Australia or New Zealand? Cruising RT from Sydney

[sandinmyshoes]

I need to decide between two itineraries.  Both cruises are 10 night round trips from Sydney.  One has Australian ports and the other goes to New Zealand.  We are American and have never traveled this part of the world.  I grew up hearing New Zealand was better than Australia because you got all the unique animals and scenery in a smaller place.  After researching, I realize this is complete rubbish.

 

 We will be spending 4 days in Sydney and going to the zoo close to the harbour so I will get to see some native animals.  I'm not really certain what else my priorities are between the two locations because I've never been properly educated on the differences.  Is there a good place to find out other than here?  I've always found Cruise Critic to be helpful in the past and am hoping for some direction this time as well.  Are there any formerly poorly educated Americans out there who can help?  I know locals will obviously pick the areas they live in.  🙂 

 

Itinerary option 1 (New Zealand) is:

Sydney; 2 sea days; 1 day cruising Milford, Doubtful, and Dusky Sounds; Port Chalmers (Dunedin); Christchurch; Wellington; Picton; 2 sea days; Sydney 

Itinerary option 2 (Australia) is:

Sydney; 1 sea day; Brisbane; Sea Day; Airlie Beach; Cairns; Queensland; 2 sea days; Sydney

[frantic36]

6 minutes ago, sandinmyshoes said:

Itinerary option 1 (New Zealand) is:

Sydney; 2 sea days; 1 day cruising Milford, Doubtful, and Dusky Sounds; Port Chalmers (Dunedin); Christchurch; Wellington; Picton; 2 sea days; Sydney 

Itinerary option 2 (Australia) is:

Sydney; 1 sea day; Brisbane; Sea Day; Airlie Beach; Cairns; Queensland; 2 sea days; Sydney

 

My question is what time of year? If it is your Summer then the Australian itinerary is in the tropical dry season though Sydney would be cold. New Zealand itinerary would definitely be cold. 

 

If in your Winter the Australian itinerary is okay but it is in Queenslands tropical rainy season and the northern ports may get a tropical storm or possible cyclone/hurricane. New Zealand Summers are when I prefer to visit.

[deubank]

We will be sailing the beginning of April.

[sandinmyshoes]

We will be sailing the beginning of April.  

(The "deubank" account is my husband's account and I forgot what I was doing and responded using his account instead of mine.  I grew up in Texas.)

Edited October 28, 2023 by sandinmyshoes
Added info

[possum52]

The two cruises are completely different and at the beginning of April, the weather should be fine and warm for the Queensland coast cruise from Sydney. There is a small chance of a cyclone that could affect the cruise, but the captain would steer clear as much as possible. You are going into more tropical places and climate once you are past Brisbane. 

April for New Zealand, the weather is much cooler than Sydney and the QLD coast. The scenery will be very different to what you would see on the second option. I would suggest you do some research on both countries and work out what you want to visit and see. For example on the QLD cruise, you will have the opportunity to visit the Great Barrier Reef and on the NZ cruise, with a bit of luck have the opportunity to go cruise through Fjordland and visit the sounds. Note, not every cruise makes it into the sounds because of weather/sea conditions.

 

 

[yarramar]

In April, the Australian itinerary would be my choice.

A good place to start researching is. 

https://www.australia.com/en and

https://www.newzealand.com/int/

Also http://www.bom.gov.au/ and

https://www.metservice.com/

Edited October 29, 2023 by yarramar

[sandinmyshoes]

Thank you Yarramar for the links.  They are proving very helpful.  I also found another cruising website that gave a short breakdown on each of the ports the two different cruises offer and thought I would copy and paste my notes here for anyone else trying to decide between an Australia and New Zealand cruise who is overwhelmed with the amount of research involved.  If anyone has more information to add about these specific ports, please feel free.  🙂

 

Royal Caribbean New Zealand Cruise:

~ Cruising Milford, Doubtful, & Dusky Sounds - gorgeous scenery with possible sightings of seals, dolphin, and penguin; tons of waterfalls; this is just a day of scenic cruising - no stops

~ Dunedin - pretty scenery driving from port into the city; city is the best preserved Victorian city in the world; mostly Scottish citizens; the Railway station has recreations of old locomotives made from stained glass

~ Christchurch - English style buildings; Botanical Garden and a wildlife park

~ Wellington - take a cable car to the top of town for spectacular views & walk back down through a botanic garden;  cool history museum of the Maori people; excursions go to the filming site of "Lord of the Rings"

~ Picton - scenic wine region; I didn't find anything else in my quick overview

 

Princess Australia Cruise:

~ Brisbane - Australia's 3rd largest city; bamboo groves at the botanic gardens; koala sanctuary that also has kangaroos and platypus

~ Airlie Beach - Pristine beaches and lagoons; wildlife park

~ Port Douglas - Resort area with colonial buildings; located on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR); tons of beautiful coral and fish (they probably have glass bottom boat tours, etc for that)

~ Yorkey's Knob - 15 min drive to Cairns and the World Heritage Rainforest; on the GBR

~ Willis Island - Tropical landscape; on the GRB; tons of sea birds (albatros, etc) and sea turtles

[yarramar]

For a more extensive description of each port, Whats in Port is an invaluable resource.

https://www.whatsinport.com/Australia.html

https://www.whatsinport.com/New-Zealand.html

[Host Bonjour]

Obviously I defer to Leigh and Yarra since they're two of our Aussie residents. My question to you Sand is whether you're a lifelong or long time Texan? If so, you may be more sensitive to cold? Houston gets properly hot, I've been there during the summer!

 

I was in Oz and NZ in April, but did not get up to QLD (sadly) but I'm a four season person. The day time weather was wonderful in Sydney and also in NZ, even down in Dunedin etc. It did get cold at night in Dunedin, but there wasn't any heat either...I wasn't sleeping on a ship. 

 

Is this likely to be your only time down under? Which of the port stops have the most appeal? Was one place more of a dream destination than the other? Go with your gut. And, ask more questions here...the Aussie locals and CC community are super helpful.

 

Since it's your first visit to an amazing, indescribably special part of the world, ask questions to be sure you're going where you want to go. The kindness part isn't a myth. You'll see 🙂💯

[triplem67]

@sandinmyshoes  As a Queenslander (and Brisbane local) who is sailing on Celebrity Edge to the Great Barrier in Feb / Mar next year... here is my bit of advice for you to consider.  

If choosing to go with a cruise taking in the Great Barrier Reef ports, there will be a lot Tendering as these locations don't have anywhere to dock the large ships.  If you are Tendering and want to experience the Great Barrier Reef or somewhere like Whitehaven Beach, seriously look at the Ship-arranged excursions in stops such as Airlie Beach and Cairns (could be listed as Yorkey's Knob if you are tendering).  With ship arranged Reef excursions they will be expensive but they will pick you up directly from the ship and return you direct which will save time, and also guarantee that the ship waits if the tour is late getting back.  

You MIGHT be able to book Reef tours cheaper yourself, BUT the tendering process largely eliminates a lot of tour providers because you won't arrive onshore in time, or the tour gets back too late and you would miss the last Tender back to the ship.  

You've found the right place to ask for advice as there are so many great people here who can help.  

If it's at all possible and you'll only get down here once... Can you do both?  The New Zealand destinations (especially the Fjords) are spectacular and Picton is another favourite of mine. 

Edited October 30, 2023 by triplem67

[SinbadThePorter]

On the Queensland cruises, for anything water related it's generally better to take a ship excursion rather than try to organise anything on shore as the timing just doesn't work out.

 

When in Cairns, the larger cruise ships will anchor offshore at Yorkey's Knob and tender in, while the smaller ships will dock in Cairns itself. By smaller I mean less than about 290 meters. If you are contemplating a cruise that touches Cairns I would strongly recommend being on one that docks in the city, as Yorkey's Knob is a long way out of town and the tendering is very inconvenient.

 

The zoo you are visiting in Sydney sounds like Taronga Zoo. You get there by ferry from Circular Quay (key) where your ship will be docked. Ferries are the best way to get around in Sydney. The two best sights are Watson's Bay for the cliff walk and Manly for the beach. Both places have plenty of pubs and eateries.

 

I think that native mammals in NZ are limited to a couple of types of bats. They have plenty of birds, but if you want to see furry creatures you'll need to visit Oz. However, Milford Sound is worth a trip to NZ on it's own.

Edited November 1, 2023 by SinbadThePorter

[sandinmyshoes]

You all are being so very helpful.  I appreciate it so much!!!