swirlidz

Ok to answer my question: what to do in Akaroa.

We did NOTHING. Well, not nothing, but no paid tours etc. We walked around the town (it is little), down to the lighthouse, we went for a walk along one of the tracks to the French Cemetary (nothing spectucular it's more of a memorial), had coffee at a little shop, wandered around the small shops & some lovely handmade things. We had fish & chips for lunch & then, after being onshore for 6 hours, went back to the boat.

hint: be at the dining room 30 mins early for the tender. they wait til they have 100 people before loading them on. We managed to get on at 7:45am. Friends turned up at 10am to go ashore & had a 90 minute wait!

Hi Vikstar,

I am going on this exact cruise, leaving tomorrow (& funnily enough, we are the same age)!!! When I get I will try & do a review, or at the very least, come back to this thread. My parents did this cruise 2 months ago & had a great time. They are late 60s but said they felt very 'young'.

Being school holidays there may be more families on the boat, will let you know! :)

We were in Akaroa last week. We tried to book the Mail Run in advance, but it was fully booked.

 

It is a good thing we did not get on because we would have lost our money.

 

Akaroa is a tender port; and for awhile that morning, the ship had to cancel all tender services because a stong wind came up and it was too rough for the tendering.

 

The mail run could not wait for the passengers because it has a schedule to keep. The people on the ship could not get off until around 10:30 or 11:00. They missed their tour.

 

We ended up taking the 1:00 jet boat ride which was a lot of fun; but not for anyone who is pregnant or has back problems! Bumpy!

Thanks for that, something I hadn't even though of! Perhaps we won't book anything in advance & see what's there once we get off. :)

thanks for that!!!! The tour company is different to the one I found so I now have the choice of two! :)

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone has been Kayaking in Akoroa?

Hubby is very keen to do it & I have read some good reviews on Trip Advisor, but just wondering if anyone here has done it & what they thought of it?

Cheers :)

Check out tripadvisor for ideas!

I have also got a few good deals with Viator, they have the occasional 10% off tours.

We are doing the hobbiton/geysers/maori village through viator (it's expensive, but only 11 on the bus & it does all 3 things that we want to see in Tauranga area).

We are doing a Tour With Bex in Dundedin :)

http://www.bookatour.co.nz/

what an amazing saving!!! Enjoy!:)

Thanks Flipper, I hadn't even noticed the cruise special! :) I will show it to my parents as another option for them.

The one thing I did like is that it went to WETA which is not obviously in walking distance (WETA is for me, not for my parents).

Thanks for your expertise too KiwiJo, sounds like the distance between the main sites will be fine for Dad!

Someone who had been there a few years back said the public buses could be another good option. Any insight there?

Hi everyone,

My parents will be in Wellington in November & I will be there in January & I'm looking at options for getting around.

Been looking at the Wellington Hop on/Hop off bus to suggest to my parents as Dad had a knee reconstruction a few years ago.

Looking for opinions & experiences about hopping on the bus as opposed to just walking around the town.

Is there any other similar things in Wellington besides this one? The reviews on Trip Advisor are very mixed ... saying it is just a man in a minivan.

Hi everyone,

Planning excursions for our Princess cruise to NZ in December/January next year & the only place I am struggling with ideas for things to do is Akoroa.

I have read very mixed reviews on the train (& the expense of it). I was wondering if anyone could give their advise on things to possibly do or see?

DH & I are in our mid 30s.

Hi everyone,

How far is it from port to the bridge? Looking at doing the bridge climb when we are in Auckland & then going in the Sky Tower ... working out the best way to get from A to B.

Thanks :)

thank you!!! :) Just what I was looking for!

Hi all,

I'm very new to this forum & over the weekend I was reading about great price drops that people had got on their cruise ... so I looked at what price my first cruise will be compared to when I booked it .. $1400 difference (same type cabin/floor etc).

So a quick email to the TA ... resulted in a $1840 REDUCTION on our cruise! I am so amazed ! Without finding this forum I never would of even thought to compare/ask!!!!!!! Thank you!!!!! :D

Hi,

I live a few hours away from Airlie Beach. There are a few travel agents on the main st of Airlie.

Conway National Park is closeby to Airlie, however I have never thought of it as a 'rainforest' (will stand corrected). There is a rainforest at Eungella which is over 2 hours away and probably wouldn't be worth the trip on a port day.