Travel to Sydney and Queenstown NZ
 

Looking to plan an independent trip to Sydney, Australia and Queenstown NZ, March 2025. We have two weeks. Any hotel recommendations for Sydney center and Queenstown center? Will be using public transportation both places. Also, would it be better to fly back out of Sydney or Auckland for the return flight back to the states?

For your Australian sector:
I would use booking.com to see what is available for your specific dates and budget. This map should be useful in seeing what's where. Use "Sydney CBD" as your search location.

CBD = Central Business District. "Downtown" to North Americans.

You might also consider self catering apartment hotels instead of traditional hotel rooms. Sydney has a good range across various locations and price points and they offer more room, kitchen and laundry facilities and more space at usually comparable and sometimes more economical rates.

If you would like recommendations, we will need:
Exact dates
Number in your party, numbers of rooms & bedding configurations
Budget Range in AUD.

Sydney map: https://goo.gl/maps/PFmeA45BAKXruh4F8

Visit Sydney: https://www.sydney.com/

Australia – size map: https://www.virtualoceania.net/austr...ustralia.shtml

VISA FINDER: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visa...sa/visa-finder
You will need Visas for both countries. Here's the link for Australia:VISA FINDER: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visa...sa/visa-finder

For short trips like this, open jaw works best to maximise your time on the ground. So, into one place and out of the other.

Thank you! Very much appreciated.

For the flights, I'd check and see what flight times and airfares are like and be guided by that. Agree you want to fly into one country and out of the other, called multi-city on airline websites. You'll also need a flight between Australia and NZ.

Thought it worth mentioning that Australia has extremely strict rules about bringing food into the country. Anything you have with you, anything you can eat, must be declared.

If you do want an Aparthotel type of place with kitchenette and washing machine etc look at Meriton. They have a few in Sydney. You'll pay more down by the water but it's always nice to have a seaview. Sydney is fairly easy to get around, with trams, trains and buses. They use the Opal Card but you can likely use a credit card, many cities are going that way.

Tap & go credit cards are fine for Sydney public transport. You just need one source of payment per passenger. you can’t tap the one card for more than one pax.

If you have children or others without credit cards, they will need Opal cards.

Thank you, all, for your helpful responses. What a great community!

Here are some hotel options in Queenstown that are close to public transport hubs:

Melbourne Lodge - Simply decorated quarters in a casual hotel offering a hot tub, lake views & free breakfast
Haka Lodge Queenstown - Casual hostel offering low-key quarters & mountain views, plus communal kitchens & a lounge
LyLo Queenstown formerly Jucy Snooze - Capsule-style dorms & private rooms in a hotel with a rooftop cafe/bar, a kitchenette & a lounge
Haka House Queenstown Lakefront
Hampshire Holiday Parks - Queenstown Lakeview

When deciding on a flight back to the United States, it looks like generally,it is cheaper to fly out of Sydney than Auckland based on my search.

Thank you for the helpful suggestions!

November 2023 I stayed at Ramada Queenstown Central in a suite with a kitchenette and laundry, which I really needed by the 2nd week of my trip to New Zealand. It was a nice stay and right off of the bus line from the airport. It was central enough to everything I wanted to do by walking. Loved my time in Queenstown.

I will check that out. Thank you for your response!!