Shuttles from ship/port in New Zealand ports, and other transportation questions

[caseum]

Dear Fellow Cruisers

 

 

Shuttles from port/ship in New Zealand?

A few years ago, someone created a post titled "Shuttles from your ship in New Zealand ports".  We will be in Celebrity Edge in a few weeks and have the same question, and wonder if the information in that post is still current.  If there is a shuttle, whether it is free or paid (cash/credit-card)?  

 

We will be visiting the following ports.

 

Picon

 

Napier

 

Wellington
- free?

 

Christchurch (port Lyttelton)

 

Dunedin
- paid shuttle?

 

 

Public transportation, and the walk from Circular Quay to cruise terminal and the ship in Sydney?

Also, for those who had rode the train/light-rail to Circular Quay and walked to the Oversea Passenger Terminal and then to the cruise ship.  What do you think of both walks?  From looking at the Google map, it seems to be fairly straight forward and easy at an estimate of 7 mins.  And from the cruise terminal to the ship seems to be an even shorter distance.  We only have a carry-on for each person, and so the walks do not seems to be too bad.  In terms of paying the train/light-rail fare, I heard that we can use tap-to-pay via credit card.  We have 4 people in the group; can we pay for all at the same tap, or we have to tap 4 times using the same credit card?

 

 

Taxi/Shuttle experience in Sydney?
For those of you who had used taxi or shuttle to go from the airport or elsewhere in Sydney to the Overseas Passenger Terminal, how was your experience like?  Was it a smooth ride with an honest driver?  Or was it an experience you do not want to repeat?  As mentioned we are a group of 4.  It seems it would be more beneficial to take a taxi sometimes, but there is always a concern of encountering a dishonest driver.  

 

Thank you, and happy future cruising/adventure wherever it may take you!

[OzKiwiJJ]

Circular Quay to the cruise terminal is a flat, easy walk. Once in the cruise terminal, after check-in and security, you will be directed to one of two covered boarding ramps. Depending where these connect to the ship you may have a gentle incline up or down.

 

We use Uber to get to the cruise terminal but taxis are OK. 

 

Free shuttles are:

Napier

Wellington

Picton (I think)

Lyttelton local

 

Paid shuttles are:

Lyttelton to Christchurch

Port Chalmers to Dunedin

[Aus Traveller]

In some cases, the cost of shuttle buses varies depending on the cruiseline. I can only give you information on a couple of ports because I was not on a Celebrity cruise.

Picton - it is too long since I went there for me to comment.

 

Napier - always a free shuttle into town. Passengers cannot walk off the wharf.

 

Wellington - a shuttle is required. A few weeks ago on a Princess cruise this was free but now has only one drop-off point in the centre of the CBD instead of the two that they had for many years.

 

Christchurch - shuttle into the city. From memory that was NZ$15pp each way but the drop off point in town is not very conveniently located. There is a free shuttle from the ship into the centre of Lyttelton (a very short distance). For four people it would be no more expensive to get a taxi from Lyttelton to Christchurch. You could then be dropped off wherever you like.

 

Dunedin - shuttle from Port Chalmers. The cost varies with different cruise lines. Some people get the local bus from Port Chalmers for (I think) NZ$3 pp each way.

[arxcards]

4 hours ago, caseum said:

Dear Fellow Cruisers

 

 

Shuttles from port/ship in New Zealand?

A few years ago, someone created a post titled "Shuttles from your ship in New Zealand ports". 

There are quite a few posts from a few weeks ago to a few months ago that are more up to date than the one you linked. One of those posts mentioned that Celebrity had a free shuttle into Christchurch which was out of step with what the other cruise lines were offering. 

[cruiser3775]

The walk from Circular Quay in Sydney to the cruise ship terminal is short and very flat.  There are plenty of bench seats along the way if you need  a rest, but it is really only a five minute walk. It is a very scenic walk, looking over the harbour to the opera house and the bridge. If you need to buy last minute things for the cruise, there are shops at Circular Quay.

Catching the train from the airport is easy and well signposted, and designed for people with luggage. Yes, you can pay by tapping on at the terminal with a credit or debit card, but you need a separate card for each person. It will cost about $20 per person, depending on whether it is peak or off peak time.

Catching a taxi from the airport is also easy. For four people with luggage you may need a maxi taxi, but the marshals at the taxi rank will find one for you.  There are a number of charges built into the taxi fare, an airport tax, and a toll for the road and tunnels (unless you ask the driver to avoid the toll roads).  It costs maybe $70 - 90 for the ride, depending on the time of day or the traffic.

Edited February 11 by cruiser3775

[caseum]

Thank you very much, OzKiwiJJ, Aus Traveller, arxcards, and cruiser3775 for taking time to reply with very helpful information!  Much appreciated!

 

Best regards!

