Royal Princess - New Zealand Roundtrip from Sydney

Where this cruise calls, day by day

10 ports and 4 sea days over 13 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Sydney

   AustraliaDepart
   Sydney port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3 · At sea

4. Day 4

   Fiordland National Park (Scenic Cruising)

   New ZealandPort
   Fiordland National Park (Scenic Cruising) port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
5. Day 5

   Dunedin (Port Chalmers)

   New ZealandPort
   Dunedin (Port Chalmers) port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
6. Day 6

   Christchurch (Lyttelton)

   New ZealandPort
   Christchurch (Lyttelton) port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
7. Day 7

   Picton

   New ZealandPort

   Picton sits at the head of Queen Charlotte Sound, one of the drowned river valleys of the Marlborough Sounds, and the approach through the sounds is the best part of the call. The town itself is small - the ferry terminal, a foreshore, and not much more. Behind it, 30 minutes south, is the Marlborough wine region that made New Zealand sauvignon blanc famous.

   • Marlborough wineries around Blenheim - Cloudy Bay, Brancott Estate
   • Walking a section of the Queen Charlotte Track from a water-taxi drop
   • Edwin Fox Maritime Museum, one of the oldest surviving merchant ships
   • Motuara Island bird sanctuary cruise

   Getting ashore

   Docked at Waitohi Wharf, with ships over 245m going to Shakespeare Bay a few minutes further out; you may not walk on the wharf, so a complimentary shuttle covers the 800m into Picton, and Blenheim is about 30 minutes on.

   Best months

   Nov-Mar (southern summer)

8. Day 8

   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)

9. Day 9

   Tauranga

   New ZealandPort
   Tauranga port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
10. Day 10

    Auckland

    New ZealandPort
    Auckland port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
11. Day 11

    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)

12. Day 12 · At sea

13. Day 13 · At sea

14. Day 14

    Sydney

    AustraliaArrive
    Sydney port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore