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Australia & New Zealand itinerary advice

Considering a trip to Australia and New Zealand in mid-late November. Would like to spend about 4 nights in Sydney, about 4 in the Port Douglas area (want to see the Great Barrier Reef & the rainforest), and about 6 nights on the South Island of New Zealand (3 nights in Queenstown & need advice about where we should spend the other 3 nights -- we like spectacular scenery, mountains, hiking, good food and wine -- or should we just spend all 6 nights in Queenstown & take daytrips?). We are using frequent flier miles for this trip. For the New Zealand portion, on the South Island we can fly into or out of either Christchurch or Dunedin (and can fly into one and out of the other). Advice for logistics of the N.Z. portion of this trip would be appreciated.

Hi Lisa Firstly congratulations on not trying to see the "whole" of Australia and/or NZ. You will find that Queenstown offers an interesting tourist focus tothe areas that you are planning to see in Australia and three days is about right. What to do for the other three days? If you intend to stay in the South Island (I would have liked to have got you up to the central volcanic plateau of the North Island but another trip!) I would recommend the Marlborough region an based in Blenheim. One day round the vineyards - you will get some great wine and food (your interests are my interests) One day kayaking on the Marborough Sounds; and DAY 3 in the Nelson lake Area - great hiking. I would most certainly fly in and out of Christchurch and take an internal flight from Christchurch to Queenstown, a local rental for the three days; and another flight from Queenstown to Blenheim, pick up a rental and drive to Christchurch. Hope this helps Kerry

Why not pick up a hire car in Queenstown and drive to Te Anau, and from there, visit Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound. Spectacular scenery and an easy drive.

I second Kerry's response suggesting you fly to Christchurch. On our trip last fall, we drove from Christchurch to Blenheim. Along the way, we spent one night in Kaikoura where we whale watched in the afternoon and swam with dolphins (lots of dusky dolphins) the following morning. It was the highlight of our trip. We stayed at the Fyffe Country Inn and recommend it. In Blenheim, we splurged and stayed at Timara Lodge. Absolutely terrific! Wonderful hosts, great meals and terrific gardens. Also if you plan to stay in Christchurch (or need to), I recommend the Charlotte Jane. Lovely hotel and excellant restaurant. Have a wonderful trip.

If you love marine life, put Kaikoura on your list. The whale watching is spectacular and very professionally done. You can often see dolphins from the shore as well as seals. Apparently, there have also been sitings of mako sharks jumping out of the water. If you love crayfish, head down to the harbour where you can buy them fresh.

Hi Lisa We were there in Nov. 2000. Queenstown is great however, we wanted to fly to Milford to see the sound and winds were too bad. I would plan to spend one night in Te Anau to avoid that problem (otherwize it is like 6 hours each way on a bus in one day). We also spent one night in Franz josef on the west side to do the Helicopter. If you drove to Christchurch you could spend one night at Mt Cook and do the helicopter mountain thing there then go on to Christchurch. We also went to Akaroa about an hour East of christchurch, it is a french fishing village, gorgeous, billed as the riviera of NZ and it is on a small scale, you can swim with the dolphins there. Check out the akaroa web site. They have a terrific french restaurant C'est La Vie which was written up as one of the best in the world by an NY magazine and it is good - great food and nice people. Regards, Mary Ann

Hi Lisa, To give you some idea of possible South Island itineraries, please have a look at my online photo gallery of my South Island trip : http://nz2002.has.it It is organised by days and at the top of each page is the itinerary.

Hi Lisa For what I am about to suggest you will need a rental car as well as spending only two nights in Queenstown. Fly into Christchurch and get the rental car. Drive through part of the southern scenic route and visit Lakes Tekapo and Pukaki. On a nice day the views are out of this world. The colour of the water in these lakes will amaze you. From Pukaki you will get the most amazing photo of our tallest mountain, Mount Cook. Then head off into Mount Cook National Park. If you like hiking this is one of the places to be. Admittedly they are, in the main, short sharp hikes, but the views are truely amazing. You can also climb Mount Cook with an experienced guide if you are into that. Of course a lot depends on the weather. Stay at least one night in the hermitage or if you are into budget accommodation, the hostel. Leave early and head for Lake Te Anau. Depending what time you reach Te Anau drive the 20 miles to Lake Manapouri, in my opinion one of our most beautiful lakes, and book a trip on the boat across Lake Manapouri, visiting the power station and on through the Wilmot Pass, by bus, finally reaching your destination, a cruise on Doubtful Sound. Stay the night in Te Anau. Book an overnight cruise on Milford Sound. You will love this. You can do some sea kyaking among other activities. Head off on the Milford road, early. Allow plenty of time as this trip is recognised as one of the most scenic drives in the world. If possible allow time for the short easy hike to the beautiful Bowen Falls. Then head for Queenstown. When in Queenstown, I suggest you do the four wheel trek through Skippers Canyon. You need a head for heights for this trip. A jet boat ride through the Shotover Gorge is another great thrill ride. I think that should take care of your six nights. If you would like to read a travelogue of our trip through the South Island, plus photographs of the same trip, please email me. I must apologise for any spelling mistakes and bad grammar as I am dead tired. Have a great trip.

Thanks so much everyone for all your advice! Based on a little research and our frequent flier miles our plans have changed slightly. We are using frequent flier miles for this trip. We can fly into/out of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, or Christchurch, and 2 stopovers are allowed. Our miles do not cover flying up to Cairns and since we have learned that it is the rainy season at Daintree at that time we are now planning to save that area for a future trip. We are flying into Sydney, then to Christchurch, and flying home out of Christchurch as well. The question is, should we plan to fly down to Melbourne for a few days after being in Sydney, and if so, how would you suggest dividing up our time? We have a total of 14 full days and nights to divvy up (not including flying time). Should we do 5 days in Sydney, 3 in Melbourne, and 6 on the South Island? Or just 7 in Sydney (taking some daytrips) and 7 on the South Island?

If you spent 7 days in the South Island you could possibly take in my favourite New Zealand City - Dunedin. In Dunedin you could see: 1. Olveston House built in 1906. 2. Take a drive down the very scenic Portobello Road, and have a meal at the excellent restaurant in Portobello township. 3. Visit Lanarch Castle. 4. Visit the beautiful Glenfalloch Gardens. 5. Visit the Yellow Eyed Penguin sanctuary. 6. Take the Taieri Gorge railway excursion.

It is NOT the rainy season in the north at that time of year. It rarely starts before Xmas. To miss out on Queensland is to miss out on the best part of Australia.

Hi Lisa, Read your message and replies with much interest-we have visited many parts of the world bur still love beautiful Christchurch and all the surrounding places, including Akaroa-gorgeous!! I can reccomend a charming apartment close to all the main attractions in Christchurch-look under "Number Ten" on the purenz site-bus will pick you up ant take you to Akaroa for the day at the door!! I am happy to reccomend other accommodation in the South Island. -all personally sampled with great hosts! November is agreat time to visit. Wonderful for gardens for which Chrikstchurch is particularly noted. Kind regards, Mary