quake Brakes a hands on display on earthquake protection for buildings.

 

We could have spent all day at the museum. The two hours we spent their was wonderful.

 

Next we headed down to the harbour front and walked back to our ship. This took an hour. It even began to rain again but it was a nice leisurely walk that we both enjoyed.

 

 

 

 

 

As we got closer to the ship we noticed this cool sign below

[Hawka]

Hi Hawka

 

Thanks for the kind words. So what did you do in each port? I really enjoyed the afternoon teas and wanted to go again but James didnt like it. Should have left him on the pool deck and gone on my own. Next time I will.

i had shore excursions booked at every port Piha for Auckland , was wonderful black sands etc had a slight bit of adventure when the tire was flat when we got back to the bus after a walk through the bush , but there was another bus near by to take us to the beach that was part of the tour , while another was sent up from auckland 40 minutes away ,

 

Tauranga i did maouri village with the Hangi meal and cultural tour loved it

 

Gisbourne i wanted to do the feed the rays but there was a thing about the weight etc of those doing it i was close to that i thought i may have been ok to do it but didnt want to risk not being able to due to not fitting into the waders they have you wear to go in and feed the rays , but i did hear that the tide was out and the rays did not come into the area that was shallower then usual to be fed , they were there but they never got fed by those on that tour , i did the brewery tour even though i don't drink beer , i did give that a go gave my un drunk beer to any that wanted it i did like the stout though and bought a 500 mil bottle for my brother , we also had lunch at a place on the beach that was lovely fresh bread wonderful meal a glass of wine or beer was included i did try the rosa and wish i got the name of it cause i loved it and we went to smash palace bar for a free drink and to look around was interesting

 

wellington i went to Zealandia and i think part of the botanical gardens as well it was a wet day for us then but it didnt stop us from enjoying it and learning about the animals, insects and birds of New Zealand

 

Akuroa i did the Dolphin watch and the double decker bus trip stopped for a few photos overlooking the bay etc and the pub at the top of the mountains and we went past that little post office, i enjoyed both and walked around the town was a beautiful place

 

Dunedin i did Olveston House , Larnach castle and stopped at the train station , loved all of that and when i was there the yellow flowers had not long come out on that arch in front of the castle it looked wonderful .

 

went into Doubtful/Thompson sound and Milford but sadly missed Dusky sound due to how low the clouds were when we near them

 

the ship broke down on the way home some here said for 3 hrs but i would not know as i was doing the tour of the ship at the time , we realised something was going wrong when we were in the control room but they did not tell us but the picture they accidently put up on the screen got changed quick as when the mistake was realised , didnt worry us too much at the time , when in the galley the power had turned off and then emergency generator i guess was turned on for what was needed which when we went up to the wheel house due to bridge part of tour getting cancelled meant no toilets or lights in toilets either , didnt affect me , had a balcony and the natural light helped me if i needed to go etc i read a book on my balcony till power came back on

 

2 whales were seen when we were about to go into Milford sound sadly i missed them , 100's of dolphins seen first sea day some more another day too and yep missed them too only ones i saw were the hectors at Ackuroa

 

if i did that cruise again there would be some tours i did and some places i would just explore the town i would love to do a self drive and see those area's again and take my time exploring them i reckon :)

 

largest waves we had that i know of was 2 and a half metres , my cabin at the front of the ship was great only felt a sway to a point heard the odd bang from a wave it all sent me to sleep every night i would loved to be able to leave the door open at night but didnt as i don't think that was allowed anyway but would have loved to breath that fresh sea air straight from the sea if it was allowed :)

[Hawka]

Would love to stay on that blue boat in the Sounds. It looks amazing.

 

it was we fed some seals [not sure if still done now ??] there was a dare by the bus tour guide to have a swim in that water in the morning and i have forgotten what the prize was but as much as i wanted too i didnt and no one else did either it was snowing up in the mountains the next morning [was drizzle where we were till we drove out into snow] we had a sunny day the day we arrived so saw it in both conditions was awesome , we saw dolphins and penguins too

[Hawka]

Crochetcruise, I notice this will be your first cruise to. You will love it. She is a beautiful ship. I miss her so much. :eek::(

If you do take photos of the lobby bar can I grab one or two for my photo book please. I took photos all all the areas except this bar and the childrens area because every time I went they were always locked.

i got the bar part but not the top part of the bar in a photo from deck 7 looking down will check my fb in case i have a phone pic of it

[utahtea]

I found my way to your review by way of the thread you started on the "Australia & New Zealand Cruisers" board that pointed my way here. Thank you for that. Like you I'm pouring over everything I can find for our upcoming cruise in September that includes Australia and New Zealand.

 

Even though you are on a Princess ship and I'll be on a Holland America ship, I thought I'd come to read about the ports you were visiting and just skip the other stuff. Little did I know that I'd get drawn in to your wonderful story telling and in one day I've read every word of your whole thread! It was like a good book I didn't want to put down.

 

We will be going to all the same ports except Gisborne and so far I've loved hearing about the ports and seeing your pictures. I look forward to the next installments.

 

We didn't have an excursion planned for Wellington so I looked into the Hop on Hop off tour from your link and they are already sold out for our day in port! :( We had planned on riding the cable car and just take our time walking though the gardens & around town. I guess we will stick with that.

 

Utahtea

[hopestotravelmore]

Gosh! We walked a lot today and by the time we returned to the ship we were hot and tired. So we both went for a swim at the Calypso Pool. There was no one in the pool, which is the way I like it.

 

 

 

Then it was snack time…pizza for me and a coffee and cake for James up deck 14, and then I wrote a nice long note to the kids and sent it by messenger through the ships internet. For the rest of the evening we just chilled out on Deck 15, grabbed something to eat in the Buffett and at 6.45 we watched the movie The Intern on MUTS. The pool boys came around with popcorn and cookies and milk. Sigh, I love this sort of life. It’s lovely.

 

The movie was very good and finished at 8.45pm. We decided to have an early night after such a busy day. Tomorrow is another tender port – Gisborne.

Edited March 21, 2016 by hopestotravelmore
spelling error

[hopestotravelmore]

i had shore excursions booked at every port Piha for Auckland , was wonderful black sands etc had a slight bit of adventure when the tire was flat when we got back to the bus after a walk through the bush , but there was another bus near by to take us to the beach that was part of the tour , while another was sent up from auckland 40 minutes away ,

 

Tauranga i did maouri village with the Hangi meal and cultural tour loved it

 

Gisbourne i wanted to do the feed the rays but there was a thing about the weight etc of those doing it i was close to that i thought i may have been ok to do it but didnt want to risk not being able to due to not fitting into the waders they have you wear to go in and feed the rays , but i did hear that the tide was out and the rays did not come into the area that was shallower then usual to be fed , they were there but they never got fed by those on that tour , i did the brewery tour even though i don't drink beer , i did give that a go gave my un drunk beer to any that wanted it i did like the stout though and bought a 500 mil bottle for my brother , we also had lunch at a place on the beach that was lovely fresh bread wonderful meal a glass of wine or beer was included i did try the rosa and wish i got the name of it cause i loved it and we went to smash palace bar for a free drink and to look around was interesting

 

wellington i went to Zealandia and i think part of the botanical gardens as well it was a wet day for us then but it didnt stop us from enjoying it and learning about the animals, insects and birds of New Zealand

 

Akuroa i did the Dolphin watch and the double decker bus trip stopped for a few photos overlooking the bay etc and the pub at the top of the mountains and we went past that little post office, i enjoyed both and walked around the town was a beautiful place

 

Dunedin i did Olveston House , Larnach castle and stopped at the train station , loved all of that and when i was there the yellow flowers had not long come out on that arch in front of the castle it looked wonderful .

 

went into Doubtful/Thompson sound and Milford but sadly missed Dusky sound due to how low the clouds were when we near them

 

the ship broke down on the way home some here said for 3 hrs but i would not know as i was doing the tour of the ship at the time , we realised something was going wrong when we were in the control room but they did not tell us but the picture they accidently put up on the screen got changed quick as when the mistake was realised , didnt worry us too much at the time , when in the galley the power had turned off and then emergency generator i guess was turned on for what was needed which when we went up to the wheel house due to bridge part of tour getting cancelled meant no toilets or lights in toilets either , didnt affect me , had a balcony and the natural light helped me if i needed to go etc i read a book on my balcony till power came back on

 

2 whales were seen when we were about to go into Milford sound sadly i missed them , 100's of dolphins seen first sea day some more another day too and yep missed them too only ones i saw were the hectors at Ackuroa

 

if i did that cruise again there would be some tours i did and some places i would just explore the town i would love to do a self drive and see those area's again and take my time exploring them i reckon :)

 

largest waves we had that i know of was 2 and a half metres , my cabin at the front of the ship was great only felt a sway to a point heard the odd bang from a wave it all sent me to sleep every night i would loved to be able to leave the door open at night but didnt as i don't think that was allowed anyway but would have loved to breath that fresh sea air straight from the sea if it was allowed :)

 

Hi

Sounds like you had a wonderful time. I wanted to do the double decker bus but you can’t do everything in just a day in port.

We did the sting rays at Gisborne. What a great time we had. That’s my next instalment.

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I found my way to your review by way of the thread you started on the "Australia & New Zealand Cruisers" board that pointed my way here. Thank you for that. Like you I'm pouring over everything I can find for our upcoming cruise in September that includes Australia and New Zealand.

 

Even though you are on a Princess ship and I'll be on a Holland America ship, I thought I'd come to read about the ports you were visiting and just skip the other stuff. Little did I know that I'd get drawn in to your wonderful story telling and in one day I've read every word of your whole thread! It was like a good book I didn't want to put down.

 

We will be going to all the same ports except Gisborne and so far I've loved hearing about the ports and seeing your pictures. I look forward to the next installments.

