Aussies-Please Help a Yank Pick a cruise!

[scanr]

My wife and I are planning a cruise to include Australia :). I have wanted to visit since I was a small child and finally doing it! We are experienced cruisers (this will be 30th!) and have narrowed down to 4 RCI cruises. This cruise will make us Diamond Plus. Our concern is weather. I have tried several websites, but between the vast distances being cruised, metric web sites, and reverse of seasons, I can't make a decision :confused:. No matter which cruise, we plan on adding an additional 10 days (I realize it is not nearly enough) to visit your wonderful country. This is not a cruise line or ship debate, :eek: we will come back and do more. I strictly need suggestions based on of time of year with best weather. Thank-you.

1.Legend of Seas, Brisbane April 20th - Hong Kong May 8th.

2.Legend of Seas, Hong Kong Oct. 19th - Brisbane Nov. 6th

3.Radiance of Seas, Perth March 12th - Sydney March 28th

4.Radiance of Seas, Sydney Oct. 31st - Nov. 16th Perth

[Adidas4fun]

Okay, I'm not an Aussie. I would choose between either of the radiance of the seas ones with the note that the march cruise is in cyclone (hurricane) season but overall will be warmer weather.

[Pushka]

3.Radiance of Seas, Perth March 12th - Sydney March 28th. Hurricanes almost done with by then (and would be very rare in the areas of Southern Australia at any time) and it is early Autumn.

 

Our peak cyclone season is December through February and largely northern WA and Queensland.

 

This one for me, March weather is usually nice and stable. This cruise is very different to the other two though. You will see much more of Australia than the HK - Brisbane (a lot of sea days there) and I am presuming this goes south so Perth - Adelaide - Melbourne - Sydney? Then you can spend land time reviewing Sydney area and further north.

Edited October 23, 2015 by Pushka

[OzKiwiJJ]

Looks like that's a Top End cruise, Pushka. March could still be very wet up there.

 

Weatherwise I'd probably go for the April/May Legend cruise to Hong Kong. It goes to the Whitsundays, Cairns, and Darwin, before heading off through Asia. And April is still nice enough for land touring on the south-east coast.

 

It's a shame RCI doesn't have a ship based out of Australia during our winter, that's the perfect time to do the Top End. We had a wonderful trip on Dawn Princess in August.

[Pushka]

Looks like that's a Top End cruise, Pushka. March could still be very wet up there.

 

Weatherwise I'd probably go for the April/May Legend cruise to Hong Kong. It goes to the Whitsundays, Cairns, and Darwin, before heading off through Asia. And April is still nice enough for land touring on the south-east coast.

 

It's a shame RCI doesn't have a ship based out of Australia during our winter, that's the perfect time to do the Top End. We had a wonderful trip on Dawn Princess in August.

 

Ah, OK, I assumed it went south - itinerary makes a big difference. A southerly cruise would have been perfect.

[tickford]

My pick would be no 4.

[Miamia65]

I would recommend number 1

[Tara Jane]

I would go 3 or 4

[The_Big_M]

For weather I'd go for 1.

[Beanb41]

We did a top end cruise earlier this year in March and the weather was stinking hot. For cruise downunder I would choose Auckland (NZ) around the bottom of the country across to Perth and then Perth to Sydney around the top end of Australia. Around 35 days but you get to see just about everything around both countries that a cruise can offer. A number of cruise lines do these legs. We were on the Celebrity Solstice

[megsie]

Highly recommend number 4, Radiance Sydney to Perth in October. We have cruised this itinerary 3 times. Each time we have sunny days and smooth seas - except once when leaving Sydney!

The scenery is extremely beautiful as you cruise mostly near the coast, especially the Whitsunday Islands, along Cape Tribulation, Cape York and Torres St. Islands.

Always a great crew and friendly cruisers.

[SinbadThePorter]

I strictly need suggestions based on of time of year with best weather. Thank-you.

1.Legend of Seas, Brisbane April 20th - Hong Kong May 8th.

2.Legend of Seas, Hong Kong Oct. 19th - Brisbane Nov. 6th

3.Radiance of Seas, Perth March 12th - Sydney March 28th

4.Radiance of Seas, Sydney Oct. 31st - Nov. 16th Perth

 

The weather is pretty much the same at both times of year. April being the start of the dry season and October still in the dry season, only drier. Across the north it is generally hot, dry and sunny. Cyclones are a small possibility in March/April, but unlikely in October.

 

Personally I would go for 2, because I'd like to see HK and I'd also be coming home.

 

But if you want to see Australia I'd suggest 3. You get to see more of the country and you finish in Sydney, where you'll probably want to leave from anyway.

 

The only caveat is that Geraldton and Port Hedland are said not to be very exciting ports.

[Fakename72]

Nothing beats boarding and sailing out of Sydney Harbour. Number 4 is also best weather option imo. It will be hot up north on all of them.

 

 

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[Aussie FF]

They would all be great cruises on great ships.

I've done Top of Australia on Radiance. Highly recommend it, to see some of Australia.:)

I am booked on Option 2.:D

My preference would be 4, 3, then equal 1 or 2.

 

Let us know what you choose.

 

Cheers.

