7 months in Australia and New Zealand

Old Oct 11th, 2017, 07:39 AM
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7 months in Australia and New Zealand

My wife and I are retired archaeologists spending our retirement traveling. We spend 7-8 months a year on the road and the remaining 4 months at our home in Peru. We enjoy beach combing, bird watching, archaeology, museums, festivals, all kinds of cultural events, cooking. We do not camp, nor is a camper van an option for us. Our usual plan is we rent a house or apartment for a month, rent a car and explore the surrounding area in some depth. We eat virtually all of our meals at home.
Australia and New Zealand are on our agenda for 2018, starting in April and going through October. While exploring various possibilities, we have tentatively decided to fly from one place to another, stay for a month, and then move on. Our plan is to spend April and May in New Zealand and the remaining 5 months in Australia. We are open to almost any options for where to put down our shallow roots and do our exploring. Options we are considering include Christchurch and Auckland in New Zealand (one month each) and then a scattering around Australia, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Darwin, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Cairns.
We are feeling a little lost as to whether our plan is feasible, how to set priorities, what we should definitely include and what we might exclude. The only absolutes on our list are one of the opal festivals, and snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef.
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Old Oct 11th, 2017, 09:40 AM
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Wow, what an adventure!

Unfortunately, NZ is one of those places where the base city plan doesn't work particularly well. The natural attractions are so spread out, and the driving distances surprisingly long, that you won't see even the highlights from one base.

Personally, Christchurch and Auckland wouldn't be my choice for bases - you've picked the two largest cities on each island, and NZ is all about natural wonders, not cities.

As a compromise, would you consider two bases on each island instead? Say Christchurch and maybe Queenstown? At least this way you'll be able to see a wider range of the SI, and if you drive between the two, you can see all the wonderful bits in between.

From Christchurch you can make day trips to Akaroa, the wine region of Waipara, Arthur's Pass and possibly Kaikoura, but most of these are not particularly short excursions.

As bases go, the Queenstown area is one of the few places I'd personally choose as a base, as you can see some of the best bits of the SI from there - you can easily get to Cromwell (wine country) Glenorchy, Wanaka, Arrowtown, Te Anau and even Milford (although QT to Milford is +13 hour day if you do it as a day trip - the drive alone is eight hours - something I advise against, but many visitors short on time do exactly this).

As for Australia, I can only help with Perth (and a wee bit of SA), where I lived for seven years (and really miss!)

Western Australia is enormous, a third of the continent, and while there's loads you can do in/around the Perth area, it'd be real shame to go there and not experience WA's wonderful southwest.

But here is where size is problematic, as it takes a good four hours to drive from Perth to Margaret River, and much longer to some of the SW's spectacular gems like Walpole, Denmark and Pemberton.

Then there's WA's vast NW - I assume you're not considering this area (although southern hemisphere winter would be the right time to see it) - here we've got the Coral Coast, Shark Bay, Ningaloo, and plentiful outback.

As much as I like Perth, well, there's so much more to see in WA.

What a wonderful dilemma!
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Old Oct 11th, 2017, 01:13 PM
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What a delicious dilemma, indeed!
I'm in my way out, but will come back with some ideas for Australia later.

In the meantime time, I wanted to point you to Melnq8'sfantastic TripReports forNZ, Tasmania, parts of Western Australia & SouthAustralia. She's a gifted writer with a Di w observational eye & a taste for the essence of places she travels.

And we miss her, too!
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Old Oct 11th, 2017, 01:35 PM
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Aw-shucks Bokhara, you're very kind
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Old Oct 11th, 2017, 02:47 PM
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Jonathan, would cost be an issue? If so, I would caution that Queenstown — while centrally and practically placed for sightseeing as Melnq8 has described — is one of the costliest places for rentals. For example, the resort suffers from a great shortage of affordable accommodation for its workers, to the extent that employers must sometimes provide accommodation as well. It can also be busy with crowds and traffic (though planners have been working to improve traffic congestion).

I agree with Melnq8 it would be more practical to stay in four places (preferably more) while in NZ, rather than 2. Because you must drive long distances from place to place, and you'd want to make frequent scenic stops along the way and savor the journey. On the South Island, most of the roads are just one lane in each direction, can be curvy and narrow, traverse mountain passes, or skirt drop-offs to one side. For instance, if you were based in Christchurch or Queenstown, a day trip to the West Coast glaciers (by car or bus) or to Nelson wouldn't be practical or very enjoyable.

