In April 2025, Mardi and I decided to cruise from Sydney around New Zealand and back to Sydney. I’d had a couple of very tough months. Well, not only me. My brothers and our respective partners were in the middle of a very tough time.
In February, our father passed away at 89 after a short illness in hospital. His death was sudden and unexpected, and it hit us all for six. So the best thing Mardi and I could do was get away from it all for a couple of weeks.
It was the best decision. The right decision, and perfect timing.
We set sail on a glorious Sydney afternoon, out through the Heads and on our way to Fiordland. The weather turned once we were off the coast of Sydney, with strong southerly winds buffeting our ship, the delightful Celebrity Edge, for the next two days. Sadly, we didn’t get to Fiordland. Instead, the captain took us through Cook Strait and we turned south down the east coast of New Zealand before chucking a U-turn and heading all the way back up. We enjoyed stops in Dunedin, Christchurch, Tauranga, Auckland and the Bay of Islands. Once the windy weather system passed, we had beautiful weather at almost every stop.
First, let’s talk about Celebrity Edge.
Celebrity Edge is one of those ships that feels more like a floating resort than a traditional cruise liner. The design is modern, open and calm, and the spaces flow together in a way that makes exploring the ship part of the fun.
The standout for us was The Retreat, the ship-within-a-ship reserved for suite guests. It gave us a quiet base with a private sun deck, hot tubs, a pool, a dedicated lounge, and a dining room that felt more like a boutique hotel than a cruise ship. We spent a lot of time unwinding there, enjoying the views and the sense of space. It was the perfect spot to decompress after a hard few months.
Beyond The Retreat, there’s plenty to keep you busy. The Magic Carpet is one of the most talked-about features, moving up and down the side of the ship as a bar, restaurant or tender platform depending on the time of day. There are several pools, quiet shaded areas, and a bright Solarium for adults who want a peaceful swim.
Inside, there’s a wide choice of restaurants, from the main dining rooms to specialty venues and quick casual spots. The bars are well spread out, each with its own feel, so it’s easy to find a corner for a drink before dinner. The theatre hosts big production shows, and smaller venues offer live music, comedy and late-night entertainment.
There’s also a full spa and fitness centre, shops, art installations throughout the ship, and enough little nooks to make each day feel a bit different.
Overall, Celebrity Edge is a ship built for comfort and slow wandering. The beautiful design, great service and the calm of The Retreat made it one of our most relaxing trips in years.
Now onto our days ashore. We didn’t book any shore excursions through Celebrity. We simply got off the ship at each port and walked around.
We enjoyed our visit to Christchurch. We hadn’t been there for 15 or 16 years, which I think in Christchurch they call “pre-earthquake”, because, as everyone knows, the city was devastated by a horrendous earthquake in 2011.
Notwithstanding that, we had a great day walking through Hagley Park and the city centre. We could see where the earthquake had struck, in the new buildings and in the cathedral that is still being restored all these years later. Christchurch is a beautiful city.
Our day in Tauranga was as eventful as any day on any trip we’ve been on. It coincided with Record Store Day, and as many of my readers would know, I’m an avid Pink Floyd fan. I was on the hunt for some rare Pink Floyd vinyl releases that would only be available on Record Store Day. Now, you can’t say Tauranga is the place to buy vinyl. It’s a small New Zealand city whose main feature is Mount Maunganui, a beautiful extinct volcano that I walked around, plus a couple of streets of shops and a couple of shopping centres. Nonetheless, with Mardi by my side, we trekked to every record store we could find in pursuit of these rare albums. Throughout the day, I was in touch with my brother David and his daughter Maddie. The good news is that by day’s end, we’d all secured the records we wanted. I didn’t have much luck in New Zealand, only finding one of the three I was after, but David and Maddie secured the other two for me, which I was very thankful for. Thank you, David and Maddie.
The next day we caught up with my nephew Kurt and his family in Auckland. The day was punctuated by looking for more vinyl. We were hoping that the day after Record Store Day there might be some left, but alas, we couldn’t find any. However, the day wasn’t about records; it was about spending time with family. We walked around the city, popped in and out of shops, had a coffee, an ice cream and a lovely sit-down lunch, and caught up with my grandniece and grandnephew, Audrey and Archer. It was an awesome day.
You really couldn’t call our day at the Bay of Islands a shore day. We did get off the ship and onto the bus into town, but then went straight back on the bus and straight back to the ship. It was freezing cold and pouring with rain, so hot chocolates in the lounge seemed a better option on our last day in New Zealand before we headed back to Sydney.
This trip was more than just a holiday; it became a personal healing journey for both of us. Over our two weeks, I could literally feel the decompression happening day by day. At the start, my mind was still racing with to-do lists and unresolved worries. But as we settled into the slow pace of ship life, I began to let go of that mental clutter. By the end of the first week, I wasn’t checking my phone at all, and I realised I hadn’t thought about work in days. It was a truly liberating feeling. By the second week, I’d worked through some of the trauma of Dad’s death. You can never “move on” from these things, but you can “move forward”. That’s what these two weeks allowed me to do.
