Trip Itinerary

Our detailed itinerary was as the following:

Day 1 : Saturday, October 25, 2014 - Flew from Houston to LA and then to Auckland, NZ

Day 2 : Sunday, October 26, 2014 - Lost a day during the flight from LA to Auckland

Day 3 : Monday, October 27, 2014 - Flew from Auckland to Sydney, Optional self touring in Sydney

Day 4 : Tuesday, October 28, 2014 - Royal Botanic Garden, Mrs. Macquarie's Chair, Opera House, St. Mary's Catholic Cathedral, Rock, and Sydney Harbor Dinner Cruise

Day 5 : Wednesday, October 29, 2014 - Featherdale Wildlife Park, Three Sisters Sandstone Rock Formation in Blue Mountain National Park

Day 6 : Thursday, October 30, 2014 - Flew to Cairns, Tjapukai Cultural Park, Skyrail to Kuranda

Day 7 : Friday, October 31, 2014 - The Great Barrier Reef

Day 8 : Saturday, November 1, 2014 - Flew to Melbourne, Royal Botanic Gardens, Phillip Island for watching Little Penguins

Day 9 : Sunday, November 2, 2014 - Great Ocean Road, The 12 Apostles

Day 10 : Monday, November 3, 2014 - Ballarat Tour, flew to Christchurch, NZ

Day 11 : Tuesday, November 4, 2014 - KiwiRail to Arthur's Pass National Park , Shantytown

Day 12 : Wednesday, November 5, 2014 - Walked the Trail to Lake Matheson to view the reflection of Mount Cook and Fox Glacier, Cromwell, Arrow Town, Queenstown

Day 13 : Thursday, November 6, 2014 - Miflord Sound Scenic Cruise, Te Anau Glowworm Caves 

Day 14 : Friday, November 7, 2014 - Drove to Queenstown, flew to Wellington, Weta Workshop, Mount Victoria, Parliament Buildings

Day 15 : Saturday, November 8, 2014 - Tongariro National Park, Taupo Lake, Huka Falls, Polynesian Spa in Rotorua

Day 16 : Sunday, November 9, 2014 - Lady Knox Geyser, Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland, Champagne Pool, Agrodome Farmland 

Day 17 : Monday, November 10, 2014 - HobbiTon Movie Set, Mount Eden, Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium, then flew back to Houston

We did cover a lot of grounds by visiting many attractions, however this itinerary with bus tour was too aggressive.  Instead of spending much time on bus rides, I wished that we had more time enjoying attractions by adding more days to this trip or visited less attractions on the whole trip.  Some people may enjoy the experience of being there; however I am definitely enjoying to have sufficient amount of time to take a closer look at every attraction.

October 25, 2014 - Fly to LA and then to Auckland

Our flight schedule was taking UA flight from Houston to Los Angles at 7PM CST on Oct 25 and then transferring to ANZ flight to Auckland at 10:30PM PST on the same day.  When we arrived Auckland, it was 7:30AM NZDT on Oct 27.  Due to time zone differences, NZDT is 19 hours ahead of CST in Houston.

The UA flight was just like any other UA flight, nothing good could be mentioned about the flight. However, the ANZ flight was much better than UA flight.  Their media system was much better with clear audio to allow us to watch many movies on the airplane.  The food was much better then UA's food (international flights).  The seat was also more comfortable and it allowed us to have some rest on the plane.

October 26, 2014 - Lost a day during flying from LA to Auckland

Due to daylight time changes, strangely we lost a day while flew from LA to Auckland.

October 27, 2014 - Bondi to Googee Coastal Walk

Daily itinerary were:

• Arrived Auckland at 7:30AM
• Arrived Sydney at 10:30AM
• Lunch at Chinese Restaurant in Sydney CBD
• Checked into the Sydney Boulevard Hotel
• Visited Gap Park
• Visited Bondi Beach

Other self tours by various members were:

• Walked Bondi Coastal Walk from Bondi Beach to Coogee Beach
• Took ferry crossing Sydney Harbor
• Night Photographing of Sydney Harbor Bridge/Opera House near Mrs. Macquarie's Chair 
• Seafood dinner in Chinatown

After we arrived Auckland, we had to take another ANZ flight from Auckland to Sydney and arrived at Sydney at 10:30AM in the morning.  When we got to Sydney, Peggy/JC and Corrina/Edward already got there by taking different flights.  They helped our tour guide Emma to welcome us outside the airport exit gate.

The Sydney Boulevard Hotel is located near Sydney CBD which is close to many Sydney attractions.  After drove through the Sydney CBD, Emma took us to have Chinese lunch before we checked into the hotel.

