Both. We will be spending four days in Auckland before flying on to Australia. Then have about 10 days to divide between Sydney and Melbourne, though 3 of those will be spent with some friends just outside of Melbourne.

I would try to see:

Piha Beach
Cornwall Park
Mount Eden
Skytower (kids probably love the glass bottom view)
Glow worm caves (there is a completely off the beaten path cave that doesn't do tours or have crowds a couple of hours north).
I've never done it but people like Hobbiton.

evan_aggie said:

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I would try to see:

Piha Beach
Cornwall Park
Mount Eden
Skytower (kids probably love the glass bottom view)
Glow worm caves (there is a completely off the beaten path cave that doesn't do tours or have crowds a couple of hours north).
I've never done it but people like Hobbiton.

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Thanks. I've heard of the last three, and those are on our potential list. I think my son would love the caves. He's too young to have seen the Hobbit movies, but he'll probably love it when he's older and might like having pictures from there. I'm just not sure if he's too young to really enjoy it now.

Here is the info about the caves. It's a bit of a drive from Auckland...
https://nzfrenzynorth.wordpress.com/c15/

Presently in Melbourne for a week. Last week was in Sydney and rented a flat on Bondi Beach. May travel to Queensland (Gold Coast) for a couple of days then return to Sydney or
Melbourne. From there I'll travel to NZ . Then spend my last week in Sydney or Melbourne.

Love Australia...

Any tips on anything to see/do in Sydney and Melbourne? Bonus points if they are things a 4-year old would like.

Jackal99 said:

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Any tips on anything to see/do in Sydney and Melbourne? Bonus points if they are things a 4-year old would like.

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SYDNEY: Where are you staying? Darling Harbour area in the Centre City is quite beautiful. Sydney Zoo would be great for your 4 yr old. Catch a ferry at Darling Harbour to visit Luna Park (an amusement park) and see the Opera House and Harbour Bridge all in one fail swoop. I stayed on Bondi Beach, which was amazing.

MELBOURNE: I suggest staying near the Federal Square area. Lots of really good dining choices (I suggest one of the many Asian fusion choices) in the area around Collins Street. Also visit the harbour area that has lots of really good dining options. If you are driving most suggest taking a drive along Great Ocean Road. Also an hour drive to Yarra Valley for the Aussie wineries. Philip Isle I believe has the penguins.

I will be there all next week starting Saturday.

So I'm from New Zealand, Auckland specifically so super happy more and more Ag's are going down to visit my little country!
For things to do in Auckland, I would definitely suggest:
- Auckland Zoo (we have a pretty amazing a rather big zoo, it's super easy to get to and a fun day out)
- Near the Auckland Zoo is also a place called MOTAT, if you have any interest in Transport and history, it's the local museum for just that.
- The Auckland museum is always good fun and also super easy to get to.
- The Skytower is great, you'll get an amazing view of the surrounding suburbs of Auckland central, and it's located right in the centre of Auckland CBD so plenty to see and do there. Right down the Main Street, Queen St, is also our Viaduct Harbour with good restaurants and cafes and views.
- I wouldn't suggest Hobbiton with a 4 year old, it's a lot of walking and more for an older crowd to enjoy and take in the scenery.
- the glow worms mentioned above are great, but a ways out there from Auckland central.
- Piha is a good beach to visit on a warm day, about an hour each way out of Auckland central.
- If you are near the city centre, I know people love to hop on the ferry downtown and go over to Devonport to have lunch and walk the beach there. Mount Victoria is also thrrr if you want to climb up it.

Let me know if you wanna know anything else or need more ideas!

Sydney has some great places to visit too which I can always help with

Thanks, folks. I appreciate your help. Here's what we have right now.

Sydney - Darling Harbour was also recommended to me by a friend who lives in Sydney (who unfortunately has a tiny apartment, ruling out us staying with them). I've booked a room at Mantra on Kent, as it looks close to the DH area. It has free cancellation until day before arrival, so I can change if needed or if you have anywhere else that would be good for kids and is budget-friendly. We definitely have the zoo on our list. Luna Park looks like it could be fun. We also want to see the Opera House and the Bridge. Have you done the bridge climb? My wife wants to pet a koala (I know, right? ), so I need to find somewhere for that.

Melbourne - searching for a place now. Docklands was recommended to us by a friend who lives outside of Melbourne, who we will be staying with for a few days after Melbourne. Will also check out Federal Square.

