Need some help for a tour in Dunedin, NZ

[Animated-one]

Hi there,

I'm at a lost for a tour to do in Dunedin NZ:confused: I know the BIG attraction is the "Otago Peninsula", but unfortunately my husband is "Penguin OUT"! He became this way after our South American cruise where I booked 2 penguin tours. My DH said he doesn't care if he see another penguin ever again!:( So this has left me with doing a city tour for Dunedin, which I have checked out a few tours & their operators (1) "Authur's Tours" a 2 pax is $390.00 per person:eek: (2). "Otago Explorer", a hop-on, hop-off bus tour, but it also seems expensive, especially for a hop-on, hop-off at $50.00 NZD per person:eek:... So my questions are, can we do Dunedin on foot, or are there another options for getting around the city attractions that would be E-Z for a tourist???

What we like to visit and see the following: Larnach Castle, Speight Brewery Heritage, Mount Cargill, Cadbury World, Chinese Garden, or Dunedin Botanic Garden (what ever is better). I realize we can't see all these attractions, but we would like to see most of them;)

 

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

[Gsel]

I can tell you what we did! We caught a taxi at the pier and had the driver take us into the center of the city. He gave us a wonderful tour on the way in, told us where to go and about how long it would take to do what we wanted to do. He also made arrangements to pick us up at a certain time in a certain place (actually at the train station) and then on the way back to the ship gave us another wonderful tour. He also gave us some great suggestions for lunch which ended up to be one of the best meals we had on the whole trip. The people of NZ are like that! This man didn't even want to take the extra tip we wanted to give him, there were 10 of us in his van and he was intent on giving us the best tour we had in his country! Dunedin was one of our favorite places because of this man's pride in his city. If you decide to just wander around the city I hope you can find a taxi driver like him, wish I could remember his name but all I can remember is a VERY clean white van. Enjoy!

[Annecj]

We used Arthur's Tours when in Dunedin. He runs small group tours to various places. If you e-mail him at http://www.arthurstours.co.nz he will send you a detailed list.

[moyaroo]

Port Chalmers where you dock is a very quiet and charming place, the ride into Dunedin ditto (we took the public bus) Dunedin down town you can walk see the Presbyterian Church for the brewery or chocolate you will need a cab not hard. Dunedin is quite pleasant. close to Hobart, Tasmania on my list of go back to's

[aussiedisneyfan]

Depending on which cruiseline you sail with you may have complimentary shuttles into town, HAL has for the last 2 years, Celebrity charged $8-10pp.

 

There is a public bus service just up the end of the wharf, however it is more infrequent on the weekends. If you head into town via ship's shuttle or public bus, you get off at the Octagon which is sort of like the town square. There is an Isite there (tourism bureau) and lots of different tours on offer.

 

In January 2008 we headed into town on our own and walked to Speights Brewery and Cadburys although there were hills. We also looked through the presbyterian church and other touristy things. You will need to book ahead for Speights or Cadburys though because they often sell out.

 

Lyttleton port also has a couple of quaint shops, pubs and a small museum.

[Animated-one]

Depending on which cruiseline you sail with you may have complimentary shuttles into town, HAL has for the last 2 years, Celebrity charged $8-10pp.

 

There is a public bus service just up the end of the wharf, however it is more infrequent on the weekends. If you head into town via ship's shuttle or public bus, you get off at the Octagon which is sort of like the town square. There is an Isite there (tourism bureau) and lots of different tours on offer.

 

In January 2008 we headed into town on our own and walked to Speights Brewery and Cadburys although there were hills. We also looked through the presbyterian church and other touristy things. You will need to book ahead for Speights or Cadburys though because they often sell out.

 

Lyttleton port also has a couple of quaint shops, pubs and a small museum.

 

Hi there,

How much are the for entry fees for the Speights Brewery and the Cadbury's, and do we need to purchase them before we leave on our cruise???

BTW, we on the Dawn Princess November 3rd sailing. I think I need to call Princess and ask if they have complimentary shuttle bus that goes to town or do they charge for this service....Thanks for the heads up!:cool:

[Fabian52]

To Animated-one: If you find out if Princess supples a bus to the center of Dunedin let me know because I think we are going to just walk around the city and maybe pick up a tour in the city when we get there. Let me know if you find out. We are on the next cruise Nov. 14th same itinerary but on the Sun Princess.

Everything is so expensive. Still checking on private tours. My husband also is penguined out from our trip to South America last December so don't really know what else to do.