In the afternoon, there was an optional city tour to take some of us to Bondi Beach area which is at east side of Sydney (for an additional $20 US per person).  She took us to the Gap Park in Watsons Bay area first. Watsons Bay is located on the southern head of the entrance to Sydney Harbour. To the east is the Tasman Sea and to the west is the Sydney Harbor with a glorious view of the city of Sydney in a distance. This was the first spot we walked in Sydney, we did enjoy the spectacle view and took many photos.  Then we walked to MacQuarie Lighthouse which is the first lighthouse in Australia began operating on November 20, 1818. 

The next stop was the Bondi Beach.  When we got to Sydney, they had very high temperature on that day ( it was high 35C on that day vs the average November high 23C).  A lot of Australians were on the beach enjoying the sun and ocean. Emma told us that Australian normally taking more days off to avoid high taxes resulting from higher pay (result of longer working hours) and they are comfortable with just enough money on hand for daily expenses.  They have a great benefit system which makes them not worry about saving.  Emma told us that for a $80K AUD annual income, the tax rate is 47%.

Most of us just enjoyed the Bondi Beach and played with ocean waves.  However, Fei and Tony decided to venture out to the "Bondi to Coogee Coast Walk" along the Bondi Beach.  So happen that there was a "Sculpture By The Sea" annual art event going on from Oct 23 to Nov 9.  It transformed the Bondi Beach from Tamarama coastal walk into a 2 KM long temporary sculpture park featuring over 100 sculptures by artists from Australia and around the world.  The Bondi to Coogee Coast Walk is a picturesque coastal route featuring beaches, bays, rock pools, cliffs and stunning views.

Originally we planned to walk from Bondi Beach all the way to Maroubra, however, we started the walk too late, therefore we could only making to Coogee Beach before sundown.  It was about 6 KM walk with beautiful coastal scenery.  We took Route 373 bus with $9.10 AUD bus fare to get back to hotel around 8:30PM.

Some of us did go to the park near Mrs Macquarie's Chair to capture the most beautiful night scenery of Sydney Harbor Bridge, the Opera House, and the Sydney Harbor.  

Some of us are food lovers and went to Chinatown to have the best seafood dinner in Sydney.

October 28, 2014 - Mrs. Macquarie's Chair, Opera House, Rock, Harbor Dinner Cruise

Daily itinerary were:

• Mrs MacQuarier's Chair for photograph (Sydney Harbor Bridge and Opera House as backdrops)
• St. Mary's Cathedral Church
• Archibald Fountain in Hyde Park
• Sydney Opera House
• Lunch at Sydney Seafood Market
• Queen Victoria Building (QVB)
• Shopped in the Rock
• Harbor Dinner Cruise
• Walked across Sydney Harbor Bridge
• Night photograph near Port Jackson and the Captain Henry Waterhouse Reserve

The Sydney Harbor Bridge and Opera House are the most impressive attractions in Sydney, therefore it was our first stop of the Sydney tour to have photos with these attractions.  We actually came to the same spot where some of us came the night before.  Since this was daytime with much better visibility and lighting, we took many photos with beautiful Sydney Harbor Bridge and Opera House as backdrops.

Next, we visited the St Mary's Cathedral Church along with the Archibald Fountain in Hyde Park. From there, one can see the Sydney Tower along with many downtown buildings.

Sydney Opera House is a must seen attraction.  It has a rigid schedule with appointment only, therefore we had to be there on time to meet our Opera House guide to visit this wonderful world-known establishment.  Our guide detailed the construction challenges of building such an unique structure.  It features a modern expressionist design with a series of large precast concrete "shells" to form the roofs of this structure.  It has 2 large spaces of Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre.  There is no way for visitors to choose which one to visit, however, we were lucky to be able to see the larger one - Concert Hall. Inside the Concert Hall, it has 10,000 pipes which need 20 people to control them.  It also has audio reflection dishes on top of the stage to enhance the audio effects. It has only 2679 seats. We were even luckier with the opportunity of witness Sydney Symphony Orchestra practicing while we were visiting.

Photos are allowed outside of the Concert Hall. Of course we wouldn't give up this picturesque opportunity and took many pictures.

Per Emma's recommendation, we went to the Sydney Seafood Market for lunch.  It was the freshest seafood we ever had.  We had Rock Lobsters, Abalones, Crabs, Tiger Prawns, Oysters, Sashimi, and Calamari.  They were all very fresh and tasteful, however it also shocked us when we got the bill.  Some of us had $145 US per couple lunch and it marked as the most expensive lunch we ever had.

Then, Emma took us to do some shopping in Sydney CBD.  The particular shopping center we visited was Queen Victoria Building (QVB).  QVB was built in 1890s and restored in 1986, and is the most popular and prestigious shopping center in Sydney.  They have 2 mechanical clocks, each one featuring dioramas and moving figures from the history.  The Royal Clock activates on hour and displays 6 scenes of English royalty; and the Great Australian Clock includes 33 scenes from Australian history.

