Australia and New Zealand trip

❮ Back To Message Board
Message Submitted by Mary Wilson on Tue, 01/29/2013 - 10:52
My husband and I are planning a trip to Australia and New Zealand in Jan./Feb. 2014. Would like to ask if taking a tour would be best, or finding an apartment in both places would be best? Would touring Australia with a guide and then taking a cruise of New Zealand be best? Any help and suggestions would be much appreciated. We have as much time as we need to see what we should. THanks in advance. M.Wilson

Reply Submitted by anne.helms on Tue, 01/29/2013 - 18:33

We will be taking our 4th trip to NZ next Fall. Love that country! Overseas Adventure Travel and RoadScholar probably have tours that take you to the highights. If you take a cruise, won't you miss all the interior of that amazing country? The first time we took a walking tour of the South Island. The next two times we rented a car and drove from the Auckland up to the top of the North Island and then down, took the ferry and picked up another rental car, and then drove around the South Island. We thought about renting an apartment in Nelson which is a delightful town with hikes, crafts, good restaurants. Driving is a bit of a challenge with the narrow roads and driving on the left but one of us drove and the other navigated. On our last trip we simply flew from one venue to another since we know enough New Zealanders who offered to pick us up at the airport and that worked out nicely. It may be that with the cost of the car rental and petrol, flying isn't that much more expensive but I didn't figure it out. We have friends who rented an RV and they enjoyed the experience but both families experienced break-ins when they were parked and absent. I understand that the RV people have upgraded locks and security. Enjoy your trip!

Reply Submitted by TravelEddie on Sun, 02/10/2013 - 14:13

We have gotten done twice to NZ ... A little secret NZ is where folks from Australia vacation... first trip ... wholly on the North Island ... self drive ... stayed at catch as catch can
Second trip with a group of friends lead by a friend of ours... on the Tour ... both N. & S. Islands that went well and a lot more speedier ... we then hung out for another week on our own on the South Island ... we found roomrates negotiable every where... food fantastic...