Which NZ rail excursion is best.

[cruiselover53]

Travelling on Sun Princess on 19th March next year.Would love to do one of the 2 train trips ( Taieri Gorge Railway or Tranz Alpine Express) but not sure which one.Would love people to give their opinions to help.Both are very expensive. I have thought about not doing the ships tour and organising it myself but (and this is the downside of the internet) the Goddess has been watching :mad: dock runners on you tube and is becoming neurotic.

[kiwipete]

IMHO the Taieri Gorge railway is a must and it picks you up at the ship so no long bus rides!

[johndon]

I agree that the taeiri gorge rail trip is the one but not with the ship booking

By booking direct with the railways you will pay less than half the ship charges

The railways train leaves from Dunedin Railway Station and NOT from next to the ship but for a small fare the railways put on a shuttle bus from the wharf to the station, about a twenty minute trip. For a total of about $NZD30 they will include a city tour when the train returns from the Gorge at about 2-30pm then return you to the gangplank well before sailing time

You can book on line at. Taieri.co.nz/booking

 

John

[Cruise_me_Crazy]

I did the trans alpine. It was lovely but I was a little underwhelmed by it. It was a train trip with lots of snowy mountains around it. :confused:

Could have taken the bus for a much smaller amount and done a road trip through list of snowy mountains..... :)

[Flipper133]

The Trans Alpine runs out of Christchurch...your cruise ship will tender at Akaroa. That means before you even get on the train you will have to tender ashore, and then take a coach for 1.5hrs into Christchurch. Then after the train ride, its all the way back.

 

No thanks...that would also make me super concerned about missing the boat.

 

The Taeiri Gorge is from Dunedin which is close enough to where your ship will be docked at Port Chalmers(15 minutes) ... easy and as already indicated the independents are well organised and no chance of being late back.

 

cheers

[hematocrit]

I agree with taking the Taeiri Gorge train and booking direct with the train company. Their shuttle from Port Chalmers and the Dunedin City Tour afterwards is well worth the $NZ30 and the whole trip will be considerable cheaper than by booking on the ship.

[OzKiwiJJ]

There may not be much snow on the Southern Alps in March, there wasn't the year we did the TranzAlpine. It's a very scenic trip regardless but a very long day there and back. Best done if you're staying in Christchurch for a couple of days.

 

The Taieri Gorge train also has stunning scenery and, personally, I would recommend it as an excursion from a cruise. As others have said, this is something you can organise yourself.

Edited September 7, 2014 by OzKiwiJJ

[chchgirl]

I've done the Transalpine but I lived in Christchurch, left in 2010 and have been back twice since. It's a long way and best done if you are staying in Christchurch like Ozkiwijj has suggested. Best done in winter as well, in my opinion.

 

Good luck, hope you enjoy your trip!

 

Michelle :)

[cruiselover53]

Thanks everyone .I'll start looking at doing the gorge and booking on my own.

[MicCanberra]

Thanks everyone .I'll start looking at doing the gorge and booking on my own.

 

Was going to suggest the Gorge but as you have made up your mind I wish you luck. From what I have read previously, you can save money by doing it yourself but for convenience and peace of mind, the ship's excursions are much easier.:D

[Flipper133]

Thanks everyone .I'll start looking at doing the gorge and booking on my own.

 

Have a look here:

 

http://travelheadfirst.com/local-legends/cruise-packages-dunedin/

 

Many of the folk on our roll call for our Solstice cruise in December are using this mob.

 

cheers

[dancinman66]

Thanks everyone .I'll start looking at doing the gorge and booking on my own.

 

 

It is a cool trip

The teams alpine as one said previous is amazing

 

Enjoy

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[MicCanberra]

It is a cool trip

The teams alpine as one said previous is amazing

 

Enjoy

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Cool is definitely the right word, bring a jacket.:D

[TLCOhio]

Travelling on Sun Princess on 19th March next year. Would love to do one of the 2 train trips (Taieri Gorge Railway or Tranz Alpine Express) but not sure which one.Would love people to give their opinions to help.Both are very expensive. I have thought about not doing the ships tour and organising it myself but (and this is the downside of the internet) the Goddess has been watching dock runners on you tube and is becoming neurotic.

