Arrival Day Help

Our 15 hour flight will be arriving at 5:00 A.M. on Mar 4 for the tour beginning Mar 5 and have been wrestling with what to do since hotel check in is 3:00. Both of us sleep pretty well on the planes. Other trips we have taken across the Pacific arrived later in the day, so that the hotel situation was not a problem and still had enough energy to occupy ourselves until a reasonable bed time. While we don't want to have a wasted day, we don't want to over plan/over tax.

I'm guessing we will get to the hotel around 7:00-7:30 or so. From what I have been able to see on the web, nothing much opens until 9:00ish. One thing that we were considering was lunch or early dinner on the Colonial Tram. Other than that???

Any suggestions or advise would be much appreciated.

Comments

  • Hi Jonathan,

    My first suggestion to you would be to contact either Tauck or your Melbourne hotel directly and arrange for an early checkin to be charged to you personally. I know that Langhams are very firm about that 3pm checkin. (They were with me on 2 separate occasions. No way in the universe was I getting into my room a minute earlier than 3pm!) Other hotels can be very much more accommodating and, well, understanding. JMHO. I'm sure there will be many who disagree with me & will tell us both so. You make your own decision.

    As for things to occupy your jet-lagged time ..... The Tram restaurant could work. If you are considering this, make your reservation asap! You might get a cancellation. One other thing you could consider to fill in your time is to walk. There are some beautiful gardens quite close to where your hotel is located. You could also take a river trip ... the starting point for river cruises is right opposite your hotel. Regular business hours are 9 to 5, but you will find there will be lots of small coffee shops and food outlets in close proximity to your hotel that cater to the walking-to-work crowd. If your brain is still working, you might consider some of the galleries and museums close by. There's the Immigration Museum & the National Gallery of Victoria (2 separate campuses).

    These threads are full of all sorts of suggestions. Just keep in mind that even though you are naturally super human (on good days) you just might be rather tired and disorientated after your long journey. Be kind to yourself. You will have a lot to fit into your very short visit to our shores.

    Cheers,

    Jan
  • Thanks Jan,

    I appreciate the suggestions.
  • No worries! (You will hear that a lot, Jonathan!) Anything else you think of, happy to help if I can.

    Cheers,

    Jan
  • edited February 2015
    I arrived early, although, not that early and they checked me into room right away. It is the only hotel that has happened in. Enjoy this is a fantastic trip.

    I highly recommend the immigration museum and the tour of the jail. The tram restaurant did not like.
  • I spoke with the hotel last evening. They have put in a non guaranteed request for early check in. In addition they told me that with the level of room arranged by Tauck, that we would have access to the club area and spa so that we could relax and refresh until the room is ready. So all is well and what we then choose to do is solely up to our energy levels.
  • to crackers54,

    If you don't mind, could you tell me what it was about the Colonial Tram that you did not like?
  • Jonathanw wrote:
    I spoke with the hotel last evening. They have put in a non guaranteed request for early check in. In addition they told me that with the level of room arranged by Tauck, that we would have access to the club area and spa so that we could relax and refresh until the room is ready. So all is well and what we then choose to do is solely up to our energy levels.
    Glad to hear that Tauck have arranged this. It wasn't always the case.

    Cheers,

    Jan
  • Jonathanw wrote:
    to crackers54,

    If you don't mind, could you tell me what it was about the Colonial Tram that you did not like?
    Back then was included in tour and most of us let them on comment card that we felt was a waste of time. We did not know what we saw and did not see much anyway. It goes thru a residential area and then stops to leave tracks for other trams and goes back on same route if I remember correctly. You can find better places to go out to eat I am sure. From what the locals on chat say there are some great restaurants to eat at.

    Every morning I was awake early and walked in the gardens near the hotel. Was very nice watching people make their way to work.
  • edited February 2015
    Hi Jonathan,

    According to the locals I know who have taken one of the variety of Colonial Tram Restaurant trips available, they say the best time to go is for lunch and that the food is surprisingly good for a tram! They advice lunchtime because you can see where you are going. An alternative to the organised trip is to catch a ride on the free, City Circle tram. http://ptv.vic.gov.au/route/view/1112
    You can catch it from Flinders Street, which if you look at the map is ... as the crow flies ... almost directly opposite the hotel on the other side of the river. Another alternative, one I often enjoy in a foreign city, is to buy a tram ticket and just go. The Number 8 route, travelling down St. Kilda Road, through South Yarra, to Toorak and beyond might be very entertaining on a variety of levels. If you missed Haight Ashbury because you blinked ... , take a tram down Brunswick Street. That bohemian environment goes for miles and miles!

    It all depends on why you do anything when you are travelling and your state of mind when you do it. Apart from appreciating the skill in producing it, I happen to think Mount Rushmore is one of the most twee things I've ever seen. But Americans seem to like it which is why, no doubt, Tauck take their tours there. I was the only foreigner on that trip. I spent my time checking out the state flag for Hawaii, complete with it's Union flag of the UK in the corner. History I love. Large images on mountains, not so much. Doesn't mean I don't appreciate the amount of dynamite involved in construction. ;)

    And as for food on trams .... by the time you leave Australia you should have discovered what Australian travellers to the States think of many of the things they ate along the way. I know, survival is all. Needs must. So you eat stuff you'd never dream of eating at home. And hope your arteries recover after a couple of months on a regular diet. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Doesn't stop me looking, though.

    Cheers,

    Jan
  • I am sure when we did the tram ride on our Tauck tour it was in the evening when it was dark. For me it was about the experience of saying you had eaten while traveling along on a historical tram. The service and conversation were nice, I can't even remember so much about the food. As long as food is cooked well and hygeneically at something like this, that is all I want. I love food and gourmet food but it is not always a priority to be constantly stuffing it down my throat. Nor is it a priority stressing where I am going to eat on a trip as long as again it is cooked well, good hygene and I am not being ripped off. If Jonathan you want to experience the tram, go for it, but maybe an evening option.
  • We did it for dinner in Jan. pre tour. It was very nice, and something that is unique.
  • rogfam wrote:
    It was very nice, and something that is unique.
    So is civet coffee. Doesn't mean I want to partake! ;)

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