kirakat Posted December 11, 2016 #1 Share Posted December 11, 2016 We will be on the Dawn Princess February 22 through March 3, stopping in Tauranga, Napier, Wellington, Akaroa, and Dunedin. Any recommendations for third party tours that are less expensive and smaller in number of participants than the ship's offerings? If not, any ship's tours that you recommend? TIA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diane.in.ny Posted December 11, 2016 #2 Share Posted December 11, 2016 Depends what you want to do. We wanted to go the Te Papa museum in Wellington and that you can do on your own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roslyn01 Posted December 12, 2016 #3 Share Posted December 12, 2016 Tauranga- check out archer tours for small group personal tours to rotorua; Wellington- shore trips & tours does half day tour including ride in cable car for $55, if you're interested in taeri gorge railway in Dunedin contact the railway company direct. Good luck Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Radbooks Posted December 12, 2016 #4 Share Posted December 12, 2016 We're using a company called Zealandier Tours to do tours in 3 of the cities in NZ. We leave this week so I'll try and remember to come back here and let you know how they do! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirakat Posted December 12, 2016 Author #5 Share Posted December 12, 2016 Thanks everyone! I'll check out Shore Tours and Zealandier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riversedge Posted December 12, 2016 #6 Share Posted December 12, 2016 Check out http://www.viator.com They have tours in a lot of New Zealand ports and have a "return to ship on time" guarantee. You are the only one that knows what type of tour you like to do so it's something you really need to research yourself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CCC's Posted December 13, 2016 #7 Share Posted December 13, 2016 Check out http://www.viator.com They have tours in a lot of New Zealand ports and have a "return to ship on time" guarantee. You are the only one that knows what type of tour you like to do so it's something you really need to research yourself. I have just booked four (4) shore excursions with Viator.com throughout the south island of New Zealand. I have used them a number of times over the last 10+ years. Also, I checked their pricing against what is offered on board Celebrity Solstice and they are so much cheaper, in fact, one excursion was half the price of the ships tour. Definitely recommend them for any shore trips. :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
General Max Posted December 17, 2016 #8 Share Posted December 17, 2016 We do not recommend using APT for any tours. We had an extremely bad experience with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gvre Posted December 22, 2016 #9 Share Posted December 22, 2016 KiraKat, we will be on the Dawn cruise after yours. I haven't had luck finding other cruisers on our cruise but I am also interested exploring private tours. Right now I am booked on some ship tours but would gladly use small private tours if we can get a better experience. I've noted the advice already given and will start a little research. I would really be interested in knowing what you finally decide to do in each port and I would be happy to reciprocate. Debbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Cruizers Posted December 29, 2016 #10 Share Posted December 29, 2016 Two years ago during our trip, we did the Otagos Peninsula through the ship on Dunedin. We were on the Radiance of the Seas, Wellington we did the Ship wreck tour which included a sheep herding demonstration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cboyle Posted January 3, 2017 #11 Share Posted January 3, 2017 I just gave recommendations for Akaroa, Wellington and Dunedin on this thread http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2437651 Hope that helps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirakat Posted January 3, 2017 Author #12 Share Posted January 3, 2017 Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hopestotravelmore Posted January 4, 2017 #13 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Check out my review on our New Zealand trip http://boards.cruisecritic.com.au/showthread.php?t=2322939 We did mostly private excurisions which were wonderful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirakat Posted January 4, 2017 Author #14 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Thanks so much for all of the great information! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirakat Posted January 4, 2017 Author #15 Share Posted January 4, 2017 We appreciate all of the recommendations from everyone. After looking at those and the recommended tour companies, here is what we have decided to do. I will report back after the cruise. Tauranga: www.zealandiertours.com/cruise-ship-visitor-tours-html/port-of-tauranga-rotorua-day-tours/hobbiton-movie-set-rotorua-wonderland-tour/ Napier: https://www.viator.com/tours/Napier/Napier-wine-tour/d4760-20539P1 Wellington: https://www.viator.com/tours/Wellington/Wellingtons-Lord-of-the-Rings-Half-Day-Tour/d399-2964RRTHALF for the morning. Then, we'll probably follow Carolyn's tour (minus the special meeting with a local and tour of some LOTR sites.) Akaroa: We're going to follow the itinerary Carolyn used. For Dunedin, the cruise ship was the only option for the Taieri Gorge Railway. There are two cruise ships in town that day and they have booked all train tickets. Every private operator I contacted said there were no tickets for private tours. <sigh> So, we have to pay the for the overpriced cruise excursion. We'll probably spend a few hours walking around town on our own after that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cboyle Posted January 5, 2017 #16 Share Posted January 5, 2017 Akaroa: We're going to follow the itinerary Carolyn used. We'll be in Akaroa again in March and plan to do the Newton's Falls Hike. Also maybe the Skyline Circuit if the weather is nice. http://www.bankspeninsulawalks.co.nz/akaroa-walks/ Happy hiking! Carolyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
General Max Posted January 5, 2017 #17 Share Posted January 5, 2017 APT Tours runs a low budget operation in New Zealand. Basically you get what you pay for and not mush else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darlak8 Posted February 17, 2017 #18 Share Posted February 17, 2017 NAPIER: I booked with Hawkes Bay Scenic Tour and pre-paid in full. Unfortunately my cruise ship (the adrift NCL Star) cancelled this port after we had already departed. The owner John Hanlon was a great communicator throughout the entire booking and refund process. Although I'm sure that John incurred expenses due to the cancelled port call he issued a full refund to my credit card. John is an honest business person and I'm sorry that I didn't have the opportunity to enjoy his tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taspost Posted February 20, 2017 #19 Share Posted February 20, 2017 We're using a company called Zealandier Tours to do tours in 3 of the cities in NZ. We leave this week so I'll try and remember to come back here and let you know how they do! May I ask how you went? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4774Papa Posted February 20, 2017 #20 Share Posted February 20, 2017 I have just booked four (4) shore excursions with Viator.com throughout the south island of New Zealand. I have used them a number of times over the last 10+ years. Also' date=' I checked their pricing against what is offered on board Celebrity Solstice and they are so much cheaper, in fact, one excursion was half the price of the ships tour. Definitely recommend them for any shore trips. :cool:[/quote']We have used Viator many times and never been disappointed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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