For easier planning, here is a link to a touring map of NZ:
https://www.newzealand.com/travel/library/p23573_23.pdf
And a drive distance calculator (I'm assuming you'll be renting a car while here):
https://www.aa.co.nz/travel/time-and...ce-calculator/

Auckland can be pricey as well. Tasmangirl, who often posts on this forum and who lives in Auckland, can hopefully advise on the most affordable and practical areas for rentals.

Wellington, the capital city, sounds like it might appeal as it has museums, universities, is a cultural hub (lots of events), and offers great birdwatching at its Zealandia ecosanctuary. It has great food markets serving its multicultural population. (Given your interests are "beach combing, bird watching, archaeology, museums, festivals, all kinds of cultural events, cooking"). It's also a very walkable city with good public transportation. I'm not sure about affordable rentals.

I addition to AirBNB, check https://www.holidayhouses.co.nz and https://www.bookabach.co.nz and https://www.sabbaticalhomes.com/

Do you have a wish list of places you hope to visit while in New Zealand? Any preferences in terms of climate?
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Old Oct 11th, 2017, 04:32 PM
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Just while you're pondering size & distances

https://www.buzzfeed.com/simoncrerar...ustralian-maps
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Old Oct 11th, 2017, 10:28 PM
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I am so envious! What a wonderful way to spend your retirement years and I hope you enjoy this great holiday.
Your plan is feasible and the month long allocation is very sensible. April and May in NZ are a bit quieter here and the weather is still pretty good. Easter and the school holidays would be the only time it's busier than normal.
Mel has a good point in that picking base cities/towns does not work that well here. Being a long skinny country makes it more difficult but we can make suggestions.
New Zealand - A month in the North Island and a month in the South would give a good overall look at NZ but in the south it would be better to move around more.
I could write a book about the housing crisis in Auckland but I won't. I honestly think an Air BnB or bach (holiday house)would work the best for you. Rentals here require a bond of about 4 weeks and usually have no appliances or furniture so it all becomes a hassle. Bur from Auckland you could see a lot - all the Hauraki Gulf Islands, Great Barrier Island, Piha Beach, Tiritiri Matangi, Kawau Island, Goat Island plus the city attractions. The right place just out of Auckland could be very nice.
Wellington is a great choice. Tauranga has the same rental crisis as Auckland but it is quite central in position. Rotorua, Hamilton, Matamata/Hobbiton, Auckland, Whakatane and the Coromandel peninsula are all relatively close. Driving is a bit easier in the North as it's flatter.
In the South Island Queenstown has the same accommodation problem and you would pay $$$ for renting a holiday home. Plus as Diamantina says it's a long drive to other places. Restricting yourselves to one base may get boring after 4 weeks.
Australia - it's a big place! Darwin and Perth are a long way from anywhere else. Driving between anywhere is not feasible as it's too far so you would need to fly.
I would go to Sydney for a few days to experience the city and the move to somewhere quieter for the rest of that month.
I suggest the Sunshine Coast (2 hours north of Brisbane)would be a nice base. It's close enough to Brisbane if you want a day trip into the city (I think there's a train now?)and Noosa is just delightful and probably my favourite beach in Queensland. Fraser Island is close and you could do some whale watching. The Glasshouse Mountains are at the back of Noosa if you want a change of scene. Maroochydore has all the facilities you would need like shops etc. If Noosa is too expensive there are other gorgeous beaches along the coast.
For the GBR snorkelling - go up to Port Douglas and do an outer reef tour. We did this and it was one of my top travel highlights. Being out in the open Coral Sea was just amazing and we did the helicopter ride which was mind blowing. This was with Quicksilver tour out to Agincourt Reef and wait until after lunch to sign up for the helicopter tour as they drop the price! A week in FNQ would probably be enough.
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Old Oct 12th, 2017, 10:20 AM
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Hi Jonathan,

Your lifestyles sounds remarkably similar to our own. My wife and I kicked off our travels with some voluntary work I Sierra Leone, then a RTW trip for a year. That was in 2008 and we are still going strong.

