review & trip report: Solstice Australia/New Zealand January/February 2015

[traveller99]

Great Reviews. Thanks for taking the time to document this. We'll be there next January.

 

Groß Bewertungen. Vielen Dank für die Zeit nehmen, diese zu dokumentieren. Wir werden dort im Januar nächsten Jahres sein.

 

Yes, it's Google and your English is far superior to my German.

[AntjeG]

:D Google´s German is far better than Google´s English. My Canadian friends told me the English translation of the blog was amusing.

 

Thanks for your comments, glad you liked the review.

 

Adventurous Grandmom and traveller99:

if you need more information on details like tour operators and so on feel free to give me a link to your CC Roll Call for posting the information there. It is a great tinerary and you will love it even if mother nature decides it is time for bad weather!

Edited February 17, 2015 by AntjeG

[Iamthesea]

Thank you so much for this review!

 

Would you mind posting your information on my RC, as well?

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2059310&page=3

 

Thank you in advance. :)

[traveller99]

:D Google´s German is far better than Google´s English. My Canadian friends told me the English translation of the blog was amusing.

 

Thanks for your comments, glad you liked the review.

 

Adventurous Grandmom and traveller99:

if you need more information on details like tour operators and so on feel free to give me a link to your CC Roll Call for posting the information there. It is a great tinerary and you will love it even if mother nature decides it is time for bad weather!

 

I did translate your blog via Google and the translation was amusing, to say the least. Thanks so much for the offer of assistance. I posted the link to your review on the Roll Call. The link to the RC is http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2102873&page=5

 

CHEERS!

[AntjeG]

Iamthesea and traveller99, you both have some information on your RollCalls.

Edited February 18, 2015 by AntjeG

[Iamthesea]

Thank you so much!

[Adventurous Grandmom]

Hi-Would love to have you post your tours on our site--This is the only way I know how to tell you the thread-it is under Solstice -feb 14, 2016 Auckland to Perth-Thanks I know all of us would love to hear what tours you used. kathy

[vira55]

Thank you!!!

[AntjeG]

Hi-Would love to have you post your tours on our site--This is the only way I know how to tell you the thread-it is under Solstice -feb 14, 2016 Auckland to Perth-Thanks I know all of us would love to hear what tours you used. kathy

 

Done!

[Adventurous Grandmom]

Thanks so much--I know everyone appreciates you posting for us. kathy

[robbi36]

Thank you AntjeG for your info sharing.

We all will be able to use your tips.

Dick (robbi36)

[vira55]

Hi Antje,

we only have 1 1/2 days of sight seeing prior to embarkation in Sydney, for Feb 2,2016 cruise, I am not very brave in finding places and find it waste of time and stressful to be lost. I am thinking that we (my husband and I) will join a city tour, just don't know which to join. I am thinking of doing a day tour to Blue Mountains and on the day of the embarkation, maybe join a Sydney 4 hour city tour if there's such a thing. I haven't found one that i like, so I am hoping that somebody in our thread will do the same and we can all hook up together.

Will appreciate any input from you, thanks in advance.

Elvie

[MadManOfBethesda]

Hi Antje,

we only have 1 1/2 days of sight seeing prior to embarkation in Sydney, for Feb 2,2016 cruise, I am not very brave in finding places and find it waste of time and stressful to be lost. I am thinking that we (my husband and I) will join a city tour, just don't know which to join. I am thinking of doing a day tour to Blue Mountains and on the day of the embarkation, maybe join a Sydney 4 hour city tour if there's such a thing. I haven't found one that i like, so I am hoping that somebody in our thread will do the same and we can all hook up together.

Will appreciate any input from you, thanks in advance.

Elvie

 

I was on this cruise and spent three days in Sydney prior to our embarkation on January 27th. Moeover, after the cruise ended in New Zealand, I subsequently spent another three days in Sydney prior to boarding Rhapsody of the Seas for an 11 night Queensland Coast cruise. Even with 6 days, I didn't see all that Sydney has to offer. That's my long-winded way of saying that 4 hours isn't really enough time to do much of anything. I would strongly suggest you change your travel schedule if at all possible to give yourself more time there. If you do end up with at least a day there, I would suggest you take the HOHO bus rather than a tour. It is virtually impossible to get lost doing so and you'll also be able to spend as much or as little time as you want at any particular sightseeing stop.

[AntjeG]

Hi Antje,

we only have 1 1/2 days of sight seeing prior to embarkation in Sydney, for Feb 2,2016 cruise, I am not very brave in finding places and find it waste of time and stressful to be lost. I am thinking that we (my husband and I) will join a city tour, just don't know which to join. I am thinking of doing a day tour to Blue Mountains and on the day of the embarkation, maybe join a Sydney 4 hour city tour if there's such a thing. I haven't found one that i like, so I am hoping that somebody in our thread will do the same and we can all hook up together.Elvie

 

MadManOfBethesda is right - you could always spend more time in Sydney. But, as I noticed myself, you run out of time when travelling. If you can change your arrangements I would recommend to do so.

