My wife and I are going on the Aus/NZ tour on Nov 4, 2013
Is anyone else signed up to join us on the tour of Aus/NZ starting on November 4, 2013? Have you ever been on a Tauck tour and what is your impression of the tour group (we have been told that they are extraordinary). Have you ever been to Aus/NZ? Is there anything that we need to know that Tauck will not inform us about before we leave (we have been told that they are extremely informative) weather,clothing, etc?
When are you arriving in Melbourne? Art Jacobs screen name- Artie J
When are you arriving in Melbourne? Art Jacobs screen name- Artie J
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I did Hawaii in 2012 and really enjoyed the Tauck experience. They had special events that, I am almost sure, other tours don't do. On Kauai the St. Regis Hotel opened especially to serve us lunch. On Maui we had a private cooking lesson at a Japanese restaurant. I wanted to tour the Wakameia Canyon and within 1 hr of asking about the tour my guide had acquired information including pricing. I was not on the tour the first night but I think the opening reception was at the Palace. During the bus trips the guide rotates seats, therefore you get a chance to meet others and are not always in the back or front of the bus. the luggage pickup and delivery from one location to the next is seamless. In fact I got so accustomed to having my luggage moved around that I suffered on the way home, because it was all on me. lol
Enjoy.
Richard
I'm really pleased to see your comments, particularly given that your are (as an Aussie and sort of family in that Commonwealth way;) I feel that between friends I can use the moniker) a Pom. I have often wondered how a trip to Australia written with a first-time, US client in mind would translate to a wider demographic. I would love to hear more detailed observations from you, but I'm really glad you did post in the affirmative. And I'm really glad to had a good time down under.
I don't travel exclusively with Tauck. I do travel independently and to parts not covered by Tauck. I've taken 18 Tauck tours, some land-based trips in the US and Canada, some small ship cruising in Alaska and the Galapagos and river cruising in Europe. I'm taking another river cruise with them next August. I don't keep using Tauck because I'm bored or moribund! (Although some days I do wonder!) I continue to travel with them because I can't find a better product or method of delivery and give the best value for money. I have looked. I continue to look. It's not a competition, but I do love to travel, I don't want to compromise on quality and I travel solo. As a five times Tauck traveller you already know some of this.
And to Art who posted earlier … safe travels. I hope you made it through LAX without too much disruption to your timetable and that you arrive safely here in Melbourne tomorrow. You are in for a wonderful experience. Enjoy!
Cheers,
Jan
As I said earlier this was our 5th Tauck trip. So long as one remembers the well worn phrase of our illustrious very first tour director that "this is a TOUR not a VACATION" everyone will be fine at getting up early to get to places before the crowds arrive. We have found without exception that the logistics work faultlessly once one is within the "Tauck Bubble" - bags get where they should be on time, events run to time, and Tauck seems to get you where general tourists don't get. In short, one has total assurance that within the tour you can just sit back and relax so long as you do what you are told when you are told. What also makes it good for us is that on each tour we have been perhaps the only two Brits amongst a tour of Americans and we do enjoy exchanging views and of course lots of friendly banter. Being so confident with Tauck care we did the Portrait of India tour some months ago but would not have done that with anybody else. Incredibly interesting and indeed humbling in places. Tour Directors can make or break an experience, and generally we have found them to have deep experience of the subject matter having lived and breathed the area. To be fair we did have one exception of local inexperience, but the tour content was still conducted precisely and ran without a hitch, it was just a case of more shallow local knowledge. Care and accommodation are usually of an extremely high standard so long as one accepts that to experience some locations one must accept a slightly lower level.
I think that one important piece of general advice is to make sure that long haul flight drag is considered up front. We try to get to the tour start point a day before start, and certainly the intensity of information from the tour content demands at least a day of R & R before heading home - but maybe that is age showing through!
Richard
Cheers,
Jan
Hi Va Aussie,
We are also going on the Australia only trip that begins in Melbourne on April 11, 2014. This will be our 4th Tauck trip and they have all been great. We were lucky enough to secure free business class flights but this means we will arrive in Melbourne 2 days early. (early enough to recover from the flight and still have at least a full day and 1/2 to see some of Melbourne on our own. We are planning to go to Philip Island to see the fairy penguins, but have not booked that excursion yet.
Where are you from? We are from California. Sherry
We are going on the April 28 2014 Aus/NZ trip. Regarding jetlag, I arrived a day early for the China and Yangtze River Tauck trip (AWESOME TRIP!) in Sept 2012 and I didn't have any jetlag at all. Until the 3rd or 4th day when I started waking up at 2 in the morning, wide awake, no hope of sleeping. So for the Aus/NZ trip we aren't getting there early, because apparently I'd need to get there a week early. I guess it is different for everyone -- and possibly also different every time. I'm so hoping not to be in a fog in Australia. I can't wait for the trip.
Absolutely, everyone is different. But I am intrigued. Why do you need to … "get there a week early"? Apart from a really great time getting to know everything my home city has to offer, and the hinterland, of course … Is it a condition of your flights?
Either way, get ready for a real travel experience!
Cheers,
Jan
I'm scared of flying, even though I know it's quite safe, so I have medicine for long flights which also helps me sleep, so I will try to use that in Aus if I encounter the same kind of sleeping problems at nights. I'd love to get there a day or two days or a week early, but it was hard enough for me to get three weeks in a row off work, so we are going to arrive on the morning of the tour, provided our connection in Brisbane goes smoothly (only a two hour layover, hope it's enough.).