Then we did some more shopping in The Rock which is an urban locality for shopping and tourism. The Lanolin Cream and UGG shoes were the popular items for our group.  Some of us skipped the shopping and ventured out to see the surround area including the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia.

Next, we went to a harbor cruise dinner on Magistic Cruises.  It sailed out passing the Opera House and then back.  It provided a good opportunity to take more photos of Opera House from different angles.  However, the service and dinner were lousy.  The services were so bad, we had to gang up on one of the bartender's helper and complained to their manager.  As a matter of fact, after we came back, I did registered a terrible rating on TripAdvisor.com for their bad service and food.

After the cruise dinner, Emma took us to walk across the Sydney Harbor Bridge.  We went to Port Jackson and the Captain Henry Waterhouse Reserve in Kirribilli (across Harbor from the Luna Amusing Park) to take some more night photos of the Sydney Harbor Bridge and surrounding areas.

The Sydney Harbor Bridge walk and the visit of 2 additional photo spots were additional to our itinerary and we had to pay another $26 US per person for these attractions.

October 29, 2014 - Featherdale Wildlife Park, Blue, Three Sisters Rock Formation and the Scenic World in Blue Mountain

Daily itinerary were:

• Featherdale Wildlife Park
• Echo Point to see The Three Sisters rock formation
• Scenic World with Scenic Railway and Scenic Skyway
• Dinner at Sydney Tower

The first attraction of the day was the Featherdale Wildlife Park in Doonside, Sydney which was on the way to Blue Mountain National Park.  It is a 7-acre wildlife park with koalas, kangaroos, wallabies, different birds, crocodiles, and even few little penguins.  The most exciting moments in the park were feeding and taking photos with koalas and kangaroos.  It allowed you to have a close encounters with both koalas and kangaroos.

Next, we went to Echo Point to see the famous Three Sisters rock formation. Some of us did walk down a steep stair to see the back of the rock formation closer.

Then we visited the Scenic World in Katoomba in the world heritage-listed Blue Mountain.  In the Scenic World, we took Scenic Railway first and then we walked trails along the Katoomea Coal Mine site.  Then we took the Scenic Skyway (with glass floor).

After the Scenic World, it took about 2 1/2 hours bus ride back to Sydney CBD for dinner at the top of Sydney Tower.  The food was good, and the scenery was good (see Sydney from the top in 360 degrees fashion). We were scheduled an hour for dinner and wished that we could spend more time up there and maybe even see some night scenes of Sydney from the top of the tower.

October 30, 2014 - Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural, Skyrail and Kuranda

Daily itinerary were:

• Flew and arrived to Cairns at 11AM
• Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park for dance show and food/medicine demonstration, Spear/Boomerang throwing
• Skyrail to Kuranda Village
• Checked into Novotel Cairns Oasis Resort
• Night Market shopping in Cairns

We got up early today to catch a 8:50AM flight from Sydney to Cairns which is located NE of Sydney.  The flight was about 2 hours and 10 minutes.  Cairns is a popular travel destination for foreign tourists because of its tropical climate.  It serves as a starting point for people wanting to visit the Great Barrier Reef.

After we arrived Cairns, our tour guide Henry took us to the Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park and allowed for one hour self provided lunch.  Tjapukai is a traditional Aboriginal Culture which celebrates the living history of the Indigenous people of the Rainforest.  They provided us a traditional Aboriginal dance with playing didgeridoo and making fire.  Rainforest is a rich food source for the Tjapukai people, but many of its foods are toxic and require special preparation.  They showed us how they prepare the food and also showed us how to identify various medicine from their rainforest environment.  At the end, they also demonstrated spear and boomerang throwing.  In addition, they also provided an opportunity for us to try the spear and boomerang throwing.

Then we took the Skyrail up to Kuranda Village.  There are 2 stops for the whole Skyrail ride.  1st stop is the Red Peak Station for a short walk in rainforest. The 2nd stop is Barron Falls Station for viewing Barron Falls. However, due to the dry season, there wasn't much water falling down the falls, therefore, we did not stop at the 2nd stop.  The Skyrail provided us a beautiful view of the World Heritage Listed Barron Gorge National Park rainforest from the top.

We ended up at the Kuranda Terminal.  Kuranda is well known as the Village in the Rainforest and has been attracting visitors for over a century.  Initially people came to admire the mighty Barron Falls, while artists were attracted to the region's natural beauty and decided to call it home, creating a vibrant arts and craft culture. There are a lot of souvenirs shops selling souvenirs and crafts.  However, we got there quite late and wasn't in a mood to shop.  Most of us were just wondering around enjoying the small and peaceful village.

After dinner, we ventured out to the nearby night market for souvenir shopping.  Some of the popular items are koala cushions, T-shirts and wine holders.