Australia & New Zealand in October - 2 weeks
 

Hi All,

We're just beginning to plan our trip to Australia and New Zealand this October. We have our plane tickets already, but only a vague idea of what we can actually accomplish in two weeks.

Hopes:
-Hit some major sites in Sydney then either rent a car or take a train to ...
-Spent approx. 2 days in Melbourne - hang out, visit wineries, hike, see penguins
-See the beautiful sites of New Zealand (I've been told the south island is the place to go)
- glacier trek
- hike
- more wineries

Possibilities:
- Great Barrier Reef. I realize this is highly unlikely, but it's on my list of things I'd really like to do.

I am looking for suggestions. What's a *must do* when in NZ or Australia? Any good places to stay on a budget?

And by budget I mean, we would REALLY like to keep this under $1,000/pp for both weeks.
THANKS!

As you already have your tickets it is a bit late to be asking. Your idea of the barrier reef is not out of the realms of possibility but not on your budget of under $75 a day.
Stay down south, stay in backpackers accom. and take their tours.
Sounds like your first trip so this will provide you with ideas for next time.

Hi,

Two weeks really is not long enough to try and see bits of both countries. Much better to concentrate on one or the other. However, if it's a done deal ...

First of all, where are you flying into and out of? Have you bought any other flights already? Is that $75 a day budget each just for accommo?

If it is then you should have no probs. You can get double/twin rooms in hostels that have them for under $100 the room, and there'll be non-hostel places you can find coming in at under $150 so it would even out.

If that budget is to include food as well ...mmm.

Why not concentrate on the Sydney area? Go hiking in the Blue Mts; check out the wineries in the Hunter Valley. 6 days for that.

How important are the penguins?

Then fly to Christchurch and do a circuit down to Queenstown up the west coast and back by the trans Alpine train.

Every time you move it will cost you both time and money.

Post again if you need help with hostels and cheap tours.

We only have our tickets from JFK to Sydney. We haven't purchased passaged to New Zealand yet. I appreciate the feedback, especially specific suggestions.

I hadn't even thought to work out a daily budget. When you put it that way, $75/day is really nothing.

Unfortunately the penguins are very, very important. They're my fiancé's favorite critter and he's never seen them in one of their natural habitats yet.

I love the idea of taking the train in New Zealand. Thank you! Any other suggestions are appreciate.

-Vanessa

You know, I do not understand people running around all over Australia and NZ in a limited time. When you do that, you will get exhausted and exhaustion lends itself to not having a very nice time.

Given your interests why not just stay in NZ? You only have two weeks and NZ is much more doable than Australia in that amount of time (including penguins).

By the way, I am in Australia now on two home exchanges. The swaps are north of Brisbane and in Brisbane City. I won't get farther north than Fraser Island and will go into the Gold Coast once I move to the second home exchange in Brisbane. I stopped at Fiji (3 nights) and Sydney (5 nights) on the way out. Mind you, I will be here for over 6 weeks. Australia is larger than the US and you simply cannot see anything but a small slice even in 6 weeks.

After Australia I go to the Bay of the Islands NZ for 2 1/2 weeks. I won't go farther south than Rotorura. I think I will go there before settling into my last home exchange of 3 on this involved itinerary.

While I don't know if I will ever get a chance to go back to OZ and NZ I am resolved to have fun and not kill myself trying to "do it all". Heck, even my home exchangers have not been to all the places I am seeing. Koalas and kangaroos are all over. Penguins are more difficult.

Are those tix in to and out of Sydney? So if you went to NZ you would need to buy a return flight? Even if you're flying Air New Zealand and arranged to fly out of Auckland on an open-jaw you would still need to fly to the S Island, and fly back to Auckland from wherever as you don't have the time to do it any other way. This won't be cheap!

You can see penguins at the Otago peninsula outside Dunedin.

Cheers.

If Lyrael is flying into Sydney, they can book nonstop flights roundtrip to Christchurch from Sydney (Air New Zealand does it, for one). However you are being very unrealistic about what your trip will cost, even if you stay in hostels. Transportation is expensive no matter what method you use.

Lyrael, your best bet for penguins in NZ is the South Island around Oamaru or Dunedin.

I would check a few guidebooks out of the library and vist the national tourism websites. When you look at countries on a world map and hear they are islands you tend to think they are small and can just zip around all over the place but it isn't true.

This message is really for "afterall"but when I click on his name it just puts me back to the latest post page(as a new user still lots to learn) Any with only 11 hrs in Dunedin I thot I would just rent a car and go to Queenstown and back(3 3/4 hrs ea way). Now you've complicated things by mentioning those penguins(Otago Penin) Possible to fit them in?

There is a boat company that leaves from the Melbourne CBD to see penguins in Port Philip Bay. That would save the long trek to Philip Island to see them there.

You're flying into Dunedin for a day? Or it's a cruise stop off?

There are a few options for penguins, Penguin Place probably takes less time and is easy to do as a self-drive option.

http://www.penguinplace.co.nz/

Or you can take a longer tour of the peninsula, perhaps with Elm (walking uphill on a steep, sheep-dung covered slope is required).

Two weeks is not enough for Australia and New Zealand both, unless you keep it to just a few places each.

Last year (right after Easter), we spent about 2 weeks on the South Island of NZ and then 5 days in Sydney (so with travel, 3 weeks total). Even with THAT, we skipped big areas of the South Island. We started in Queenstown, went to Te Anau and Milford Sound, worked our way up to Fox Glacier and then across to Christchurch. Then Christchurch to Sydney.

I thought the balance was just about right. We saw a lot, but weren't constantly on the move. I REALLY tried to smoosh in the Great Barrier Reef but it just wouldn't fit.

Some day we'll take a longer trip in Australia, and maybe sometime we'll visit the North Island of NZ. You can only do so much in one two week trip, don't spend the whole time on the move.

Alice