Exploring Australia&NZ
Exploring Australia&NZ
Day 1
Day 1 – Saturday, April 16, 2011 – Depart Denver, CO to Los Angeles, CA
Odysseys Unlimited
Our “Down Under” adventure with Odyssey Unlimited began with our trip to Denver International Airport. Because we have a late evening flight, we were able to have a relaxing day and get...
Day 2
Day 02 - Sunday, April 17, 2011 - Depart Los Angeles, CA to Brisbane, Australia
Odysseys Unlimited
Our Qantas Boeing 474-400 departed Los Angeles International Airport at 11:50pm. Our seats were comfortable because of the fact that the gate agent had changed our seat assignment and given us a row...
Day 3
Day 03 - Monday, April 18, 2011 - Fly into Brisbane, Australia and Connect to Cairns; Transfer to Hotel and Welcome Dinner
Odysseys Unlimited
The sunrise was bright above the clouds but as we descended into the Brisbane airspace, we found ourselves in thick blankets of clouds. It was raining...
Day 4
Day 04 - Tuesday, April 19, 2011 – Cairns City Tour; Train to Kuranda; Ride Gondolas of Skyrail; Visit the Tjapukai Aboriginal Culture Park
Beginning our day with breakfast in the dining room, we met at the lobby to greet Ian, our Driver and Leigh, our Tour Director at 8:10....
Day 5
Day 05 - Wednesday, April 20, 2011 - Day-long Excursion Great Barrier Reef; Visit Michaelmas Cay
Our alarm went off at 5:45 and we were ready for our Great Barrier Reef Adventure at 7:35. Leigh had towels for us and then we walked to the wharf where we boarded our...
Day 6
Day 06 - Thursday, April 21, 2011 - Flight from Cairns to Alice Springs; ANZAC Hill Monument; Royal Flying Doctors Service; School of the Air; "Bush" Dinner
Our late morning flight gave us a leisurely morning to finish packing and to catch up on e-mail and write a few messages....
Day 7
Day 07 - Friday, April 22, 2011- Aboriginal "Dreamtime" Tour; Walpiri Tribes; Walk to the Standley Chasm and Visit Simpson’s Gap
Today was Good Friday and everyone had warned us that everything would be closed today so it was a great day to go to the Bush and explore the...
Day 8
Day 08 - Saturday, April 23, 2011 – Leave Alice Springs and motorcoach to Ayers Rock; Set Out for Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park; Visit the Olgas and Uluru; Watch Sunset
We woke to a cool morning, it was 57º with 64% humidity – usually this is dry, desert land but...
Day 9
Day 09 - Sunday, April 24, 2011 –Sunrise Visit to Uluru; Morning at Ayers Rock; Museum Visit; Flight to Sydney; Short Walk to Darling Harbor
Happy Easter! We woke up at 5:15, showered, and headed out to meet Darren and five other hardy souls to see the sunrise on Ayer’s...
Day 10
Day 10 - Monday, April 25, 2011 - Tour of Sydney; Sail Around Sydney Harbour; Opal Demonstration
April 25th is ANZAC Day in Australia and New Zealand. That stands for Australia New Zealand Army Corps, and is similar to our Memorial Day. There was a somber service at 4:30AM which...
Day 11
Day 11 - Tuesday, April 26, 2011 - Visit Koala Park Sanctuary; Drive to Sydney's Northern Beaches; Stop at Manly; Late Afternoon at Leisure
We woke up at 6:30 and the sun was trying to peek through the clouds. By 7:00 when we received our wake-up call it was raining...
Day 12
Day 12 - Wednesday, April 27, 2011 – Explore Sydney's Opera House; Independent Exploration; Dinner at Waterfront Restaurant
We woke up to a little blue sky this morning – what a beautiful view when the sun is shining!
The program this morning to tour the Sidney Opera House was not...
Day 13
Day 13 - Thursday, April 28, 2011 – Morning on our own – visit Royal Botanic Gardens; Visit to Sydney Aquarium; Dinner Together
There were no planned activities for the morning; a day at leisure. After breakfast we met Jim and Mary Ann at 9:45 to set off to explore...
Day 14
Day 14 - Friday, April 29, 2011 - Excursion to the Blue Mountains; Three Sisters Rock Formations; Jamieson Valley
We left the hotel under blue skies and a temperature of 68º and humidity of 83%. Today the talk is all about the Royal Wedding.
When we went to the breakfast...
Day 15
Day 15 - Saturday, April 30, 2011 – Fly from Sydney to Christchurch and Bus to Mount Cook National Park, NZ
When we woke up at 3:30 there were still partiers on the streets below! The hotel provided a box breakfast so we had a little fruit and a roll....
Day 16
Day 16 - Sunday, May 1, 2011 – Depart Mount Cook on the Way to Queenstown; Lunch at Omarama; Explore Kawarau Bridge Bungy; Arrive in Queenstown Late Afternoon
Opening the curtains this morning at 7:00 was a wonderful surprise – a beautiful view of majestic Mt. Cook – what a...
Day 17
Day 17 - Monday, May 2, 2011 - Alpine Scenery; Fiordland National Park; Milford Sound; Nature Cruise
We were up early so we could leave the hotel at 7:00. The sun is up very late in this part of the world and it was dark and chilly at 52º with...
Day 18
Day 18 - Tuesday, May 3, 2011 – Queenstown Day at Leisure; Nomad Safari - Lord of the Rings Four-Wheel Drive Tour; Shotover River Jet Boat Ride
With a myriad of brochures in hand it was hard to decide just what we would do with our free day in...
Day 19
Day 19 - Wednesday, May 4, 2011 – Flight from Queenstown, Christchurch and to Rotorua; Short Tour of the City; Ohinemutu Presentation
We left the hotel at 8:30 for our short drive to the airport and then the 10:00 flight to Christchurch and on to Rotorua. When we arrived...
Day 20
Day 20 - Thursday, May 5, 2011 – Rotorua Museum; Duck Boat Tour of the Lake and City; Thermal Reserve; Maori Cultural Center and Meal
Heavy fog greeted us when we got up at 7:00 this morning. By the time we had breakfast the sky was clear blue and...
Day 21
Day 21 - Friday, May 6, 2011 - Rotorua to Auckland; Stop at Ruakuri Caves; City of Sails; Auckland War Memorial Museum; Farewell Dinner
The weather man cooperated with our outdoor day yesterday. Today was dark, wet, and rainy as we began our drive to Auckland. We departed the hotel...
Day 22
Day 22 - Saturday, May 7, 2011 - Flight from Auckland, NZ to Los Angeles, CA to Denver, CO
This morning was our last day in New Zealand and the last day of our Australia / New Zealand Adventure. Melanie arranged a 6:30 wake up call and for the...
Day 23
Personal Evaluation of Our Trip: Exploring Australia & New Zealand with Odysseys Unlimited
Word to the wise - think twice and do your research prior to traveling with Odysseys Unlimited.
Our group was much older than I expected (previous travel groups). I am 66 and my wife is 64. We...
Featured Journal
Day 13: Azores & Madeira: Portugal's Unspoiled Archipelagos
Day 13 - Saturday, April 22, 2022 - Depart for U.S.
The hotel prepared a box breakfast for us as we had to be in the lobby way before the breakfast room was open.
Last night we found out that our departure flight back to...
