What a wonderful place to start the cruise. We managed to explore Darling harbour before joining the ship. Then how can you beat sailing out under the harbour bridge the past the Opera house. What a wow factor!
Easy to explore on foot. We went straight to the Skytower for a full view of the place - awesome! Then off to the Museum to see the Maori exhibits, back down to the harbour for some beer tasting. Highly recommended.
We were late getting in because of loose containers from the shipwreck so all excursions were cancelled. However we picked up a mini bus on the dock and got to see Rotorua after all. Our driver managed to pull in a Kiwi farm, redwood forest and Rotorua, excellent.
My favourite. You need a shuttle bus from the dock this time. We got the first cable car of the day and managed to see the wonderful botanical gardens, the Carter observatory including a planetarium show and Zealandia wildlife park before going down to the seafront. Beware of Easter in NZ you cant get a beer unless you have a full meal!
By tender to Akaroa, a lovely little seaside town. We were lucky here to be meeting relations who whisked us round the area, we had a view of Christchurch, very sad to see some of the damage.
Another excellent port of call. Easily accessed by foot or use the shuttle bus. Well worth a visit are the old station, excellent botanical gardens, the steepest street in the world, Otago museum and university area. Despite it being Easter Sunday some shops opened just because we were in town which was great for a few last minute souvenirs. (Still no beer but some food shops open!)
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