ラグジュアリーシドニーハーバー大晦日花火ディナークルーズ2026-7

Dear Frederique & Christophe, I would like to remind you of how we conduct our New Years Eve cruise: Aboard Sydney Sundancer on New Years Eve, you will join a select group and enjoy a party atmosphere second to none! On boarding, we personally welcome each individual aboard and give everyone a name tag because this encourages conversations between guests. In the “Aussie vernacular”, a name tag is the equivalent of a formal introduction by the host – an invitation to converse with someone you have something in common with - which on NYE is obviously the decision to celebrate aboard our boat. Our NYE cruise is quite different to that offered by most other charter boats because it can be likened to enjoying a private party in someone’s home. Sydney Sundancer (Australia's most awarded charter yacht) is “our floating home” - we spend Winter in The Whitsundays personally introducing our guests to the wonders of the Great Barrier Reef and Summer in Sydney on the “Best Harbour in the world”, so Lynne & I will personally host everyone inviting you all to mix and mingle, getting to know each other during the evening. There is no allocated seating, (after all, it is pretty difficult to “mix and mingle” from a seated position) so by the time the New Year is welcomed at midnight, you will feel you are celebrating with friends. Whether you are a family, couple or with a group of friends, rest assured you will made to feel very welcome. So Frederique & Christophe, I see that you have posted your review in French! After translation, I think you may have either not found any other guests to converse with using that language OR found it difficult to find likeminded individuals aboard and preferred not to meet any other guests whilst aboard? In either case, I am sorry that our cruise did not meet your expectations. Thank you for your review & for posting the 4 photos you took on New Years Eve (they are displayed on Viator & TA as reviewer photos). I am sure you recollect the old slogan that “the camera never lies”, so I have uploaded the photos that Lynne took on NYE which can be viewed as “supplier photos”. I encourage interested readers to view ALL the photos in conjunction with my response to your review so that an accurate unbiassed conclusion can be obtained ! I will respond to each aspect of your review in the order you have presented : ***TOO SMALL FOR 50 PEOPLE & SAFETY NON-EXISTENT !*** You state “This boat is far too small and cluttered to accommodate 50 people.” In your photo #2 you can see the awning we had erected because rain was forecast. The photo shows much of the aft (back) half of the boat, yet less than 10 persons are shown in that photo! Your review states the decks were cluttered but your photo #3 shows a clear uncluttered deck and the air vent you stated was dangerous, is visible . There are 3 specific conditions that must be complied with, to gain governmental certification for a commercial vessel to carry passengers: 1 : ADEQUATE CLEAR DECK SPACE to enable everyone to move about freely, unobstructed by the ships equipment (for example winches, hatches or air vents). 2: STABILITY The vessel must remain stable (not capsize) with every person aboard on one side of the boat only. 3: ADEQUATE TOILETS for the certified number of persons permitted. Sydney Sundancer easily complies with these conditions, and is certified by Australian Authorities to carry 77 persons aboard. I have uploaded the Survey Plate stating that 77 persons can be safely carried aboard (see provider photo on TA). Soon after embarkation, I conducted a safety briefing welcoming everyone aboard & described various aspects of shipboard safety including how guests should take care when moving about on deck because there are objects on deck that would be unfamiliar to people unless they had previous boating knowledge and experience. Further, I indicated to people that when using the stairs, they should go down backwards like going down a ladder because the stairs are very steep. The incident where a person fell was not reported to me during the evening and as no medication was necessary, I assume it was simply a minor trip up! Despite being licensed to carry 77 persons aboard, Lynne and I limit our guest number 50 so that we can provide a very high level of customer service - with 5 crew aboard there is one staff member for every 10 guests! For the above reasons, I totally reject the assertion that Sydney Sundancer is too small for 50 people and safety non-existent. ***UNSUITABLE / INADEQUATE MEAL*** The order of events on our New Years Eve cruise is that we conduct a short harbour cruise from embarkation in Darling Harbour, passing under the Harbour Bridge & past the Opera House on our way to secure a position reserved for charter boats within the commercial vessel area (shown in red diagonal lines in the diagram of Sydney Harbour that I have uploaded to provider photos). Whilst underway, my crew were serving Bollinger or whatever beverage our guests prefer (except spirits). Think of this time being like enjoying drinks at a friends’ house meeting new people that your host thinks you will enjoy meeting. To facilitate this mixing & mingling, we give everyone a name tag because in the Australian vernacular, a name tag is like a personal introduction. The whole purpose of this time in the cruise is that by midnight you will feel like you are welcoming the new year with friends. During the remaining daylight hours my crew were circulating serving drinks and our 4 entrees which were: Alaskan Crab dip, Prawn and Avocado Mousse, Duck and Orange Pate, Medallions of Lobster with Honey, Macadamia & Basil Dressing. I have uploaded a photo of these 4 entrees into the TA provider photographs (to assist the reviewer’s memory). The next item on the agenda was the 9pm fireworks display, after which we served the main buffet consisting of the following: Seared grass fed Beef Eye fillet (marinated in lemon grass, ginger, lime juice and spices) Home Roasted Turkey stuffed with Chestnut & Pate de foie gras Barbequed glazed leg of Ham Tasmanian Whole Baked Atlantic Salmon surrounded by a border of thinly sliced smoked salmon served with Tartare Sauce Tiger King Prawns with “Sundancer” sauce AAA Sydney Rock Oysters with optional Limes and vinaigrette dressing Leafy green salad with fresh herb lemon