2023.... Try, try again! Pre-cruise Australia recommendations, please!

[OzKiwiJJ]

9 hours ago, Nebr.cruiser said:

Good topic.  I am starting to think about something similar, as I am sure we will only be get to Australia/New Zealand once.  Thinking about a cruise of New Zealand, cruise from Sydney to ?  Port Douglas (haven't done much research on that yet) and land trip to Uluru area.  

 

Lots to think about and plan, so all these idea are great.  Looking to spend about 30 days, and anything more is a bonus, such as South Pacific add on.

If you want to do some serious snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef I'd suggest a land trip to Port Douglas. There are some excellent reef day trips from there, plus you could also do a Daintree excursion. 

 

If you want to do another cruise I suggest one that visits some of the southern Australian ports - the ones in Tasmania, Melbourne (but you might have to cruise out of there for the best itineraries), Adelaide, Kangaroo Island, etc.

[TV Dad]

On 8/15/2021 at 2:52 PM, cruisin from florida said:

In order to circumnavigate the globe on the trip, we are thinking about flying Tampa > London > Perth > Uluru > Cairns > Sydney ... then NZ cruise, then Transpacific cruise to Hawaii then flying > California > Tampa..

 

Who knows what flights may be available by then. But we can dream!

We are traveling from Tampa to Australia in March, 2023 and also want to see Sydney, GBR and Uluru. I'm researching right along with you. Good Luck.

[WESTEAST]

On 8/10/2021 at 2:17 AM, SinbadThePorter said:

There is enough in Sydney for a week. If you feel OK with driving on the other side of the road, you could hire a car. In any case you could try:

 

Blue Mountains

Manly Ferry

Harbour Bridge climb

Opera House tour

Ferry to Watson's Bay for views from The Gap

Taronga Park Zoo

Bondi Beach

Royal Easter Show (early April)

Several museums and art galleries depending on preferences

 

It's hard to say what will be open in April 2023, hopefully everything. 🙂

Agree with the above Sydney list and our favourites were Opera House Tour, Taronga Zoo (recommend Wild Australia Experience booked online - up close and personal behind the scenes) and Manly Beach. Victoria Building Mall was interesting as well as any restaurant by Circular Quay for people watching.

[chubbypiggy]

We are considering doing the 27-day Princess cruise from Sydney to Los Angeles in April 2023.  We visited Sydney many years ago (6 days land tour), so don't plan to do any sightseeing this time.  Just want to get to Sydney one day before the cruise starts just in case of flight delays.  Thinking of booking a one-night hotel either by the airport or by the cruise terminal.

 

Have a few questions:

1. How far is Sydney airport from the Princess cruise terminal?

2. Any recommendation on a reasonably priced hotel by airport or cruise terminal?

3. What is the average cost of a nice hotel by airport or cruise terminal for early April?

4. How is the weather in Sydney and NZ around early April?  Much rain?

 

Thanks in advance for any assistance!

[OzKiwiJJ]

Sydney Airport is about half an hour or so by car or taxi to the Overseas Passenger Terminal (OPT) where the Princess ships depart from. There is also a train and the OPT is only a short flat walk from the Circular Quay station.

 

I would recommend staying somewhere in the city, near Circular Quay if your budget permits.

 

Sydney is usually fairly pleasant in early April, warm but not too hot or humid but this year was much cooler and wetter. NZ will be getting cool so pack layers. Auckland should still be pleasant but it will be colder further south, and very chilly first thing in Fiordland for the scenic cruising.

Edited August 27, 2022 by OzKiwiJJ

[chubbypiggy]

4 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Sydney Airport is about half an hour or so by car or taxi to the Overseas Passenger Terminal (OPT) where the Princess ships depart from. There is also a train and the OPT is only a short flat walk from the Circular Quay station.

 

I would recommend staying somewhere in the city, near Circular Quay if your budget permits.

 

Sydney is usually fairly pleasant in early April, warm but not too hot or humid but this year was much cooler and wetter. NZ will be getting cool so pack layers. Auckland should still be pleasant but it will be colder further south, and very chilly first thing in Fiordland for the scenic cruising.

Thank you for the information!

[loveapug]

@Nebr.cruiser@TV Dad I'm reading this post in August 2023 and planning a trip at the end of our cruise in Sydney with approximately the same travel "to do" list. I was wondering if you could share what you ultimately chose to do, and how you found the experiences.

[Nebr.cruiser]

2 hours ago, loveapug said:

@Nebr.cruiser@TV Dad I'm reading this post in August 2023 and planning a trip at the end of our cruise in Sydney with approximately the same travel "to do" list. I was wondering if you could share what you ultimately chose to do, and how you found the experiences.

We spent almost six weeks in Australia/New Zealand in February and March of this year.  We had a fabulous time, with a couple of problems, noted at the end.  

 

After we arrived in Sydney,did a Princess cruise up the coast to Port Douglas.  The weather and stops were great; very hot, for sure.  Very unusually, for us, we did Princess tours at all the stops because of the logistics--all ports are tendered, and it was hard to find independent tours that fit our time schedule--and enjoyed them.

 

Then we spent five days in Sydney.  We learned to use the public transportation and went to all the iconic spots.  We also took a one day tour to the Blue Mountains which we enjoyed a lot.  Sydney is a wonderful city--and I'm not that fond of big cities--but loved this one.

 

Then we took an RCI cruise to New Zealand.  Again, we lucked out with great weather.  We did independent tours in all the ports.  The highlight was Hobbittown--really exceeded expectations--and The fiords.  But every stop was so scenic.

 

After that we flew from Sydney to the Uluru areas.  Be prepared for extreme heat--most days were around 108.  We spent 4 days here, doing a tour package that included all of the main sights and quite a few extras, such as dinner under the stars, field of lights, etc.  We also journeyed to King's Canyon.

 

If doing this part again, I would go to Alice Springs area rather than King's Canyo, or just head back to Sydney.  While the Canyon is beautiful, it's not all that different from many, many areas in our desert Southwest, and it was a long brutal (first bus was very warm) ride there and back.  I think 5-6 hours, one way.  I did enjoy seeing the outback in all its vastness and we saw wild camels, dingos and horses.

 

Tours at Uluru start at 5:30 in the morning due to heat and are generally done by 10, otherwise it would be unbearable and maybe dangerous.  Evening tours were still hot but doable.

 

The flight over, especially, was tough; we were in economy and so tight; also flight ended up being almost 18 hours because we were in holding pattern above Sydney for almost 2 hours.  Coming back we had bulkhead seats, which was better, and the flight was 13 hours.  Next time I'd definitely want to go at least premium economy.

 

The big downside, for us, was that we all got sick towards the end, my husband and sister much more so than me.  The RCI ship had many, many people coughing and obviously sick.  The last couple of days at sea we all tested, as they were really sick and me a little.  We all tested negative for Covid.  And we tested twice, once more when we got to Uluru.  They were feeling rotten enough that they missed a couple of the tours.

 

At home, we all tested positive, and I tested positive for two influenzas as well.  Good news is that we all recovered and were never sick enough to need extra meds or hospital.

 

I'd do it all again--different itineray, seeing places we missed like Melbourne, Darwin, etc.--in spite of getting sick  It was the trip of a lifetime.

Edited August 5, 2023 by Nebr.cruiser