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Docking at Sendai cruise terminal in a couple weeks, wondering what to expect for transportation. Will be on NCL Jewel. Wondering about cruise ship shuttle to train station, or taxis, other shuttles etc. We are wanting to head into Sendai. Thanks!

New to NCL, how many days prior to sailing are the online purchases like excursions, drink packages, prepaid gratuities, water cartons etc available to purchase? I have been on other lines that end 3 days before and some that end 2 weeks before. Thanks!

We ended up booking through NCL the Siginaka Islands Cruise and Kayak, but unfortunately it was cancelled, not sure if it was from interest or weather, the weather wasn't great. 

thanks for all the great info!

We will be at these three ports between April 18-21. I am starting to research each one. I looks like cruise lines usually have a shuttle to the downtown areas, and then you can walk around. Wondering if it would be recommended to do a car rental in any of these ports to get out of the downtown area? We like to explore on our own, I have some mobility issues, but can get around ok for a couple hours. We don't do the expensive tours like flights and fishing. I know our arrival is a little before the season opens, and a lot of online info is for during the season. Thanks!

I think your plan is doable the first day, does the sunset cruise start about 5pm? Docking at 8 am and given time to rent the car, that would be plenty of time to go to Waimea Canyon and make stops along the way and back to Eleele, the next day is doable but need to make sure you head back to Lihue in plenty of time, I would say with a couple hours to spare, traffic can be terrible in Kappa area. You would need to get an early start go as far as you want to go and work your way back ( at least that is what I would do). Keep in mind tunnels has very limited parking, being there early with good luck will get a spot. But there are other beaches in the area, or beach stops along the way that are nice too. There is overnight paid parking  right in the port, at the shopping center there, but I have never used it. 

Trying to decide on Sitka excursion - I love all water activities, experienced kayaker. I usually book independently, but having a hard time finding a kayak trip that is later in the afternoon. We are set to arrive at 1pm on the Ruby Princess end of May. There are 2 kayak trips though princess but the details are a bit vague.

I"m looking at 3 options-

Wilderness Sea Kayaking - 3 hrs total $199.95, says short boat ride to floating dock, does not say length of kayak time.

Siginaka Islands Cruise and Kayak - $209.95 3 hrs total, 90 mins in the water.

Ocean Rafting Adventure - $209.95. Not in the water, but sounds really fun. 2.5 hrs.

Anyone been on these previously? Any thoughts? Alternate kayak tours you are aware of? Thanks!

Would like to know if any has been on this and can give me any details. I have some weird health issues, but love high adventure. I can usually push through and pay later. My friends have already booked this excursion and I would love to go. My biggest problem is inclines, longer term. there is speedboat, truck ride, mule ride, ziplines, and maybe something more? do the ziplines go up one or a few tall towers and zip between platforms, or are up going up a lot of stairs on each one? Any other steep hiking etc? 

Thanks!

We will be on the Diamond Princess and stopping in Loreto on Dec 22nd. It is a tender port. It says arrival time is 7 am. I contacted a local snorkle tour shop ( Blue Nation) and their start at 8 am at the whale statue in the marina. While I think we could get off, I am unfamiliar with the port, possible weather issues, distance for tender etc. It makes me nervous not to have more time for a tender as ship tours are always priority. Any advice is this seems doable? They do not charge if the boat doesn't come for weather reasons, but we are on the hook otherwise. 

Also, is there usually a time difference here between the ship time and port time? Thanks!

We will be in Bonaire next week from 8-6pm. We have a golf cart reserved for the day, and plan to go out around the island for the first half of the day. I wanted to take a water taxi over to Klein Bonaire as well, as I love snorkeling. Anyone with experience have an idea how much time we should leave to get over and back and  have about 2 hours on the island? Would 1 or 2 pm be good, or should we plan a little more or less? So you think we should make a reservation for the water taxi or are they readily available? Thanks!

The ships should be docking fine, the real damage is in a couple small neighborhoods in Koloa that flooded, and then the North Shore, mostly Hanalei and beyond. The road to Poli Hale has been closed for a couple weeks already due to road issues from so much rain ( it is bumpy dirt road). Not sure when it will open as there are much greater needs to the damaged areas from the flooding to road and homes up north.

