Snorkle day trip from Auckland?

[TN Vol Fan]

Hi gang,

Does anyone have a recomendation for a day long snorkling trip from Auckland? We will be there in March for 4 days pre-cruise and are looking for a snorkling trip, preferably one with transport included as I can just see myself renting a "backwards" car and then watching the ship sail off from my hospital window.

 

Thanks for the help.

Cecil

[sailingkiwi]

I tried googling to look for day trips from Auckland and didn't have much luck with a trip that included transport from Auckland. So you may have to consider hiring a car. Driving on the "otherside" of the road isn't too difficult, I have done it in the USA, especially if you ensure that you hire an automatic car (they are not as difficult to come by as they are in the UK).

 

Probably the best place to snorkel from Auckland is Goat Island, which is about an hours drive north. I found a couple of companies located there - who if you contact them might be helpful with more detailed information. One is Goat Island Dive and the other is Glass Bottom Boat.

 

You might want to consider that the water may be colder than you are used to. NZ seas can be chilly, even in summer. Also, to see the best fish, you may have to go reasonably deep into the water.

 

For other ideas, have a look at Auckland's Tourism website.

[TN Vol Fan]

sailingkiwi,

Thanks for the reply. I saw the Goat Island Dive web site and may drop them a line. We've only got 4 days total in Auckland. If one of them is used to get over jet lag, that leave us only two whole days for sight-seeing. We've already planned to do one day on the hop-on/off bus around town. We may forego the snorkle trip and just take the ferry over to the islands and check out the shops/resturants for a day.

Auckland looks like a great city and our only real problem will be what to do first.

Cecil