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We "purchased" some fresh-caught salmon in Ketchikan, just off the boat.  They fileted, froze, vacuum-packed & then shipped it home.

A word of caution: Next-Day shipping will be used due to the perishable nature of the contents.  There may also be an up-charge if they use dry ice... even with a FedEx discount, overnight is still expensive; but the salmon was worth it!

We sailed on the POA in 2015; having never been to Hawaii, it was the perfect way to get a taste of the islands, transportation & meals included.  We splurged for a Non-Suite Aft Balcony on deck 8.  Best decision we made when booking.  It was our 3rd cruise w/NCL, Alaska & Eastern Caribbean on the Pearl & Gem respectively.

We've been back to Hawaii since, but only to Oahu.  And while we'd like to make at least one more vacation there, I doubt we'd repeat the POA cruise and opt to stay on one or two of the islands for several days each.

We had an aft balcony on the POA in Hawaii...

Loved the aft balcony on our POA cruise in 2014... the shot below was taken about an hour after leaving port in Kauai, on our way to the Na Pali coast.

I'm an early riser and could be found on the balcony every morning with a large mug of coffee enjoying the sunrise.  We're only looking to sail in Aft Balcony cabins from here on out...

We did this cruise in 2015 and had the time of our lives.  We flew in a few days early to explore Oahu... I'm retired military, so we stayed at the Hale Koa (an Armed Forces Recreation Services Resort) on Waikiki Beach.

We rented a car on Oahu, Maui, and Kauai, all through Discount Hawaii Car Rental.  In Hilo we booked a van tour; in Kailua-Kona, we booked an excursion through the ship to the seahorse farm... very cool tour.  On the ship, we had an aft balcony which was perfect for viewing the Na Pali coast.

It was the prefect cruise to get a "taste" of the four main islands... we've been back to Oahu for a week, and are planning to go back again to spend a week on Maui.

The photo below was taken from our balcony, docked in Kauai

Can I ask how much the watches were?

I don't remember the exact amount, but I did negotiate (haggle) to get to a price I was willing to pay. If you're considering shopping for a watch or two at the Aloha Stadium, check out several of the vendors before purchasing.

I picked up a hand-carved tiki from a roadside stand just south of the Polynesian Cultural Center. The artist (Fala) was in the process of putting the finishing touches on the one I purchased just as we drove up. I think I paid about $40 for it... signed by the artist as well.

I did see a couple carving tikis and other woodworks at the Aloha Stadium Market on the day we went, but we didn't purchase any of them.

At the Polynesian Cultural Center, check out the artwork in the Samoa venue. We picked up a seascape lithograph after the Samoan cooking demo was over. The artist (Kap Tafiti) was mingling with everyone in the "gift tent" after his demo... he turned to me as I was getting ready to pay for my print and asked if I was planning to purchase it. I said "Yes" at which point he took it out of my hand, opened the plastic wrapping, turned it over & drew a mini-seascape on the back with his signature. DW & I though this was very cool!!!

We also bought matching Koa wood watches from a vendor at the Aloha Stadium Market. A word of caution here... research before you go. I knew what I was looking for and was careful to avoid the knockoffs.

Haven't used one, but before purchasing, you should decide which attractions you're most interested in seeing that are included on the card(s) and how many days you'll be on Oahu. Then, compare the "Gate Price" for each attraction to see which is the better bargain. Don't forget to factor in transportation to & from the attractions and how long you intend to stay at each one to get your monies worth.

Can't answer your question about using the bus, but the food vendors really didn't have much going until around 10:30 or so. However, there were a few vendors with fresh baked goods and such... check out the fresh honey & peanut butters.

We arrived (on a Wednesday) at around 9:00am and things were just getting going. We went all the way to one end and turned around, doing the majority of our purchasing on the way back. By the time we got back to our starting point (by now it was approaching noon) there were even more vendors set up in the opposite direction from where we started. By this time, we were hot, tired, and ready to head back to the hotel for a little pool, Jacuzzi, and Mai Tai time.

You will find many unique items for sale there, just do your homework... and remember... cheap t-shirts are exactly that; cheap! And... if it's made in China, it's not really from Hawaii.

But to answer your question... "Is it worth it"... Well... we're planning to return to Hawaii to spend a week on Maui, but not before spending a couple of days on Oahu so that we can get back to the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet & Marketplace. So in our eyes... YES!

Leonard's has been a staple since the early 50's great stuff. This is one of the stops on the "Hole In The Wall Food Tour" which we did a few years ago. Great tour and great stops.

Thanks to a mechanical problem on our way to Honolulu in 2014 for our POA cruise, the airline provided us with two $500 vouchers, which we used to return for a week on Oahu last September. During our stay there, DW & I hit Leonard's Bakery 4-times right at opening... great way to start the day.

