Please post your planned or completed itinerary

We are just starting our plan, so we welcome any comments and suggestions.

First, we are not going until October 2019, so we have plenty of time. But I know time can get away from me and a few of our planned tours book up early.

We are on a HAL Oosterdam roundtrip from San Diego cruise. We will fly in two days ahead of embarking. I have been to San Diego several times, but my travel buddy has not.

Here is the plan - as of today.

Day 1

Depart Florida - arrive in San Diego

Hotel TBD

Stroll through Old Town, Little Italy, the Gaslamp district and the waterfront. If we have at least half a day, buy a two-day trolley tour ticket.

Have supper.

Buy wine & water for the cruise.

Day 2 San Diego

Use the trolley tour to visit Coronado Island and Balboa Park. Spend the majority of the day in the Park. Tour the Spanish Village Art Center, the botanical gardens and whatever else in the Park that peaks our interest.

Day 3

Embark & sail.

Days 4 - 8 sail to Hawaii

Days 9 & 10 Honolulu

One day is reserved for the Arizona Memorial and the USS Missouri, and strolling around the city

The other day we will take the ship’s tour that Covers the entire island, stops at Dole Plantation and finally to a local Beach for two hours of surf and sand.

Day 11 Lahaina

We will either do a Zipline or Waterfall hike during the day.

At night we plan to attend a luau at Old Lahaina Luaus.

Day 12 Kona

I plan to do a helicopter tour of the island. My travel buddy is undecided.

Tour the sea horse farm. This was one of my friends’ favorite experiences when they visited Kona.

If time permits, we would also like to do a kayak tour here. There are a couple of companies that offer snorkeling opportunities with the kayak tours. We are just starting our research for this option. We just might not have enough time.

Day 13 Hilo

All day tour with MaryLou’s Big Island tours. Not only did our Travel Agent recommend this company, but it has amazing reviews on Cruise Critic and Trip Advisor.

Thank you all for taking the time to share your thoughts and experiences. We have already booked this tour. They have a great refund policy, and at least one of the reviews I read indicated they were fully booked 15 months ahead of time. Many reviews indicated they were booked 9 - 12 months in advance.

Days 14 - 18

Sail to Ensenada

Day 19 Ensenada

We are only here for six hours - just long enough to do the obligatory stop at a foreign port. We will do a ship’s tour - if they offer a tour to a local winery, we will be on that one.

Day 20 San Diego

Debark ship

Fly home to Florida

The hardest part seems to be to try to pin down local transportation in Lahaina and Kona. But as I mentioned earlier, we have time.

Ann

Thanks for your details! I have a few questions for you:

 

"April 8th Sun Arrived in Maui and rented a car for 2 days with Enterprise. Walked to pick up car

as it was not at the airport. We reserved a "they pick your car" Give a pickup truck

Drove to Haleakala summit. It was rainy, so it was fine, but not as beautiful as it

could have been, but used the Shaka app with worked great! Afterwards drove to

upcountry and winery. really glad we had the truck as many roads were flooded

badly and we were able to cross where smaller cars could not.

Parked at the mall near the ship for free even with the warning signs. Many

people were doing the same. We took our chances and the car was fine. "

 

How long did you spend in Haleakala? We want to go as well, but not aiming for sunrise or sunset.

We spent about 6 hours including the drive up, stopping at many lookouts, eating in our car while waiting for the rain to stop, and stopping to shop at a small town along the way. Shaka app is great. Highly recommend ! We started our trip about 9:30 . We were back on the ship in time to do the lei making class at 4:00.

 

 

"April 12 Thur Arrived in Kauai. rented a care through Thrifty. Got off ship early to catch shuttle

to airport. Rented an SUV and drove to Wailua falls close by and went back to

airport to catch our 10:30 flight with Wings over Kauai in a private Cessna.

Great company. Nice ride with sunny views of the Napali coastline. Other parts

of the island were clouded in-not able to see anything. After flight, we drove to

Waimea Canyon with the Shaka app. Rained all the way up to the top. Glad to

have brought throw away sneakers with all the hiking we did. Covered in mud, we

gladly threw them away after the cruise. Rain eased up and were able to see some

nice views on the way back down. We wanted to go to the other side of the island,

traffic was bad on the way back, so we decided to return the rental since the shuttle

was only until 6:00pm and we didn't want to pay a cab to get back to ship.

Dinner at the buffet. Nice selection and not crowded since most were at luau."

 

Wow it sounds like you did alot on this day! How long did you spend on the Waimea canyon trip? Did you like the Shaka App for this as well? If we wanted to stop at some beaches or a small town on the way back, does Shaka give tips on that too?

We started that day about noon. Again, it was raining. The Shaka guide worked great again. It will detect your location and pick back up right where you left off if you stop for awhile. The trip took about 4 hours. We wanted to hike, but the weather was not in our favor.

