2026 Australia & New Zealand Cruise with Larry Gelwix – SOLD OUT

Day 1: Thursday, Feb. 12– Pick up at Sydney airport and head on short city tour. Transfer to Sydney hotel. Evening free.

Day 2: Friday, Feb. 13- Sydney Opera House Private tour and Harbour Cruise. We see the interior and inner workings of the famous Sydney Opera House, one of the busiest performing arts centers in the world. After the tour, we make our way to Circular Quat and board our Harbour Cruise, including lunch on board. After the cruise, you can stay in the Rocks and Circular Quay area, or make your way back to our nearby hotel.

Day 3: Saturday, Feb. 14- Blue Mountains, Wildlife Park, and Outback Tour. We’ll travel to Featherdale Wildlife Park, one of Australia’s largest private collections of animals. Next, we follow the trail of Australia’s early explorers and ascend into the fabled Blue Mountains. Included is a ride on the steepest short scenic railway in the world and a scenic walkway through a native forest. Return to Sydney.

Day 4: Sunday, Feb. 15- Sydney & Cruise Embarkation- Morning free for independent activities in and around Sydney. Transfer from hotel to our cruise ship, the Holland America Noordam.

Meals : Breakfast

Today we board our ship, the Holland America Noordam, our home for the next 14 days.

Meals : Lunch, Dinner

Guests of this Vista Class ship will have their pick of onboard activities. Sing along to your favorite hits at Billboard Onboard or watch a show at the World Stage, an innovate cruise ship show with a two-story LED screen that creates a vivid wraparound display. 

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Melbourne is consistently voted one of the world’s most livable cities—and for good reason. This is Australia’s cosmopolitan heart with cutting-edge art and architecture, historic galleries, attractions and museums, plus a dizzying range of restaurants, bistros, markets and bars. It’s renowned for its sporting culture, home to the esteemed Melbourne Cricket Ground and Australian rules football teams.

The famous laneways of Melbourne bustle with hidden bars and eateries, while myriad beaches and parks allow for the ultimate outdoor lifestyle and active things to do. It’s a melting pot of cultures and a city of gourmands who demand excellent food and find it everywhere—from modern Australian cuisine and delicious Asian fusion fare to low-key cafés serving the best coffee you’ve ever tasted.

If you want to leave the city, Melbourne is the gateway to Victoria’s world-class wineries and spectacular coastline sights. Visit the famous penguins at nearby Phillip Island or feast on local produce in the picture-perfect Yarra Valley. Wherever you go in and around Melbourne, you’ll be sure to understand why so many choose to call this beautiful corner of the world home. 

Melbourne Group Shore Excursion- $89 per person 

We explore the beautiful city of Melbourne and discover her past and present. Our half-day tour will take us into the central business district with its eclectic architecture, past the  Victorian Arts Centre, and on to fashionable Toorak with its luxurious homes. View Captain Cook’s Cottage in the beautiful Fitzroy Gardens with avenues of huge English elms. We pass by the Botanical Gardens and see the hustle and bustle of the famous Queen Victorian Markets. We continue on taking in views of the Shrine of Remembrance and St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Burnie’s long-running logging industry is just one hint at the amazing forests that surround the town, from the UNESCO World Heritage area that contains Tasmania’s most famous crag—Cradle Mountain—to the lesser-known rain forests of the Tarkine wilderness. Woodworkers, papermakers and print artists thrive in this misty land of trees, as does rare wildlife, ranging from wedge-tailed eagles to echidnas and the fabled Tasmanian devils. There’s pristine beachfront, too, where little penguins march and well-to-do locals dine on seafood platters as they gaze off into Bass Strait. Tasmania’s separation from mainland Australia has created a resourceful, self-reliant and sometimes rebellious community that cooks and farms as well as it crafts and explores. Burnie’s bounty includes award-winning single-malt whiskeys, hard apple cider, trout and salmon, hormone-free milk and cheeses and beef from Cape Grim in the far northwest. Known for having the world’s cleanest air, Burnie is an exciting base for a taste tour as well as a rugged or refined adventure.