[caseum]

T

On 2/10/2024 at 5:11 PM, cruiser3775 said:

The walk from Circular Quay in Sydney to the cruise ship terminal is short and very flat.  There are plenty of bench seats along the way if you need  a rest, but it is really only a five minute walk. It is a very scenic walk, looking over the harbour to the opera house and the bridge. If you need to buy last minute things for the cruise, there are shops at Circular Quay.

Catching the train from the airport is easy and well signposted, and designed for people with luggage. Yes, you can pay by tapping on at the terminal with a credit or debit card, but you need a separate card for each person. It will cost about $20 per person, depending on whether it is peak or off peak time.

Catching a taxi from the airport is also easy. For four people with luggage you may need a maxi taxi, but the marshals at the taxi rank will find one for you.  There are a number of charges built into the taxi fare, an airport tax, and a toll for the road and tunnels (unless you ask the driver to avoid the toll roads).  It costs maybe $70 - 90 for the ride, depending on the time of day or the traffic.

Thank you for your information!  We can travel anywhere from 10am to 1pm on a Tuesday after arriving at the airport.  Would it make any difference which particular time slot during that time of the day when we take the taxi?  If we ask the driver to avoid toll roads, would it add additional time to the trip and which road will the driver take?  Looking at the Google map, it appears the suggested route is M1 which has toll.  Our cruise ship will return to the Overseas Passengers Terminal on a Sunday at 6:30am.  Is the traffic in Sydney during that time of a Sunday is light?  Or it can be busy too?  Thank you.

[Aus Traveller]

34 minutes ago, caseum said:

T

Thank you for your information!  We can travel anywhere from 10am to 1pm on a Tuesday after arriving at the airport.  Would it make any difference which particular time slot during that time of the day when we take the taxi?  If we ask the driver to avoid toll roads, would it add additional time to the trip and which road will the driver take?  Looking at the Google map, it appears the suggested route is M1 which has toll.  Our cruise ship will return to the Overseas Passengers Terminal on a Sunday at 6:30am.  Is the traffic in Sydney during that time of a Sunday is light?  Or it can be busy too?  Thank you.

Traffic early on a Sunday morning would be very light. The rate that taxis charge only increases at night. It doesn't matter which time of day you travel. On occasions, when we have had plenty of time to get to the airport we have asked the driver NOT to take the toll roads. It adds a bit of time to the trip because the journey involves several traffic lights that are avoided by the toll roads.

[caseum]

23 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

Traffic early on a Sunday morning would be very light. The rate that taxis charge only increases at night. It doesn't matter which time of day you travel. On occasions, when we have had plenty of time to get to the airport we have asked the driver NOT to take the toll roads. It adds a bit of time to the trip because the journey involves several traffic lights that are avoided by the toll roads.

Thank you!

[shireboi]

Whilst not listed here....

 

Auckland - Dock or Tenders (ship dependent) - eg Ovation (Tender) / Most others dock - and this dock is like Circular Quay right in town.

 

 

Just heard from mate/travelling at the moment - that Ovation has had ISSUEs with Tenders today in Auckland - and has ultimately 'missed' this stop - everyone is p******.    

 

Christchurch -  See article - https://www.christchurchnz.com/news/transport-plan-confirmed-for-christchurch-cruise-season

https://www.metroinfo.co.nz/travel-and-fares-info/cruise-ship-passengers/

 

To travel to the Gondola or into Christchurch city, your best options are to use the shuttle buses from the wharf provided by the cruise lines. We have been working hard with our industry partners to ensure that these shuttles offer a fast, direct and affordable service

 

Picton - shuttle from the 'log dock' is provided - you cannot walk off - this takes you to the park/bus stop close to the shop areas

Edited February 14 by shireboi

[Bubbeh]

Just out of interest, where are you coming from?  it doesn't sound as if you've been to Sydney before and I'd hazard a guess that an awful lot of travelling Aussies have had at least one visit.  Simply curiosity, if I was a cat I would probably be on my last life.  

[OzKiwiJJ]

On 2/12/2024 at 5:42 PM, caseum said:

T

Thank you for your information!  We can travel anywhere from 10am to 1pm on a Tuesday after arriving at the airport.  Would it make any difference which particular time slot during that time of the day when we take the taxi?  If we ask the driver to avoid toll roads, would it add additional time to the trip and which road will the driver take?  Looking at the Google map, it appears the suggested route is M1 which has toll.  Our cruise ship will return to the Overseas Passengers Terminal on a Sunday at 6:30am.  Is the traffic in Sydney during that time of a Sunday is light?  Or it can be busy too?  Thank you.

I'd just go straight to the OPT and drop off my bags. If it doesn't look like they've started boarding I'd pop up to the Rocks, just a gentle uphill walk, and have a coffee, then go back to the OPT and check-in.