Review Sydney to Auckland 11/14/2008 Millenium

[busseltoncruisers]

What a fantastic cruise and what a wonderful ship.

I am sure that anyone who sailed on this cruise would agree we were blessed with wonderful weather and sea conditions. Dunedin was a little chilly but that isn't unusual for Dunedin.

Just a tip for those boarding in sydney for any future cruises, when we were given the immigration cards to complete, we were ushered on and told we would have plenty time to fill in before presenting ourselves to the counter. This was true however there was nowhere to lean on to fill out the card. People were leaning on the window sills, floor, each other so a tip is to take a book to lean on.

We were travelling with our elderly parents who all immigrated from Europe over 50 years ago and this was their only previous experience of cruising. They were totally overwhelmed when we pulled up next to the ship. My MIL gets very sea sick and was worried that she would be ill on this cruise. I armed her with seabands and ginger tablets but by the 3rd day she discarded the seabands and didn't have one second of seasickness. They all kept on referring to the ship as the hotel. I might also add that MIL and FIL continuously got lost and we would often find them in some little bar waiting for us to find them.

Sailing out of sydney harbour was breathtaking and we had an electrical storm for effect. First night at sea was a bit bumpy but all our party slept like babies. After 2 sea days we arrived in Millford Sound to a clear morning and the day continued with a few short showers. We viewed the majority of the scenic cruising from the buffet area at the rear of the ship..great view. All ports of call, other than Dunedin (too cold for Mum) we managed to get everyone in our party, wheelchair and all, off the ship and into the cities for a bit of sightseeing.

Our overall thoughts of our cruise are

Fantastic ship with wonderful crew. My 89 year old mother was treated like a queen and if we had to leave her by herself while we organised lunch at the buffet, one of the staff would wait with her.

I just loved those glass lifts.

Cabin was spacious and the bathroom was good size. Didn't spend nearly enough time on our balcony.

Food at all outlets was first class. loved the pasta station and had to make a concious effort to keep away. For those that love desert it was heaven. My mother is diabetic and she was catered for exceptionally well.

Mum spent a lot of time in a wheelchair as her mobility is quite limited and we found the ship (and staff) to be very wheelchair friendly.

Entertainment was sensational. After cruising a few times I think you accept that the entertainment can be average and just enjoy it for what it is and enjoy the dressing up and lovely theatre, bars etc. On this cruise however we could not fault the entertainment..the comedian was actually funny, the various entertainment around the ship was very entertaining and to cap it off on the last night Donald Cant performed for us in the theatre. This was particularly exciting for me as we went to Sydney for my 40th birthday (over a decade age) to see the Phantom of the opera and Donald was our Phantom. he received a standing ovation which was good to see.

Great mix of sailing companions from around the world and wonderful dinner companions too.

Only downside was the exchange rate as ship is in USD but we were prepared for this and it is still a great value holiday.

Anyone sailing between Auckland and Australia on the Millenium this summer all we can say is we are sure you will have a brilliant time.

[corbes]

Any advice on Shore excursions? We will be on the Millenium in a few weeks and interested if you can recommend any particular shore excursions (either celebrity or ones you organised separately) in any of the ports.

 

thanks!

[busseltoncruisers]

We have cruised around New Zealand previously and also visited on a land holiday so this time it was mainly walking around the cities/port. The Celebrity excursions are very expensive as they are in USD and our exchange rate is not the best at the moment. In Dunedin there is a shuttle from the port to the City for $12USD return which is good value. The city has a few old buildings and churches. The "First church" has a little museum at the rear with a donation entry. You can get instructions from the info centre. There is also a city highlights bus tour that I think you can also book from the info centre. On a previous visit to Christchurch we hired a mini bus with other passengers and drove to Akaroa. From memory the bus was about $220 NZD and we booked ahead. The hire company dropped the car off at the port town. The drive out to Akaroa is lovely with great views of the Southern Alps and the little town itself is worth a visit. From the port in Wellington we walked wheelchair and all along the harbour to the Te Papa Museum. We have visited the museum previously and enjoyed it as much this time. If this sort of thing is interesting to you then allow a few hours. It goes into the early European settlement as well as the Maori culture. Great museum and free. We then headed to the cable car (walking distance) and had a couple of drinks in the restaurant at the top of the hill with great views of the harbour. Also a little museum about the origins of the cable car. Tauranga is actually the seaside town of Mount Manganui (probably spelt wrong). Again you can walk to the town and the beach. There are hot salt water baths. If it is a nice day the beach would be great for a swim. Are you from US or Aus ?

[florisdekort]

Thanks for your review, I agree, Millennium is the best :D

[mazza]

Thanks for your review - we have 8 days to go before we board the Millennium for this cruise, and I'm counting down! We've managed to sort out excursions on our own, because like you, when you translate the US prices to AUD at the moment, it's just scary!