I prefer the custard-filled malasadas with the cinnamon-sugar coating, although the chocolate cream filling with original coating is good too!!! Sorry, no pictures... they weren't in the box long enough to get a shot. ;)

Hello - we are on POA in Feb 2017. Looking on our check in page it is showing we can purchase onboard credit. The rate of exchange for this looks very favourable - does anyone know if there are restrictions as to what you can use the credit for. I am thinking for us it will be mainly our bar bill.

 

Does anyone know what would happen with any credit that is still on your account at the end of the cruise? refund?

 

Thanks in advance

OBC can be used for your bar bill, excursions, gift shop purchases, etc. There are some restrictions regarding using OBC for the daily service charge, but I don't believe that applies to any portion that you may purchase in advance.

Unused OBC will be refunded following the cruise, unless it was awarded as a promotion from a travel agent or the cruise line, in which case it will be forfeited.

Keep in mind, the POA is very port intensive... as it should be in Hawaii. With NO casino on board and basically only spending the evenings on board, your bar bill may not be as high as expected.

Please tell us..... How was that Seahorse Farm?

It was actually very interesting. The "farm" is in an industrial area near the airport. Space is limited... and although family friendly, I wouldn't recommend it for really little ones. The property is not stroller friendly.

We saw seahorses in various stages of growth... from days old to fully mature. Our tour guides were very knowledgeable, but the coolest thing of all was at the end of the walking tour when we got to stick our hands into one of the tanks and have a seahorse anchor itself to our fingers. They do allow you to take still photographs, but no video.

We decided to book the tour once we got on board the POA in Honolulu. After having three full days of sightseeing on Oahu, followed by the two days in Maui and the full-day tour with "Ricky" in Hilo... the Seahorse farm would be fairly low impact and get us back to the tender dock in time to do a little shopping before heading back to the ship to chill out in the hot tub for a while.

All in all, the tour was one we really enjoyed... but the real highlight of the day came after we pulled anchor; we had been invited, along with two other couples, to have dinner with the Captain and his Senior Technology Officer.

Thanks for the answers and ideas. We weren't going to rent a car in Honolulu, due to the traffic and congestion. Rather leave the driving to someone who knows the area. We did rent cars for the other islands. I've been to the library and the local bookstore, but haven't been able to find maps of the islands with tourist sites marked. I did try google, but didn't have much luck there either. Any other ideas? Do the car rental places have maps available?? How did you rent GPS? Thanks for helping me out.

You can order FREE tour guides for each island here. It can take a few weeks to get them, but there's tons good info in the guides... phone numbers, email addresses, web site urls and more.

Most rental companies will rent you a GPS unit... for a fee. As I mentioned in my previous post, I just bring my own. However, we really didn't need it on Maui. I did use it on Kauai and really put it to good use on Oahu... its hilarious hearing the unit try to pronounce the Hawaiian street names. On the Big Island, we toured with "Ricky" in Hilo and took the NCL tour to the Seahorse Farm in Kona.

I'll be interested in learning how easy it was to get around if you were doing the driving. Is there parking near any of the venues? I think I'm going to the library and check out a tour book.

We've done two trips to Hawaii... the 1st was the 7-day Honolulu R/T on the POA with 3 days (was supposed to be 4) pre-cruise on Oahu, and then returned a year later for 7 days on Oahu.

Although we rented a car on both trips to explore on our own, we did book a Pearl Harbor tour and Germaine's Luau; both of which included transportation. Our rental car arrangements were done through Discount Hawaii Car Rental... they did all the work to find the best rates after giving them my preferences.

A couple of things you'll notice on Oahu... especially in Downtown Honolulu:

* Finding a place to park in Downtown Honolulu can be an adventure and very expensive. If you can, avoid the private lots. Although they may be convenient, you can find yourself paying $20 or more to park for a few hours. Look for the municipal parking garages... much , much cheaper. Once you do find your parking spot, make sure you only cross the street at the corner... jaywalking can result in a $140.00 fine... and it is enforced!

* Your hotel may have a parking garage - however, that too may be an expensive option. One of my fellow travelers paid $30 per night to park their car at their hotel. We were staying at the Hale Koa (for military) and our rate was much lower than theirs.

* Use a GPS for direction. Although your phone may have the GPS feature, keep in mind, it is illegal in Hawaii to use your phone while driving. Additionally, there are still some areas where you may not have a signal. I always bring my own Garmin... which I've pre-programmed with several points of interest and updated maps. If you don't have one, you can always add one on to your rental.

* Don't leave valuables in your rental car... including in the trunk. Although it hasn't happened to us, we did see a young couple return to their rental car in one of the north shore beach parking lots, only to find the trunk lid open and all of their belongings gone... including the car's keys. All that could be done at that point was to let them use my phone to call the police & the rental agency.

