New Zealand & Australia Cruise

12 nights from Sydney, Australia

January 4 – 16, 2010
Princess Cruises Diamond Princess

Sail to New Zealand and Australia on Princess Cruises' Diamond Princess! (12 night cruise departing January 4, 2010)

Join us as we celebrate Pied Piper Travel Twentieth Anniversary Season of organizing gay groups on the world's most luxurious cruise ships! We'll sail from exciting, gay-friendly Sydney, Australia and visit Melbourne before winding up in Auckland, New Zealand! All this is yours while you are pampered with gracious service, gourmet dining, and numerous venues for entertainment on Princess Cruises' magnificent luxury cruise ship, Diamond Princess!

This itinerary features a 12-day cruise with 8 ports of call, including visits to Fjordland National Park for scenic cruising and Christchurch. Meals and entertainment are inclusive.

Diamond Princess

Diamond Princess is a luxury destination in itself. Wake each morning in anticipation of a new horizon. Take in the view from one of nearly 740 balcony staterooms. Indulge in a hot stone massage at the renowned Lotus Spa, enjoy fine dining in a formal or relaxed atmosphere and make it a cruise to remember.

Sydney, Australia

As one of the oldest settlements in Australia as well as one of the world's top travel destinations, Sydney offers Aussie hospitality combined with spectacular attractions -- from its dramatic harbour and cosmopolitan city center, to its protected coves, miles of beautiful beaches, and the spectacular Blue Mountains.

Sydney Opera House
The city's most popular tourist attraction and one of the world's busiest performing arts centers, the Opera House is actually a complex of theaters and halls. Its unique design is considered a wonder of the modern world.

The Blue Mountains
The Grand Canyon of Australia, explore a region of spectacular rock formations, deep, tree-lined valleys and waterfalls. Echo Point offers a vantage point of the Three Sisters, named after an Aboriginal legend.

The Rocks
Named after the sandstone cliffs and bedrock, this site of the first penal settlement is still rich in colonial history today, and thriving with five-star hotels and myriad restaurants, pubs, shops, galleries and museums.

Melbourne, Australia

Melbourne is a huge, sprawling city with something for everyone—culture, art, fashion, and friendly Australians. It is also Australia's financial and commercial center. Easy to explore, at the heart of the city is the Golden Mile, the city's governmental and business corridor, home to hotels, shops, restaurants and theaters.

Melbourne also offers one of the world's finest parks - the Royal Botanic Gardens. Tour this city's charming Victorian-era architecture and visit the countryside via a vintage steam train.

Princess Theatre
This elaborately decorated theater was built in 1882 for Queen Victoria's Jubilee.

Royal Botanic Gardens
These botanical gardens include the fascinating feature of an Aboriginal Heritage Walk.

Puffing Billy
Take a ride through history on an authentic narrow-gauge steam train.

Hobart (Tasmania), Australia

Hobart is Australia's second oldest city and state capital of Tasmania. Home to more than 90 National Trust buildings, Hobart combines colonial character with a metropolitan lifestyle. It is the gateway to Tasmania's other scenic attractions and a range of shore activities lets you experience the best of both worlds.

Explore the historic core at the colonial village of Battery Point, the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, as well as Theatre Royal, the country's oldest theater. There's also wine-tasting and pub-hopping to enjoy.

Tasmania's capital has much in common with Sydney. Founded but a few years later, Hobart also owes its origins to the establishment of a penal colony. It has a dramatic setting like Sydney. Seen from its fine deep-water harbor, Hobart spills over the lower reaches of the Derwent Valley as Mt. Wellington towers in the background. You will find much of the city's heritage centered on the waterfront. North of the city stretches the vast parkland of the Queen's Domain.

Salamanca Place
Restored waterfront warehouses hold restaurants, shops, art galleries and old hotels.

Port Arthur
Explore the fascinating ruins of this infamous penal colony.

Bonorong Wildlife Park
Home to the Tasmanian devils, koalas, wombats, free-ranging kangaroos and wallabies.

Fjordland National Park, New Zealand (Scenic Crusing)

Fifteen thousand years ago, glaciers carved out Fiordland National Park. Witness what nature perfected over time — its snowcapped mountains, roaring rivers filled with ice and the lush green grasslands that blanket this famed wilderness landscape in southwest New Zealand.

Mitre Peak
This mile-high glacier peak is a Milford Sound landmark and offers an awesome scenic point as well as photo opportunity.

Milford Sound
Take a journey from the Tasman Sea up through Milford Sound while a guide points out the fascinating features of these ancient geological wonders.

Dunedin (Port Chalmers), New Zealand

Dunedin is the old Gaelic name for Edinburgh. Uncover this "kiwi" city's Scottish heritage roots as you meander its octagon-shaped streets and quaint Victorian buildings.

Dunedin Railway Station
This Flemish Renaissance-style rail station is immense and features a grandiose style that will inspire you.

Christchurch (Lyttelton), New Zealand

Christchurch has a rich history of adventurers who used Christchurch as a gateway for Antarctic explorations. Famed explorers Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton used the port of Lyttelton as a departure point for their expeditions.

Lyttelton
This charming scenic port of Christchurch has a stunning harbor with sparkling aquamarine waters.

Quail Island
Named after the now extinct native quail, this island was once used as a leper colony.

Christ Church Cathedral
Tour this stately cathedral with 19th century English flavor, located in the heart of the city's Cathedral Square.

Tauranga, New Zealand

The "Bay of Plenty" was named by Captain Cook after the prosperous Maori villages of the region generously replenished his supplies. Tauranga, the chief city, is a bustling port, an agricultural and timber center and a popular seaside resort. Tauranga is the gateway to Rotorua, a geothermal wonderland that is the heart of Maori culture and New Zealand's primary tourist attraction.

Tauranga, meaning "sheltered waters" in Maori, is rich with native culture and tradition. Waterskiing, windsurfing and deep-sea fishing abound in Tauranga Harbour. Rotorua with its healing, natural mineral springs is an ideal place to unwind in a therapeutic bath.

Whakarewarewa Thermal Reserve
Explore the bubbling mud pools, spectacular geysers, and sulfur-ringed steaming ponds of this thermal wonder.

Te Puke
Heart of kiwi country, this region produces a quarter of New Zealand's total fruit crop with acres of citrus and other sub-tropical fruit plantations.

Rotorua
Inhabited by Maoris since the 14th century, this thermal resort is a historic center of Maori culture.

Auckland, New Zealand

Shop along the picturesque waterfront of this ever-expanding city, home to one-third of the country's population. From museums housing Maori artifacts to extinct volcanic peaks, this pedestrian-friendly city is the perfect combination of nature and commerce.

Underwater World and Antarctic Encounter
Observe marine life from acrylic walk-through tunnels and visit a re-creation of Captain Scott's Antarctic expedition of 1911.

Auckland Sky Tower
Offering 360-degree views of Auckland, witness this busy commercial and recreational harbor in action, giving credit to the title, City of Sails.

Glow Worm Grotto
Marvel at the twinkling glow worms as you gently glide in a small boat along the underground waterway.