Anthem of the Seas - New Zealand from Sydney

Where this cruise calls, day by day

6 ports and 4 sea days over 9 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Sydney

   AustraliaDepart

   Two terminals, and which one you get changes the day completely. The Overseas Passenger Terminal sits on Circular Quay east of the Harbour Bridge, with no air-draft limit and the Opera House directly opposite the gangway. White Bay, out at Rozelle, only takes ships that fit under the bridge, and it has no train, no ferry and no bus at the gate. Berths are assigned by availability, so nobody can promise you one.

   • Sydney Opera House backstage or architectural tour
   • The Bondi to Coogee clifftop walk, or just the Bondi Beach bus
   • BridgeClimb over the Sydney Harbour Bridge
   • Ferry across to Manly or Taronga Zoo for the harbour view back

   Getting ashore

   Docked either at the Overseas Passenger Terminal, five minutes' walk from Circular Quay's trains and ferries, or at White Bay about 6km out, which is taxi or rideshare only - 15-25 minutes to the CBD.

   Best months

   Oct-Apr (southern spring to autumn)

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3 · At sea

4. Day 4

   Wellington

   New ZealandPort

   New Zealand's capital sits in a wind tunnel at the bottom of the North Island, wrapped around a harbour with hills coming down to the water on every side. Most ships tie up at Aotea Quay, a container berth a couple of kilometres north of the centre with a shuttle laid on; a lucky few get Queens Wharf downtown. It is a compact, walkable, coffee-obsessed city once you reach it.

   • Te Papa Tongarewa, the national museum, free and genuinely good
   • Wellington Cable Car up to the Botanic Garden and walk back down
   • Weta Workshop tour out at Miramar
   • Zealandia, a fenced valley sanctuary with kaka, takahe and tuatara

   Getting ashore

   Almost always docked at Aotea Quay, a working commercial berth you cannot walk out of - the shuttle loop is effectively the only way ashore, covering the 2km to downtown; the rare Queens Wharf berth is a straight walk into town.

   Best months

   Nov-Mar (southern summer)

5. Day 5

   Napier

   New ZealandPort

   An earthquake flattened Napier in 1931 and the town was rebuilt over the following few years, which is why an entire small city centre is coherent 1930s Art Deco. It is a genuinely unusual thing to walk around. The port is a working breakwater terminal a few kilometres out, and Hawke's Bay's vineyards start almost immediately behind the town.

   • Art Deco walking tour around Emerson Street and Tennyson Street
   • Hawke's Bay wineries - Mission Estate, Church Road, Te Mata
   • Cape Kidnappers gannet colony by tractor-trailer along the beach
   • Te Mata Peak lookout over the plains

   Getting ashore

   Docked at Napier Port, which since the 2022 Te Whiti wharf takes very large ships; town is only about 2km but walking on the wharf is prohibited, so everyone takes the free shuttle to the drop-off where the local operators wait.

   Best months

   Nov-Mar (southern summer)

6. Day 6

   Tauranga

   New ZealandPort

   The berth is at Mount Maunganui, on the ocean side of Tauranga Harbour, and the extinct cone of Mauao rises straight off the end of the wharf. Almost everyone treats this as the door to Rotorua's geothermal country, about an hour inland, which means a long coach day. Stay local instead and you get a surf beach and a good hill walk within ten minutes of the ship.

   • Climb Mauao, or circle its base track at sea level
   • Rotorua geothermal parks - Te Puia's Pohutu geyser or Wai-O-Tapu
   • Hobbiton Movie Set near Matamata, the longest excursion of the day
   • Mount Hot Pools, saltwater and right by the wharf

   Getting ashore

   Docked beside Pilot Bay at Mount Maunganui - not in Tauranga city, which is 6.7km across the harbour bridge; the Mount's beaches and main street are a short walk, and Rotorua is 78km, about an hour and a quarter each way.

   Best months

   Nov-Mar (southern summer)

7. Day 7

   Bay of Islands

   New ZealandPort

   Ships anchor off Waitangi in a scattered archipelago at the top of the North Island and tender in. This is where the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840, so the day has real historical weight alongside the boating. Paihia and Russell face each other across the water, connected by a constant passenger ferry.

   • Waitangi Treaty Grounds, the meeting house and the ceremonial war canoe
   • Hole in the Rock boat trip through Motukokako island
   • Ferry over to Russell, once a lawless whaling port, now very quiet
   • Haruru Falls and the boardwalk through the mangroves

   Getting ashore

   Tender only - no wharf in the bay takes cruise ships. Ship's tours generally land at Waitangi Wharf and independents at Paihia; a free shuttle links the two, or it is a pleasant 25-minute beach walk between them.

   Best months

   Nov-Mar (southern summer)

8. Day 8 · At sea

9. Day 9 · At sea

10. Day 10

    Sydney

    AustraliaArrive

    Two terminals, and which one you get changes the day completely. The Overseas Passenger Terminal sits on Circular Quay east of the Harbour Bridge, with no air-draft limit and the Opera House directly opposite the gangway. White Bay, out at Rozelle, only takes ships that fit under the bridge, and it has no train, no ferry and no bus at the gate. Berths are assigned by availability, so nobody can promise you one.

    • Sydney Opera House backstage or architectural tour
    • The Bondi to Coogee clifftop walk, or just the Bondi Beach bus
    • BridgeClimb over the Sydney Harbour Bridge
    • Ferry across to Manly or Taronga Zoo for the harbour view back

    Getting ashore

    Docked either at the Overseas Passenger Terminal, five minutes' walk from Circular Quay's trains and ferries, or at White Bay about 6km out, which is taxi or rideshare only - 15-25 minutes to the CBD.

    Best months

    Oct-Apr (southern spring to autumn)