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Clothing suggestions
We are doing Grand Australia & New Zealand in Sept/Oct 2022 and am curious about suggestions for clothing. I know our weather can vary & to wear layers, etc. Hiking boots or decent walking shoes? That type of thing. Do we need much in the way of dressy stuff & how dressy? We just did a Viking/Douro cruise...but we haven't done Tauck before. Anything else we should bring with us other than the basics?
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.I did that tour in Oct.-Nov. 2018 and had a fleece jacket and a lighter weight jacket. If I were going a month earlier, I would substitute a puffy jacket (which I probably didn't own in 2018) for the fleece. It's so warm when zipped, yet very light when unzipped -- and it packs so well. I don't own hiking boots. I love Merrell's. Bring gloves and a scarf. You are right to plan for layers, because it will be much warmer sometimes. I found the water at the Great Barrier Reef to be refreshing but comfortable (I'm from New England), but others found it cold. You will be provided with a wetsuit. Given Covid, you might want to bring your own snorkeling equipment rather than use what's provided.
First, I’m still wondering if Tauck will go in September. It’s a great tour, you won’t need hiking boots. Australia and New Zealand are very casual countries. The people are not going to be impressed by anything you wear. New Zealand in particular would be a country I would be happy to live in. I’ve worked with many New Zealanders in the past and had Kiwi friends.
My husband and I did this tour very early in September of 2019. I brought a fleece jacket and a medium weight rain jacket which could be layered. Very versatile, and I was comfortable. Also brought a hat and gloves, which I used a couple of times. Some other folks on the tour did wear puffer jackets or vests. Comfortable walking shoes are important. Hiking boots are not necessary. Dinners are not too dressy, nice pants and top for some nights. Unusual for me, I did bring a casual travel dress (it does not wrinkle) and tights, which I wore a couple of times. Not necessary, but it takes very little packing space.
I did this tour in the month of December. Although this was the summer season, I packed a light weight fleece lined jacket for the New Zealand portion of the tour. It was cool in December, so I'm sure it will be much chillier in Sept/Oct timeframe.I had a few dressier outfits because I visited during the Christmas/New Year holiday - so everything was very festive and I attended a concert at the Opera House and I remember one really fancy dinner in Sydney.
It was a FABULOUS tour, despite having the absolute worst TD. Thank goodness I do a lot of research prior to my tours. It was the one time I wrote Tauck a very detailed letter about the TDs performance.