dressing Pasta salad with basil dressing sugar snap peas, cherry tomatoes and sun dried tomatoes I have uploaded 3 photographs of the buffet table display into the TA provider photos & invite the reviewer to refresh his memory because many guests simply raved about the quantity, variety and quality of the main courses served during this segment of the evening… After the last guests had enjoyed “seconds” and one guest even enjoyed a third serving, we cleared the buffet table so we could serve our signature desserts consisting of : A Hazelnut meringue and Strawberry gateau & a Chocolate Almond liqueur cake. Both are gluten free and were presented in the shape of Australia. In the photographs of these desserts, on the left the outgoing year (2025) is identified in strawberries and on the right, the new year (2026) is piped in cream and adorned with the national flags of every guest aboard. The banquet was finished off with Fresh fruit, chocolates & plunger coffee and again I have uploaded photos of these delicious items to the operator photos on TA & Viator I therefore totally reject the reviewers’ assertion that the meal was inadequate or unsuitable ***EXHORBITENT PRICE !*** If you look at the review dated February 27, 2023 posted by "ChipundChap" entitled “Best way to spend New Years Eve”, you will see it is written by a guest who had just enjoyed their third New Years Eve cruise on Sydney Sundancer! That guest certainly did not think they had been “ripped off” ! In provider photos, I have just uploaded the prices charged by 3 popular charter boats for last NYE (indicating prices ranged between $1750 & $1950 per person) see supplier photos while our price last year was $1500 per person. One of our guests asked me during the evening : How do I decide what to charge for tickets for New Years Eve? I responded that I am familiar with all the large charter boats, their operators and what they offer on New Years Eve for example : Captain Cook Cruises on their vessel “Sydney 2000” which has a total capacity of 650 guests (with passengers spread over 3 decks), charges : Top deck (enclosed) A$1,650 plus A$99pp window surcharge plus another $150 to visit the outside top deck to view the firework display : total A$1,899 per person Club Deck (middle deck) is A$1,250 plus window seat surcharge of $99 pp plus A$150 to visit the top deck : total A$1,499 Ocean deck (bottom floor) is A$1,150 plus $99 pp window surcharge (no outside access) : total A$1,399. Magistic Cruises charges from $1,750, and the Paddle Steamer, “Showboat 2” (400 guests) from $1,450 None served Bollinger, some included premium drinks only at midnight but none match the variety & quality of our food & beverage offering ! The demand for boat tickets on New Years Eve far outnumbers the quantity of tickets available and most charter boats take advantage of that by accepting bookings right up to their licensed capacity, but we draw the line at 50 guests ONLY: Having established our competitors prices, WE SIMPLY UNDERCUT THEM !! I totally reject your assertion that our price is exorbitant because our ticket price is less than charged by most of our fellow industry leaders. However, I do agree that I boasted after anchoring in the reserved area that our position was the best I had ever achieved within the area restricted for commercial vessels. We were within 10 metres from the exclusion zone marker buoy and less than 100 metres from the nearest firework barge so the explosions from the that firework barge made everyone feel like we were within a war zone. Just before midnight an “illegal” (because it was not a commercial vessel so was “breaking the law”) vessel took up station next to us. I attempted to contact the authorities to get them to move the boat but they were not listening to my radio call. I will endeavour to get the authorities to prosecute the skipper, but in previous matters I have found that the wheels of their authority turn very slowly, so I do not expect a satisfactory outcome any time soon. However, I have learned from this experience and will be ready for any such interloper next year. I have a very strong fire hose and will have it ready well before midnight. In previous disputes where other boats use my private mooring, I have found a “dusting” of salt water encourages the perpetrator to depart the area much faster than a call to the authorities…. Fortunately, the offending vessel was a small low sided sailing yacht so our view of the evenings proceedings was not significantly impacted (see Lynne’s photo of small sailing boat I have uploaded to provider photos on TA). I manoeuvred Sydney Sundancer as best I could around our anchor using our electric bow & stern thrusters to minimise the impact and improve our view of the firework display. I was reasonably successful as most of the firework photos taken by Lynne demonstrate! In the fireworks photos, I have uploaded on TA & Viator, you will see the fireworks launched from the closest barge (100 metres away) is high in the sky and the fireworks launched from the other barge on our side of the Harbour Bridge is the highest fireworks over the Harbour Bridge while the two lower explosions above Harbour Bridge were launched by the 2 fireworks barges on the far side of the Harbour Bridge. Please refer again to provider photograph showing the location of the firework barges on the Harbour diagram so you will appreciate exactly what I am describing! Each of the firework barges electronically set off their fireworks at exactly the same moment and each firework display is identical in the sky. I call this “the mirroring effect” because each firework display is a “duplicate” of the others in the sky. It is a totally unique effect and only visible from vessels in the commercial vessel area because an imaginary line drawn from the commercial vessels area to the centre of the Harbour Bridge almost perfectly dissects each of the firework barges (2 on our side of the Bridge & 2 on the other side). This is the “mirroring effect” of the fireworks in the sky that can only be fully appreciated from a position within the commercial vessels reserved area! In conclusion Frederique, I am sincerely sorry that you and & Christophe did not enjoy the evening as much as your fellow revellers. Maybe it was because you were the only people to be speaking French and kept to yourselves…

