Would you do Londridge Jet Boat or visit Buried Village in Tauranga?

[cruisecruzer]

Hi,

 

I am in the process of booking an independent tour and we are going to Wai-O-Pu and Te Puia...I also want to see Buried Village or do the Longridge Jet Boat.

 

Has anyone ever been to the Buried Village? and if it's something I should go see or pass and do the Longridge Jet Boat ride since we're pressed for time and doing the above and these 2 would not be feasible.

 

Any feedback on both (Buried Village or Longridge Jet Boat) would help me make a decision on which one I should pick. Thanks!

 

Annie

[lisalovlee33]

wish i could delete this.. repost accidently

[lisalovlee33]

wish i could delete this.. repost accidently

[lisalovlee33]

wish i could delete this.. repost accidently

[captainron]

You can do a jet boat ride anywhere in the States...see the Buried Village.

 

Ciao for now!!!

[tobes]

The ten minute jet boat ride made me nauseous! Not the big thrill its made out to be although the scenery is beautiful. Judy:)

 

 

 

Hi,

 

I am in the process of booking an independent tour and we are going to Wai-O-Pu and Te Puia...I also want to see Buried Village or do the Longridge Jet Boat.

 

Has anyone ever been to the Buried Village? and if it's something I should go see or pass and do the Longridge Jet Boat ride since we're pressed for time and doing the above and these 2 would not be feasible.

 

Any feedback on both (Buried Village or Longridge Jet Boat) would help me make a decision on which one I should pick. Thanks!

 

Annie

[susierailroad]

Annie:

 

MY husband and I are on the Sapphire 3/9/08, too. Am trying to decide whether to rent a car at Tauranga or do a "tour." We want to see Rotorua, TePuia, Waiotupa and the buried village, too. with whom are you booking? Is there room in your independent tour for two more? May be best to leave the driving to someone else. Thanks,

 

Susie

[cruisetvl]

Annie:

 

MY husband and I are on the Sapphire 3/9/08, too. Am trying to decide whether to rent a car at Tauranga or do a "tour." We want to see Rotorua, TePuia, Waiotupa and the buried village, too. with whom are you booking? Is there room in your independent tour for two more? May be best to leave the driving to someone else. Thanks,

 

Susie

Hi Susie, Hi Annie,

 

We're also on the March 9 Sapphire sailing. My parents and I were looking at independent tours/ or joining in with others. We're interested in visiting Rotorua, Te Puia, and Wai-O-Pu tour, etc. Have either of you contacted any of the tour companies and requested pricing/ rental car rates? Since we have a long port day at Tauranga, we would like to see more than some of the tours options are including. If you have details, and have room to share, we may be interested in joining you. Thanks.

[cruisecruzer]

Hi,

 

I am booking with Ian at Mt Classic. I've arranged a signature tour where I'll be paying the admission fees myself and paying for the vehicle on an hourly rate of $100 since we are renting a 34 seater (that's how many people we already have).

 

He has smaller vehicles that can accomodate 6 or 8 people at a hourly rate of 90 per hour. The admission to Te Puia (with the Maori concert) is $50, Wai-O-Pu $27 and Buried Village is $30. The Longridge Jet Boat is $89.

 

He suggested that I probably don't have enough time to do all 4 things so I opted to drop the Buried Village since the majority of my group wanted to do the Jet Boat.

 

If you can get a group of 6 or 8 then it would be worthwhile to split the cost and customize your day according to what you want to do. If not, he also has tours that are pre-set that will cover Te Puia and Wai-O-Tapu for $205 NZ$ which includes lunch and admission.

 

Hope this information helps you decide on what you want to do.

 

I also have an independent tour booked with http://www.backtonaturetours.co.nz/ in Dunedin that you can check into.

 

Good Luck!

 

Annie

[susierailroad]

Cruisetvl:

 

For Rotorua, I'm working on something that looks very promising (and a good deal), better than doing a private car rental to see TePuia and surrounds. I'll let you know as soon as I get the rest of the info. There is room for 3 more (or even more), yet the size of van is not too large, ie 14 or so.