Edited October 23, 2015 by Aussie FF

[Rencruzr]

If you like nature and scenery nothing can beat New Zealand and depart from Sydney. Explore a couple of days in Sydney then do a New Zealand cruise including Milford Sound. We did a NZ cruise on solstice and there were a lot of Americans on that. There are some cruises that do a couple or so Australian ports and NZ.

 

If your doing an Australian only cruise theres 2 things only to remember about weather.

 

1. Our weather is the opposite to yours, our summer is your winter, our fall is your spring, our winter is your summer etc

 

BUT

 

2. the top 1/4 of Australia, ie Darwin/ Cairns is in the tropics so only has 2 seasons, wet season and dry season...... wet season is in our summer time period and dry season is in our winter period....... but to make everything work if you wanted to do both you would be cold in our bottom end winter but dry in the far north tropics....... its a bit complicated

[Kinkacruiser]

Top end (#4) in November would be my choice as well....a nice range of scenery and climate.

Sailing out of Sydney is an experience not to be missed.

[jn2003]

Number 3 would probably back onto the school holidays making the stay at the end a bit dearer.

[Not Perfect]

Number 4. Just got off the Legend and I wouldn't recommend, especially if you have tender ports, the Legend only has 4 tenders and with 1800 passengers the wait eats into your port day too much. The food was well below average as well and we ate in every restaurant and chefs table.

[bazzaw]

I'll bet the OP is confused now!!!!!! :)

 

For me - as an Aussie -- I don't recommend any cruises around Australian ports to anybody. The distances are too vast and what you can see/experience from Aussie ports is very limited ( especially if the travelers are experienced in other parts of the World) . There is really only one experience that cannot be beaten anywhere else - and that is an arrival/departure into/from Sydney (in good weather of course) -and subsequent further exploration of Sydney Harbour by ferry. Any other exploration of Australia should be done by land.

 

A better idea would be a Sydney-Sydney round cruise to NZ (thus getting departure and arrival) and land tours after that.

 

Barry

[Fakename72]

Obviously the OP loves to cruise and I think this is a great way to get a taste of Australia. Example #4- Most of the ports are very different. It departs from Sydney Harbour. In 18 days you could never get the same variety of locations in Australia without wasting a lot of time waiting at airports, on a plane or in a car, not to mention the cost and extensive planning. Add to that you unpack once and get the cruising experience...I would do it 😃

 

 

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[scanr]

Number 3 would probably back onto the school holidays making the stay at the end a bit dearer.

Thank you JN2003 for catching this one. #3 Arrives Easter week. I don't wish to compete with family holidays for our post cruise exploring. I realize Legend is on the tired side, but the itinerary including Whitsunday Islands, Cairns, & Bali is enticing. We are scuba divers. Shopping in HK is also a plus.

Weather for Australia may be fine for both spring and fall, more concerned about wind than rain. due to tendering and spouses seasick tendencies. There was a major typhoon off of Philippines just last week. That is same time next year we would be cruising this route. Many of you brought up interesting points. I was hoping for a consensus on weather.

[SinbadThePorter]

Weather for Australia may be fine for both spring and fall, more concerned about wind than rain. due to tendering and spouses seasick tendencies. There was a major typhoon off of Philippines just last week. That is same time next year we would be cruising this route. Many of you brought up interesting points. I was hoping for a consensus on weather.

 

I don't think many of us can give good advice on weather over the north side of the equator. It's a completely different weather system.

 

Hong Kong is a long way away. It's further from Brisbane than New York is from Rome.

 

On the south side of the equator, cyclones (hurricanes, typhoons) do occur as late in the season as April. They are pretty much unknown in October.

 

The weather will generally be hot and sunny at either time. As an area of trade winds, it is also generally windy. So calm mornings and windy afternoons are the norm.

Edited October 24, 2015 by SinbadThePorter

[Cabansail]

Can not advise on the cruise part as I am yet to do one. Will leave to go from Fremantle to Sydney in November of Radiance of the Seas. You would have more experience about that part than me.

 

The weather part is quite a different matter. This is a big place, so there is a huge variety of climates in the various seasons. This will come into play when you spend some time here pre or post cruise. You also have to take into account what sort of weather you like. I live in the sub-tropics just near the eastern most point of Australia. We have a fairly good climate all year. It will get cold in winter but a going below zero is rare. In the summer we will get some days which top 40 degrees (a bit over 100 in F) but they are also not common. The thing which gets most people is the humidity. I have been in the desert in South Australia on days when it was 50 degrees but dry. A day here in the mid 30's with a high humidity is a lot less comfortable.

 

This being a big country, and a continent, you will be able to find somewhere to your liking at any time of the year. My advice would be to find just one or two places to visit here and do them well rather than traveling around a lot. If you give some idea of what you like then I can help a bit more. Myself I like getting out on the water in my houseboat on the Broadwater in Queensland (Gold Coast) as that is a different style of cruising. You are the Captain, Crew and Passengers. If that interests you then let me know as I may be able to get you a good discount for hiring our boat.

 

Good luck whatever you choose.

[scanr]

I am booked on Option 2.:D

My preference would be 4, 3, then equal 1 or 2.

Let us know what you choose.

Cheers.

Booked 2. Weather charts look better in Oct. - Nov.

[GUT2407]

Sailing out of Sydney Harbour is pencil.

 

I'd try and avoid March and April ma miss too many Ports.