New Zealand port advice please

[crazyman3]

Hi

 

We are on the Eclipse in March. 

Obviously excursions are now on our minds and we need help!

 

How far away are these ports from the town/city? Walking distance? A short taxi ride?

 

Dunedin

 

Wellington

 

Christchurch

 

Napier

 

Picton

 

Also, can anyone recommend areliable excursion company?

 

Thanking you in advance.

 

Stephen and Eileenover

[mahdnc]

4 minutes ago, crazyman3 said:

Hi

 

We are on the Eclipse in March. 

Obviously excursions are now on our minds and we need help!

 

How far away are these ports from the town/city? Walking distance? A short taxi ride?

 

Dunedin

 

Wellington

 

Christchurch

 

Napier

 

Picton

 

Also, can anyone recommend areliable excursion company?

 

Thanking you in advance.

 

Stephen and Eileenover

 

I posted a "Live" thread during our cruise to New Zealand aboard Solstice.  We called on all of the ports that you listed except for Christchurch as Solstice anchored at nearby Akaroa instead.

 

Anyway I am sure that my "Live" thread has much of the information that you are seeking.  Here is the link:

 

 

[crazyman3]

23 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

I posted a "Live" thread during our cruise to New Zealand aboard Solstice.  We called on all of the ports that you listed except for Christchurch as Solstice anchored at nearby Akaroa instead.

 

Anyway I am sure that my "Live" thread has much of the information that you are seeking.  Here is the link:

 

 

Thanks so much! I read your posts with growing entrallment. Brilliant!

[mahdnc]

19 minutes ago, crazyman3 said:

Hi

 

We are on the Eclipse in March. 

Obviously excursions are now on our minds and we need help!

 

How far away are these ports from the town/city? Walking distance? A short taxi ride?

 

Dunedin

 

Wellington

 

Christchurch

 

Napier

 

Picton

 

Also, can anyone recommend areliable excursion company?

 

Thanking you in advance.

 

Stephen and Eileenover

 

We are not allowed to make unsolicited recommendations for excursion companies, however you have asked which allows me to reveal the three companies that we used in my "Live" tour description which I would highly recommend:

 

1. Napier: we used Hawke's Bay Escapes for a tour of their farm as well as doing a trap shoot.  This tour was clearly the family favorite for this cruise.  The farm is located in a beautiful area.  The tour is unique and is run by a lovely family.

 

2. Wellington: we used uTours for a private tour of Wellington.  Suzee and Jo specialize in conducting private tours for small groups.

 

3.  Dunedin: we had an outstanding private wildlife tour of the Otago Peninsula by Elm Wildlife Tours.

 

 

[crazyman3]

1 minute ago, mahdnc said:

 

We are not allowed to make unsolicited recommendations for excursion companies, however you have asked which allows me to reveal the three companies that we used in my "Live" tour description which I would highly recommend:

 

1. Napier: we used Hawke's Bay Escapes for a tour of their farm as well as doing a trap shoot.  This tour was clearly the family favorite for this cruise.  The farm is located in a beautiful area.  The tour is unique and is run by a lovely family.

 

2. Wellington: we used uTours for a private tour of Wellington.  Suzee and Jo specialize in conducting private tours for small groups.

 

3.  Dunedin: we had an outstanding private wildlife tour of the Otago Peninsula by Elm Wildlife Tours.

 

 

 

Fabulous! I shall start viewing these tomorrow.

Muchos Ta.

[mahdnc]

It is also worth looking at the Australia and New Zealand forum for more information.

[Mark_T]

4 hours ago, crazyman3 said:

We are on the Eclipse in March. 

Obviously excursions are now on our minds and we need help!

 

Do check your 'Roll-Call' thread as there are often others arranging local tours looking for more to join them...

[PeterGavin]

4 hours ago, crazyman3 said:

Hi

 

We are on the Eclipse in March. 

Obviously excursions are now on our minds and we need help!

 

How far away are these ports from the town/city? Walking distance? A short taxi ride?

 

Dunedin

 

Wellington

 

Christchurch

 

Napier

 

Picton

 

Also, can anyone recommend areliable excursion company?

 

Thanking you in advance.

 

Stephen and Eileenover

Dunedin is at Port Chalmers - 13-14 km away; half hourly public bus [#14] will get you there, but recent reports are that it is getting crowded due to overpriced ship shuttle prices.

 

Wellington - about 1.5km walk; since earthquake in 2017, due to pier status, no longer allowed to walk to city; generally a free shuttle is provided.

 

Christchurch is at Lyttelton - 12.1km, including a tunnel; public bus #28, every 30 minutes, cash accepted [NZ dollars].

 

Napier - 2km from city; rail tracks within port; might still be possible to walk. Rarest of these ports visited, so not sure of current status.

 

Picton - working port - free shuttle provided if at jetty [massive lumber piles usually on port site pre export]; if tender operation, taken to Town wharf for markets and shops.