 

Susie

[cruisetvl]

Cruisetvl:

 

For Rotorua, I'm working on something that looks very promising (and a good deal), better than doing a private car rental to see TePuia and surrounds. I'll let you know as soon as I get the rest of the info. There is room for 3 more (or even more), yet the size of van is not too large, ie 14 or so.

 

Susie

Hi Susie,

 

It's wonderful you're coming up with something promising. I've checked with some tours, but most will only go to one or two locations. Do let me know the details when you receive them.

 

Also, I noticed you were also interested in visiting the Blue Mountains. We are also planning to visit the day we disembark the ship. Were you planning to visit on Friday? If so, maybe we can coordinate something also. We will return to Sydney on Friday evening. I've also checked with some of the tour companies, but most will do very early departures (around 7:30ish). I'm not sure what the earliest time will be for the ship, so I've been hesitant to make any bookings. If there are enough of us, maybe we can get our own private tour too. This way, we know our luggage will be safe with us also. Looking forward to hearing from you.

[evoni]

Annie, which tour did you book with http://www.backtonaturetours.co.nz/? I read a list of attractions and wondered how many places are feasible to do in a day?

 

Our trip isn't until March 2009 so I would be very interested in reading a trip report from you on your return as we also have a small group that is doing a private signature tour with Ian.

 

Diana

[kaseyoz]

I would second the buried village too.

 

Right near there is"Blue Lake" worth a photo stop. There is also a nice walk at the buried village,that goes down to the water fall but it is a bit hard walking back.

 

The tour there while interesting I felt the guide chatted on too much and went too slow. We were short of time so went ahead of him.

 

have only heard good things about mt classics tours. Email them and Ian will do all he can to fit your requirements.

This is certainly a full day here but one you will love as it is so very different from other port stops

[cruisecruzer]

Annie, which tour did you book with http://www.backtonaturetours.co.nz/? I read a list of attractions and wondered how many places are feasible to do in a day?

 

Our trip isn't until March 2009 so I would be very interested in reading a trip report from you on your return as we also have a small group that is doing a private signature tour with Ian.

 

Diana

 

Our tour with Back to Nature will consist of going thru the town, to the Otago Peninsula, Penguin Place, Albatross Colony and Larnach Castle. Pick up at 8:30 and back to ship at 5:00.

 

I also have a tour booked with Ian at Mt. Classic Tour...but it sounds like I may not have enough time to do all the things I want on one day so I may have to forego the Buried Village.

 

I will give you a review of the tour when I return at the end of March.

 

Annie

[Kruizefan]

Hi,

 

I am in the process of booking an independent tour and we are going to Wai-O-Pu and Te Puia...I also want to see Buried Village or do the Longridge Jet Boat.

 

Hi,

four weeks ago I did the Longridge Jet Boat and it´s been really great sailing and spinning thru a rain forest gorge by 35 knots.

 

An experience I really will remember for a life time. You wanna see it? http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=SbSUXp5r3kE

 

We also went to Wai-O-Tapu, Rotorua and Te Puia, which was great but I consider the jet boat ride as most spectacular!

 

You will have heaps of fun.

Are you going with Mount Classics by KiwiIan? They are very friendly and informativ.

Peter

[susierailroad]

Cruisetvl:

 

We've decided to take a private tour with Carlton Tours (carltontours@xtra.co.nz). It goes to TePuia (website is www.tepuia.com), which includes guided tour, woodcarving, weaving, Pohutu Geyser, boiling mud, Kiwi house, also includes driving around the port and Mt. Maunganui; visit Kiwi 360, drive through forest, short walk to Okere Falls, viewing Lake Rotoiti, stopping at Lake Rotorua, touring government gardens and visiting Kuirau Park in Rotorua and refreshments. Six hours, pick up at port, $120 pp.

 

We looked at renting a car with Pegasus ($90 plus petro and insurance.) and at other tour operators. They all look quite good, however, this seems to be the best value, covering as much as we care to do for the day. Not enough time to do the buried village, too, and we've jetboated before so...

