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As most of you know, in a few months, my husband and I will be departing on a two-week trip to Tahiti, New Zealand and Australia. Our kids will be going with my in-laws, and we’ll meet them in Melbourne for few days. I’m sure I’ll be freaking out when the reality of not having our babies with us will finally sink in, but that’s a rant for another day.
Anyway, I’m a great believer in not being a scrooge when it comes to excursions and unique things that you can’t do at home. After all, the chance to visit that same location may never materialize again. I’m still kicking myself for not flying from Maui to Big Island for a day in order to attend the Merrie Monarch festival.
Our first stop will be in Tahiti, and this is one place where I’ve decided to just relax and enjoy the surroundings. I was looking into doing a few water excursions in Bora Bora, but my husband wasn’t thrilled with the idea. His reasoning was that: 1) we will only have several nights there after an exhausting flight from LAX, 2) We will be staying in an overwater bungalow that goes for $1,000 per night, located on a private island in the middle of South Pacific.
What tour will be able to top that? Why not relax and enjoy ourselves without having any commitments? We are literally spending $1,000 out-of-pocket extra on flights, plus $300 on boat transfers just to get to the darn bungalow in the first place.
As much as I hate to admit it, but the man has a point there. I’m terrible at relaxing and constantly have to be on the move, but it’s his trip, too. That said, we will only have two nights in Auckland, New Zealand as well as Sydney, and I’m planning to see as much as possible during that time.
Tours from Auckland
This one was relatively easy. After doing some research, I decided to go through Viator.com A quick tip! If you don’t have an account, look for a pop-up on the site offering a 10% discount on your first tour after signing up for a newsletter. I got the email with a discount only few minutes after submitting my email address. Note that the discount expires thirty days after you receive it.
Originally, I was planning on booking a full-day Waitomo and Rotorua Tour The cost is $257 per person, so it would be a total of $514 (before 10% off discount). Sure, it’s a lot of money, but how often will we be in New Zealand, right? However, I’ve noticed that for $312 per person we could see the mentioned two sights, plus Hobbiton. For those not familiar with “Lord of the Rings” series, Hobbiton is a movie set created specifically for the franchise.
Photo by Thomas Schweighofer on Unsplash
I’ve mentioned it to my husband and he was a bit lukewarm towards the whole Hobbiton idea. He said that since the houses are not furnished inside, it just seems kind of lame. Who cares? It’s not like we will be sleeping there. He did ask me some follow-up questions about the set and I told him: that’s it, we are doing the more expensive tour.
I would rather spend $55 extra per person and be disappointed by Hobbiton experience than wonder if we made a mistake by skipping it when we are back in Florida. Besides, several of my readers visited the set and enjoyed the experience. I’m betting on the fact that my husband will be happy I insisted on adding Hobbiton, but we’ll see.
I can cancel this tour 7 days before the date and get all of my money back. So, I decided I might as well book it now. The 10% off discount was reflected in the final price:
Tours from Sydney
???
This is where it gets complicated and where I would like readers’ input. Originally, I was planning on doing a tour of Blue Mountains and Jenolan Caves However, I’ve seen several travelers (including reader Brad who contributed this awesome trip report) mention that if you’ve seen mountains in US, you won’t be impressed by Blue Mountains in Australia.
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia user Diliff, this file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license
So now I’m kind of torn on this one. Sydney is a world-class city. Sure, we will be staying at Park Hyatt, which is as central as can be. We will arrive in Sydney early enough that we could probably see a few sights that day. That said, if we go on an all-day tour, we will have to sacrifice all the amazing things the city has to offer. We will only have two nights there, and may never visit Sydney again. On the other hand, my husband enjoys nature and generally dislikes big cities.
It’s not really about saving money, but optimizing our time and focusing on the most unique experiences that we can’t get anywhere else. We’ve seen impressive mountains in Colorado, California, Alaska and Canada. Sticking to sightseeing in Sydney as well as learning about aboriginal culture seems to me like the way to go. Then again, Blue Mountains are probably unique as well.
Readers who have been to Sydney, what are your thoughts?
Using points and credit card bonuses to offset the cost of tours
Viator.com purchase should code under “travel” category. As such, it would be reimbursable if you get Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard or Capital One Venture Rewards Visa. These cards give you flat rebate against travel purchases.
Most tours are listed in Ultimate Rewards travel portal, so you can use your UR points to cover the cost.
If you don’t have any UR points, you can sign up for cards like Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Ink Business Preferred. You will be able to redeem points at 1.25 cents apiece towards travel, including tours. If you happen to have Chase Sapphire Reserve, you can redeem your UR points at 1.5 cents apiece which, in my opinion, represents excellent value. Read more on all these offers in my Hot Deals page.
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Author: Leana
Leana is the founder of Miles For Family. She enjoys beach vacations and visiting her family in Europe. Originally from Belarus, Leana resides in central Florida with her husband and two children.
I don’t know about the caves but I’ve been to Blue Mountains. I just took a train and walked – no tour needed. I enjoyed myself, but not enough to recommend going if you only have 2 days in Sydney. I seem to recall it was a long train ride and a big day. And it was nice, but not a crazy wow.
And Hobbiton surprised me. I’m glad you’re going. Watch the movies before you go to give it more meaning and context. Don’t forget rain gear and good walking shoes!
@Talchinksy Thanks for your advice! Your comment about Blue mountains pretty much confirms what other travelers have said. I’m sticking to Sydney and the sights in the immediate area.