[oavcech95]

What wonderfull you have a good time

[sheza]

Hi,

 

Good to read your thoughts, the ship sounds great, we're cruising on the Millie for the 1st time on 7/12 and I was interested to hear your mothers is diabetic. Did you arrange for special meal options before the cruise or once on board?

 

I'd welcome any info, also when tipping did you use aussie or US?

 

Thanks for your help

We're looking forward to a relaxing time.

[busseltoncruisers]

Hi,

 

Good to read your thoughts, the ship sounds great, we're cruising on the Millie for the 1st time on 7/12 and I was interested to hear your mothers is diabetic. Did you arrange for special meal options before the cruise or once on board?

 

I'd welcome any info, also when tipping did you use aussie or US?

 

Thanks for your help

We're looking forward to a relaxing time.

 

We let them know on board but you can advise online. and request a special diet. We tipped in Aussie and NZ as we didn't have any need for USD. The only time you will use cash on the ship is in the casino and we changed a $50Aus and kindly donated it back in record time. You will have a great time and if you need any other info please ask.

[sheza]

Thanks Denise for letting me know, :D I must admit I was pretty concerned about what I'd be able to eat now I can just pack and enjoy, so you've saved me a week of worry. Cheers Marguerite :)

[Napi's Mom]

Thanks for your review - we have 8 days to go before we board the Millennium for this cruise, and I'm counting down! We've managed to sort out excursions on our own, because like you, when you translate the US prices to AUD at the moment, it's just scary!

That's why you take the local tour guides and get their prices. We from the US are doing so to save much money...the ships tours are way too expensive and not usually as good as signing with private tour companies. They aren't any better either, often not as good, frequently more than twice as expensive as a local company identical tour (for instance if lunch is included...figure 30$$US pp extra, I figured this out last cruise) It's a great deal for us , the exchange rate right now, but not for your end I realize:rolleyes:

[Miss K]

Thanks for your review! Would you be able to tell us a little about what the weather was like?? When you say it was cold in Dunedin, how cold do you mean?? What kinds of things did you wear in port? I am going on this cruise in Jan 09, and am hoping that I can get away with jeans and nice tops during the day??

[rebeccaluvscruising]

and Dunedin was chilly due to wind and drizzle. It is spring there now and weather is changeable. In January, it will be summer but I hear that the weather can still be quite unpredictable. Still, you should be OK with a windbreaker. If you need a sweatshirt, I bet you can find a store to buy one!! ;)

 

Rebecca

[pcur]

Thank you for the reivew, and the tips about sailing from Sydney. We are on RCCL's Rhapsody next September '09 leaving from Sydney.

 

We sailed on the Millie in Europe in 4/07, and absolutely loved, loved, loved that ship!!

[tupper10]

We were on the same sailing. It was a wonderful cruise as everyone has said but as for clothing if you are going to view the sounds from outside you need to bring 1. fleece 2. rain jacket 3. hat and gloves. I had every piece of clothing on and I was still cold due to the wind. So unless you are doing your viewing from inside please bring layers as the weather is very changeable. We went from sun to a hail storm. We did the viewing from outside on the front deck of the ship (deck 11) and climbed up one more flight of stairs to get a fabulous view. There is a naturalist on board who told you where to look though we couldn't find the pelicans he saw. If he is still on board go to his lectures they are very interesting. We did not do any ship tours at all. We rented a car in Christchurch but I wouldn't do that again I would spend the time seeing the city. I would also (if I could afford it) do the overnight ship tour as the people who went said it was spectacular. We had wonderful weather except in Dunedin which was freezing. If the wind comes from the south (Antarctica) it is very cold. If the wind is from the north it will be warm so you must have clothes for both. We actually had to buy clothes in Dunedin since we forgot fleece and the ship had no sweatshirts at all. For some reason they were selling clothes for the Caribbean which we found funny until we needed sweats. We loved the Millie and we have been on the Summit and the Infinity as well as the Galaxy. Millie was my favorite. I think it was because the staff was so friendly and helpful. The best tour we did was the day of our departure to the Waitamo Caves by Spellbound. It was fabulous and we would highly recommend seeing this if you have the time. We enjoyed all our other tours as well. We used Back to Nature, Chris Roberts in Dunedin, New Zealand Adventure Co. in Tauranga for a full tour around the area. They will do what you wish to do. We used Wellington Rover for a 1/2 day tour in Wellington so we could see the national parks and then had a wonderful lunch at Logan Brown. We had magic4@xtra.co.nz (Phillip) drive us to the caves since we didn't want to get lost. He did a wonderful commentary and was able to fit all of our luggage (4 people) in his van. I hope this helps.