Auckland - Got a place on Airbnb, also able to cancel it if needed, in what looks like the Waldorf Celestion. We have the zoo and the MOTAT on our list, and maybe the Skytower. Good to know about Hobbiton. My son is big into outer space right now, and we heard about the Stardome Observatory which we thought he might like, especially being in a different hemisphere. Is Piha one of the black sand beaches? My wife really wants to see one of those, too. On another note, can you recommend any restaurants that might be allergy-friendly? Our son has a dairy allergy, so trying to scope out that scene in advance. Thanks!

Went to see the Magic Flute at the Opera House.

As other's said: Darling Harbor is nice. The park is really nice for kids. I went to Bondi and thought it was nice to see, but wouldn't do it again. A lot of folks rave about the Blue Mountains if I'm not mistaken. The Tongara... spelling Zoo is nice.

What about the visas there? Can I get one online? I have found an online service for it on https://etaaustraliaonline.com It seems pretty easy but maybe you have some tips on it which can come in handy. I would appreciate it a lot. Tell me more about your own experience too. Thanks in advance!

I believe so. From what I've found, you can get an electronic visa that is linked to your passport. You can do it ahead of time if you meet certain qualifications.

Aussie Visas

Jackal99 said:

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Thanks, folks. I appreciate your help. Here's what we have right now.

Sydney - Darling Harbour was also recommended to me by a friend who lives in Sydney (who unfortunately has a tiny apartment, ruling out us staying with them). I've booked a room at Mantra on Kent, as it looks close to the DH area. It has free cancellation until day before arrival, so I can change if needed or if you have anywhere else that would be good for kids and is budget-friendly. We definitely have the zoo on our list. Luna Park looks like it could be fun. We also want to see the Opera House and the Bridge. Have you done the bridge climb? My wife wants to pet a koala (I know, right? ), so I need to find somewhere for that.

Melbourne - searching for a place now. Docklands was recommended to us by a friend who lives outside of Melbourne, who we will be staying with for a few days after Melbourne. Will also check out Federal Square.

Auckland - Got a place on Airbnb, also able to cancel it if needed, in what looks like the Waldorf Celestion. We have the zoo and the MOTAT on our list, and maybe the Skytower. Good to know about Hobbiton. My son is big into outer space right now, and we heard about the Stardome Observatory which we thought he might like, especially being in a different hemisphere. Is Piha one of the black sand beaches? My wife really wants to see one of those, too. On another note, can you recommend any restaurants that might be allergy-friendly? Our son has a dairy allergy, so trying to scope out that scene in advance. Thanks!

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In Sydney, if you want a really neat, able to touch and feed animal experience, go to Fetherdale Wildlife Park, it's on the other side of the bridge, a bit of a drive, but worth it.
A lot of places are anti-holding koalas these days due to injuries and health risks but Featherdale does allow you to touch and take photos standing next to a Koala as well as touch and feed wallabies and kangaroos.
While around Darling Harbour, consider getting a pass from Sea Life Aquarium that allows you access to the Aquarium, the Sydney Tower, The Wild Life Sydney Zoo and also Madame Tussaud's. great deal and a fun day or twos worth of stuff to do while walking around downtown Sydney!
Note, Luna Park can be expensive, but they do have options if one parent doesn't want to ride anything to be a spectator or do a select number of rides etc.

Auckland wise;
The stardome is a smart idea, your son will love it!
If your wife is interested in Black Snad Beaches, try Bethalls beach which is closer to auckland compared to Piha and very lovely this time of year!

Food wise, in Auckland you can go to pretty much any cafe or restaurant and guarantee that they will be able to cater to your allergy requests, Auckland is pretty good when it comes to things like that since it's a huge tourist spot and the largest city in New Zealand, you won't face any issues.

Apply for a ESTA, pretty much instant approval and is a "visa without being a visa" that allows you to visit for up to 90 days at a time as long as you have a return ticket to the US.

BrittSlavNZ said:

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Apply for a ESTA, pretty much instant approval and is a "visa without being a visa" that allows you to visit for up to 90 days at a time as long as you have a return ticket to the US.

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Regarding NZ visas, do visitors from the US need one? From what I found, there's a list of visa waiver countries and the US is on it. It makes it sound like you just apply for it when you get there and it's essentially automatic.

Yes you can just fly to NZ and it's essentially applied when you arrive. You must have a machine readable "E-passport" and also 3+ months validity on your passport beyond your departure date. It allows you to come to NZ for up to 90 days without a visa.
If you want to go from NZ to Australia, you will need to apply for an ESTA for Aussie.