The Prize for the most Indecisive Traveller

[WanderlustNZ]

YAY!!! You're booked. Let the fun begin.

Thanks PIO.

I'm feeling pretty blessed, and a tad irresponsible, that I now have 3 trips planned for this year. The good thing is that I'm managing to stick to my budget and all 3 of them combined are costing about the same, if not less, than the one trip I did last year.

I know you are having some time off travel and I fully respect your self-restraint. But if you ever feel like a quick trip over the Tasman, you know where I am.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I agree, I have to wait till after tax time to do a fair bit of booking, I keep checking prices and stress every time the price rises.

I've stopped looking at Disneyland hotels for a while. If there's a special I don't want to know about it as I really can't afford anything more towards my US trip until about May.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Thanks PIO.

I'm feeling pretty blessed, and a tad irresponsible, that I now have 3 trips planned for this year. The good thing is that I'm managing to stick to my budget and all 3 of them combined are costing about the same, if not less, than the one trip I did last year.

I know you are having some time off travel and I fully respect your self-restraint. But if you ever feel like a quick trip over the Tasman, you know where I am.

I'll keep it in mind. Thanks.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

If you had one day in the Hobart area, which tour would you pick and why?

Descriptions below are taken from the Celebrity Cruise Website

Option One

"OVERVIEW: Guests who enjoy elegance, a bit of history and wonderful wine will not want to miss this tour of Hobart and the beautiful surrounding countryside.HIGHLIGHTS: Take a coach tour through the lovely city of Hobart. Enjoy free time in the historic village of Richmond. Tour the gracious, colonial period home of Runnymede. Sample wines from a renowned local estate."

Option Two

"OVERVIEW: You'll enjoy your visit to a wonderful wildlife sanctuary which provides help and hope for rescued animals. An amazingly interesting tour through Port Arthur's historic penal colony will reveal a place where hope was abandoned. HIGHLIGHTS: Visit Bonorong Wildlife Park, a wonderful sanctuary for rescued native wildlife. Take a guided tour through the Port Arthur Historic Site, Australia's most feared penal colony."

Option Three

"Depart your ship and travel to historic Richmond. Enjoy some free time to explore a myriad of convict buildings before moving on to visit Salmon Ponds Trout Farm and Mt Field National Park."

Option One is the cheapest, but shortest tour. Option two is the most expensive, but longest tour.

To be honest, I'm putting overall experience before cost. I want to make the most of our day.

Thanks for any advice

 

[gogo65]

Please do. I am already thinking of ringing Celebrity and paying the $11.50 extra per person per day to upgrade to the premium package. DH likes to try a lot of different premium beers and while there is quite a good selection in the $5 and under category, I know he'll be tempted to try as many new beers as possible and the vast majority are $6 or more.

Also, while I tend to drink mostly water and mocktails when I cruise (alcohol goes to my head very quickly), when I do have an 'adult' drink I like it to be a fancy cocktail. Not just Vodka and Tonic, but the likes of a Mojito or a Daquirri.
If you could do me a favour and check out how many specialty cocktails fit within the classic package I would really appreciate it. I'm envisioning that the 'drink of the day' probably does, and other than that it'll just be the standard spirit and mixer drinks such as Rum and Coke, Gin and Tonic etc.

I think the standard is pretty good and includes quite a few cocktails, from what I've read on cruise critic, if you want upmarket spirits in your cocktails then they wouldn't be included. I'm going to wait till I get onboard and if necessary upgrade when I'm on there, as they will do it for the same cost and only for the remaining days left on the cruise, you can also only upgrade only one of you if you want instead of both of you,

 

[PrincessInOz]

If you had one day in the Hobart area, which tour would you pick and why?

Descriptions below are taken from the Celebrity Cruise Website

Option One

"OVERVIEW: Guests who enjoy elegance, a bit of history and wonderful wine will not want to miss this tour of Hobart and the beautiful surrounding countryside.HIGHLIGHTS: Take a coach tour through the lovely city of Hobart. Enjoy free time in the historic village of Richmond. Tour the gracious, colonial period home of Runnymede. Sample wines from a renowned local estate."

Option Two

"OVERVIEW: You'll enjoy your visit to a wonderful wildlife sanctuary which provides help and hope for rescued animals. An amazingly interesting tour through Port Arthur's historic penal colony will reveal a place where hope was abandoned. HIGHLIGHTS: Visit Bonorong Wildlife Park, a wonderful sanctuary for rescued native wildlife. Take a guided tour through the Port Arthur Historic Site, Australia's most feared penal colony."

Option Three

"Depart your ship and travel to historic Richmond. Enjoy some free time to explore a myriad of convict buildings before moving on to visit Salmon Ponds Trout Farm and Mt Field National Park."

Option One is the cheapest, but shortest tour. Option two is the most expensive, but longest tour.