 

 

 

"We used it as a floating hotel for eating and sleeping. We brought a soft fold-able

cooler to pack food for our day trips. We read that it was ok and it was very

helpful for our road trips as there is very little in food stops along the way. I took

lots of baggies and packed cookies and snacks from the buffet. They also had

chicken salad sandwiches that packed well. I made peanut better sandwiches as

well. Very cost efficient. "

 

Thanks for this tip, I think we will do the same! Would the buffet also have easy to grab whole fruit like apples, bananas, oranges?

Yes, lots of fruit available. Just bring some baggies for some ice and any other goodies and you will be set.

We returned from an amazing Pride of America cruise in March 2017. this was our itinerary. We spent 2 days ahead of the cruise in Honolulu and 1 day after the cruise.

Hawaii Schedule

Honolulu

 

March 23rd–arrive mid afternoon, check in, eat, explore Waikiki. Being picked up by two taxis from EcoCab. Staying at Hyatt Place Waikiki. 4:30 dinner reservations at Tiki’s Grill and Bar.

 

March 24th– breakfast at hotel, ½ day Pearl Harbor tour – closed toed shoes and bags must be checked– departs around 6:30 am, rest, Chief’s Luau – pick up at 4:20

 

March 25th– breakfast, check out, Whale Watching cruise, pick up at 10:40. Leave luggage with bellman, go back to hotel after cruise for luggage. Need to arrange cab with Charley’s taxi toget to NCL.

 

 

Hawaii Schedule

Cruise

NCL – Pride of America

 

Arrive

Depart

Sat 25

Honolulu, Oahu (EMBARK) (Whale Watching Cruise with lunch before boarding the ship.)

Sun 26

Kahului, Maui tour by car Dollar, Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm, Maui Winery, Beach

Mon 27

Kahului, Maui Atlantis Submarine

Tue 28

Hilo, Hawaii Ricky’s Tours (excellent, highly recommend)

Wed 29

Kona, Hawaii Fairwinds snorkeling cruise, Must take an early tender. Should be time to go to town or beach. (Excellent!)

Thu 30

Nawiliwili, Kauai Kauai Backcountry Adventures, Tubing

Fri 31

Nawiliwili, Kauai –Island Helicopters tour, Grandma & 9 year old grandson Fern Grotto Tour

Sat 1

Honolulu, Oahu (DISEMBARK)

 

April1st –Island tours - one group with Circle Island LOST & Movie Tour, pick up at the ship at 8:00. Other group Pineapple Plantation and North Shore with Private Tours Hawaii, pick up around 9:00.

 

 

April 2nd– Breakfast at hotel. Surf Lessons with the Pro Surf School Hawaii - check inat 8:45 at the Marriott. Depart for airport

How was the hotel? That is where I am staying for 4 nights before our cruise in June. I picked it b/c it has queen beds!!! LOL

Yes, lots of fruit available. Just bring some baggies for some ice and any other goodies and you will be set.

Thanks for answering my questions Cleocruiser!!:)

We're still working on our plans, but I'll try and post after they are settled. Great thread. Thanks all.

Sent from my SM-G955U1 using Forums mobile app

If you are considering a guide book, I do not recommend the Frommer's book.....I never figured out how it was organized and it was not used for anything. I gave it to the dining room hostess the last night. She was pleased....I hope it will help her. However, if you are renting a car, I do recommend the Shaka Guide app to install on your phone. It talks you through whatever tour you choose to buy and knows through GPS where you are.

If you are considering a guide book, I do not recommend the Frommer's book.....I never figured out how it was organized and it was not used for anything. I gave it to the dining room hostess the last night. She was pleased....I hope it will help her. However, if you are renting a car, I do recommend the Shaka Guide app to install on your phone. It talks you through whatever tour you choose to buy and knows through GPS where you are.

Did you have any problems with the App with losing connectivity? Can you pick to listen to things early to do planning, or does it only work when you are at that spot?

Thanks!

Did you have any problems with the App with losing connectivity? Can you pick to listen to things early to do planning, or does it only work when you are at that spot?

 

 

 

Thanks!

Each Shaka Guide is downloaded to your phone ahead of time so if you lose connectivity it still works. The GPS doesn’t require cell coverage to work on your phone.

You can view the map and each stop ahead of time in the app.

Each Shaka Guide is downloaded to your phone ahead of time so if you lose connectivity it still works. The GPS doesn’t require cell coverage to work on your phone.

 

You can view the map and each stop ahead of time in the app.

Thank you! I tried figuring out prices for these, but until you download the app, I can't find prices. Do you happen to have pricing info too?

Thank you! I tried figuring out prices for these, but until you download the app, I can't find prices. Do you happen to have pricing info too?

I honestly don’t remember- I downloaded it a few months ago. But it was something like $8-12. Not bad at all.