Burnie Group Shore Excursion- $159 per person

This morning, you will be traveling up into the mountains through gorges, rain forest, and button grass plains to reach the Cradle Mountain, one of Tasmania’s most recognizable landmarks and one of Tasmania’s most visited attractions. On this fully guided day tour, you experience the unique flora, fauna, and geographical features of the World Heritage Listed National Park. 

A delicious lunch is served at a local hotel during the day. 

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Each day on board offers delicious dining options. The Lido Market is just steps from the Lido pool and offers a curated selection of delicious options that you can grab on the go or have made to order. Or, perhaps try one of the specialty restaurants like the Pinnacle Grill or Canaletto. 

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today you might try out the professionally staffed Fitness Center equipped with the latest cardio and weight machines. You can also head out for fresh air and exercise on deck, where you’ll find basketball and volleyball courts, and two refreshing pools.

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

On the Noordam, you have entertainment options right in your stateroom. Each room includes a flat-screen TV with interactive menu of programming including: On-demand movies, music stations, as well as both live and pre-recorded television.

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Milford Sound, or Piopiotahi (its name in Maori), sits on the west coast of New Zealand’s South Island and was first called the Eighth Wonder of the World by none other than Rudyard Kipling, who had seen some pretty wonderful places. As you sail up the 15-kilometer-long (nine-mile-long) sound, with soaring snow-topped peaks looming above—the tallest reaches an altitude of 1,517 meters (4,977 feet)—you’ll understand Kipling’s enthusiasm.

Although it is called a sound, it is technically a fjord—a narrow inlet created by glacial erosion over thousands of years. While its geological history is long, its human history is not. It is believed that the Maori first explored the sound, and the rest of the area that is now part of Fiordland National Park, around 1,000 years ago; Captain Cook followed in 1770. But neither Maori nor Europeans created permanent settlements of any significance, and the land was pristine when Fiordland National Park, New Zealand’s largest national park, was established in 1952. While many walking trails cross the park, the most breathtaking views are arguably those from the water, with the sheer rock faces looming above your ship as you sail through this majestic landscape.

Cruising Fiordland Natl Park

Every year, visitors flock to New Zealand in search of landscapes straight out of Middle Earth. They find what they’re looking for in Fiordland National Park, on the southwestern coast of the South Island. This stunning 12,000-square-kilometer (4,633-square-mile) park encompasses mountains, lakes, fjords and rain forests. The area was once the home of Maori hunters; later, European whalers established small settlements here. But mostly, this region has seen a notable lack of human activity—the steep peaks and wet landscape deterred all but the hardiest people. That changed around the end of the 19th century, when travelers discovered the beautiful scenery of Fiordland. The national park was formally established in 1952.

Countless plant and animal species find a haven here. Among the park’s rare birds is the flightless takahe, thought for decades to be extinct until it was spotted in the area in 1948. The natural wonders continue offshore: Seals, dolphins and whales frequent these waters.

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Much of New Zealand feels like England, by way of Polynesia. There are a few exceptions, though, such as the town of Akaroa, a former French settlement, and the distinctly Scottish city of Dunedin, named after the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh. After Dunedin was founded in 1848, city surveyor Charles Kettle attempted to impose Edinburgh’s New Town grid plan on the growing city. But the Otago Peninsula’s hilly landscape proved challenging—for evidence, note that Dunedin has one of the world’s steepest streets (Baldwin Street). The volcanic remnants around the harbor make for a dramatic backdrop.

Dunedin’s prominence during the gold rush in the late 19th century resulted in many grand Victorian and Edwardian buildings. Thanks to the beautiful University of Otago (the country’s oldest), there’s a large student population to keep the city vibrant and modern. But Dunedin’s heritage is always proudly on display: The magnificent Dunedin Railway Station and Larnach Castle have been restored to their full glory, and the fascinating Toitu Otago Settlers Museum provides a glimpse into the lives of early residents. Outside the city, the Otago Peninsula is lined with scenic beaches and home to rare birdlife like the royal albatross and yellow-eyed penguin.

Dunedin Group Shore Excursion- $139 per person

Your full-day tour is a unique opportunity to experience the very best Dunedin and the Otago Peninsula has to offer including a Dunedin city tour and on to the Otago Peninsula for a guided tour of Larnach Castle and its gardens. Returning to Dunedin we visit Dunedin’s Chinese Garden crafted by artisans from Shanghai, China, Dunedin’s sister city.  Next stop is the amazing Otago Early Settlers Museum with over a 100,00 exhibits with an emphasis on the early settlements of Otago.  Parts of the Larnach Castle tour are not appropriate for wheelchairs and/or limited mobility as there is no elevator to the upper floors.

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Strolling along the city’s hilly streets and past its Edwardian and Victorian buildings and green spaces, you might not guess that Timaru was built on the lava flows of a now-extinct but vividly named volcano, Mount Horrible. Timaru’s own name comes from the Maori Te Maru, which means “place of shelter.” Chief among Timaru’s charms are its parks and gardens. As if the backdrop of the Southern Alps wasn’t enough, a rose garden, boardwalk and beach also enliven the already beautiful waterfront of Caroline Bay, named for a 19th-century whaling ship. Up the hill, the scenic reserve of Centennial Park offers picturesque picnic spots and walking and biking trails. Timaru showcases New Zealand and Maori culture at the stellar Aigantighe Art Gallery and South Canterbury Museum. (If you have time to venture beyond Timaru and are interested in learning about the area’s truly ancient history, the fascinating Te Ana Maori Rock Art Centre, about half an hour outside the city, exhibits rock art made by early Maori settlers more than 700 years ago.)

Timaru Group Shore Excursion- $189 per person

Depart Timaru traveling inland through the country township of Pleasant Point, Cave and Fairlie before ascending Burkes Pass and reaching the Tekapo Basin.  At the top of Burkes Pass you will immediately view New Zealand’s Southern Alps.  Our tour proceeds to the tranquil turquoise colored waters of Lake Tekapo with its famous Church of the Good Shepard. The region provides a magnificent 360° view and great photo shots.  Your next stop is Lake Pukaki and Aoraki Mount Cook, Australasia’s highest mountain as a backdrop.  We continue to the high mountain hamlet of Aoraki Mount Cook Village with time to explore and take lunch on your own.  We now drive into the Tasman Valley with an optional walk up the old terminal moraine to view the newly forming Lake Tasman and the retreating Tasman Glacier.  Time permitting on our return to the ship we will enjoy a brief tour of the Timaru township. This is a half-day tour. Some parts of this tour are not appropriate for wheelchairs and/or limited mobility.  

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

New Zealand’s cool little capital is located at the southern tip of the North Island, meaning it’s blessed with a beautiful waterfront, fresh seafood and unpredictable weather. So famously tempestuous is Windy Welly that visitors quickly learn not to go outside without an umbrella and will spend more time than usual talking about the weather. Politics is a hot topic too, with government workers buzzing about the Beehive, as the distinctive Parliament building is colloquially known.

Wellington is also known for culture and cuisine. Learn about Maori history and Kiwiana at Te Papa, the national museum; go behind the scenes of the Lord of the Rings movies made in Wellywood; and wash down a plate of chilled bluff oysters with a crisp sauvignon blanc at a Cuba Street restaurant.

Gourmands are spoiled for choice with the city’s many coffee microroasteries, craft breweries, innovative chefs and artisanal markets. Fortunately for your waistline, it’s also a terrific city for walking, hiking and cycling, with a compact historic core hugged by green hills and dotted with impossibly perched houses. They say you can’t beat Wellington on a good day—but visitors will soon discover that even if it’s wet and windy, it’s always a good day to be in Wellington.

