First time New Zealand.

[nigkar]

We will taking our first cruise to New Zealand this November.

can anyone give us any information on the areas we will be visiting.

we would like to take in some nice scenery if possible.

 

Dunedin - 08:00 till 18:00

we are considering the Taieri railway, has anyone been on this trip ?

 

Akaroa - 08:00 till 18:00

is this area nice enough to spend the whole day there, or would you recommend hiring a car or using public transportation to visit other places.

 

Wellington - 07:00 till 16:00

not really got any ideas yet.

 

Napier - 07:00 till 14:00

not a lot of time, so we need something nice that’s not to far away from port.

it will be Sunday too.

 

Tauranga - 07:00 till 18:15

thinking of hiking mount Maunganui summit and then base.

does mount  Maunganui beach have safe swimming ?

or is there better options ?

 

Aukland - 07:00 till 14:00

Again not a lot of time, probably a busy city so don’t want to travel to far from port.

 

thanks for anyone who can help us, we are open to all ideas, and are really looking forward to seeing New Zealand.

also any great places for lunch would be great to  

 

 

 

 

[roothy123]

Hi.  I am going to NZ for the first time myself later on.  Therefore, I thought I might summarize things I've been thinking about in the places you mention.  Of course, everyone's different, so you may want to do totally different things! 

 

Dunedin: You'll likely dock in Port Chalmers, and can then take a public bus or special shuttle bus to Dunedin, which has some city sights. I'm leaning towards renting a car and driving up to the Albatross Center, and then around and about, probably mostly to the north of Dunedin and Port Chalmers, just because the area around there looks scenic on Google Earth.  I realize renting a car isn't for everyone. But I looked at Monarch Tours and Elm Wildlife Tours, and the timing didn't look like it would work for us, hence the planned car rental.  I considered the railroad trips (there are actually several different ones) but decided they may be disappointing.  But maybe others can give you more info - yes or no to those!

 

Akaroa: You can swim with dolphins (although that's too pricey for us) or take a harbor cruise or go to the Giant's House in Akaroa if you like quirky, artsy things.  I'm leaning towards staying in town, visiting the lighthouse, and then going to the Giant's House.  The ship will likely offer a few options for getting out in the countryside, though - which might afford more opportunities for scenery.

 

Wellington: we're not all that interested in wine, and not big Lord of the Rings fans and don't like/appreciate most museums, but we will likely do some things in the city, maybe take a cab or public bus to the Lord of the Rings Weta Caves place just to snoop around, not tour, and probably take the cable car up the mountain like most people do.

 

Napier is mostly about art deco buildings, rides in vintage cars (may want to book ahead), etc. but there are also trips to wineries, a gannet colony and things like that outside the city if you have time.  I'm not totally sure what we'll end up doing there. 

 

Tauranga is a ways away from Rotorua, which is one place I've very interested in.  I've booked a day trip to Waiotapu thermal area with a private vendor (CJ's).  There are other closer, better known thermal areas, and some are accessible by public transportation if you're willing to do that (leave early!!)  Of course, as you've figured out, there's something very close to where you dock that you can explore.  All I know about that is that there are hot saltwalter swimming pools at the base of the mountain. 

 

Auckland is where we depart, so I can't give you much info about that city. But at least cruise ships dock relatively "downtown," so there are things around to explore without too much effort/time. 

 

If you haven't already, I would look at the excursions that your ship is offering, and see if they give you any ideas.  Also, I find Trip Advisor helpful, plus whatsinport, plus things like Viator, Tours by Locals or Shore Trips and Tours. 

Edited June 26, 2019 by roothy123

[nigkar]

Many thanks for the information.

Have a great time when you visit New Zealand.

[possum52]

Dunedin - 08:00 till 18:00

we are considering the Taieri railway, has anyone been on this trip ?

We did the Taieri Railway last November which we enjoyed. We booked a private tour through Viator using a local tour company. The coach picked us up from the outside the cruise terminal and dropped us off at the Dunedin Station and picked us up and returned as to the cruise terminal later in the day. The cost was less than half the cost of the Princess tour.

 

Akaroa - 08:00 till 18:00

is this area nice enough to spend the whole day there, or would you recommend hiring a car or using public transportation to visit other places.

We loved Akaroa, spending a few hours wandering around the town, stopped for a beer at the pub and had fish and chips for lunch purchased at the local fish and chip shop.

 

Tauranga - 07:00 till 18:15

thinking of hiking mount Maunganui summit and then base.

does mount  Maunganui beach have safe swimming ?

or is there better options ?

Again we booked a tour through Viator and visited Rotorua

 

Aukland - 07:00 till 14:00

Again not a lot of time, probably a busy city so don’t want to travel to far from port.

We took a three hour tour of the different sights of Auckland which was fun and a good overview of Auckland including a visit to Devonport.

 

Enjoy your cruise to New Zealand.

 

Leigh

 

 

Edited June 27, 2019 by possum52

[OzKiwiJJ]

I suggest starting by doing some searches on this forum, port by port. There is a wealth of information already posted here.

 

After you have narrowed down your choices and still have specific questions we can address those issues.