Australia and New Zealand Cruisetours

[Grumpy7]

We are from the United States and have traveled and cruised through Europe, South America, Asia, Caribbean and would now like to see Australia and New Zealand. We like the idea of cruising, but would like to see more of Australia. So we are considering a cruisetour. Has anyone had experiences with this kind of vacation in Australia? Your comments would be appreciated.

[RJHNorthyorks]

We've been looking at these and I have posted a question on the other Australia/New Zealand section but haven't heard back from anyone who has done one of these cruise company tours.

Having done a bit more research we are now either going to book an organised land trip or put it together ourselves as the cruise tours seem too rushed. We're hoping to have a couple of weeks in Australia so plan to visit Ayes rock, cairns and Sydney. Then looking for a cruise that calls at Hobart.

[Aussieflyer]

As most of the people who post on this board come from Australia or NZ we are probably not very likely to take a cruise tour in our own backyard so to speak. You may get more information by posting on the board of cruise lines that do cruise tours, for example Celebrity (as I know they do them). They can be a bit rushed but if you have very limited time then it would be worth looking into. Any of the large lines (like Celebrity) will use good quality hotels etc. They are basically a "coach tour" type thing so you will be travelling with quite a group of others. The itinerary may well have early starts and long days, so I would suggest checking carefully.

We had a short "cruise tour" with Celebrity when we went to the Galapagos which was some guided tours of Quito and flights/transfers to the islands. We have decided we are not group tour people but the cost was very advantageous.

The alternative as northyorks has said is to either organise your own travel and day trips in the locations you wish to visit or use a land based company like APT.

Good luck with the research.

 

Northyorks - there are a number of itineraries that include Hobart; it really depends on what you want to do e.g. visit NZ as well as I know the Solstice cruise after ours in January went from Auckland to Perth via Hobart.

[MMDown Under]

You may get a better response if you put your enquiry on the relevant cruise line's thread, as I doubt Australians would take a cruise tour, with their cruise.

[Grumpy7]

So far the three responses are very helpful. I will try the cruise lines themselves, but if we really want to see some of the cities not on a cruise itinerary, we may have to do it from a land tour company or on our own. Either way, it will involve flights.

[RJHNorthyorks]

Thanks aussieflyer. We're planning to find a New Zealand cruise that calls in at Hobart as I have family in Hobart ( and Sydney).

We're waiting for the 2014-2015 sailings to be published as this is going to be my post retirement trip.

[David]

Thanks aussieflyer. We're planning to find a New Zealand cruise that calls in at Hobart as I have family in Hobart ( and Sydney).

We're waiting for the 2014-2015 sailings to be published as this is going to be my post retirement trip.

 

Both Celebrity Solstice and HAL Oosterdam have at least one New Zealand sailing between Sydney and Auckland that calls at Hobart.

 

David

[David]

We've been looking at these and I have posted a question on the other Australia/New Zealand section but haven't heard back from anyone who has done one of these cruise company tours.

Having done a bit more research we are now either going to book an organised land trip or put it together ourselves as the cruise tours seem too rushed. We're hoping to have a couple of weeks in Australia so plan to visit Ayes rock, cairns and Sydney. Then looking for a cruise that calls at Hobart.

 

I have a group booked on Solstice from Sydney to Auckland a year from now and I've already been advised by several Australians and some Americans who lived in Australia that the cruise line land tours of Australia are "madness." These are usually 5-nights and cover Sydney, Cairnes, and Ayers Rock. There's no doubt that these locations are among the most popular for visitors, especially one-time visitors, to Australia. But the air schedules and travel times mean that you will spend probably half of the 5 days just in travel status, and will rush through maybe 5 tours over the 5 days. Plus, the cost of the land portion for 5 days tends to be clost to twice the cost of the cruise, unless you've booked a suite on the ship.

 

Here are the guidelines that I was given by these kind posters on CC: Sydney, 3-5 days, depending on if you want to include a day trip to the Blue Mountains; Cairns: 4 days minimum, since you need a full day for the Great Barrier Reef, at least a day for several tour options in the tropical rain forest; and should allow a day for beach time and relaxation; Ayers Rock (Uluru --Red Center): two nights and parts of three days, depending on whether you also want to see Kings Canyon (let's face it -- the Red Center is too far to go just for a day plus evening to see Ayers Rock).

 

After reading through this long thread where I posed many follow-up questions, we have decided to spend 9-10 days in Australia prior to the cruise and probably a couple of extra days in and around Auckland at the end of the cruise. We will probably put together our own Australia land itinerary, and hope to be able to travel to Cairns straight from the US first, spend several days there, and then fly to Sydney and spend at least 5 days, with possible day trips to the Blue Mountains or Canberra (if the latter, probably with an overnight stay). I'm waiting until late April to price out air options and then we can get a better idea of how to plan our Australia land vacation -- and I might also check out land tours as a possible alternative. They are less work, but the extra cost and less flexibility may not be worth it.

 

David

[UPGrandma]

So far the three responses are very helpful. I will try the cruise lines themselves, but if we really want to see some of the cities not on a cruise itinerary, we may have to do it from a land tour company or on our own. Either way, it will involve flights.

 

We were with a land tour group in 2003. Collette was the tour operator & we were very happy with their service. We too decided that we are not "group" travelers & like time to do our own thing instead of a group. However, could not have seen what we saw in 10 days by ourselves so glad we did it the way we did. The drive to Ayers Rock is SOOOOO long & very few gas stations.

[RJHNorthyorks]

Hi David. I think your approach is the way to go. I've been doing quite a lot of research and we will definitely put together our own package. I'm also going to ask a couple of specialist TA's to quote. We're waiting for the 2014 -15 cruises to go on sale and then we'll plan around that.