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Bucket List trip to New Zealand


kawagama
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We are planning our bucket list trip to New Zealand and could use some advice. For those of you who have been is November or April preferable? Both are shoulder seasons, and both seem to have similar weather according to my research. However, as far as activities on the islands, is one more favourable to the other? We are thinking of a 14-day HAL cruise, but also want to do some land travel either before or after. We also thought of the 36-day repositioning cruise that would take us back to Vancouver via Fiji, Samoa, and Hawaii, along with the two week NZ part. Has anyone done this trip? And as far as the Tasman Sea, is November calmer than April, or does it not make any difference? We are simply in the planning stage and need some advice before we start booking things. We live in Ottawa Canada, so this is a very long trip for us and one that we will never repeat (given we are in our mid sixties). Thanks!

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Hi,

Lots of options here as you mention.

 

If it were me however the answer is simple ....April.

That is when the repo back from Sydney - Vancouver will be, so I would plan everything else around that.

Repositioning trips are a great way to travel home.

 

Therefore your land tour of NZ will be before your NZ cruise.

I would plan 70 / 30 % of land tour days in favour of South Island.

 

IE. Fly to Auckland, land tour NZ, fly to Sydney, a few days there, then the 36 day Sydney - NZ - Sydney - Vancouver cruise. (If 2019 was your planned year on Noordam)

 

One of the downsides of course, the NZ cruise being late in the season the weather will be riskier and there will be no daylight saving.

However a repo cruise back home would easily counter this risk for me.

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I would do this the other way around. By sailing from Auckland to Hawaii to Vancouver, you will have shorter days (rather than 24 hrs in a day, there may be 23 hours in a day).

 

We sailed form Sydney to NZ the end of Jan./15. Our sailing across the Tasmanian sea was not bad.

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We did something similar a bunch of years ago.

 

Our first plan was to fly to Auckland but then saw we could fly right into Christchurch on the same ticket for pennies more.

 

Spent a few days there and then took the train to Greymouth where we picked up our rental car. Spent a bit more than a week doing a counterclockwise tour of the South Island.

 

After returning to Christchurch, it was a cheap ticket to Aukland where we picked up another rental car for a few days.

 

I agree about concentrating on the South Island. We took into account our cruise ports of call and worked our land trip around that ... like we got to Queenstown but didn't go to Milford Sound because we the knew the ship would sail there.

 

We had a total of 12 days pre-cruise and, in the end, sorry we didn't have more land time. Doing it again, I'd figure 18-20 days pre-cruise

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We too are trying to plan a similar trip. We are going to do a cruise in Tahiti and then fly to Auckland. We will have just over three weeks down under, so are hoping to see some of both New Zealand and Australia.

We are trying to decide between the North and the South Island. We have done Alaska twice and the Norwegian fjords so are thinking of concentrating on the North Island. Would that be a mistake?

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Having been to NZ three times, I would say there is so much more to the South Island than just glaciers and fjords. I’ve been to Alaska and Norway a couple of times and I still would choose to visit the South Island over the North Island. But it all depends on what YOU want to see.

 

With only 3 weeks available for this trip, plan on 1 week on either the North Island or South Island and 2 weeks in Australia visiting no more than 3 destinations. (This advice is based on multiple trips to both countries and living in Australia for a few years.)

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Thanks GRadUT. I agree about limiting, we have decided on Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, but are really struggling with NZ. We fly in and out of Auckland so the North Island is logistically easier. But not sure if we will get back, where would you suggest on the South Island? I keep hearing it is amazing.

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we have decided on Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, but are really struggling with NZ. We fly in and out of Auckland so the North Island is logistically easier. But not sure if we will get back, where would you suggest on the South Island? I keep hearing it is amazing.

 

We are heading to Australia later this year so have been researching the cities, Agree about Melbourne and Sydney but not Brisbane, unless there is something very specific about the city you want to see. My choice would be one of the cities with good access to the Great Barrier Reef over Brisbane. But that's me.

 

As for NZ, I think, geographically, the South Island is more interesting, except for the Rotorua area on the North Island, which is amazing.

 

A word of caution. NZ drives (for us North Americans) on the wrong side of the road. Going over the mountains on the South Island, the roads are narrow and curvy. It definitely was an experience!

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Brisbane cause we have friends there:D:D

and we know two weeks will only scratch the surface in Australia.

We have driven on the left in Britain, and we are used to mountain driving but as we live near the Canadian Rockies we are stIll wondering if we would be saner to do the North Island. Although I would love to see the Milford Sound. Also thinking of a few days around Rotorua and then flying to Queenstown for a few days.