[crazyman3]

10 hours ago, PeterGavin said:

Dunedin is at Port Chalmers - 13-14 km away; half hourly public bus [#14] will get you there, but recent reports are that it is getting crowded due to overpriced ship shuttle prices.

 

Wellington - about 1.5km walk; since earthquake in 2017, due to pier status, no longer allowed to walk to city; generally a free shuttle is provided.

 

Christchurch is at Lyttelton - 12.1km, including a tunnel; public bus #28, every 30 minutes, cash accepted [NZ dollars].

 

Napier - 2km from city; rail tracks within port; might still be possible to walk. Rarest of these ports visited, so not sure of current status.

 

Picton - working port - free shuttle provided if at jetty [massive lumber piles usually on port site pre export]; if tender operation, taken to Town wharf for markets and shops.

 

Thanks for your help.

Stephen

[crazyman3]

18 hours ago, PeterGavin said:

Dunedin is at Port Chalmers - 13-14 km away; half hourly public bus [#14] will get you there, but recent reports are that it is getting crowded due to overpriced ship shuttle prices.

 

Wellington - about 1.5km walk; since earthquake in 2017, due to pier status, no longer allowed to walk to city; generally a free shuttle is provided.

 

Christchurch is at Lyttelton - 12.1km, including a tunnel; public bus #28, every 30 minutes, cash accepted [NZ dollars].

 

Napier - 2km from city; rail tracks within port; might still be possible to walk. Rarest of these ports visited, so not sure of current status.

 

Picton - working port - free shuttle provided if at jetty [massive lumber piles usually on port site pre export]; if tender operation, taken to Town wharf for markets and shops.

Many thanks for your quick response.

[chubbypiggy]

We will be doing a Princess Transpacific cruise in early April.  Our itinerary includes 3 NZ ports; Bay of Islands, Tauranga, and Auckland. 

 

We will appreciate any suggestions or information on the above mentioned ports on what is there to do or "must see/visit" .  

 

Thanks in advance!!

[chubbypiggy]

We will have a full day tour in Tauranga and a half day tour in Auckland; both private tour companies.  What is normal tipping for tour guide for 1/2 day and full day tours?  Thank you.

[Over from NZ]

3 hours ago, chubbypiggy said:

We will have a full day tour in Tauranga and a half day tour in Auckland; both private tour companies.  What is normal tipping for tour guide for 1/2 day and full day tours?  Thank you.

If you're from Australia or NZ - the normal tip is to simply say thank you. Nothing more.. 🙂

 

If you're from the states.. they're going to expect you to do what you do over there and give them a handful of money based on what your normal rate is over there haha. Tipping isn't part of the culture in NZ.

[possum52]

4 hours ago, chubbypiggy said:

We will have a full day tour in Tauranga and a half day tour in Auckland; both private tour companies.  What is normal tipping for tour guide for 1/2 day and full day tours?  Thank you.

There is no need to tip the guide/driver but if you think that they have exceeded your expectations, by all means tip but how much is up to you. Tipping is not part of the NZ culture.

[chubbypiggy]

23 minutes ago, possum52 said:

There is no need to tip the guide/driver but if you think that they have exceeded your expectations, by all means tip but how much is up to you. Tipping is not part of the NZ culture.

Thank you.

[KKB]

On 11/28/2022 at 11:29 AM, chubbypiggy said:

We will be doing a Princess Transpacific cruise in early April.  Our itinerary includes 3 NZ ports; Bay of Islands, Tauranga, and Auckland. 

 

We will appreciate any suggestions or information on the above mentioned ports on what is there to do or "must see/visit" .  

 

Thanks in advance!!

If you see this...did you do a TR of this trip?

We are doing it next April!

[chubbypiggy]

23 hours ago, KKB said:

If you see this...did you do a TR of this trip?

We are doing it next April!

Due to weather, Captain decided to skip Tauranga and Bay of Islands.  Replaced with one additional sea day and one day in Moorea.  We did a half-day tour in Auckland, driver only took us around the port area.  Our original plan was to spend the 2nd half of the time doing shopping in Auckland.  Because it was Easter Sunday, all the shops were closed.  So, of the 3 NZ ports, only saw port area of Auckland.  Big disappointment.

[KKB]

1 hour ago, chubbypiggy said:

Due to weather, Captain decided to skip Tauranga and Bay of Islands.  Replaced with one additional sea day and one day in Moorea.  We did a half-day tour in Auckland, driver only took us around the port area.  Our original plan was to spend the 2nd half of the time doing shopping in Auckland.  Because it was Easter Sunday, all the shops were closed.  So, of the 3 NZ ports, only saw port area of Auckland.  Big disappointment.