Besides that you won't see much sign of the flooding on the rest of the island unless you go looking for it, except for possible brown water, and lots of wood and debris on the beaches on the east and north shore mostly near river mouths ( like Wailua/Lydgate, etc).

There is still a massive local community effort that is ongoing to help those in need which is mostly removing debris, shoveling mud, cleaning and tearing out parts of damaged houses, help getting clothing, supplies, food, to those who have lost all their belongings or businesses ( like farms), and/or lost their homes and vehichles. It has been devastating to see the damage done, but encouraging to see the way our island has come together to help each other.

Trying to decide between two tours - Kayaking with Akaroa Kayak Safaris around the harbor - either the crater cruiser or harbor highlights tour, or the Pohatu Penguin marine reserve kayak tour.

Both are only in the afternoon, the Akaroa Kayak is more money ( $130pp) but longer time on the water. The Pohatu ( $90) one has a scenic "drive" to the reserve. We will be there in March which I think is a time when there are less penguins.

Hoping to see wildlife on either tour - dolphins, seals, penguins. If you have done either tour would love to hear about your experience, thanks!

Will be in Wellington in March, looking to do the Weta Cave tours in the afternoon. Trying to decide on the There and Back Again tour which includes both tours and picks you up and returns you to the isite, and supposedly has some sightseeing and guided information during the ride to the weta cave. It is $85 pp. You can book just the two tours for $45 a person, and would need your own transport to get there. It sounds like the public bus isn't too difficult but I then I worry about ease of getting there and back on our own. Has anyone done either option that would like to share their experience? Thanks!

check to see if Hobbiton is doing the night banquet tour when you're there. in my opinion worth the extra cost as you get a very big meal in the Green Dragon and then a tour of Hobbiton for the second time at night.

 

From Waitomo to Auckland, if you're into ice cream stop in Pokeno for a cone. You can literally get as many scoops in the cone as you want (up to 32 if you're brave or crazy). make sure at least one scoop is hokey pokey.

The banquet tour is all booked up, one of the first things I checked! Will totally check out the cones! Thanks!

Thank you again for you input ! I was approved to stay off the ship for the night, and will be renting a car and driving to Auckland the second day. The rental agency that I originally looked at was by far the highest one way fee ( but the cheaper local rental fee). I was able to find most between $75 -$150 for the drop fee. So it sounds better than dealing with the airport and driving back to Tauranga.

I will be going to Rotorua first and doing the rafting or jet boating, and fitting in some geothermal sights before or after, then heading to Hobbiton in the afternoon for the last tour at 4:40pm which should be a little less crowded than during the day ( too late for cruise ship visitors). We have a motel booked in Matamata that evening, and will head to Waitomo in the morning to do the black water rafting. We should be done with that and on our way to Auckland by 1 or 2 pm. The boat is in port until 9 pm but I want to make sure and leave plenty of time to get there.

Are there any suggestions for short stops or side trips along the way from Waitomo to Auckland? Thanks again for your help!

Thank you for both of your inputs! I have re-visited staying overnight as it seems I will have a much better chance of seeing 2-3 things in the Tauranga/Rotorua/Waitomo area if I do this. I called Princess and they said it was possible to stay over and to just call and put in a request when I am ready.

I looked into rental car to Auckland, and the charge is high for one way drop off, the one i looked at was a $400 charge ( not sure if there are cheaper ones). So I came up with the plan to do the rental car from Tauranga, and take a flight from Tauranga to Auckland. There are multiple flights for $53 a person one way in 35 mins. Cheaper than the rental car about the same price as the bus which takes 4 hours.. Our ship does not leave Auckland until 9pm so we will have a good amount of time to be flexible with.

Will keep planning and hopefully get it all worked out. Thank you!

I was considering that but I got mixed information about whether the Princess would allow this, and I asked the travel agency I booked through ( bargain site) and they said it is not allowed. I took that as they weren't interested in finding out or helping me with it. So decided to try and figure it out this way. I read that sometimes even with previous clearance people have been treated as "missing" and had issues getting reinstated.

Will be on the Sun Princess in March - There are so many things I would like to do in Tauranga, and am trying to figure out if I can put some together in one day.

Looking to rent a car at the port in Tauranga and see both Hobiton and do the rafting trip in Rotorua. We are in port from 6:30am to 5;30pm. I think it looks ok on paper but wondering if anyone has experience to share?