* Pack your patience. Traffic can be a nightmare in Honolulu. It is quite common to use "cones" to redirect traffic during the morning and evening rush hours. Honolulu also has many one-way streets, and in the downtown area, you'll even find streets that are designated for BUS USE ONLY! Then, when you get away from the congestion of city traffic, you'll come across two-lane roads, with limited areas to pass. Be sure to give yourself plenty of time to get from place to place.

* Finally, lay off the horn... that's just plain rude on the islands.

Aloha

If you are retired U.S. military or DOD you'd be able to use the facilities at the Hale Koa I believe, but it is the only hotel on that beach that would allow it. None of the beach front hotels do day passes.

 

Your best bet is to rent beach chairs and umbrella in front of the Moana Surfrider or maybe HHV and then go into the hotel for drinks and food.

 

None of the pool side bars is going to let you sit an entire day nursing a drink or two.

 

Nicest hotel on the beach is Halekulani and a great place for a drink and the view.

You MUST HAVE a room key from the Hale Koa in order to use their pools... that's where we stay when on Oahu.

Volcano National Park

Akaka Falls

Kahuna Falls

Rainbow Falls

Pahoa or Kalapana

 

All of this leads me to my second question - is there anywhere to rent a car in Hilo? How accessible are the waterfalls from the road?

I also really want to go to Panalu'u. I read it is closer to Hilo but can do from Kona as well. I edited this to add that I have nothing planned from Kona and am there from 7am-5:30pm. I penciled it in as a possible snorkel day but would be okay using the day to go see a black sand beach.

 

 

Thanks!

We were able to visit Volcano National Park, Rainbow Falls, a black sand beach and much more with Ricky's Tours. Although Ricky visits all of the major sites that the tour busses go to, he has the timing down to either arrive as the buses are leaving or leave as the buses are arriving... we had more than ample time to visit each of the sites on the itinerary. His price is reasonable and he keeps the group small & manageable. Just an option to consider.

Hopefully we'll arrive in Honolulu around 4pm on a Wednesday and then getting on POA on Saturday.

-Wednesday I'd like to rent a car at the airport, check into the hotel, have dinner and go to the beach.

-Thursday my plan is to get up early and hike Diamond Head. Since we'll be om Eastern Standard Time, I'm sure getting to the park by 6am won't be an issue. Afterwards, I'd like to drive the North Shore.

-Friday, I'm looking into snorkeling. If we do our own from the beach, plans can be a little more flexible. If I go with a catamaran that takes a small group further out, it will be a few hours in the late morning/early afternoon. Then we'd spend the rest of the day at the Polynesian Cultural Center.

 

 

Does this seem manageable? Am I missing something huge? My husband and I prefer nature and I love photo opportunities, especially of landscapes, waterfalls, ect.

Agree with above post regarding snorkeling on the other islands. As for the Polynesian Cultural Center, the island groups that are represented each have their own 15-20+ minute show or presentation... the see them all, you need to be there when the center opens and plan to stay until the final show. I would recommend seeing the show in "Samoa" last... and if you're lucky, Kap will be the presenter.

Just so you know, there is NO alcohol served in the park, and if you're planning to stay for the luau and the show, keep in mind the drive back to Honolulu is on a windy, two lane road, with very little, if any street lights. Couple that, with the fact that your body is still in another time zone... it could be a dangerous combination.

We drove ourselves and opted out of the luau & show. The traffic wasn't bad at all, although the road is down to one lane (traffic alternates) due to construction a few miles south of the cultural center. We made it back to Waikiki in time to have Mongolian BBQ at our hotel!

I decided with Maui Wedding Adventures to do it on White Rock beach .So happy t P O A stays in port for 2 nights.Thank you all for the advice.

Check your itinerary... POA is scheduled to arrive @ 8:00am on Sunday and departs @ 6:00pm on Monday. You essentially have two "days" in port, however, only ONE night. You'll need to be back on the ship NLT 5:30pm on Monday.

Where on Maui should we renew our Wedding vows at sunset on the beach and with who?There are so many different businesses that do weddings I can't make up my mind!It's just going to be the two of us ,we do want them to take pictures.Any advice,please.We only on Maui on Sunday and Monday ,we going to be on a cruise.

Whomever you use, you're going to have to make arrangements for Sunday because the ship will sail on Monday before sunset. FYI - The dock is on the east side of Maui & the sun will be setting on the west side.

This will be our first NCL sailing. Not planning to do any specialty restaurants at this point, but that could change once we're onboard. Any main dining room/buffet items that are always a real hit on NCL? Each cruise line seems to have one item that passengers always seem to look forward to.

I look forward to the chocolate-hazelnut pastries on the breakfast buffet. I also look forward to a bowl of the Roasted Tomato Soup... delicious!