 

As noted in the live/blog below, we traveled these great areas in January and February. We did the Tranz Alpine ride combined with a JetBoat adventure. Super loved that experience!! Yes, the rail, if just sitting in the regular passenger car, might be only so-so for some tastes/styles. Part of the trip was covering fairly flat, average areas. BUT, I did a large part of the trip in the front, open observation car that allowed for a greater range of amazing visuals and super photo opportunities. Below are only a few of my examples, plus a couple from the JetBoat excitement. Loved being in and around these mountains, seeing the water/river action, etc.

 

There were seven couples in our travel group from Central Ohio. Check out these live/blog postings for more info/background on these great ports, wonderful sights, etc.

 

In Dunedin, we saw the Taieri Gorge Railway train cars in their wonderful and historic rail station. We did the Queenstown overnight trip and did not have the opportunity/time to do this rail trip from Dunedin. Earlier, prior to the cruise's start, we rode a scenic/historic rail trip from Cairns into the Rainforest, etc. Only can do so many train trips. Need to see what best fits your needs and interests. Many options to consider in these spectacular regions.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Back from doing a 14-day Celebrity Solstice, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure on this ship and getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for much more information and lots of wonderful pictures on these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 76,063 views for this fun posting.

 

 

First is one of my visuals that gives a little sampling for the spectacular Waimakariri River gorge seen from the Tranz Alpine Rail trip. Great "drama" in this aspect of the trip, especially with the blue waters that we would later travel "up-close-and-personal" via a JetBoat trip.:

 

 

 

This second picture gives an idea for the view from the outdoor viewing platform near the front of this train. It had a covered roof but open sides to create an ideal location to take photos from the train. No photo glare from trying to shoot through a window. I spent most the time through the mountains in this location.:

 

 

 

Yes, there was snow on some of the mountain tops in this part of NZ, even during the summer time. The blue water are part of scenic nature for this park and its nearby area. The mix of steep gorges and wide braided rivers straddle the main divide. Below are three more visual samples from here and captured during our late January 2014 trip.:

 

 

 

 

 

With the NZ JetBoat, we loved the THRILLS doing these fast, roaring shots up and down this narrow and scenic section of this river. I was fortunately seated right behind our excellent driver, Greg Peacock. I didn't get very wet, but those on the right side got more of the "showers". No extra charge. But, nobody got too wet. It was all part of the fun. At a couple points during our about 25-minute trip on the river, Greg stopped at a scenic location in this river/gorge to give us more background on these boats, experiences in doing this work since 1998 for him, etc. These Hamilton Jet Boats were developed around 1960, including work done at this site to perfect the design and test the models/designs. Notice the great background/dramatic areas that we were "sailing" up and down?:

 

 

 

Here is a picture that my wife loved. Notice her hands and those of others in our row super tightly gripping the safety bar? That says so much about the speed and thrills while roaring up and down this amazing stretch of scenic river near Christchurch. I showed my wife this picture (and several others like this one of her where the wind was blowing her hair in the opposite direction). She liked this picture so much, that she said to put this one in her obituary (not that this need is upcoming anytime soon). It showed her having fun and she said this ride was the most fun of the whole cruise/trip. We had lots of great moments on this trip, but one was a unique and special ride in a location that is spectacularly world-class. And, perfect weather with good friends added to the great joy!!:

 

[MicCanberra]

Thanks Terry,

I love seeing these pics, brings back some great memories of when we were there.:D

[johndon]

Terry

Haven't done the Tranzalpine but the carriages on the Taeiri Gorge trip are vintage style with an open platform at each end to board You are able to stand on these platforms as the train travels along the line and you can get some, good photos from there. In addition to this the windows of the carriage open and close so you can get photos from your seat as well. Although fairly old the carriages are quite comfortable with plenty of room

Each carriage has an attendant who keeps everyone informed about the sights they are going past. From memory, I think there is PA system throughout the train that also gives a running commentary

The route terminates at Middlemarch but the ship train terminates at Puckerangi

When we did the trip the railways train passed the ship train at Puckerangi and continued on to the end of the line at Middlemarch where we stopped for an hour and bought lunch at the bakery.

The line used to continue on to Queenstown from Middlemarch but closed some years ago. The old route is now a hiking and trail bike trail

All in all it is a delightful trip, well worth the effort and worth the money if you book direct with the railways

 

John