I would just like to take a tour of the harbor for the scenery. I wonder if you can book a taxi for that and he would just take you whereever you wanted to for a set price? Does anyone know. :confused:

[Animated-one]

To Animated-one: If you find out if Princess supples a bus to the center of Dunedin let me know because I think we are going to just walk around the city and maybe pick up a tour in the city when we get there. Let me know if you find out. We are on the next cruise Nov. 14th same itinerary but on the Sun Princess.

 

Hi there,

 

I did call Princess right after I had posted on the C.C. and this is what they said. "They DO NOT supply any type of shuttle bus service from Port Chalmers to Dunedin, you either book a shore excursion through them, or grab a taxis at the dock, or get your own private tour:(" I told the women at Princess that Holland America has shuttle service at no charge, and Celebrity charges $8.00 to $10.00 for a shuttle, why is it that Princess doesn't even give you this option:confused: She didn't know!:confused:..... Maybe I'm making much to much out of this, but for what we are paying for this cruise and all the shore excursions you would think that just maybe Princess could offer something like, Dunedin on your own, at a reasonably price!!!!! :rolleyes:

[Fabian52]

To Animated-one: If you find out if Princess supples a bus to the center of Dunedin let me know because I think we are going to just walk around the city and maybe pick up a tour in the city when we get there. Let me know if you find out. We are on the next cruise Nov. 14th same itinerary but on the Sun Princess.

 

Hi there,

 

I did call Princess right after I had posted on the C.C. and this is what they said. "They DO NOT supply any type of shuttle bus service from Port Chalmers to Dunedin, you either book a shore excursion through them, or grab a taxis at the dock, or get your own private tour:(" I told the women at Princess that Holland America has shuttle service at no charge, and Celebrity charges $8.00 to $10.00 for a shuttle, why is it that Princess doesn't even give you this option:confused: She didn't know!:confused:..... Maybe I'm making much to much out of this, but for what we are paying for this cruise and all the shore excursions you would think that just maybe Princess could offer something like, Dunedin on your own, at a reasonably price!!!!! :rolleyes:

True, everything is so expensive. I still don't know what we are doing.

I may just book a private tour with the penguins and albatrosses, still don't know. I really just would like to tour up the coast for the ocean coastline view and take some pictures. Nothing to extensive and not to far away from the ship. Maybe I will see if we can find someone in town like a taxi driver for a set fee will do this?

[Australian family]

There is also the The Taieri Gorge Journey, which is heaps cheaper booking it direct than doing it through the cruise line. We are doing this trip and are very impressed that our 2 children will not be charged http://www.taieri.co.nz/trip.htm The trip leaves from the very famous railway station in Dunedin.

[moyaroo]

Re costs in Dunedin need to remember that when they see $ in anything other than Princess literature, that NZ dollars are involved and those at about 33% cheaper ie 1.50 NZD is equal to $1 USD.

 

Next thing on the Taieri gorge train be sure to check times. On some of the NZ trains the cruise lines bus part way to catch the train late or leave it early.

 

The public bus is easy and cheap and you can't miss the center (Octagon) without really trying.

 

We took the shuttle in and rented a car then drove up the coast to Oamaru had lunch and returned (the rental people drove us back to the ship (though they did not pick us up)) The boulders at Moeraki are pretty neat.

[Animated-one]

There is also the The Taieri Gorge Journey, which is heaps cheaper booking it direct than doing it through the cruise line. We are doing this trip and are very impressed that our 2 children will not be charged http://www.taieri.co.nz/trip.htm The trip leaves from the very famous railway station in Dunedin.

 

Hi there,

So if I read your post right, you can book this tour WITHOUT going through the cruise line??? Princess wants $289.00 per person AUD. BTW, for those of you who are booked either on the Dawn or Sun Princess the currency is in Aussie dollars, not USD. This does have a slight advantage;)

[ozland]

We used Arthur's Tours when in Dunedin. He runs small group tours to various places. If you e-mail him at www.arthurstours.co.nz he will send you a detailed list.

 

We did Arthur's Tours (with Arthur himself as our guide) and had a GREAT time. Saw so much ... he recommended most sites to see but was at our disposal if we wanted to see something in particular. Loved Dunedin!

