For those living in Australia & New Zealand

Oldguy

Oldguy

New Member
Location
Tampa area
So, my wife has this dream of going to Australia and New Zealand. The issue is that she had lung cancer (top lobe removed in surgery) and now has nerve pain from the surgery that on some days keeps her down for the day.

She uses a multiple products for the nerve pain. Some are lidocaine 4%, lidocaine HCI 4%, Arnica, and CBD. I am rather sure she can't bring her CBD cream into the country and possibly none of the others, so I was wondering if there are products available (OTC) in country that you would recommend. She cannot do THC products (gummies/joints/etc) as she just gets sick from drugs/alcohol.

Also, which of the four seasons is best to visit (example: Winter, when all the vicious animals/spiders/snakes/etc that can kill you take the day off)

Any other good tips for the visit would be welcome... Thanks for any helpful info you can give.
 

World Dec 17, 2024 12:57 PM EST
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A powerful magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck just off the coast of Vanuatu on Tuesday, causing widespread destruction in the South Pacific island nation as the injured began arriving at a hospital and unconfirmed reports of casualties emerged.
A tsunami warning was called off less than two hours after the quake. With communications still down hours later and official information scarce, witness accounts of casualties began to surface on social media and through patchy phone calls.

@Oldguy, hope your not headed there. Sorry can't help you with your OP, but surely someone here can.
 
@Oldguy I would recommend a fly/drive to New Zealand. It has a lot to see with much less distance to drive than in Australia. It does rain a lot though. North Island has Bay of Islands, hot thermal (stinky) springs and desert. South Island is delightfully scenic with glaciers. New Zealand is on the Pacific Rim and is subject to earthquakes.

Australia is much bigger and you cannot see all of it in one holiday. You would need to choose the region that you most want to experience. Capital cities Sydney/Canberra/Melbourne have a lot to offer the tourist. Queensland has the Great Barrier Reef and island resorts. South Australia has Adelaide and the wineries of the hinterland. Western Australia has endless coastline. Tasmania is compact, shorter distances to cover and is very scenic.

There are packages that you can take to allow you to travel safely by coach but they, and our airlines, are not cheap. I'd recommend using the services of a good travel agent to avoid disappointment.

As for medications, I would think that provided they are prescription drugs, you should have no problem. You would need a copy of any scripts though. I'd check by looking up such matters on an official government advisory site to be safe.

Given that your wife has lung cancer and experiences pain, I would hesitate to subject her to the long hours of air travel required to cross the Pacific and then more hours of air or road travel to tour Australia. My best recommendation would be to holiday on one of the Barrier Reef resorts and relax fully. Day trips by launch or coach would be very pleasant and not too taxing. The entry point for such a holiday would be Cairns in north Queensland.

Time of year? That would depend on which destination you choose.
 

Another thought...

There are regular cruises that depart from Sydney (about 8 - 10 days) that cross the Tasman Sea and circumnavigate New Zealand. A few days in Sydney, then an ocean voyage followed by a stopover in Hawaii on the way home might be a holiday you and your wife could take if you are looking for precious time together without undue stress.
 
I wouldn't suggest coming to Australia in the Summertime. Your wife might find the heat too much, especially with her condition. Bush fires are a great worry in the Summertime. Middle to late Spring would be nice. Go to a travel agency in your hometown I'm sure they would be of great help. You could book a cruise which travels from Sydney right around Australia, stopping at interesting places. Tasmania is a lovely place if you like quaint. Don't worry about what you hear of spiders, I've only seen one this year. Hope you decide to come over here, it's a great wide place
and many friendly people.
 
Thanks to all for suggestions.

No ocean cruising - wife gets motion sickness...she might be able to handle day cruise (not ocean).

She wants to spend a month in Australia and 2 weeks in New Zealand, so I would think she wants to 'see it all'.

All the pain medication is over the counter (OTC) here is U.S., but I don't know if they are available (or products like them) in your country. (I would think the OTC she uses are available as I purchase my dog's name brand flea/heartworm meds from Australia (exact same items just much cheaper then buying here)).

So the first test we need to do is take a short trip via airliner to see if that causes any issues with her pain. If she can no longer fly, then I doubt she will get her dream vacation. We have taken a car trip from Florida to Kentucky and she seemed to handle that okay.
 

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