We often use the same approach as you, staying a month here or there, often in South America. We love Peru and have rented places in Lima, Arequipa and Cusco, all of which were perfect places to settle and yet carry on exploring. Sadly, I agree with Melnq8 -NZ doesn’t really lend itself to that type of travel.

We are just coming to the end of our third 2 month trip around New Zealand and will be very sad to leave on Sunday. We have always taken the route of renting a campervan as it works for us (although I do appreciate that it is not everyone’s "cup of tea" . We love the flexibility it provides and the freedom to go pretty much anywhere we choose. We have woken up to some amazing views in remote places looking out over beaches, lakes, mountains and loved every second, even when it has been blowing a gale/raining/snowing etc. But not for you I guess

We have been lax in keeping our blog updated of our time here and plan to start on that over the next month or two as we head off to Asia. There is a little on there about our previous trip https://accidentalnomads.com


If we return a fourth time, which we probably will, we may adopt the same approach as you and stay a month here or there, where being the big, big question. We love the countryside and smaller towns in NZ so Christchurch, Auckland and Queenstown would be out for us. Nelson would be great for the northern SI, Wanaka is less expensive than Queenstown and a lot quieter. Taupo on the NI is where we are at the moment and it is centrally located, a very pleasant lakeside town and would be my first choice on the NI, at least for everywhere south of Auckland.
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Old Oct 14th, 2017, 12:28 AM
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Darwin's a great base for visiting the Kakadu National Park (wondrous landscapes. Aboriginal rock art, incredible wildlife); Litchfield National Park; and for flying to the Tiwi Islands of Bathurst and/or Melville. Better to spend a night or two in Kakadu, rather than make just a day trip.
Links for the Kakadu:
https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/do/rock-art/
https://www.environment.gov.au/syste...iles/ubirr.pdf
https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu...d-animals.html
https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu...dwatching.html
Litchfield NP:
https://nt.gov.au/leisure/parks-rese...-national-park
Tiwi Islands:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiwi_Islands

A place I never got to on my couple of trips to Darwin was Katherine Gorge/Nitmiluk National Park, as it's farther away, but if you're going to have all that time, you might look into it.
http://northernterritory.com/katheri...atherine-gorge

Darwin's an interesting city. Its Museum and Art Gallery Northern Territory is excellent and has a gorgeous location overlooking the Arafura Sea.
http://www.magnt.net.au/
You'll be there during its dry season. Supposedly, June, July, August and September are outside of the stinger season and there hasn't been a crocodile attack at Mindil, Nightcliff or Casuarina Beach in more than 120 years.
http://www.lifesavingnt.com.au/beach-safety/

When based in Sydney, you might want to visit the capital of Canberra for its museums. It's about a 3 hour drive from Sydney, so you'd probably want to spend the night.
https://visitcanberra.com.au/attract...-and-galleries
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 08:54 PM
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I currently live in WA and so most of the info I can give you would be about here, though I have travelled all around Australia and happy to help with any questions.

As you will be in Australia in winter, if you are looking for a base in Western Australia (WA) maybe try north in Broome and you could use it to explore the Kimberley area (http://www.australia.com/en/places/kimberley.html) which is one of my favourite regions in Australia. Though you would need to be willing to drive long distances. And the weather should be really nice while you are in Australia.


As Melnq8 the south west of WA is a great wine region and plenty of beautiful places down there. Though it can be cold and wet during winter.

Anytime from June to November is wild flower season in WA depending on what part of the country you are in, more info can be found here if you are interested in that kind of thing (http://www.westernaustralia.com/en/t...ldflowers.aspx)

Also the snorkelling at Ningaloo (http://www.australia.com/en/places/ningaloo.html) is just as good if not better than the Great Barrier Reef in my opinion and at certain times of the year you can swim with Whale Sharks or see the humpback whales migration.
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Old Oct 26th, 2017, 12:33 AM
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We did house-sitting for close to a year when we moved interstate and I wondered if that might suit you, perhaps not for the whole time but now and then? It means free accommodation, you just need to look after the house, usually pets and sometimes the garden.

Here is a website if you want to take a look (there are a few but I really liked this company) -

https://www.aussiehousesitters.com.au/

Happy planning.
Kay
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