 

If you only have the 1 1/2 days I suppose you arrive in Sydney the evening prior to the full day. If you arrive after an overseas flight the Blue Mountains seem a better idea to me than staying in the city. There are public trains every hour or so from Central Station to Katoomba in the Blue Mountains. If you take the 7.22 AM train that gets you to Katoomba in time for the first Blue Mountains Explorer. This is a HoHo-Bus that travels the Blue Mountains and runs every 30 minutes. There are lots of scenic lookouts, more or less challenging hikes and the rides at Scenic World. Very relaxing especially if you are a little bit jetlagged. They sell a combi ticket for the train and the HoHo-Bus at Sydney Central Station.

For embarkation day I would recommend the HoHo-Bus. There are 2 lines which are both included in your ticket. Both the city line and the Bondi line take 90 minutes each if you don´t hop off. The city line has various stops downtown (Central Station, Circular Quay which is next to the cruise terminal, Darling Harbour and others). I would recommend you take the city line with your limited time.

 

I think it is not easy to get lost in Sydney. Perhaps it would be good for you to choose a Hotel near Circular Quay. It is only one train stop from there to Central Station and the HoHo-Bus departs right at Circular Quay. And you can walk your luggage to the cruise terminal.

 

In the Roll Calls posted earlier I provided a link to get a 20% discount on the HoHo-Bus ticket.

[AntjeG]

I started to upload slideshows with lots of pics on YouTube. The Singapore part is ready (runs 4 minutes):

[AntjeG]

Cairns, Great Barrier Reef & Kuranda

 

Ayers Rock

 

Melbourne

 

Great Ocean Road

 

Grampians National Park, Adelaide & Kangaroo Island

 

more to come soon

[AntjeG]

another slide Show: Sydney

[AntjeG]

Tasmania

 

 

The Sounds/NZ

 

 

Dunedin / Tairi Gorge Railway

 

 

Akaroa / Scenic Mail Run

 

 

Welington

 

 

Bay of Islands

 

 

Auckland

 

[TLCOhio]

Appreciate your sharing, photos, YouTube segments, etc. Very good job. YES, it all brings back nice memories from our early 2014 visit/adventure there.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, 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 more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 113,034 views for this posting.

[AntjeG]

Terry, thank you so much for your comment - I really appreciate it. Your own review & report from your trip one year earlier is just stunning and worth to be published in a book! I read it over and over again.

[TLCOhio]

Terry, thank you so much for your comment - I really appreciate it. Your own review & report from your trip one year earlier is just stunning and worth to be published in a book! I read it over and over again.

 

Appreciate so much your kind viewpoint on my pictures and reporting. Glad to know you're a person of such high class, great taste and wonderful judgment to make these generous comments. You've made my day!! I need you as my agent.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a “Solstice: Visuals, Highlights Shared!” summary from two different adventures on this ship with many pictures and other details on its many options. This includes our recent Australia to New Zealand sailing. Check it out, including these recent updates, at:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1803477

Now at 32,035 views for this posting.

[AntjeG]

Did you ever celebrate the anniversary of one of your cruises? Well, I did with this one as it was so super special. Great memories. I´d love to go again some day.

And I translated part of my blog into English for my English speaking friends in Canada who are tired of struggling with google translator. I thought I might as well share the translation here to make it a bit easier for you.

Translation to come in the next few posts. Enjoy.

[AntjeG]

As I was really afraid of being too jet-lagged to start sightseeing in Australia after arrival I had a one night stopover in Singapore.

 

Flight was British Airways Hamburg-London Heathrow-Singapore with the London-Singapore leg being 12 hrs and the time difference Germany-Singapore 7 hrs. I started in Hamburg January 8th at 2.30 PM and arrived at 3.55 PM Sinagpore time the next day. The aircraft was quite comfortable even in Economy Class and I even got some hrs of sleep. All went well with the transfer bus already waiting at the terminal. The hotel room was OK for one night but nothing fancy. But the location of the hotel was great – only 10 minutes walk to the metro and 15 minutes walk to the next HoHo Bus Stop.

 

I took the 7 PM metro to the Marina Esplanade to watch the light show. There is a laser light, fire, water and music show every evening at the Marina Esplanade. As I love laser light shows this was a must-see for me and it was really great.

 

Back to the hotel on the metro and the next morning I went on a sightseeing tour with the HoHo Bus. I love HoHo Busses. They give me a chance to see a lot without having to walk too much.

I hopped off the bus at the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. They have a viewing platform there called Sands Skypark. There is a magnificient view over Singapore from the top of the hotel.

 

I continued my HoHo Bus route from there without getting off again. I found Singapore to be a mix of fancy modern buildings, lots of parks and gardens and nice historic buildings.

 

Here is a YouTube picture show of my time in Singapore:

 

At 5 PM I took the airport transfer bus and at 8 PM I boarded my British Airways flight to Sydney. This 7 hrs flight was not so pleasant. I didn´t get any sleep as there were some little kids crying all night.