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We fly in and out of Auckland so the North Island is logistically easier. But not sure if we will get back, where would you suggest on the South Island? I keep hearing it is amazing.
We have driven on the left in Britain, and we are used to mountain driving but as we live near the Canadian Rockies we are stIll wondering if we would be saner to do the North Island. Although I would love to see the Milford Sound. Also thinking of a few days around Rotorua and then flying to Queenstown for a few days.
There's nothing particularly difficult about getting to the South Island. Flights to Christchurch take less than 1½ hours, and less than 2 hours to Queenstown, and are plentiful to both destinations. And the South Island is definitely worth the effort.
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thanks for the responses! This is great! I gather renting a car is the easiest way to get around, despite the difference in driving on the "wrong" side of the road. We might forget about the cruising home to Canada part as that might take things beyond our budget and time allotment. It just sounds really cool and would allow us to see more while we're out that way. Has anyone done this? In either direction?

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Yes, renting a car is really the only way to see a significant part of NZ. Unlike Australia distances between cities/sites are reasonable. We drove around both North and South island for 6 weeks - there is a lot to see!

 

Given that this is a "bucket list" trip I recommend you forgo the cruising entirely and dedicate your time to seeing all of NZ. In addition to our 6 week land trip we have cruised Aus/NZ twice. The cruise stops in NZ barely give you a taste of this fascinating country.

 

Robbie

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Thanks GRadUT. I agree about limiting, we have decided on Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, but are really struggling with NZ. We fly in and out of Auckland so the North Island is logistically easier. But not sure if we will get back, where would you suggest on the South Island? I keep hearing it is amazing.

 

It’s your trip, but I would not spend all 2 weeks of my Australian vacation visiting only its 3 largest cities. I think Sydney is a “must” and you have to go to Brisbane to visit friends, so I’d drop Melbourne and choose a non-urban area in Australia as a 3rd destination. If you feel that you must go to Melbourne, I highly recommend you spend some time outside of the city in such places as Ballarat, Bendigo and Beechworth. Those are all great Australian country towns.

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Yes, renting a car is really the only way to see a significant part of NZ. Unlike Australia distances between cities/sites are reasonable. We drove around both North and South island for 6 weeks - there is a lot to see!

 

Given that this is a "bucket list" trip I recommend you forgo the cruising entirely and dedicate your time to seeing all of NZ. In addition to our 6 week land trip we have cruised Aus/NZ twice. The cruise stops in NZ barely give you a taste of this fascinating country.

 

Robbie

 

Thanks! That's what I've been thinking now too--land tour only. I know I have been disappointed at the little amount of time given to ports during our previous cruises.

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It’s your trip, but I would not spend all 2 weeks of my Australian vacation visiting only its 3 largest cities. I think Sydney is a “must” and you have to go to Brisbane to visit friends, so I’d drop Melbourne and choose a non-urban area in Australia as a 3rd destination. If you feel that you must go to Melbourne, I highly recommend you spend some time outside of the city in such places as Ballarat, Bendigo and Beechworth. Those are all great Australian country towns.

 

 

Thanks again, will do some more research. Would love to see the Apostles, and the Murray river area too. We usually prefer the countryside so great advice.

 

Apologies Kawagama, so much to see.

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Thanks! That's what I've been thinking now too--land tour only. I know I have been disappointed at the little amount of time given to ports during our previous cruises.

Or, forget only the NZ cruise portion.

 

Do your NZ land tour.

Cruise back to San Francisco on Maasdam leaving Auckland April 14 2019.

That itinerary has some great ports in the Sth Pacific & French Polynesia (24 nights)

A couple of the ports are infrequent stops for cruise ships.

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For those of you who have been is November or April preferable?we sail mid Jan, two weeks, then 3 weeks in Australia. Dates chosen strictly based on weather, seas, ports, their summer .the islands, is one more favourable to the other? I’ve read the South island is nicest.We are thinking of a 14-day HAL cruise, Vancouver via Fiji, Samoa, and Hawaii, we also looked at this to avoid long flights, but decided to bite the bullet vs too many sea days, greater chance of rough seas, and too many ports of the same. And as far as the Tasman Sea, is November calmer than April, or does it not make any difference? Based on my research, i will be taking sea bands, Gravol, and Scopolamine patches, or if i can talk the doctor into an expensive antiemetic..... and of course, if the seas are like glass, i will laugh in the face of fate! We live in Ottawa Canada, so this is a very long trip for us and one that we will never repeat (given we are in our mid sixties).we have much in common, just a little further west than you.We debated a short layover in Honolulu, but after much decision, will head to Vancouver, and then fly direct.(may live to regret this)

See responses in red :cool:

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Thanks! That's what I've been thinking now too--land tour only. I know I have been disappointed at the little amount of time given to ports during our previous cruises.

 

Should you opt for the land tour only here are some things to know:

 

1. NZ motels are everywhere. Most have cooking facilities sufficient for breakfast. We purchased an ice chest at Kmart (called a "Chilly bin"), bought a cheap fry pan, etc. (although many have them in the room) and carried eggs and orange juice and all that. Also had some lunch stuff and often had leftovers from dinner for lunch the next day. This helped avoid overeating too much. Get a copy of the NZ Automobile Association motel guide, lists pretty much all of them. We did not reserve long ahead - just called a day or two before or even while enroute. We did make B&B reservations well ahead of time for a couple of places. Note also that there are always good options for lunch stops. There are lots of parks and every town has a nice town square park always with a clean public restroom. We traveled in March and April, weather was good and tourist areas not particularly busy.

 

2. Roads are generally good and signage is excellent. Traffic is light by our standards except in major cities which, come to think, consists only of Auckland, Wellington and maybe Christchurch.

 

3. If you plan to drive on both South and North islands be aware that although there is a very fine car ferry most rental companies want you to unload on one side and get another car on the other side. That seemed a bit of a hassle so we found a company that let us pickup in Christchurch and drop off in Auckland and actually got us a discount fare for the ferry. We simple drove off the ferry and went straight to our motel in Wellington. We met some other folks who said it took them 2 hours to get through the car rental lines and locate and reload their luggage. Good move for us!

 

4. Local tourist offices are generally excellent and everyone you meet is anxious to ensure you see all of their country. Motel owners/staff are excellent sources of local info - you just have to ask. Although we traveled without a locked in, day by day schedule we had done a lot of preplanning for sites to see for sure, if possible and if convenient. We had a general route planned and stayed two or three days in each area, with the option to extend or shorten our stay as we progressed.

 

5. Get a good map, a couple of guidebooks and do your homework but do feel free to discuss your plans with folks you meet along the way. You will get good advise and local knowledge that cannot be found in the books (or on the web).

 

We have traveled a lot and NZ remains one of our very best experiences. Enjoy!

 

Robbie

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Brisbane cause we have friends there:D:D

and we know two weeks will only scratch the surface in Australia.

 

Get your friends to take you out to Tangalooma on Moreton Island. Even better get a 4WD excursion from there to see the rest of Moreton Island. It's very like Fraser Island but much closer and usually, outside weekends and school holidays, quieter.

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Should you opt for the land tour only here are some things to know:

 

1. NZ motels are everywhere. Most have cooking facilities sufficient for breakfast. We purchased an ice chest at Kmart (called a "Chilly bin"), bought a cheap fry pan, etc. (although many have them in the room) and carried eggs and orange juice and all that. Also had some lunch stuff and often had leftovers from dinner for lunch the next day. This helped avoid overeating too much. Get a copy of the NZ Automobile Association motel guide, lists pretty much all of them. We did not reserve long ahead - just called a day or two before or even while enroute. We did make B&B reservations well ahead of time for a couple of places. Note also that there are always good options for lunch stops. There are lots of parks and every town has a nice town square park always with a clean public restroom. We traveled in March and April, weather was good and tourist areas not particularly busy.

 

2. Roads are generally good and signage is excellent. Traffic is light by our standards except in major cities which, come to think, consists only of Auckland, Wellington and maybe Christchurch.

 

3. If you plan to drive on both South and North islands be aware that although there is a very fine car ferry most rental companies want you to unload on one side and get another car on the other side. That seemed a bit of a hassle so we found a company that let us pickup in Christchurch and drop off in Auckland and actually got us a discount fare for the ferry. We simple drove off the ferry and went straight to our motel in Wellington. We met some other folks who said it took them 2 hours to get through the car rental lines and locate and reload their luggage. Good move for us!

 

4. Local tourist offices are generally excellent and everyone you meet is anxious to ensure you see all of their country. Motel owners/staff are excellent sources of local info - you just have to ask. Although we traveled without a locked in, day by day schedule we had done a lot of preplanning for sites to see for sure, if possible and if convenient. We had a general route planned and stayed two or three days in each area, with the option to extend or shorten our stay as we progressed.

 

5. Get a good map, a couple of guidebooks and do your homework but do feel free to discuss your plans with folks you meet along the way. You will get good advise and local knowledge that cannot be found in the books (or on the web).

 

We have traveled a lot and NZ remains one of our very best experiences. Enjoy!

 

Robbie

 

Once again, thanks for all the advice--especially about the rental cars! We are thinking of March/April and are quite accustomed to making our own meals on the fly (long-time campers). I like the idea of buying a cheap cooler and some basic tools. You are giving us some awesome advice! Thank you!

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See responses in red :cool:

 

Thank you! Yes, I think we are not that keen on 10 sea days with only a short stop in Hawaii to break them up either. Especially at the end when we probably will just want to get home. Might break up the long flights with a stop in Hawaii, however, seeing as how we have never been there. Enjoy your trip!

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Once again, thanks for all the advice--especially about the rental cars! We are thinking of March/April and are quite accustomed to making our own meals on the fly (long-time campers). I like the idea of buying a cheap cooler and some basic tools. You are giving us some awesome advice! Thank you!

 

My pleasure. If you do it suggest you start in the south and work north as it is fall there in March and the weather will be getting cooler. Up around Bay of Islands it was still fall in mid-April. Enjoy!

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