I could do the 9am Kaituna raft trip and Hobiton at 1:10, or Hobiton at 9:10 and raft trip at 12:30. With an hour plus between them I think its ok? This will be on a Monday.

Also, I really want to do blackwater rafting, and there isn't enough time to go while in Tauranga port and still see Hobiton. I was considering renting a car in Auckland and driving to the black water rafting/waitomo area. We are in Auckland from 8am to 9pm. I really wanted to do the 5 hour tour, but they shortened our stay an hour on each end, so thinking the 3 hour would be safer. I know this is looking at at least 5-6 hours of driving, but the black water rafting would be my first choice activity for all the ports we are stopping at.

Am I generally ok with budgeting 3-4 hours drive time both side of the tour which would be around 12 or 12:30? Is there any points of interest you would recommend on the drive route from Auckland to Waitomo? Have you done the black water rafting and do you think it would be worth the 5-6 hour drive?

Thank you for you input! I am having a hard time deciding without some real life input. Thank you!

I would definitely suggest a car or van service. We live in the area and have one that takes us to Baltimore or even up to to Cape Liberty. They are a small business but very reliable. We had 6 people and 12 bags but we're comfortable all the way to Jersey. They even picked us up early on the return trip (which worried us but they stayed overnight to accommodate our early pick up. I can give you the info off line if you want.

 

Hawaii was a great cruise - you have a beautiful part of our country. After another 6 inches of snow here today it sounds wonderful!

I would really love to have the info of the company that helped you. I haven't booked anyone yet because I am having a hard time deciding who would be reputable and reasonable. Most of the websites are so cookie cutter for the town car reservations.

thank you to everyone else on the marc and train information! I don't think I would be comfortable using that method as I am not used to using and public transit and wouldn't want to screw up with time constraints.

Thank you for the wonderful information!

We are arriving at 6:55 am on Hawaiian Airlines to JFK on April 20th. We will be flying to DCA after that but have not booked the ticket yet. There is a Delta Flight for a good price leaving at 9:30 am. Would this generally be enough time to get our bags and re-check them, then go through security again to catch the next flight? We have never been there before.

There aren't a lot of non-stop flights, and the others are mostly afternoon or evening. That long of a wait after flying from Hawaii doesn't sound nice.

Thanks for any input!

Thank you for your replies!

I thought we would be ok when we booked it since the maps say 55 min. We are most likely staying at the Hotel Monaco in Old town. Its actually a training class for a position with a business group ( president training) - with the "graduation" from 11-12 that Sat. My husband's work and the business organization is paying for his flight and expenses for that part of the trip, so we really need to try and stay for the whole thing. It is hard to tell if we can get away early until we get there.

I will definitely be passing your comments on to my husband, I am all for the car service.

thanks!

I just booked a cruise on April 23rd out of Baltimore MD. I am from Hawaii and have never been on the east coast. My husband has a conference in Alexandria VA. It ends at noon on the 23rd ( a Saturday). From what I have been able to research, we should be able to make it to the port with plenty of time. We need to be checked in by 3:30pm. I have some quote requests in to the goshuttle and town car direct pick ups from the hotel to the port.

My husband is looking into rental car, and I know the public transportation is cheaper and reliable. But I worry about these options as we have only about 3 hours max to get there and I would hate to not make the cruise because we missed a train or took a wrong one, or a wrong turn in traffic.

First of all, do you think our time line is doable? and what options do you suggest? I don't have prices yet on car, and shuttle from DCA to the port is $95 for both.

Thoughts and suggestions appreciated! Thank you!

I am going on a cruise at the end of this May and into early June. I will be stopping at three warmer ports in Taiwan and in Okinawa on the Diamond Princess. Also, Busan, South Korea, and Kobe, Toyama, Akita, and Hakodate.

Most of our ports I am sure we will do cultural sightseeing, architecture, gardens, temples, museum, shopping, hot springs, food etc.

I really love water activities such as snorkeling, kayaking, rafting, etc.

It appears there is some nice snorkeling in Taiwan and in Okinawa. I'm having a hard time finding information specific enough to see if I could do this in one or more of the ports with one day time restraints from cruise ports. I would need to be able to rent equipment as well.

My Taiwan ports are: Hualien, Kaohsuing, and Taipei ( Keelung).

The Princess excursions don't have anything like this at all yet listed.

Would appreciate any information from past experiences, Thank you!