Wellington & Lord of the Rings Shore Excursion- $195 per person

This morning’s full-day excursion begins with a tour of Wellington, nestled between a magnificent harbor and a natural amphitheater of forest-clad hills, and New Zealand’s capital city and home to Parliament, the Beehive buildings, Old St. Paul’s Cathedral, the southern hemisphere’s finest example of Gothic Revival architecture.  We return to downtown with a drive around the rugged bays of the harbor.  There will be time during the tour to ride on the iconic Wellington cable car.  From Mt. Victoria with its magnificent views of the city and harbor we stop at “Green Belt” a forest location where many movie scenes have been shot.  It’s then off to “Wellywood”, the Wellington film studios and post production facilities, including the Lord of the Rings Weta Workshop. You can visit the new “Windows Into Workshop” exhibition and a guided tour of the physical prop-making and makeup side of the studio.  

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The Southern Hemisphere’s answer to Miami Beach—at least when it comes to Art Deco architecture—Napier has a perfect mix of natural and manmade beauty. The historic district, which was mostly constructed in the 1930s after a massive earthquake and subsequent fires destroyed the city in 1931, was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007. As a delicious bonus, there’s a thriving food and wine scene, too. Surrounded by the rolling vineyards of the Hawke’s Bay wine region and edged by pristine waters, Napier has attracted a host of culinary innovators that has put it on the foodie map over the past two decades. Nature lovers, too, are drawn by this North Island city’s scenic splendor and abundant wildlife. Down the coast, colonies of Australasian gannets thrive at Cape Kidnappers. Within the city, Norfolk Island pines line the seafront Marine Parade, a half dozen parks and gardens bloom from September to March (spring and summer Down Under), there are forested hiking trails and active pursuits range from cycling to golf. It’s easy to enjoy yourself while soaking up Hawke’s Bay’s spectacular landscape.

Napier Group Shore Excursion- $129 per person

Your tour highlights various locations around Hawkes Bay.  You will learn the unique story of the region from the early settlement to the 1931 earthquake and through to today’s Art deco cities. We drive through rural country roads, sighting sheep, cattle, and alpacas; along with orchard farms, market gardens and vineyards along some of the most stunning scenery in New Zealand.  Our day includes a drive to the highest drivable location in the region, Te Mata Peak where you enjoy a 360° view including the snowcapped and volcanically active Mt. Ruapehu.  Our tour includes a visit to Birdwoods Gallery & Sculpture Garden.  Next stop is Arataki Honey Center, which showcases New Zealand’s famous Manuka honey, well known for its medicinal healing properties and a visit to the Silky Road Chocolate factory.  Our tour concludes with a visit to the main shopping center of Napier.  This is a half-day tour about five hours. 

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The curved shoreline of the Bay of Plenty—known in Maori as Te Moana-a-Toi—is home to incredible surfing, white-sand beaches and New Zealand’s only active marine volcano. Tauranga, with 130,000 residents, is the largest city on the Bay of Plenty and fifth largest in New Zealand. The city offers visitors a number of water-focused activities, like sailing and kayaking, as well as drier alternatives such as shopping and people-watching at a café in the Historic Village.

Tauranga is also a great jumping-off point for exploring nearby beaches and Te Puke, the kiwifruit capital of the world, as well as a wealth of Maori cultural sites. The world-famous geothermal wonderland of Rotorua, nicknamed Sulfur City, has been a major Polynesian spa resort town since visitors first arrived in the late 1800s. In Maori, roto means lake and rua means two, but Rotorua actually comprises 18 lakes—plus an incredible redwood forest.

For the best views, take the gondola up to Skyline Rotorua, a recreation complex atop Mount Ngongotaha. Other day trips you should consider are a boat ride through the incomparable glowworm caves of Waitomo or an unforgettable tour of the Hobbiton Movie Set in Matamata—a must for all Tolkien fans.

Tauranga, Rotorua & Te Puia Group Shore Excursion- $189 per person

Your full-day tour will highlight the sights and geothermal wonders of Rotorua and the famous Pohutu geyser.  A short walk through the geothermal valley of Whakarewarewa to the mud pools, hot pools, and geysers that make up the Te Puia region. Te Puia is also home to the Maori Arts and Crafts Institute.  See New Zealand’s iconic flightless bird, the kiwi in a purpose built Kiwi House and explore the recreated traditional Maori fortified village.  Seats are reserved for a Maori Cultural Performance, given on the marae, one of the few fully carved Maori meeting houses.  Sightseeing in Rotorua includes the historic Bathhouse and Government Gardens and Mt. Maunganui sights.  Return to ship.  

