LUXURY CRUISE COLLECTION

Sydney, Australia & New Zealand

Sydney is the heart of New South Wales and the state’s capital. A bustling center for industry and business and a major world port, it boasts 3.5 million inhabitants. Spreading over some 670 square miles, the city seems to stretch as far as the eye can see to the west, north and south. Where Sydney’s metropolitan area ends, the wide-open bush of New South Wales begins.

Sydney is located roughly the same distance from the equator as San Diego, California, and enjoys an equally superb sunny climate. Its beautiful harbor is studded with bays and inlets and crowned by the billowing sails of the incomparable Opera House.

In 1770, Captain James Cook sailed his ship the Endeavor into Botany Bay, claiming the east coast of the island continent for England and naming it New South Wales. The timing was perfect as England was seeking a suitable venue for a penal colony. On May 13, 1787, Captain Arthur Phillip was dispatched to this new destination with some 1,000 convicts.

Today this international metropolis has long outgrown the stigma of its convict origins.The harbor is undoubtedly the key to Sydney’s splendor. It gives the city a pronounced maritime character and immense vitality. The city is divided into Sydney proper on one side of the harbor and North Sydney on the other. The famous Harbour Bridge spans the bay linking these two metropolitan areas.

Like many of the world’s major cities, Sydney is a contrast of old and new. Soaring glass and steel skyscrapers and the dramatic Opera House are offset by interesting historical buildings. Where Captain Arthur Phillip and his convicts set foot on the shores of Sydney Cove in 1788 there is now a beautifully restored area, called The Rocks.

Ports for this region:

Auckland Brisbane Broome Cairns Cooktown Cruising the Great Barrier Reef Darwin Dunedin Exmouth Geraldton Hobart, Tasmania

Kimberley Melbourne Milford Sound Perth Port Douglas Rabaul Sydney Tauranga Townsville Wellington