Day Tour In Melbourne

[lawra09]

We're 2 couples on the Sapphire 1/9 cruise. Any info on some good day or half day recommended tours in Melbourne? Thought the Dandenong Mountain range and Healesville Sanctuary might be fun. Any suggestions?

[Aussie Gal]

I would definitely do either the Healesville Sanctuary or the Dandenong Ranges. Do they combine the two because if they do that is the ideal tour with lunch in the Yarra Valley. If they don't then I would do the Sanctuary in preference to the Dandenongs. It is a great opportunity to see our wonderful animals in a lovely setting.

 

We are taking friends from the U.S. out for the day when they arrive in Melbourne on their cruise ship early next year and that is the itinerary that we are going to show them.

 

Jennie

[Annatoo]

We're 2 couples on the Sapphire 1/9 cruise. Any info on some good day or half day recommended tours in Melbourne? Thought the Dandenong Mountain range and Healesville Sanctuary might be fun. Any suggestions?

Think I have given you this info before :confused: www.atwad.com.au Luxury 10 pax vehicle.....are you able to convince your Roll Call? I have 2 vehicles of 10 pax doing this tour.

Good luck,

B E V

[SheilaNC]

Unfortunately, some of us are in port from 7AM to 6 PM and most of these tours would not get us back to the ship on time. Thus, our decision to explore Melbourne on our own. Guess we'll have to do these wonderful sounding tours on another trip (if we're lucky enough to get back to Oz) :)

[Aussie Gal]

Sheila,

 

Melbourne is such an easy city to do on your own. Everything is within one's reach eg. Botanical Gardens, Shopping, Art Centre, Federation Square, MCG, Tennis Centre, Museum, Public Library and the Zoo.

 

Public transport is easy to use. Just buy your all day ticket at the little shop beside the Light Rail near the ship and validate it on the tram and you will be able to use it everywhere.

 

Also, remember our free City Circle Tram and Bus. You pick up the City Circle tram at the corner of Flinders Street and Spencer Street. Your Light Rail stops there. The bus can be picked up outside the Art Centre.

 

Don't forget to walk along Southbank and have a meal outside at one of the many restaurants along there. Also you can take a boat along our Yarra River either up as far as Hawthorn or down to Williamstown.

 

Enjoy our city. I hope we give you a lovely sunny day.

 

Jennie

[SheilaNC]

Thanks so much, Jennie. As always you are a wealth of information. Sounds like exactly what we will plan to do...we look forward to Melbourne as we didn't get much south of Sydney on our last trip. Happy Holidays!

[JEBurton]

Jennie and anyone else who cares to comment: I need your opinion about the ship's excursion "Great Ocean Rode." Celebrity offers an 8 1/2 hour tour (7 hours on a coach) covering Airey's Inlet, Lorne, Apollo Bay, Port Campbell National Park and Loch Ard Gorge. Then returns to Melbourne via Cobden and the Princess Highway.

 

We're in port from 7 am to 6 pm, therefore not enough time to do this with a private tour and get back to the ship in time.

 

I really like natural beauty and photography but don't know if this tour would be disappointing being rather short in duration.

 

What do you advise?

 

Thank you very much.

 

john

[Aussie Gal]

The Great Ocean Road is a photographers delight. It is a long tour but if the weather is sunny, then you will love the trip. You will be driving along a road that was built by our Returned Servicemen from the First World War and it was literally built with picks and shovels. This year is the 75th anniversary of the opening of the road. It follows the sea around for many miles and you will be on the side of the road closest to the sea on the way to Port Campbell, so if you want to take photos etc sit on the left hand side of the bus, not the drivers side.

 

I think you will have a tea break at Lorne which is a lovely seaside resort, where we had a holiday home for 25 years. Airey's Inlet has a lighthouse which worked for many years as that part of our coast is known as the Shipwreck Coast due to the many ships from England that sunk so close to their destination which was Melbourne. Apollo Bay is another lovely resort town and then you leave the coast for awhile as you go to Lavers Hill where it rains more days than anywhere else in Victoria. You then return back to the coast where you will visit Port Campbell and the 12 Apostles and Loch Ard Gorge.

 

On the way back to the ship, you will go through our Western District with lots of farmland and towns such as Camperdown and Colac before coming once more to Geelong which is our 2nd largest city in Victoria and then onto Melbourne.

 

You will see a lot of our countryside, our seaside towns and you will get a good idea of our way of life. Go for it, if you can.

 

Jennie

[JEBurton]

Jennie, thanks so much for your response. Just wish we had more time in Melbourne. The G.O.R. sounds like a great day trip.