 

We didn't have an excursion planned for Wellington so I looked into the Hop on Hop off tour from your link and they are already sold out for our day in port! :( We had planned on riding the cable car and just take our time walking though the gardens & around town. I guess we will stick with that.

 

Utahtea

 

Hi Utahtea

Thank you for your kind comments. I hope you have a wonderful trip. Love NZ. That’s a shame for Welllington but I read someones review and the just hired a taxi at the port and were driven around for the day and it didn’t cost them to much.

Don’t forget to enjoy that garden walk in Wellington. We didn’t…to much of a rush.

I see you have done an Alaska tour. I so much want to do Alaska.

[hopestotravelmore]

Thursday Feb. 18th Todays Weather 25

 

Gisborne arrive 8am - all aboard 3.00pm

 

 

We arrived in Poverty Bay at 6.50am. The Golden docked in the inner harbour and today we were to ride the tenders once again.

 

I knew nothing about Gisborne. Every review I read usually talked about Napier. I wish I had booked a cruise that went to Napier. I always loved the pictures I saw of Napier. Oh well, next time I will study the itinerary extra carefully.

 

I read all I could find on Gisborne, which wasn’t much and liked the sound of a steam train ride which Princess offered. I booked this months ahead of time. Then one day I was reading all I have saved on Gisborne and read about Tatapouri Reef Walk and Stingray Feeding. So I thought once again we should leave our comfort zone and do something a little more exciting. I cancelled the train ride and was going to book the stingray feed privately but they emailed me back and said that Princess had booked the morning walk and if I wanted to do it I had to go with Princess. So Princess it was. Here is their website http://www.divetatapouri.com/reef-ecology-tour/

 

This is what we booked:

 

“Tatapouri Reef Walk & Stingray Feeding

GIS385A | Gisborne, New Zealand

Status: Confirmed

Depart: 10:00AM

Return: 01:00PM

Date: February 17, 2016

Tickets:

Adult: 2 @ $119.95 (AUD)

Billing Contact: Maureen Fritsch

This interactive reef tour immerses you in the dynamic marine ecosystem that surrounds the waters of New Zealand's East Coast. Explore Tatapouri Bay, home to stingrays (whai), eagle rays and other reef dwellers, on this fascinating and educational tour.

 

Board a comfortable motorcoach and travel north along the Pacific Coast highway to your coastal destination, Tatapouri Bay, enjoying views of Wainui Beach as you travel.

 

Dive Tatapouri is a family-owned operation, and you'll be greeted warmly by the staff upon your arrival. Once you've been outfitted in waders (high-wasted waterproof pants), head out with your knowledgeable guide to explore Tatapouri Bay's fascinating reef at low tide.

 

Wade comfortably into the water with your knowledgeable guide and learn more about the creatures you may encounter. Keep a keen eye out for short-tail stingrays, eagle rays, octopus, conger eels, yellowtail kingfish and more. You'll also learn the history of the Maori people, their ability to use and preserve their natural resources, and their local legends of Tangaroa, the god of the sea.

 

Your experience includes a wild stingray feeding, a high point for all. Stingrays, are graceful swimmers that appear to glide over the ocean floor. Their color is ideal camouflage, and their unusual anatomy, with their mouth on their belly, allows the species to feed efficiently on shrimp, crabs, small fish and worms. Stingrays have a very distinct tail with sharp, barb-covered spines which act as a defense against predators.

 

A few handfuls of food will bring the rays right up close to you. You'll be amazed at the gentleness and beauty of the rays. The experience is perfectly safe, and a naturalist guide will be with you at all times.

 

At the completion of the day, light refreshments are served, and the naturalist will stay to chat with you further about the environment and about the Maori people and their settlements along the coastline.

 

Relax on the drive back to port.”

 

 

After breakfast we headed down to the Princess Theatre where our meeting time was 7.45am. We were in Group 3 with 40 passengers in the group. Once it was our time to leave we followed a staff member out to the tender waiting for us.

 

 

The tender was a 30 minute ride each way. Last tender back to the ship will be 3.00pm

 

 

 

Once again we saw lots of timber ready to be shipped elsewhere in the world.

 

 

Free cruise ship shuttle bus departs from the harbour to CBD every ½ hour until 3.30pm. And the walk to CBD from the harbour takes about 10mins. You can find Free wi- fi hotspots around the city.

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By the way here was our Shore Excursion ticket that was waiting in our cabin and we had to show at the meeting place for tendering. Then they gave us a sticker to place on the front of our body so the staff could see which group you belonged to.

 

 

Gisborne (Tairawhiti) is the birthplace of New Zealand. It is the first place where the Europeans and Maori met. Captain Cook landed in Gisborne on 1769.

 

 

Young Nicks Head (above) was named after a cabin boy Nicholas Young who was the first crewman on board Cooks ship the Endeavour to sight NZ.

The locals call their city Grizzy and Gisborne makes claim to being the first people in the world to greet the sun each day.

 

When we arrived at the marina, there were two Maori entertaining passengers as we docked.

 

 

And of course we had to have our photo taken once again. Be quiet James and stop moaning.