The Shaka apps are free to download. You can look at a preview before you purchase and decide which one you want. After you purchase, the orange dots that mark sites or instruction can be tapped to hear what the guide will say, even if you are not there. We purchased the Circle Island Tour of Oahu for $5.99. The other Oahu tour is the South Shore Tour for $4.99. We never lost GPS connection. Once we missed a turn and the app went silent. It did not tell us to go back because you always have the option to skip anything you don't want to see. There is a blue dot that shows your location at all times, so we realilzed we were off the tour when our blue dot went away from the tour. Also, the telephone number of the Shaka people is readily available and they are happy to talk to you and help out. We were able to connect our phone to the rental car audio system so everyone in the car could hear well. The apps are free to download and you can then read about each tour. You only pay when you want to actually download a tour. If you decide not to use it, just delete it.

15 day Round trip from San Pedro, Ca

Sat: Leave port

Sun - Wed, at Sea

Thur: Hilo

Fri: Honolulu

Sat: Kauai ( Nawiliwili )

Sun: Maui ( Lahaina )

Mon - Fri at Sea

Sat: Ensenada, Mexico

Sun: Home port of San Pedro

Here is what we ended up doing on our April trip

Thursday - Arrived in Honolulu - Got settled in our hotel and then grabbed dinner at Hard Rock. Walked the beach and took in the sunset

Friday - Did the Pearl Harbor Tour with Roberts. In the afternoon we did a catamaran ride with Mai Tai Catamaran.

Saturday - Did a little shopping in the morning. Boarded POA around 1pm. Spent the rest of the day relaxing and took in a show

Sunday - Maui - Rented a Mustang. We visited the tropical plantation and Iao Valley. Went to Paia and had lunch at Charley's and shopped. Did part of the road to Hana.

Monday - Spent the day in Lahaina

Tuesday - Hilo- Did a tour with Ricky's Tour. Visited Rainbow Falls, black sand beach, Volcano National Park, Banyon Drive, orchid farm. Macadamia Nut Factory and a very pretty park.

Wednesday - Kona - Just spent the day in town.

Thursday - Kauai - Planned a bi-plane ride but it was cancelled due to weather. We walked around town and later did the Fern Grotto riverboat ride and then the Smith Family Luau with Roberts.

Friday - Kauai - Did the Hawaii Movie tour with NCL. Glad we did because traffic was terrible and we didn't get back till 1:45. We were the last to get on the ship before it sailed! Very good tour! We were up on deck at 5:15 to view the Napali Coast. Simply beautiful!

NCL POA July 21

First time to Hawaii!!

THURSDAY JULY 19

SAN TO HNL

Check in Hilton Hawaiian Village

5:30PM STARLIGHT LUAU @HILTON

JULY 20: Hotel / Explore Day

WAIKIKI TROLLEY 5 LINE DAY PASS (MILITARY) $39

Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head, Duke's for dinner, Waikiki fireworks @ HOTEL

SATURDAY JULY 21:

10AM HELICOPTER RIDE: MAGNUM HELICOPTERS.

PICK UP @ ILIKAI FLAG POLES NEAR HOTEL (BRING LUGGAGE). WILL DROP US AT CRUISE TERMINAL AFTER HELICOPTER TOUR.

EMBARK: starting at 1pm / must be on by 5pm

Sail Away: 7pm

DAY 1 - SUNDAY JULY 22: MAUI - Kahului, Hawaii

Arrive: 8am / Overnight

Car Rental ALAMO

905 W Mokuea Pl No Cruise Ship Pick Up, Kahului,HI,US

Drive to Old Lahaina - visit town / explore

Reservation for Old Lahaina Luau

Can also visit the top of Haleakala

(Downloading both Shaka and Gypsy Guide for Maui apps)

DAY 2 - MONDAY JULY 23: MAUI

Depart 6pm

NCL Excursion booked: Molokini Crater & Turtle Snorkel

Day 3 - Tuesday July 24: Hilo

Arrive: 8am

Depart: 6pm

BOOKED: Public tour w MaryLou’sBigIslandGuideTours

Day 4 - Weds July 25: Kona - tender port

Arrive: 7am

Depart: 5:30pm

NCL Booked Zodiac Tour / Snorkel

Day 5 - Thurs July 26: Nawiliwili, Kauai

Arrive: 8am / Overnight

Pick up Car Rental - Dollar (ship has shuttle) Dollar phone 808-245-3652.

Drive to Poipu and hike the Maha'ulepu Heritage Trail / Queens Bath

Beach bum day

Day 6: Friday July 27: Nawiliwili, Kauai

10:30AM - BLUE HAWAII HELICOPTER TOUR

wear dark color clothes (sunglasses & camera ONLY - no bags, no hats).

shuttle provided, pick up at cruise ship @9:30am / return via shuttle approx 12pm.

Depart: 2pm

Day 7: Sat July 28

Return to port Oahu -

arrive 7am

Flight: HNL to SAN 2:40pm

DAY 1 - SUNDAY JULY 22: MAUI - Kahului, Hawaii

Arrive: 8am / Overnight

Drive to Old Lahaina - visit town / explore

Reservation for Old Lahaina Luau

Can also visit the top of Haleakala

Do note that if you are going to be spending the day in Lahaina and then do OLL, you will not have time to visit the top of Haleakala.