Thank you for your review, it provides a great opportunity for those contemplating our next NYE cruise to appreciate our unique format. Your recognition of the quality of food & service is welcomed, Lynne is the author of a published cookbook entitled "GOURMET SAILING, delicious dining..." that one guest even requested her to autograph. Before anchoring, while we are cruising around the Harbour, there is an opportunity to meet your fellow guests while our crew are serving Bollinger or other fine wines together with the entrees & canapés shown in the “provider photographs” on this site. We give everyone a name tag because that encourages people to get to know each other as we cruise around the Harbour. Usually, after anchoring, the crew usually deploy the arm chairs that have been stacked to permit ease of movement around Sydney Sundancer’s wide decks. Our hope is that by midnight, people will feel like they are celebrating with friends rather than with strangers.

Hi Trish, I am sincerely sorry you had such a bad New Years Eve experience with Captain Cook Cruises, but you have posted on our web site that has nothing to do with Captain Cook Cruises. I have reported your mistake to TA but they have done nothing about it. So your review of only 1 baloon is affecting our overall customer satisfaction rating. Could you please ask TripAdvisor / Viator to post the review where it should be posted on Captain Cook Cruises, thank you.

I am sure you have created a new word for the English language: "yummilicious" which although unheard of till now conveys the pleasure you enjoyed during our NYE cruise! Lynne takes great pride in serving the most amazing meal by choosing the best from her published cookbook : "Delicious Dining on the Great Barrier Reef and other delights"! She has set the culinary benchmark to which most charter boats aspire. And for more than 30 years I have prided myself in in locating Sydney Sundancer in the absolute best location with uninterrupted views of all the fireworks...

Thank you for this review and glad you had such a great time. NYE in Sydney is unique more than one and a half million people cram onto any location with a glimpse of the fireworks. People avoid this crush by booking a spot on a boat but the problem is that almost every charter boat on Sydney Harbour will accept as many guests as the authorities permit the boat to carry. Our licensed capacity is more than 70 passengers plus 6 staff, however we limit the number of guests to 50 so that we can guarantee everyone's personal comfort through adequate space. Your comment "50 people is a bit crammed" was your genuine perception so I will not try to disagree but will simply say there was lots of room on our clear open deck which enabled everyone to move freely around unobstructed by your fellow guests. There was an armchair for every guest and the quality of the food was unsurpassed because every course was meticulously prepared by my wife Lynne who is the published author of her own cookbook entitled "Gourmet Sailing - delicious dining on the Great Barrier Reef & other delights"! Thank you for your rating :"brilliant 5 star all the way"

It is always a pleasure to welcome returning guests for this fantastic occasion. I appreciate what you are saying about available space & that is why we limit the number of guests to 50 rather than take an additional 20 guests as the authorities have licensed Sydney Sundancer to carry. Most charter boats accept their licensed capacity but Lynne & I think that our yacht will be just uncomfortable with more people aboard. The fireworks display is just so amazing that on land nearly one and a half million people cram into every clear space to watch the display (Government number), so being aboard our yacht is one way to see the display from the best vantage point in company with the least number of people aboard.

Hi Paul & Mary, Lynne and I are so glad you both had such a great time. Our position on the Harbour enabled everyone aboard to witness the whole evenings' activities without other boats obstructing our view.