Such a bummer! Yeah missed ports hurt more on bigger trips like this

[chubbypiggy]

58 minutes ago, KKB said:

Such a bummer! Yeah missed ports hurt more on bigger trips like this

So for our 27 days cruise, we ended up with only 5  ports;  Auckland, Moorea, Papeete, Honolulu, and Kona.  Definitely a lot of sea days. 🤣

[KKB]

40 minutes ago, chubbypiggy said:

So for our 27 days cruise, we ended up with only 5  ports;  Auckland, Moorea, Papeete, Honolulu, and Kona.  Definitely a lot of sea days. 🤣

Yeah, a lot of sea day to get across the biggest ocean to be sure! 
 

[possum52]

4 hours ago, chubbypiggy said:

Due to weather, Captain decided to skip Tauranga and Bay of Islands.  Replaced with one additional sea day and one day in Moorea.  We did a half-day tour in Auckland, driver only took us around the port area.  Our original plan was to spend the 2nd half of the time doing shopping in Auckland.  Because it was Easter Sunday, all the shops were closed.  So, of the 3 NZ ports, only saw port area of Auckland.  Big disappointment.

A half day tour of Auckland and you only saw the port area? The port area is not that big or do you mean the harbour area? How long was this tour? What were you supposed to see?

 

We did a half day tour - three hours which took us through various harbourside suburbs on both sides of the central business district. We visited the beautiful Auckland Domain where we stopped at the War Museum. We then went across to Devonport on the other side of the harbour where we drove through the historic village and stopped at a beachside cafe for refreshments after driving to the summit of North Head with a fantastic view of the harbour and Auckland. On the way back to the ship we stopped at the yacht marina where there were some very expensive yachts moored. A very interesting tour which had an overview of what Auckland is like.

[mahdnc]

5 hours ago, chubbypiggy said:

Due to weather, Captain decided to skip Tauranga and Bay of Islands.  Replaced with one additional sea day and one day in Moorea.  We did a half-day tour in Auckland, driver only took us around the port area.  Our original plan was to spend the 2nd half of the time doing shopping in Auckland.  Because it was Easter Sunday, all the shops were closed.  So, of the 3 NZ ports, only saw port area of Auckland.  Big disappointment.

 

I am so sorry to read this.  So disappointing!

[chubbypiggy]

16 hours ago, possum52 said:

A half day tour of Auckland and you only saw the port area? The port area is not that big or do you mean the harbour area? How long was this tour? What were you supposed to see?

 

We did a half day tour - three hours which took us through various harbourside suburbs on both sides of the central business district. We visited the beautiful Auckland Domain where we stopped at the War Museum. We then went across to Devonport on the other side of the harbour where we drove through the historic village and stopped at a beachside cafe for refreshments after driving to the summit of North Head with a fantastic view of the harbour and Auckland. On the way back to the ship we stopped at the yacht marina where there were some very expensive yachts moored. A very interesting tour which had an overview of what Auckland is like.

We took a Viator tour that has a lot of good reviews.  The guide was very nice, but almost all the points mentioned in the descriptions were just "pass by".

 

https://www.viator.com/tours/Auckland/Discover-Auckland-Scenic-Tour/d391-52297P1

[SueMo]

On 6/25/2023 at 2:49 PM, chubbypiggy said:

Due to weather, Captain decided to skip Tauranga and Bay of Islands.  Replaced with one additional sea day and one day in Moorea.  We did a half-day tour in Auckland, driver only took us around the port area.  Our original plan was to spend the 2nd half of the time doing shopping in Auckland.  Because it was Easter Sunday, all the shops were closed.  So, of the 3 NZ ports, only saw port area of Auckland.  Big disappointment.

We had an Australia/New Zealand cruise on Celebrity Edge planned for February '24.  When checking out the ports of call, we decided there was so much we were missing in New Zealand by not doing a land tour, so we cancelled our cruise and contacted a company that makes personalized self-drive land tours where they  book rental cars, hotels, and excursions.  When I read reports like this, it makes me so very happy we cancelled our cruise.  I can't imagine after flying halfway across the world expecting to see Tauranga and Bay of Islands how disappointing it would be to have an extra sea day.  (I can do that in the Caribbean, no problem Man!)  I feel for you...

[possum52]

6 hours ago, chubbypiggy said:

We took a Viator tour that has a lot of good reviews.  The guide was very nice, but almost all the points mentioned in the descriptions were just "pass by".

 

https://www.viator.com/tours/Auckland/Discover-Auckland-Scenic-Tour/d391-52297P1

I had a look at your tour, and it does point out that they are 'pass by'.If you saw all the places listed, you actually saw a fair bit of Auckland and much, much more than your description of just driving through the port area, It was a good overview tour of Auckland.

 

Auckland is situated on a beautiful harbour and life revolves around the water. If you wanted to see more, perhaps a full day tour would have been better. I know you asked many questions before your cruise to help with your planning, but surely you realised that your day in Auckland was Easter Sunday and that shops may not have been opened?

Edited June 26, 2023 by possum52