New Zealand & Australia Odyssey

Auckland is one of the few cities in the world to have harbors on two separate bodies of water. The central part of urban Auckland covers a narrow isthmus between the Manukau Harbor on the Tasman Sea, and the Waitemata Harbor on the Pacific Ocean. In addition, Auckland’s diverse geography and warm, humid climate has inspired a lifestyle regularly ranked in the world’s top ten. A half hour drive from the city there is an abundance of activities: sailing to a secluded island, trekking through the rainforest, picnicking on a volcano, sampling wines at a vineyard or exploring a black sand beach.

New Plymouth is a city on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island. It’s known for its coastal walkway stretching from Bell Block to Port Taranaki. Te Rewa Rewa Bridge has views of towering Mount Taranaki. The Govett-Brewster Art Gallery shows contemporary exhibitions. Close by, Pukekura Park has botanical gardens and birdlife. Subalpine forests and waterfalls characterise Egmont National Park to the south.

Located on the northwest end of the South Island, Nelson enjoys the sunniest weather in New Zealand, giving it the dual nicknames “Sunny Nelson” and “Top of the South.” The city is the oldest on South Island, and the second-oldest in New Zealand, having been founded in 1841 as a speculative endeavor by a development company, which purchased land from the Maori inhabitants. The scheme did not thrive, because the arable land was too limited by mountain ranges on three sides and the Tasman Bay on the fourth. Today, however, Nelson is the biggest fishing port in the Australasian region. The town is also a renowned center for creative types including artists and artisans. It holds an annual Festival of Wearable Art and a permanent museum is dedicated to the entries and to collectible cars. The abundant sunlight helps ripen the sauvignon blanc grapes that have made the nearby Marlborough region a global wine mecca. To the west, the Abel Tasman National Park offers outdoor action, while to the east a bit, Havelock is the self-proclaimed “Greenlip Mussel Capital of the World!” The surrounding mountains are honeycombed with caverns, including some of the world’s most extensive explored caverns.

Visually stunning, Wellington is nestled between a magnificent harbor and a natural amphitheatre of forest-clad hills. Its compact size, combined with cultural sophistication, makes it New Zealand’s most inspiring urban destination. Wellington’s cultural crowning jewel is Te Papa, a donation-only museum that celebrates Australasian natural history, science and culture. Exhibits include Maori artifacts, an extensive Pacific Cultures collection and interactive science exhibits. The city’s art scene is flourishing, with numerous galleries and craft markets displaying the work of the country’s top artists and craftspeople.

Although it is known as the “Garden City” because of its beautiful parks and world-renowned gardens, Christchurch is a vibrant, cosmopolitan city with exciting festivals, theatre, modern art galleries, great shopping and award-winning attractions. Named after Christ Church, a college at the University of Oxford in London, Christchurch is often described as the most English of New Zealand’s cities. Located in the city center is the Christchurch Cathedral, an outstanding example of Gothic Revival architecture. Other grey-stone nineteenth century buildings, tree-lined avenues and extensive leafy parks give the city it’s elegant, English atmosphere.

Port Chalmers is the main port for the city of Dunedin. Situated in a natural amphitheater at the head of a long fjord-like inlet, Dunedin was the first permanent European settlement in New Zealand, founded in 1848. Not long afterwards, gold was discovered in the region, and the province quickly became the richest and most influential in the colony. While Christchurch is New Zealand’s most English town, Dunedin is its most Scottish; the name Dunedin is the old Gaelic name for Edinburgh. Numerous distinctive and historic buildings remain from the time of its predominantly Scottish settlers, preserving its architectural heritage.

You might not realize that New Zealand has a third island. It hangs beneath the South Island and is just about the last inhabited place before Antarctica. The island itself is only about four percent inhabited, and that is its attraction. It is an unspoiled piece of primeval New Zealand. Oban is a very small town, about 800 souls. The phonebook is printed on a single sheet of A4 paper!

New Zealand’s Fiordland National Park is the largest of the country’s 14 national parks, at 4,868 sq. mi./12,607 sq. km. Located on the southwest corner of the South Island, it was founded in 1904, to protect the natural environment for nature lovers and trekkers. It comprises a large portion of the Te Wahipounamu UNESCO World Heritage Site. The key features of the park are the mountain ranges of the Southern Alps, which rise to heights from 1,500 m/4,900 ft to over 2,500 m/8,200 ft., as well as the spectacular U-shaped glaciated fjord valleys that cut into the mountains as deeply as 25 miles from the sea. There are three major fjords that are navigable by your ships, Milford Sound, Doubtful Sound and Dusky Sound. Your exact itinerary will be determined by your captain depending on the weather and other conditions on the day. But whatever course you sail, you will be treated to spectacular waterways curving between sheer cliffs towering thousands of feet above the mirrored surface of the fjord. Depending on recent rainfall, waterfalls tumble down the rock faces from above. Many of the peaks have nicknames based on their resemblance to animals or other objects of previous observers’ imaginations. You are also likely to see seals, birds including fiordland penguins, bottlenose dolphins and possibly such other fauna as red deer or whales.

Milford Sound is a fjord in the south west of New Zealand’s South Island, off the Tasman Sea. Part of the Fjordland National Park and the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site, it has been judged one of the world’s top travel destinations in an international survey. Frequently visited by rain, the mountain peaks rising from the waters of Milford Sound are often softened by mist and an air of almost flawless and overpowering mystic calm. Acclaimed as New Zealand’s most famous tourist destination.

Located at the mouth of the Yarra River, Melbourne was founded by free settlers in 1835, 47 years after the first European settlement in Australia. Transformed rapidly into a major metropolis by the Victorian gold rush in the 1850s, Melbourne became Australia’s largest and most important city, and by 1865 was the second largest city in the British Empire. Today, Melbourne is a major center of commerce, industry and cultural activity, and is consistently ranked as one of the most livable cities in the world.

Located on the south coast of New South Wales where the River Clyde enters the sea, Bateman’s Bay is the closest seaport to Canberra, Australia’s capital. As such, it is a popular weekend getaway for Canberrans, a majority of whom are government employees. The town has always been associated with seafood. The town’s establishment dates to the mid-19th century when Irish immigrants started Australia’s third fish and chips shop there, which still stands today. It soon became a center for the harvesting, and later farming of oysters in the Clyde River estuary. The area is referred to as Australia’s Oyster Coast. Some 90 miles inland lies the Australian Capital Territory, and the planned city of Canberra. Canberra was built starting in 1908, as a compromise to the claims of both Sydney and Melbourne, which were vying to become the national capital. It is one of the few such separate national capital territories, which include Washington D.C and Brasilia. Located on a broad flood plain between a scattering of sub-3,000 foot peaks, Australia’s largest inland city is laid out in a hub-and-spoke design encircling Lake Burley Griffin, formed by damming several meandering creeks and named for the city’s planner. The Parliament Triangle is a wedge of the circle containing the Old and New Parliament, the Anzac Parade and the impressive Australian War Memorial. Like other designed national capitals, Canberra boasts many monuments, arts centers, museums and a pair of major universities.

Sydney is a cosmopolitan, multicultural city surrounded by golden sand beaches, World Heritage areas, lush national parks and acclaimed wine regions. Sydney owes much of its splendor to its magnificent harbor. Arriving by ship provides an unequaled impression, showing off the city’s famous landmarks: the dramatic white sails of the iconic Opera House and the celebrated Harbor Bridge, looming over the skyline.