Auckland to Sydney Cruise

Day 1 - Auckland

Arrive: Mon 03 January 2022 / Depart: Mon 03 January 2022

Sprawling across a narrow isthmus, Auckland and its far-flung suburbs are separated by two magnificent harbors. At the city's downtown doorstep lies sparkling Waitemata Harbour, separated from the Hauraki Gulf and Pacific Ocean by Rangitoto Island. West of the city, the shallow, turquoise waters of Manukau Harbour funnel into the Tasman Sea. Protruding from Auckland's landscape are the cones of numerous extinct volcanoes.

Day 2 - Tauranga

Arrive: Tue 04 January 2022 / Depart: Tue 04 January 2022

Tauranga is the principal city of the Bay of Plenty. The founders of Tauranga, 19th-century missionaries, left a legacy of well-planned parks and gardens for today's residents and visitors to enjoy.

Day 3 - At Sea

Day 4 - Wellington

Arrive: Thu 06 January 2022 / Depart: Thu 06 January 2022

Located at the southwestern tip of North Island, New Zealand's capital city derives its character and charm from the wooded hills that curve like a green amphitheater around Wellington's harbor. Commercial and government buildings rim the waterfront; nostalgic Victorian buildings mingle pleasantly with more modern structures and above the business district, dwellings precariously cling to steep slopes. Wellington was the first settlement organized by the London-based New Zealand Company. In 1840, shiploads of settlers sailed into Port Nicholson's sheltered waters. When the seat of government was transferred from Auckland to Wellington in 1865, the permanent character of the young town was determined.

Day 5 - Kaikoura

Arrive: Fri 07 January 2022 / Depart: Fri 07 January 2022

Day 6 - Akaroa

Arrive: Sat 08 January 2022 / Depart: Sat 08 January 2022

Day 7 - Dunedin, New Zealand

Arrive: Sun 09 January 2022 / Depart: Sun 09 January 2022

At the head of one of New Zealand’s loveliest harbours lies gracious, dignified Dunedin. It was envisioned by its Scottish founders as the “Edinburgh of the South”. The city boasts a wealth of fine Victorian and Edwardian buildings, complete with spires, gables and gargoyles. Its Scottish heritage is evoked in street names and the sturdy appeal of its handsome stone buildings. Dunedin’s unique charm prompted one of its most famous visitors, Mark Twain, to write, “The people here are Scots. They stopped here on their way to heaven, thinking they had arrived.” True to its heritage, Dunedin boasts the country’s only kilt maker and whisky distillery, as well as a statue of Scottish poet Robert Burns in the heart of the city.

Day 8 - Stewart Island

Arrive: Mon 10 January 2022 / Depart: Mon 10 January 2022

Located some 20 miles from the mainland, and separated from South Island by the Foveaux Strait, the island's attractions lie in its virtually untouched beauty and unhurried pace. There are few cars, few roads and little tourist development. You could say that Stewart Island is less a destination than a way of life.

Day 9 - Doubtful Sound

Arrive: Tue 11 January 2022 / Depart: Tue 11 January 2022

Day 9 - Milford Sound

Arrive: Tue 11 January 2022 / Depart: Tue 11 January 2022

Day 10 - At Sea

Day 11 - At Sea

Day 12 - Hobart

Arrive: Fri 14 January 2022 / Depart: Fri 14 January 2022

Hobart is a small, unspoiled bastion of European lifestyle in the Southern Pacific. Dangling like a pendant south of Australia's mainland, the tiny island of Tasmania is one of the country's most fascinating tourist destinations for overseas visitors and a favorite holiday retreat for Australians. Beautifully situated at the wide expanse of the Derwent River, Hobart's green- and red-tin-roofed timber houses climb up the lower slopes of Mount Wellington. It is a city focused on the water; the center is only a few minutes' walk from the waterfront, where fresh seafood can be bought directly from fishing boats, and the yachting crowd gathers at old dockside pubs.

Day 13 - At Sea

Day 14 - Melbourne

Arrive: Sun 16 January 2022 / Depart: Sun 16 January 2022

Melbourne is about the same size as Sydney, but there the similarity ends. Where Sydney is a jumble of hills and inlets, Melbourne spreads over a flat plain. Its pace, steadfast and sedate, contrasts with Sydney's upbeat and brassy lifestyle. Tree-shaded parks and gardens, a quiet bay and a proud stateliness become this capital of culture and the arts. Grand municipal buildings and splendid Victorian edifices, which sprang up in the wake of the gold rush, stand proudly along broad avenues.

Day 15 - At Sea

Day 16 - Sydney

Arrive: Tue 18 January 2022 / Depart: Tue 18 January 2022

Sydney is the heart of New South Wales and the state's capital. A bustling centre for industry and business and a major world port, it boasts 3.5 million inhabitants. Spreading over some 670 square miles (1,735 square km), the city seems to stretch as far as the eye can see to the west, north and south. Where Sydney's metropolitan area ends, the wide-open bush of New South Wales begins. Sydney is located roughly the same distance from the equator as San Diego, California, and enjoys an equally superb sunny climate. Its beautiful harbour is studded with bays and inlets and crowned by the billowing sails of the incomparable Opera House.