Royal Caribbean Multi-Day Adventures - Queenstown - Milford/Dunedin: Has anybody done this, and if so, how was it?

[billyboy41]

We are considering the Royal Caribbean Multi-Day Adventures - Queenstown - Milford/Dunedin on our New Zealand cruise and were wondering if anybody has done this, and what the experience was, and is it worth it.  This is a 2 day adventure where we are dropped off at Milford Sound and see the sound, go to Queenstown overnight, and end up in Dunedin to catch up with the ship.  We appreciate your thoughts.  Note - I am crossposting this into the Main Royal thread as well.   Thanks in advance

[sleepingcat]

Just a suggestion: I would advise to check the distances to be travelled.  the roads in South Island are fairly slow and tortuous,  there are no freeways/motorways at all (that is part of its charm) so you might spend most of your two days in a tour bus, albeit with gorgeous scenery along the way. (havent done the tour you plan, we explored the South Island in a hired camper van, but we found our driving slower than we expected, and  even with 3 weeks we saw less than we had planned).  

[billyboy41]

Thanks for the info.  It is a Royal sponsored excursion, so if we are delayed they will wait or take care of us.  

[Over from NZ]

9 hours ago, billyboy41 said:

Thanks for the info.  It is a Royal sponsored excursion, so if we are delayed they will wait or take care of us.  

It's not that which they're warning you of.. it's the fact that you will spend a large part of that 2-days in a bus.. and it doesn't leave you a lot of time to see Queenstown etc. That said.. the drive out of Milford (particularly if it's a glass-roofed bus) is spectacular and we loved it. 

[SueMo]

I've booked an Australia/New Zealand cruise on a different cruise line for 2024 that begins in Auckland and ends in Sydney.  Our ship doesn't stop in Queenstown, so we're planning to fly into Queenstown about a week prior, spending 3-4 days there, then flying to Auckland and spending a few days there pre cruise.  The flights between Queenstown and Auckland are fairly inexpensive, and there are tons of tour companies in both cities that make it unnecessary to rent a car to see the sights in and around each.  Would this be something you could/would do instead of taking time away from your cruise to do the overnight excursion?

[billyboy41]

thanks all for your comments.  We decided to book the tour and are really looking forward to it.