Sydney-Auckland Jan 2009 - Australia & New Zealand "Ports" Review by TravelTwinkie

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TravelTwinkie's Port Reviews of Melbourne,, Dunedin, Auckland
Diamond Princess cruise in January 2009

Member Name:	TravelTwinkie
Cruise Date:	January 2009
Embarkation:	Sydney
Destination:	Australia & New Zealand
Member Review:	TravelTwinkie's Diamond Princess Review

	Melbourne Port Rating: We booked a Princess Private Van tour here and got a driver, not a guide. We had to instruct him on what we wanted to see and then argue with him to get him to take us there. Not like we were choosing odd things - we wanted to go to the Yarra Valley wineries, and then see a little of the city on the way back to the boat. In the end we did enjoy a fantastic lunch at a small winery which has since been destroyed by the fires - very sad as it was a family run business, all the wines named after the grandchildren.
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	Dunedin Port Rating: 4 of our group of 6 took the Taeiri Groge Train and Larnach Castle excursion offered by Princess. 2 of us stayed in the town, rode the Hop On/Off bus, visited the Railway Station, Botanical Gardens, stopped at the Cadbury Factory (way too expensive and not even running), Speight's Brewery was closed that day. We had a walkabout the downtown core and found it a typical university base city.
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	Auckland Port Rating: We were collected from the ship by another Mount Classic driver who took us on a drive through tour of the city, up to Mt. Eden, on to Kelly Tarlton's Underwater World - more penguins - which was very enjoyable and informative. We went out to a winery in the Kumeu area for a thoroughly enjoyable lunch on the patio, covered as it was raining a bit. Then on to our hotel - Westin Lighter Quay for a great wind down. Here we went on to visit the city, and had our final dinner at the SkyTower Revolving Restaurant - Orbits - great view, food better than expected.
More Auckland Reviews	Auckland Port Profile	Auckland Forum

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