The two main dining rooms rotate their menus daily; and since the MDRs have 14 different menus to choose from, it's hard to predict what will be offered from day to day. You will have two dinner menus in the MDR; one offers the same choices daily, the other is the rotating menu... and you may order from both sides. The breakfast and lunch menus do not change.

As for the specialty restaurants, we had planned to go to Cagney's for dinner after leaving Kailua-Kona because fresh lobster was brought on board while in port. However, we received an invitation to dine with the captain at his table that night, so we opted for Moderno on the final night of the cruise.

Doing the Hawaii cruise with my mom and godmother. They love to do the shopping thing, and buy souvenirs for themselves and all the family back home. They like a variety of things - from nice, hand made, authentic Hawaiian things to t-shirts and trinkets for the grandkids.

 

Our 4 ports are: Honolulu, Hilo, Kauai, and Maui (tendering in Lahaina). What would be the best town to spend doing the most shopping?? I thought I saw mentioned that Hilo isn't a good shopping city - is that true? Any recommendations on places to go or shop at in any of the cities?

 

Thanks in advance!

If you're planning to stay in Honolulu either pre or post cruise, then I would recommend a trip to the Aloha Stadium Swap Marketplace... which is open Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. If you plan to board the POA mid afternoon, it is feasible to hit the stadium before you board, just be mindful of the Honolulu traffic if you need to return to your hotel to check out, pickup luggage, or return a rental car.

Otherwise, you could arrive on Monday or Tuesday before your cruise and attend the market on Wednesday. The other option would be to go the day after you return to Honolulu.

We went to the market on a Wednesday and were there for more than 3 hours... and we still didn't see all the vendors, as many were setting up when we arrived. One note to consider, if you plan to attend the market during football season, there will not be a market on the days the University of Hawaii has a home game... so check the schedule. I would also recommend shipping your goodies back home via USPS One Rate or FedEx/UPS prior to boarding. Shipping centers & hours can be found on line using a google search.

We are looking to book excursions for our upcoming POA Hawaiian cruise through a 3rd party. They stress the need to reserve a "ship to shore ferry(tender)" at least 24 hours prior to the tour time to be at the meeting place on the pier.

 

A couple of "things"/question related to that. I'm not seeing anywhere in my NCL cruise docs/information stating Kona is a tender port. Even the NCL excursions for Kona I'm not seeing any mention of Kona being a tender port. Not a huge deal, but if that information is there, it appears buried to me.

 

The tender process at Kona, is it similar to tendering at Caribbean ports? Do the frequent NCL cruisers(Latitudes is it?) cruisers have the option to be off first, then maybe followed by folks with NCL excursions, then the rest of us first time NCL cruisers with non-NCL shore excursions? Can you make a reservation as the tour company suggests? If so, how is that done?

 

Thanks for any response or input provided.

Kona IS a tender port. Boarding process is also similar to the Caribbean ports... NCL excursions and Suite/Platinum Latitudes passengers will have priority. The rest line up to await their turn. When returning to the ship, there is no priority given to anyone... first in line is first on board.

Has anyone ever bought a Koa Wood Watch sold at Martin & MacArthur? I'm interested in buying one, but wanted some advice before spending quite a chunk of change.

 

First, are they reliable? And are they big and clunky? Appreciate any thoughts! Thx!

I didn't buy ours through Martin & MacArthur... I picked up his & hers matching watches at the Aloha Stadium Market. They are surprisingly light-weight and (so far) keep good time.

Looks like I'm renting cars from Discount Hawaii car rentals for each island. They don't book with a credit card and I was wondering did anyone have any problems with this company? I want to make sure my car is ready to go when we get to each island. Are cars in good shape? Trying to use cars from Enterprise if I can.Should I stay away from a certain car company?

No problems with Discount Hawaii Car Rental (DHCR)... used them last year for our reservations on Oahu, Maui & Kauai. On Oahu we used Alamo; on Maui we used Avis; and on Kauai we used Thrifty.

Last month, DHCR hooked us up with Budget for our week on Oahu. FYI - gas prices ranged from as low as $2.88 to $3.04 per gallon.

Hi All,

 

On our first day in Kauai we are doing a Luau and a land tour of other things. On the second day we are considering a tour of the island. The second day we are considering an aerial tour. I have never been in a helicopter so this would be an amazing thing to do. However, the costs are quite expensive and the Cesna is about half the price.

 

Has anyone done the tour with the Cesna (tour company is Wings Over Kauai)? The cost savings are significant and the savings could be spent on other tours/excursions.

 

Any feedback is appreciated.

I flew with Wings Over Kauai last year when we were in port on Kauai... GREAT TRIP. I booked the 2nd flight of the morning (better lighting & fewer shadows in my photos) and they had me back to the ship in plenty of time before the ship sailed. Tip for getting your best photos... wear darker colors to minimize reflections.