I’m actually looking forward to Hobbiton. I’ve seen some (not all) the movies in the franchise. I’ve even read parts of the book when I was in college. I’m not a huge fan, but the idea of transforming a huge area into a movie set seems fascinating.
I’m not into the movies AT ALL. I can barely focus on them while watching. But having “seen” the movies (even if I wasn’t really listening or paying attention) made the Hobbiton experience more meaningful. I did really love Hobbiton itself. I can’t imagine anyone wouldn’t. It’s really well done and so creative and beautiful. Can’t wait to read your review.
@Talchinski Yeah, I’m actually excited that we decided to add Hobbiton. It would be a shame to go that far and skip it. Plus, the area around the set is very scenic. They picked it for a reason!
@Leana. Right. It’s not just Hobbitton, it’s the rolling hills in all directions. A ginger beer in the shire is pretty cool and as much as I hate to admit it, the giant fake tree is pretty cool! Enjoy!
There’s so much to do and see in Sydney, especially with only 2 nts. We did also go to the blue mountains and had fog for much of the time there. I’d skip it and enjoy Sydney and the Park Hyatt!!
@Lynn I think you are right! We will definitely be skipping Blue mountains.
My daughter and I were in Sydney in February for 6 nights it still didn’t seem like enough! If you are staying both nights at the Park Hyatt you will want some time to just luxuriate there, it is amazing. We spent only our last night there (after 5 nights at the Hilton Curio which was only so-so) and wish we had been able to stay longer. Great location, views, service, everything you would expect, and a rooftop pool and hot tub!
We took the ferry to Manly beach and visited Bondi beach but didn’t do any big day trips as there is so much to see and do right in Sydney. You can see mountains anywhere but there is only one Sydney, and trust me, you won’t want to spend a whole day away from the Park Hyatt!
We were also in Tahiti, Moorea, Auckland, Rotorua, Taupo, Melbourne and more if you have any other questions. Are you doing Philip Island with the kids when you are in Melbourne? There is a great Koala experience at Moonlit Sanctuary if you are headed that way. Have a great trip!
@Sarah Robinson Sounds like you’ve visited many of the same places where we plan on heading to in a few months!
I’m definitely looking forward to our stay in Park Hyatt Sydney. I’m not a “fancy travel” gal in general, but this trip is an exception. It’s basically one big stinkin’ splurge and I will be very sad if we have to cancel it for some reason. We are using certs for Sydney stay, so that made the decision easier.
I believe going to Philllip Island is on the agenda. I’m not sure about seeing koalas, but that sounds like fun. I may reach out to you as it gets closer to departure. Thanks!
Is there any way you can start your excursions from Melbourne?
Especially if you like nature and wildlife, you don’t want to miss the You Yangs regional park, which is just outside of Melbourne, and is perhaps the most convenient way to see the unique Australian wildlife in its stunning natural habitat. After all, how can you go to Australia and not see its kangaroos and koalas?
And the nature conservancy group Echidna Walkabout makes it easy, offering extraordinary day-trips from Melbourne, as well as longer itineraries and private tours. I’ve traveled extensively taking nature photographs, and in my opinion Echidna Walkabout are a world-class operation. (I’m not affiliated with them, and I don’t get any kind of commission from them. I’m just a huge fan.)
I spent three days with them a couple of years back, and here’s what I saw: Australian Wildlife – June, 2016.
I’ve got more information about Australian wildlife here: You’ve Gotta See This! Australian Wildlife; and a post about Melbourne and Sydney here: You’ve Gotta See This! Melbourne and Sydney.
J.M. Hoffman
@J.M. Hoffman Thanks for the advice! I really appreciate you stopping by. I actually saw your Australia posts on FM blog and thought your photographs were truly stunning.
I probably should have mentioned that we will be spending three nights in Melbourne. My sister-in-law is in charge of that part of the trip, so we will be at her mercy. 🙂
I know we will be doing the Great Ocean road and some sort of train trip around the mountains (mostly for kids). I pretty much don’t mess with her plans because she is the Alpha female in the family! But I will pass along your recommendations.
Thanks for your kind words, Leana.
If you’re just looking at Sydney:
I would take a day trip outside of the city — anywhere, really. After all, if you came to the U.S. and only saw New York, could you really say you saw the U.S.? So the Blue Mountains are as good an option as any. (I didn’t make time to do this, and I regret it.)
And perhaps spend a day around Sydney Harbor: a trip on a ferry, hanging out around the Opera House, and shopping for gifts in The Rocks. (I did do this, and even though I’m not usually a fan of cities, it was a highlight of my trip, and I found amazing gifts to bring back.)
Thank you very much for all of your input!
In my opinion, Sydney is about the city and the beaches. The Blue Mountains are not impressive if one has traveled plenty and seen rainforest-y places before, and although I enjoyed being there, it wasn’t because it was at the top of the list, but rather I had enough time to visit. I’d spend that whole day in the Manly beach area instead. You can take a ferry ride there right from Circular Quay for cool views of the city out in the harbor. Good places to eat (The Boathouse is a must) and an awesome vibe all around. It’s like the Venice Beach of Sydney, except the beach is actually pretty and nice. Hopefully your husband likes this kind of ‘nature’?? Decisions…
@Ricardo Thanks for your advice! It’s very much appreciated. We are going in the winter (in southern hemisphere, that is), so it will probably be quite cold on a ferry boat. But I’ll definitely look into it. I think you are right that skipping Blue mountains may be wise. We only have two nights in Sydney so need to prioritize our limited time.