Regarding your connection time in Brisbane … I'm assuming you will be clearing customs & immigration there, as your first port of call? I would feel more comfortable if you had more than 2 hours to do that, then get yourselves and your luggage to the domestic terminal in good time (and mental condition!) for your flight to Melbourne. If it's at all possible, I'd encourage you to try for a later domestic flight. You do want to make the most of those 3 weeks! Gosh, we Aussies just don't realise how hard it can be for you guys to get holidays. You certainly have to make the most of them when you do!
Cheers,
Jan
Yes we were somewhat concerned about the 2 hr timing in Brisbane too. But I researched customs and connections at that airport and it seems that, while there were a few disgruntled commenters, most people said 2 hours was doable. And there are hourly flights on Qantas to Melbourne from there, so we decided to go for it with the thinking that we could get on one of the next fights in case we needed to. But hopefully we can arrive in Melbourne at 9:25am as planned, then get to the hotel for some shut eye in advance of the beginning of tour dinner that evening. We are flying economy class so we will be pretty exhausted I am sure. But American Airlines gave us free roundtrip tickets from Florida to Aus/NZ and also including the segment from Aus to NZ for only 85,000 miles each, so that's what we decided to do. I noticed online that the exceptionally long Qantas flight from Dallas to Brisbane has only been going for a couple of years, and in the beginning they had a couple of flights that didn't have enough fuel for the entire trip due to headwinds -- had to land in the islands once and in New Zealand the other time. Hopefully that is all sorted out now and our headwinds won't be too bad!
It is wonderful that you've been able to go on so many Tauck trips! The China trip was my first and it was so awesome that I convinced my parents to do this AusNZ one with me. I think they will love it. My Mom was a travel agent and so she is used to orchestrating all of their trips herself, but she will love being able to relax and enjoy and have Tauck work their magic, and they will also really enjoy meeting all the others on the trip. Have you done the China trip?
With your Brisbane stop, I was thinking of the time queuing for Immigration & Customs can take. It can be the luck of the draw, or rather, the luck of how many flights might land around the same time as yours. Of course, Brisbane is not a busy port like Sydney or Melbourne, so you make a good point. And yes, there are regular flights and as long as your flights aren't restricted by the ticket status, you'll be good. You have plenty of time to check that out.
Free flights! What's not to like! Oh yes, the Australia to Dallas flights were very funny in the beginning! You would think airlines would sharpen their pencils and so the sums and work that kind of thing out before selling their Big Idea, wouldn't you! The early flights involved regular, unscheduled, stopovers and the regular dumpling of luggage. Kinda confirms what many of us think about Qantas these days. [Spoken as a life QFF member, with a 4 digit number beginning in 2. Who chooses never to fly international with them now.]
No, I haven't been to China, if you don't count stopovers at Hong Kong airport on the way to and from San Francisco! Although I have been working on my bucket list since I was a teenager, it's still a Very Long List! Next year is Macquarie Island (an Australian, World Heritage listed speck in the sub-Antarctic) and the Mosel & Rhine. But I, too, have some ff points that need to be used, so I'm looking at the map of the world and wondering where I could go for a week or so that won't break the bank with other costs. That narrows the field somewhat! Maybe Christmas shopping in Singapore?
Cheers,
Jan
I haven't seen everything I want to see in North America, but, I have been visiting for about 6 weeks at a time for about the past 10 years. I have been giving it my best shot and I have seen quite a lot, but not nearly everything! There's a lot of geography to cover!
Singapore hardly counts as an Asian location. Of course it is in Asia, but it is such a cosmopolitan place you could be almost anywhere in the world. The locals are friendly, polite and always obliging and their behaviour seems to rub off on everyone else. I have mastered the art of slipping around the place from one air-conditioned space to another! I know it's a cop out, but it's the best I can manage.
Macquarie Island, at 54.6167 S, is further down than the Falklands. The only human residents are researchers for the Australian Antarctic Division. And lots of breeding birds and sea lions. And lots of weather …. mostly wiiiinnndddd…..
China …. it is on the list. I would need quite a bit of time for that trip I think. At least a month, ++. My idea of a heavenly Chinese tour would be a trip consisting exclusively of a week at every grand hotel. I realise that's another cop out! )) And totally shallow! Not a worthy thought for a true bucket list! )
Cheers,
Jan
Enjoy Macquarie Island! I thought the Falklands were just ok, but they were only a quick stop on a South American cruise. Your Island sounds much more interesting, and yes, further south!
Me, I can't wait for Australia and New Zealand...can't believe it's taken my Mom and Dad this long to get there, given their travel agent past. They are overdue, and so am I, and I'm sure I'll want to go back several times.
Richard
Cheers,
Jan
I don't mean to frighten solo travellers … I am a determined solo traveller with years of experience. But that was my experience. The first night was really dreadful. But I was very grateful for the kindness of strangers. A delightful lady in the room opposite mine saw me in the corridor. A total stranger and good Samaritan, both. She checked out the poor old foot, confirmed I wouldn't die and really wanted to bring me dinner. And kept checking on me. How sweet was that! If I ever do that again I hope she's there! I couldn't be so lucky as to meet another total stranger like her! I know this is not the typical experience. But it was the luck of my draw.
Cheers,
Jan
Black humour is always a release, usually after the event! With my foot almost back to normal now, since early August, … gosh, ankles take a long time … I can look back a see the advantage of avoiding NYC humidity in August. I wouldn't really recommend it, though. I am positive you are dynamite on treating blisters these days! And I bet you have developed a secret passion for good Turkish coffee! I hope you have a local source!
Cheers,
Jan