Celebrity Solstice in Dunedin NZ

[bdruzin]

Our ship is supposed to dock in Port Chalmers at 09:00 am. My husband and I would like to do the independent trip Train Trip to Taieri Gorge which departs from Dunedin at 9:30 am. Do you know if this timing is possible? Does the ship actually dock at 9:00 am or sooner? What is the quickest way to get to Dunedin?

[rkmw]

Our ship is supposed to dock in Port Chalmers at 09:00 am. My husband and I would like to do the independent trip Train Trip to Taieri Gorge which departs from Dunedin at 9:30 am. Do you know if this timing is possible? Does the ship actually dock at 9:00 am or sooner? What is the quickest way to get to Dunedin?

 

if the ship docks at 9am you wont be able to get into Dunedin by 9.30am to catch the train so i would pay the extra and go on the ships tour

[Kiwi Kruzer]

If you check the Port of Otago cruise schedule they have you arriving at 7.00am...

However , the time you can get off the ship depends on when the authourities give it clearance and you get the OK go ashore .

 

http://www.portotago.co.nz/6/2.html

 

 

[6andy6]

if the ship docks at 9am you wont be able to get into Dunedin by 9.30am to catch the train so i would pay the extra and go on the ships tour

 

Yes we looked at doing the same thing but it appears unworkable. I've seen the 9am thing as well compared to the 7am of the Port of Otago...the cynic in me wonders whether the cruise line lies a little bit to discourage independent travelers into doing it on their own and taking the ships tour which is double the price at least of doing it on your own so they must get a good cut.

 

The ships excursion sees the train actual pull up next to the ship rather than you having to travel into Dunedin I believe which is a bonus for the ships tour.

 

But the ships excursion is prohibitively expensive...in fact while I don't doubt the trip itself is fantastic with great views....I think it's overpriced as well when compared to other heritage trains around the world. After all....it only goes for several hours.

[Annabelle100]

Our ship is supposed to dock in Port Chalmers at 09:00 am. My husband and I would like to do the independent trip Train Trip to Taieri Gorge which departs from Dunedin at 9:30 am. Do you know if this timing is possible? Does the ship actually dock at 9:00 am or sooner? What is the quickest way to get to Dunedin?

 

We were also hoping to do this trip. We have booked our tickets directly from Taieri Gorge railway and have also booked seats on the bus that takes passengers from the port to Dunedin Station.

 

Then I noticed the arrival time of the Soltice at 9am into Port Chalmers. We need to be at Dunedin Station by 9.15 am to collect our tickets for the 9.30am train departure. This will not work.

 

Even if the ship does dock at 7 am, it is the first port of arrival in NZ for our cruise and I expect there will be Customs Stuff to be dealt with.

 

We tried to do this train trip in January 2012 from a Princess ship but our ship was delayed into port due to bad weather and we didn't arrive into Port Chalmers until the afternoon. Instead of the train trip, we happily spent the time with fellow passengers in Port Chalmers in the Tunnel Pub across the road from the dock. " Next time ", we thought .

[rkmw]

We were also hoping to do this trip. We have booked our tickets directly from Taieri Gorge railway and have also booked seats on the bus that takes passengers from the port to Dunedin Station.

 

Then I noticed the arrival time of the Soltice at 9am into Port Chalmers. We need to be at Dunedin Station by 9.15 am to collect our tickets for the 9.30am train departure. This will not work.

 

Even if the ship does dock at 7 am, it is the first port of arrival in NZ for our cruise and I expect there will be Customs Stuff to be dealt with.

 

We tried to do this train trip in January 2012 from a Princess ship but our ship was delayed into port due to bad weather and we didn't arrive into Port Chalmers until the afternoon. Instead of the train trip, we happily spent the time with fellow passengers in Port Chalmers in the Tunnel Pub across the road from the dock. " Next time ", we thought .

 

i dont know if Celebrity does things different but with Princess when we get to the first NZ port we dont see any customs until we get back to Sydney and we never pre pay our shuttle bus, we pay on the day to the staff at the dock

 

one thing is you must have photo ID to get back on the ship in all NZ ports

[cassamanda]

We were also hoping to do this trip. We have booked our tickets directly from Taieri Gorge railway and have also booked seats on the bus that takes passengers from the port to Dunedin Station.

 

Then I noticed the arrival time of the Soltice at 9am into Port Chalmers. We need to be at Dunedin Station by 9.15 am to collect our tickets for the 9.30am train departure. This will not work.

 

Even if the ship does dock at 7 am, it is the first port of arrival in NZ for our cruise and I expect there will be Customs Stuff to be dealt with.

Why don't you email TGR with the info on the "supposed" 9am arrival as they may be able to alter the schedules.. The ship's train also won't depart until the passengers have clearance to disembark and are on board. The 2 TGR trains must have a 20 minute separation between the trains and the ship's train has priority on the line, so i doubt if your train will leave at the advertised time .

 

We were off the ship within 15 minutes of docking.

[Flipper133]

We tried to do this train trip in January 2012 from a Princess ship but our ship was delayed into port due to bad weather and we didn't arrive into Port Chalmers until the afternoon. Instead of the train trip, we happily spent the time with fellow passengers in Port Chalmers in the Tunnel Pub across the road from the dock. " Next time ", we thought .

 

....and a very happy time it was too :p

[Annabelle100]

....and a very happy time it was too :p

 

 

Hello Flipper. Yes, the pub staff at the Tunnel managed well with the unexpected crowds. One man behind the bar said he'd never pulled a beer before. He was there to help his mate, the publican.

 

We are going to leave our bookings for the bus and the Taieri train, and just see what the day brings. There's no advance payments. Civilised arrangement.

[TigerMoth07]

Our ship is supposed to dock in Port Chalmers at 09:00 am. My husband and I would like to do the independent trip Train Trip to Taieri Gorge which departs from Dunedin at 9:30 am. Do you know if this timing is possible? Does the ship actually dock at 9:00 am or sooner? What is the quickest way to get to Dunedin?

 

We would like to know how you went with the Taieri train trip. Did the Solistice dock any earlier?

We are doing this cruise in March and had hoped to do it independently as well but not sure with the timing??

[TigerMoth07]

Our ship is supposed to dock in Port Chalmers at 09:00 am. My husband and I would like to do the independent trip Train Trip to Taieri Gorge which departs from Dunedin at 9:30 am. Do you know if this timing is possible? Does the ship actually dock at 9:00 am or sooner? What is the quickest way to get to Dunedin?

 

We would like to know how you went with the Taieri train trip. Did the Solistice dock any earlier?

We are doing this cruise in March and had hoped to do it independently as well but not sure with the timing??

[Aussieflyer]

We have just disembarked Solstice. We were in Port Chalmers/Dunedin several days ago and were over an hour late arriving as we were fogged out. The captain said it was too risky to attempt to enter the port in the fog and when it lifted we could see why! He stopped the ship off the coast and had to wait. Unforeseen events like this may affect your decision on what type of tour to take.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

We have just disembarked Solstice. We were in Port Chalmers/Dunedin several days ago and were over an hour late arriving as we were fogged out. The captain said it was too risky to attempt to enter the port in the fog and when it lifted we could see why! He stopped the ship off the coast and had to wait. Unforeseen events like this may affect your decision on what type of tour to take.

 

That can also happen if the winds are up. High winds can effect a ship , as it is a long narrow channel up the harbour , that follows an S shape. Sometimes a ship can miss the port entirely.