 

Gail

[Australian family]

Hi there,

So if I read your post right, you can book this tour WITHOUT going through the cruise line??? Princess wants $289.00 per person AUD. BTW, for those of you who are booked either on the Dawn or Sun Princess the currency is in Aussie dollars, not USD. This does have a slight advantage;)

 

Yes you can book direct, you need to look at the website for departure times etc, as they have different services. $289 is probably triple of the cost of the train trip, but remember you have to get yourself into the train station. I have emailed them directly about the train trip and they are more than helpful with information.

[moyaroo]

safest is to get to the train station for the 9:30 train. The cruise line gets special service direct from the ship but that seems to be cruise line only and upcharge up the 788 if you know what I mean.

[Animated-one]

safest is to get to the train station for the 9:30 train. The cruise line gets special service direct from the ship but that seems to be cruise line only and upcharge up the 788 if you know what I mean.

 

Hi there,

I have few questions about the train ride from Dunedin: (1) We dock in in Port Chalmers at 9:00 am, can we get to the train station by taxis in time for a 9:30 am departure??? (2) As you know, the Dawn Princess will be in Dunedin on Saturday, November 7th, which is great (I think) because they have a tour called the "Seasider" which is only available on Tuesday's & Saturday's for $68.00 NZD roundtrip! Has anyone ever taken the "Seasider" tour before???....I guess if we miss the train at 9:30 am we still can walk around Dunedin and do some the attractions that were mentioned previously.;)

[Animated-one]

Hi there,

I have few questions about the train ride from Dunedin: (1) We dock in in Port Chalmers at 9:00 am, can we get to the train station by taxis in time for a 9:30 am departure??? (2) As you know, the Dawn Princess will be in Dunedin on Saturday, November 7th, which is great (I think) because they have a tour called the "Seasider" which is only available on Tuesday's & Saturday's for $68.00 NZD roundtrip! Has anyone ever taken the "Seasider" tour before???....I guess if we miss the train at 9:30 am we still can walk around Dunedin and do some the attractions that were mentioned previously.;)

 

Hi there,

I need to know how far Port Chalmers is from the train station and how much would a taxis be?... I'm trying to figure out if my above statement of a Seasider train tour would be even feasible, especially if our ship gets into Port Chalmers at 9:00 am..:eek:

[aussiedisneyfan]

I don't thinks so. I think it was a 15/20 min ride into town. You would have to have the ship dock on time, be first off and have the cab waiting. All the Ships tours would get priority getting off plus you would have the hassle of waiting for a cab.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

I don't thinks so. I think it was a 15/20 min ride into town. You would have to have the ship dock on time, be first off and have the cab waiting. All the Ships tours would get priority getting off plus you would have the hassle of waiting for a cab.

 

We had planned on taking the local bus from Port Chalmers to Dunedin, but gave up waiting, then spent 20 minutes waiting for, or trying to find a taxi.

Came back OK by bus. It leaves from opposite the Cadbury Factory. Nice trip, but long, as it detours off on the way , into the villages along the harbour. We got off at the local Supermarket and found a very good selection of wine :D

[captainron]

Taxi to/from Port Chalmers/Dunedin is approximately NZD$45.00 each way.

 

Ciao for now!!!

[Animated-one]

After reading everybodies response to my post (thank you everyone), I guess it's Dunedin on our own:D....Where is the best place to get off the bus, at the railroad station, or the town square octagon.

 

BTW David, I do like your idea of stopping at a local supermarket to gets some wine on the way back to the ship:cool:

 

Fabian 52, we need to exchange emails so we can compare notes on our shore excursions especially since your cruise leaves after our.:)

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Where is the best place to get off the bus, at the railroad station, or the town square octagon.

 

If you get off at the Octagon, the end of the run, you will be right outside the Dunedin Visitors Centre.

[sus susy]

After reading everybodies response to my post (thank you everyone), I guess it's Dunedin on our own:D....Where is the best place to get off the bus, at the railroad station, or the town square octagon.

 

BTW David, I do like your idea of stopping at a local supermarket to gets some wine on the way back to the ship:cool:

 

Fabian 52, we need to exchange emails so we can compare notes on our shore excursions especially since your cruise leaves after our.:)

 

Hi, unfortunately there is no way you will make the train in that time frame. We have done this trip and after learning the prices charged from the ship in comparison the train itself decided to book with the station, in the hope of making the train. We didnt manage to make it. But having said that, do take the time to visit the station. It is a beautiful station, and makes for a great photo opportunity. Dunedin itself is a lovely town and plenty to do, not to mention lots of shops if you wish to shop. Enjoy.:)