On the bucket list for a while, the only upside of Covid-19 is that we are doing those things in our backyard that were on hold for a time when we may not be as fit as we are now!
At a guess I would say the explorer was somewhere around 40-50% capacity. The upshot of that for travellers was that a lot of couples had the 4 seater tables to themselves.
Travelling from Wellington, there was no apparent requirement to wear masks - no signage or requests and most people didn't. The dining carriage is stocked with Wishbone refreshment, so sandwiches, salads and prepackaged meals that could be heated. Wine and beer was very reasonably priced compared to bars.
The scenery was stunning from start to finish. We were lucky enough to have the viewing car immediately behind us and the dining car immediately at the front, so life was good.
I found the last 2-3 hours a struggle. No scenery, industrial areas on the outskirts of Auckland - I have never seen so many containers in my life. Over the course of the day we were an hour behind schedule and arrival in Auckland was very welcome.
There is a well organised luggage drop off/pick up that felt very safe.
It is important to note that NZ was at it's lowest alert level, so minimal Covid requirements are in place. All staff on the explorer work masks at all times.
We also did the return trip and I think the Auckland to Wellington journey is easier - you have nice scenery coming into Wellington, having got the boring stuff out the way at the beginning of the journey.
