14-Night Australia/New Zealand

        Dec. 21, 2010 – Jan. 7, 2010

           with Royal Caribbean's Rhapsody Of The Seas

Your Australia / New Zealand cruise begins in the bold, egalitarian city of Sydney, Australia – world famous for its scenic Harbour and fabulous Opera Centre.  Once underway, your first stop will be the historical town of Hobart, capital of Tasmania, known for its thriving arts and crafts scene and its colourful history.  From there you’ll spend 2 days cruising across the Tasman Sea to New Zealand.

On arrival there, you’ll cruise Milford Sound, part of the Fjordlands National Park where you’ll view towering Mitre Peak and where plunging waterfalls and several varieties of dolphins, seals and penguins are plentiful.  On the same day you’ll cruise through Doubtful Sound, the deepest of all New Zealand’s fjords at 420 metres and home to several outstanding waterfalls.  That afternoon, you’ll cruise through Dusky Sound another dolphin, seal and penguin habitat.  The following day you’ll arrive in Dunedin, a town that celebrates its Scottish heritage everywhere from kilt making to whiskey distilleries. From there it’s on to Christchurch  where while strolling along the Avon River, it’s difficult to tell if you’re in England or New Zealand. 

Your voyage then takes you to New Zealand’s friendly capital, Wellington, whose Botanic Gardens and Te Papa Museum are outstanding, and on to Napier, rebuilt in the Art Deco style after a devastating 1931 earthquake and reinvented as a center for gourmet food and wine. After your visit Napier, you will journey 30 miles off the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand to the  White Island which is the country's only active marine volcano, and may be the most accessible marine volcano in the world.

From there it’s on to Tauranga and Rotorua, world famous for its spouting geysers and bubbling mud pools. Before 2 days of cruising back across the Tasman Sea to Sydney, your second last stop in New Zealand will be in Auckland, known as the “City of Sails” because it boasts the greatest number of boats per capita of any city in the  world, and famous for its beautiful beaches, expansive parks and a burgeoning Polynesian culture.  Your last stop will take you to, Bay of Islands which is a magnet for the vacationally deprived With its warm azure waters, golden beaches and some of the bluest skies on the planet.