To be honest, I'm putting overall experience before cost. I want to make the most of our day.

Thanks for any advice

Port Arthur. I found it a very sad and depressing place to visit but there is no denying it's place in Australia's history.

Hobart and Richmond are nice; but Port Arthur is one of the major drawcards for Tasmania.

 

[zanzibar138]

If you had one day in the Hobart area, which tour would you pick and why?

Descriptions below are taken from the Celebrity Cruise Website

Option One

"OVERVIEW: Guests who enjoy elegance, a bit of history and wonderful wine will not want to miss this tour of Hobart and the beautiful surrounding countryside.HIGHLIGHTS: Take a coach tour through the lovely city of Hobart. Enjoy free time in the historic village of Richmond. Tour the gracious, colonial period home of Runnymede. Sample wines from a renowned local estate."

Option Two

"OVERVIEW: You'll enjoy your visit to a wonderful wildlife sanctuary which provides help and hope for rescued animals. An amazingly interesting tour through Port Arthur's historic penal colony will reveal a place where hope was abandoned. HIGHLIGHTS: Visit Bonorong Wildlife Park, a wonderful sanctuary for rescued native wildlife. Take a guided tour through the Port Arthur Historic Site, Australia's most feared penal colony."

Option Three

"Depart your ship and travel to historic Richmond. Enjoy some free time to explore a myriad of convict buildings before moving on to visit Salmon Ponds Trout Farm and Mt Field National Park."

Option One is the cheapest, but shortest tour. Option two is the most expensive, but longest tour.

To be honest, I'm putting overall experience before cost. I want to make the most of our day.

Thanks for any advice

I would do the Port Arthur tour, purely because I think it will be the most different for you, and Port Arthur really is a must-do in Hobart. The wildlife sanctuary would be a nice addition too if you haven't seen much Australian wildlife in person. You'll also get to see plenty of Tasmanian scenery on the drive out.

If you decide not to do Port Arthur, Richmond is also very scenic and will give you a look at convict buildings and history a bit closer to town.

There are lots of great things to see in town, but without knowing exactly what they'll show you, I'd say it's the most similar to what you can experience at home. Eg, you probably have historic homes and wineries in NZ, and Mt Wellington will probably not hold quite as much interest for you coming from such a mountainous country.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I think the standard is pretty good and includes quite a few cocktails, from what I've read on cruise critic, if you want upmarket spirits in your cocktails then they wouldn't be included. I'm going to wait till I get onboard and if necessary upgrade when I'm on there, as they will do it for the same cost and only for the remaining days left on the cruise, you can also only upgrade only one of you if you want instead of both of you,

It's great that there is this flexibility.

To be honest I couldn't care less what brand of spirit they use in my drinks (except for Gin - I'm a bit of a Gin snob).

I just like my girly cocktails with a bit of flamboyance and perhaps a cherry and umbrella on top

 

[gogo65]

Please do. I am already thinking of ringing Celebrity and paying the $11.50 extra per person per day to upgrade to the premium package. DH likes to try a lot of different premium beers and while there is quite a good selection in the $5 and under category, I know he'll be tempted to try as many new beers as possible and the vast majority are $6 or more.

Also, while I tend to drink mostly water and mocktails when I cruise (alcohol goes to my head very quickly), when I do have an 'adult' drink I like it to be a fancy cocktail. Not just Vodka and Tonic, but the likes of a Mojito or a Daquirri.
If you could do me a favour and check out how many specialty cocktails fit within the classic package I would really appreciate it. I'm envisioning that the 'drink of the day' probably does, and other than that it'll just be the standard spirit and mixer drinks such as Rum and Coke, Gin and Tonic etc.

I'm going to wait and upgrade on board if need be, although I think I will be fine.
You can upgrade just one of you and if you do it on board you can do it for just the remaining days of the cruise

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Thanks PIO and Zanzibar

I was thinking the Port Arthur tour was the way to go, but it's nice to have that thought confirmed.
I've seen quite a bit of Australian wildlife, but never a Tassie Devil. That would be fun.

I've also booked the Cradle Mountain tour for Burnie. It was the only tour of 6 that appealed to me.
The problem is that the website wanted me to pay for it then and there when I thought it would just get added to my total unpaid bill. I can't pay for it now, so it will be interesting how long they keep it on hold for me. I'm quietly confident I'll be able to rebook later in the year before it sells out.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Port Arthur. I found it a very sad and depressing place to visit but there is no denying it's place in Australia's history.

I felt that way about Auschwitz, but I'll be forever grateful I visited. The sad places can be so humbling and memorable.

 

[Tashinwdw]

I would also pick Port Arthur. So much history there. We have convict relatives that were sent there so for us it has lots of meaning. Of course you also have the shooting history that took place which was shocking. At least a small positive came out of that tragedy is that it helped changed some gun laws in Australia.

 

[dabecs]

It's a pity "Louisa's Walk" in Hobart isn't an option, I think it would be perfect. We did the walk when we had our weekend in Tassie at the beginning of March and it was such a memorable day. Google Louisa's Walk to see the rave reviews it gets.

It tells the story of a female convict brought out to the Female Factory (right near the Cascade Brewery). It is performed by 2 actors as you walk from the brewery to what's left of the female factories and takes 2 hours.

Anyone going to Hobart this would be my top recommendation.

If you do go to Richmond the pub has fantastic old style pub meals at great prices (roast of the day with all of the trimmings followed by a giant bowl of homemade apple and berry crumble with ice cream was $22!). And there is a nice old fashioned sweets shop, and the bakery sells bags of old bread to feed the ducks at the Richmond bridge.

Can you tell I loved our weekend in Tassie

 

[WanderlustNZ]

It's a pity "Louisa's Walk" in Hobart isn't an option, I think it would be perfect. We did the walk when we had our weekend in Tassie at the beginning of March and it was such a memorable day. Google Louisa's Walk to see the rave reviews it gets. It tells the story of a female convict brought out to the Female Factory (right near the Cascade Brewery). It is performed by 2 actors as you walk from the brewery to what's left of the female factories and takes 2 hours. Anyone going to Hobart this would be my top recommendation. If you do go to Richmond the pub has fantastic old style pub meals at great prices (roast of the day with all of the trimmings followed by a giant bowl of homemade apple and berry crumble with ice cream was $22!). And there is a nice old fashioned sweets shop, and the bakery sells bags of old bread to feed the ducks at the Richmond bridge. Can you tell I loved our weekend in Tassie

Thanks for the recommendation Dabecs. It's not essential that we go on a ship-organised tour; we could always do something on our own. So I will definitely do some online research into Louisa's Walk'.

I'm wishing we had more time in Hobart as there seems to be so much to do in the area.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I would also pick Port Arthur. So much history there. We have convict relatives that were sent there so for us it has lots of meaning. Of course you also have the shooting history that took place which was shocking. At least a small positive came out of that tragedy is that it helped changed some gun laws in Australia.

I had to google to remind myself of that shooting incident. So tragic.

 

[dabecs]

Thanks for the recommendation Dabecs. It's not essential that we go on a ship-organised tour; we could always do something on our own. So I will definitely do some online research into Louisa's Walk'. I'm wishing we had more time in Hobart as there seems to be so much to do in the area.

Well they also do a shortened version (1 hour) in the mornings. The walk often sells out.

I really enjoyed learning about female prisoners which certainly don't get as much publicity, and I loved the way they told the story

Obviously MONA is fantastic too but with only one day I would do Louisa's Walk. Unless of course you are an art buff...

I loved Hobart so much I would seriously consider moving there, but my husband loves his job and my girl's love their school and we live near family so it feels like too much to give up..

 

[zanzibar138]

Well they also do a shortened version (1 hour) in the mornings. The walk often sells out.

I really enjoyed learning about female prisoners which certainly don't get as much publicity, and I loved the way they told the story

Obviously MONA is fantastic too but with only one day I would do Louisa's Walk. Unless of course you are an art buff...

I loved Hobart so much I would seriously consider moving there, but my husband loves his job and my girl's love their school and we live near family so it feels like too much to give up..

We didn't know about the walk, but we visited the 'female factory' last time we were in Hobart. Will definitely have to do the walk one day as just visiting the ruins wasn't very insightful. And I agree about MONA - fantastic and unlike anything I've ever seen, but probably not worth missing other things.

We also love Tassie (any part of it) so much we've seriously considered moving down there. But it's probably too hard now that DH has gotten his business established here. Dabecs, maybe we need to go halvies in a holiday home?

 

[dabecs]

We didn't know about the walk, but we visited the 'female factory' last time we were in Hobart. Will definitely have to do the walk one day as just visiting the ruins wasn't very insightful. And I agree about MONA - fantastic and unlike anything I've ever seen, but probably not worth missing other things. We also love Tassie (any part of it) so much we've seriously considered moving down there. But it's probably too hard now that DH has gotten his business established here. Dabecs, maybe we need to go halvies in a holiday home?

Yes the ruins aren't much to see... In that respect Port Arthur is certainly more photogenic, which needs to be considered.

Zanzibar - sure, let's! I looked at real estate when I was there and the prices for houses just outside Hobart CBD were so cheap compared to Melbourne. And the ambience along the water *sigh*. Although not sure how I would feel by the end of winter...

 

[dabecs]

http://livehistoryhobart.com.au

Thought I should put in the link because I am raving so much!

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I'm pleased to hear all these positive comments about Tasmania. It's making me very excited.