Immigration controls in Sydney had long lines and I also had to change from the international to the domestic terminal and check in again for my connecting flight to Cairns. I nearly missed that flight. Nobody had told me 2 hrs are too tight in Sydney. Arrived at the gate a few minutes before the final call.

Edited February 15, 2016 by AntjeG

[AntjeG]

I arrived in Cairns at lunch time January 11. Some trouble with the airport transfer who had forgotten that I had a booking with them but a phone call got things straight.

 

I stayed at a very nice IBIS Styles hotel around the corner from the Esplanade. The Esplanade is Cairns´s beach walk. Also, the hotel is only a few minutes to walk from the Lagoon, a big public swimming pool, and the Reef Fleet Terminal for the boat rides to the Great Barrier Reef (GBR for short).

In the afternoon I had a nice little walk at the Esplanade, did some groceries shopping (my room had a kitchen so I was able to save money on restaurant meals which was great as I found the prices for food very high in Australia). I also went swimming in the Lagoon.

 

Late the next morning I boarded a catamaran boat for the 45 minutes ride to Green Island. This is a coral island on the GBR. They use it as a tourism base and also as a little National Park as there is some rain forest on it. Yes, it is a little touristy but I still loved it. I am not able to scuba dive so this was perfect for me as there is plenty to see and do. Besides, they use the money the tourists spend there to protect the GBR. I had a little walk in the rain forest until it started to rain. Spent the rainy time at the Melanesia. This is a family-owned museum about art from the Pacific Islands and they also have some reef fishes in aquariums and a big crocodile farm.

 

I then went on a ride with a glass bottom boat and a semi-submarine to see the GBR like the divers do. Loved especially the semi-submarine. It felt like a zoo with us people being watched by the fishes! You really got the impression that some fishes would come to say hello.

 

I spent a short time at the beach before going back to Cairns on the catamaran. Went swimming in the Lagoon again in the evening.

 

Next was a full day tour from Cairns to the rain forest. The bus picked me up at the hotel after breakfast to take me to the ground station of SkyRail. This is a ropeway which goes from Cairns above the trees of the rain forest to the village of Kuranda. It is 7 km long and has 2 stops along the way where visitors can get off to go on short walks with national park rangers. It takes 45 minutes plus the time for the 2 breaks to go from Cairns to Kuranda. You can hear the sounds of the rain forest which really impressed me and see down along the huge trees to the ground of the forest. I really enjoyed this ride!

 

In Kuranda, there is plenty to see and do. I only had 3 hrs there. When I booked this I was afraid of still being a little bit jet-lagged so I had chosen the option with a later hotel transfer. The early bus would have given me 5 hrs in Kuranda but I would have had to get up much earlier in the morning.

They have a wildlife park called Rainforestation there which I did not go to because of the limited time. You would need 2 hrs for this alone. So I went to Birdworld which is a little zoo that only has native Australian birds and to the Koala center which is another little zoo that has Koalas, Wallabies, snakes and crocodiles.

 

I had some time to stroll through the village and the crafts market before heading to the railway station to board the Kuranda Scenic Railway for the way back to Cairns. This trip takes 2.5 hrs and is really scenic –I enjoyed it very much.

 

The bus picked me up at the railway station to take me back to the hotel. Another swim in the Lagoon and then it was time to pack.

 

Here are the pictures:

[AntjeG]

The airport transfer picked me up at the hotel at 6 AM for my 7.30 AM flight from Cairns to Ayers Rock Airport. Another transfer bus took me from there to my hotel in the Ayers Rock Resort where I arrived at 11 AM.

The Ayers Rock Resort consists of 4 hotels, a campground, several restaurants, swiming pools, a spa and a central place with shops, cafés and a meeting place where different events take place. There are several lookouts, too. The resort is approx. 15 km from Uluru. A free shuttle bus circles the resort every 20 minutes or so so that you don´t need a rental car to get around.

I spent an hour exploring the central place and buying some groceries and lots of water. At 3 PM the tour bus picked me up for the Uluru sunset tour. First we went to the Kata Tjuta which I found to be impressive.

 

Next was a 2 km walk at the Walpa Gorge which I had to give up after 500 m or so because it was uneven, rocky surface. Some other people gave up because it was too hot for them.

Today´s highlight was of course the sunset at the Uluru which is an experience I will never forget. The changes of color are very impressive.

 

The next morning the tour bus picked me up at the hotel at 4.30 AM for the Uluru sunrise tour. This was even more impressive. As there are no street lights it was very dark and we could see the Uluru come to light.

 

From the sunrise viewing platform the bus went to the Mutitjutlu waterhole where we got to see the ancient paintings by the Anangu, the local indigenious people. The tourguide had some fascinating stories to share.

 

There was also a 1 hr guided tour in the Aboriginal Cultural Center (no photography allowed inside) which I enjoyed. The tour ended at the hotel at 10 AM. This gave me some time in the afternoon for a good swim in the pool, a massage in the spa and to listen to dreamtime stories and Didgeridoo playing at the central place.

 

Here are the pictures: