We sailed our first New Zealand Cruise 2026 | Our Honest Full Review | The Good, Bad and Ugly

Key Moments
Editorial Summary
The creators provide a comprehensive review of their twelve night New Zealand cruise, categorizing their experiences into good, bad, and ugly segments. They highlight the positive aspects of the trip, including the magnificent scenery of the fjords, the lush landscapes, and the availability of high quality wine tastings. They also note the ease of travel due to the English language and the friendliness of the local population. Regarding the negative aspects, the creators advise travelers to prepare for unexpected costs, such as shuttle fees from ports to city centers, and the long transit times required for popular excursions like Hobbiton. They also mention the potential for inclement weather during the spring and the impact of significant jet lag. The most difficult part of the journey involved the Tasman Sea, which they described as having extremely choppy and bumpy waters that made movement on the ship difficult. Ultimately, the creators conclude that while the long travel distance might not suit families with young children, the cruise is an excellent option for solo travelers, couples, and fans of wine or Lord of the Rings.
Written by TripBacon from this video's transcript.
How This Review Compares
This review is in line with the all-time creator consensus.
Source: Our analysis of the creator's lived experience, based on what they said in this video.
Creator's Key Takeaways
this was our first cruise to New Zealand and there are a lot of things we wish we would have known
the beauty is just so magnificent and something you really can't find everywhere on a cruise itinerary
we were pleasantly surprised to see that credit cards visas Master cards were widely accepted in New Zealand
the ugly for this new New Zealand Cruise was the tasmin sea the tasmin sea is the body of water in between New Zealand and Sydney Australia where we were getting off the ship coming back from this Cruise it was the bumpiest and choppi water we have ever experienced
Creator's Tips & Advice
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Scale: 0–5 strips in half-step increments. 0 = “meh”, 5 = “bacon bliss”. Aggregated from creator-review sentiment, weighted by channel expertise.
About our Bacon Score methodologyVideo content sourced from the creator's original upload. Watch on YouTube