 

Regarding the Blue Mountains, we plan to tour the harbour area the day we dock at Sydney and spend the night at the Marriott on the Quay. Plan to rent car or do the train/explorer bus for the Blue Mountains the following day. Since Saturday is the day we plan to travel to the Blue Mtns., traffic shouldn't be too bad on the M4, so we'll probably rent the car. Spend Sat. night at Paramatta, just west of city, and travel to the airport Sun morning for trip to Cairns.

 

Keep in touch.

 

[cruisecruzer]

Hi Petegrebe...

 

Yes, I have my tour booked with Ian at Mt. Classic and we're going to the same places you went to.

 

It sounds like you had a great time and so I'm looking forward to our tour with him too.

 

We are also doing the Longridge Jet Boat...it'll be awesome. Thanks for the info.

 

Annie

[cruisetvl]

Hi Susie:

 

I also considered Carlton Tours when I was looking at private tours. I was hoping we can utilize the long port days with one or two additional sights. I may still consider booking with Carlton if we decide to take it easy with a shorter port day. I'm sure there are plenty to do around the port or on the ship. Might not be a bad idea to relax on the deck!

 

Since we have a short stay in Sydney, we will visit the Blue Mountains the day we disembark. I'm sure Saturday will be a better driving day for you. At least you will not have the Friday commuters and peak traffic. I wish we had more time in Sydney, but unfortunately I can't take off any more days. It's too bad I won't get to visit Cairns and the Reef this time. It's beautiful there. Have fun, and enjoy the wonderful waterlife underneath.

 

Yes, do keep in touch.

[ToBe]

Hi Susie:

 

I also considered Carlton Tours when I was looking at private tours. I was hoping we can utilize the long port days with one or two additional sights. I may still consider booking with Carlton if we decide to take it easy with a shorter port day. I'm sure there are plenty to do around the port or on the ship. Might not be a bad idea to relax on the deck!

 

Since we have a short stay in Sydney, we will visit the Blue Mountains the day we disembark. I'm sure Saturday will be a better driving day for you. At least you will not have the Friday commuters and peak traffic. I wish we had more time in Sydney, but unfortunately I can't take off any more days. It's too bad I won't get to visit Cairns and the Reef this time. It's beautiful there. Have fun, and enjoy the wonderful waterlife underneath.

 

Yes, do keep in touch.

Buried Village was not that interesting. We had seen the layers of ash left by the eruption so there was not much to see and the cost was not worth it. FYI There were carved red wooden posts added to the buildings. Thoses were added for decoration. They did not exsist in the original village.

 

Temma

[whiskers9]

We just did both in January and preferred the jet boat. We did experience a little confusion at the Buried Village as the tour started 1/2 hr later than our tour operator was informed so we were only able to do half of the walking tour. The guide did go slow (as someone else mentioned) and I think we would have enjoyed it more on our own. However, he was one of the descendents of a chief and had a lot of interesting information. The Buried Village was high on my list of things to see, but we did leave a little disappointed. We may have been comparing it to Pompeii, whereas you had to keep in mind you were still standing on top of the ash. There were replica houses, etc., so you got the idea of what it looked like prior (sort of).

 

Our tour operator did mention they don't take too many to see the Buried Village.

 

The jet boat was something I'd seen on TV and again on the top of my list. It did make us a little nauseous at times (we did 9 360 degree turns) but it was fun. There were only 3 of us on the boat as they actually stayed open an hour for us after closing because of us running late from the Buried Village. It was later in the afternoon and the river was calm and the scenery beautiful.

 

As this stop had the most to do, in order to get everything in that day we had the tour guide for 10 hrs.

[cruisecruzer]

Ian at Mt. Classic did recommend that we drop the Buried Village and go with the Jetboat due to time restraints. We will be using them for 9 hours.

 

 

The Jet Boat sounds like fun...jus hope we don't get too nauseous.

 

Thanks for the information.