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Historic sites—including the place where the most important treaty in New Zealand’s history was signed—winemaking, golfing, sailing and scenic beauty all combine to make the Bay of Islands one of this South Pacific nation’s most compelling regions. Located at the top of the North Island, the area has a subtropical microclimate that gives it an abundance of flora and fauna and a lengthy beach season. Comprising 144 islands between Cape Brett and the Purerua Peninsula, the Bay of Islands requires a few days to fully explore. Visitors with just a day here will have to make a tough choice: cultural immersion, nature appreciation or wining-dining-shopping. Waitangi, home to both the cruise port and the region’s historic treaty grounds, is one of three main towns with celebrated sights. The others are Kerikeri, with its historic buildings and vineyards, and Russell, where a notorious seafaring past has mellowed into tidy, day-trip-worthy charm. Those who’d rather experience the Bay of Islands’ breathtaking nature can walk amid majestic kauri trees, descend into glowworm caves or spy on whales and dolphins (or even swim with the latter) in one of New Zealand’s sunniest and most picturesque playgrounds.

Bay of Islands & Kawiti Glow Worm Caves Group Shore Excursion- $165 per person

We explore the sights of the Waitangi area, including the Piahia township, Haruru Falls, and Kerikeri, often referred to as the birthplace of New Zealand, with its original mission house and stone store.  We continue on to Puketi Forest and the Manginangina Reserve. Now protected in reserves, the magnificent trees rival the redwoods of California in height and girth.  A guided walk will take us through the forest on an elevated boardwalk.  We depart the forest and proceed to the Kawiti Glow Worm Caves with a stop in the Hundertwasser village.  The caves are a galaxy of glow worms (you think you’re looking into the Milky Way) with limestone walls and grand stalactites in the caves.  You can look for eels in the small river that runs through the caves…and don’t worry about the eels, you’re on an elevated walkway.  Time permitting, we stop in the township of Paihai with lots of shop restaurants, and boutiques and beautiful views across the bay to the Russell township.  This is a half-day tour, about five hours. Return to the ship. This tour is not appropriate for wheelchairs and/or limited mobility. 

Meals : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today we leave our ship for flights back home with memories to last a lifetime.

Meals: Breakfast

March 1: Auckland City Tour.   Following disembarkation, we embark on a fascinating Auckland city tour including the Harbour Bridge, Auckland’s Waterfront District, Mission Bay, Tamaki Drive, Savage Point, Parnell Rose Park and Village, Auckland Domain Gardens and city center.  Transfer to our deluxe Auckland hotel. Balance of the day at leisure.

March 2: Hobbiton Movie Set & Hamilton.  We head south from Auckland into the Waikato region.  Our first visit is a photo stop at the Hamilton LDS Temple in nearby Temple View.  We continue to Matamata and the Hobbiton Movie Set.  Here we experience “Middle-Earth” where you can step into the lush pastures of the Shire, as seen in the “Lord of the Rings” and the “Hobbit” movie trilogies.  A guided tour will take you throughout the movie set locations and explain how “movie magic” was made.  You will be guided on a walking tour through the Shire, journey past Bag End, explore the inside of a “Hobbit Hole” on Bagshot Row, and into the world-famous Green Dragon Inn.  Your lunch is included in the festive Party Marquee.  After the tour we return to Auckland.  Time permitting, we make a brief photo stop at the new LDS Auckland Temple.  Evening free. 

March 3: Auckland & airport transfer.  Transfer from your hotel to the Auckland International Airport. 

Tour Includes:

• Three-days/two-nights deluxe Auckland hotel,
• Breakfast daily, one lunch
• Comprehensive sightseeing as per itinerary, Hobbiton tour & admission
• Cruise ship/hotel transfer, hotel/airport transfer per designated “group flight”
• Services of tour hosts, current taxes/fees.
• Some parts of the Hobbiton tour are not appropriate for wheelchairs and/or limited mobility.