Just Back from POA 10/17/09 review - long

[susanhaw]

Our party of 12 cruised on the Pride of America October 17 – 24. Embarkation was fairly easy and once aboard, we headed to the buffet (like most everyone else) since we could not go to our cabin immediately. Once our deck was ready for occupancy, an announcement was made over the PA system and we headed to our balcony cabin on Deck 9, aft.

 

Cabin:

Our cabin seemed a bit small but it was nicely decorated and there was sufficient storage. We loved having the aft cabin with a balcony view, especially for the lava flow and the cruise along the Napali Coast. Our cabin steward was just okay, did not go out of her way to service our cabin and a couple of times when we made a request she told us to call Housekeeping instead of taking care of it herself. However, others in our party had excellent cabin stewards so perhaps she was the exception rather than the rule.

 

Excursions:

Our first day in Maui we did the Molokini Crater Snorkel. The water is soooo clear—but there were at least ten other boats in the crater and more snorkelers than fish! The excursion is run by a non-profit, the Pacific Whale Foundation, and the crew was very nice and dedicated to their goal of preserving the whales. On our second day in Maui we hired a driver with a van to take 8 of us into Lahaina for the day where we walked around, shopped, and had lunch.

 

We neglected to book an excursion in advance for Hilo (on the big island of Hawaii) and found that the ones we might have wanted to do were sold out. So we disembarked and asked among the drivers and tour guides at the port until we found Mel Miranda who would take us in his minivan to the Volcanoes National Park. Mel moved to Hawaii from the Phillipines more than 20 years ago so had lots of knowledge about the park. He also took us to an orchid nursery along the way and to the lava tube on the return drive. He even provided us with rain ponchos as it was (and generally is) very drizzly all day long. I recommend Mel for a custom tour that won’t take as long as the cruiseline’s version—since there were only two of us we could take as long or as short a time at each stop, and we covered the same ground in about an hour less than the excursion. Mel Miranda’s Taxi, Sightseeing and Tours: 808-936-8660.

 

In Kona we did the Body Glove snorkel which was excellent. There were no other snorkeling boats in the area and the water was incredibly clear and filled with many fish. The catamaran was a bit larger than the one in Maui and so there was much more open space for the passengers. We were provided both continental breakfast and lunch on both snorkeling excursions, however the Body Glove ship also had a (no-host) bar and even, they claimed, “the only blender on a ship in Kona.” The ship also had a water slide from the top deck into the ocean and a diving platform as well as some inflatable tubes and boards with built-in goggles if you didn’t want to stick your head in the water to see the fish. Both excursions (here and in Maui) also provided “noodles” which make it very easy to float while you snorkel. Everyone uses them, even the experienced snorkelers.

 

In Kona my husband and his brother golfed at Poipu Bay and my sister-in-law and I went along to drive the golf carts. It is a beautiful golf course and we enjoyed it very much. Our driver (from the cruise ship to the golf course) also worked independently as a tour guide so we booked him for the next day to take five of us on a tour to Waimea Canyon. That evening we went to the Luau Kalemaku which was excellent—wonderful entertainment and very good food.

 

Our driver, Kolohe Kapu, was born and raised in Poipu and was very personable. We had a great time and he provided such a fun and interesting tour. I highly recommend him for a custom tour—he gave us a 3.5 hour tour, including a trip to the very top (4,000+ elevation) at Waimea Canyon, where the tour buses cannot drive (it’s a narrow, winding road). Kolohe Kapu: 808-647-4487 or 808-634-3886.

 

Disembark:

We arrived back in Honolulu Saturday morning and chose to use the Express disembark where you take your own luggage off the ship. This meant 1) we did not have to pack everything up the night before and put our luggage in the hallway by midnight, and 2) we could get off the ship any time we wanted, without waiting for our color luggage tag to be called. We immediately picked up a taxi that took us to the Hilton Hawaiian Village where we had booked a Day Room since our flight did not depart Honolulu until 9 pm that night.

 

Restaurants:

Although NCL has Freestyle Dining, because we had a large group of 8 to 12 for dinner each night, we chose to make reservations for each evening. Three times we ate in the Skyline Restaurant, and the other nights we ate in the Specialty Restaurants (Little Italy, Jefferson’s Bistro, and East Meets West). In ALL cased, the service at dinner time was exceptionally slow. Our waiter in the Skyline (Rocky) did his very best to serve our party but for some reason there was no busboy assigned to our table to refill water glasses, clear dirty dishes, etc. Rocky had to do it all. He made up for the slow service by automatically bringing a variety of appetizers to the table before we even looked at the menu—as if he knew it would be awhile before we got anything to eat! The food was good but not outstanding. We were very disappointed in Little Italy and East Meets West—the food was just not “special” and did not warrant the additional service charge ($10-$15 per person). Jefferson’s Bistro was the exception—the food was very good but the service was a bit austere. And again, very slow.

 

Overall we had a great time as how can you beat visiting four islands without having to pack and unpack? The ship itself is very nice, entertainment was adequate, no casino of course (which was missed), crew was good. This was our first time on NCL (we have cruised on HAL, RCCL, Celebrity, and Carnival) and we would consider another cruise with them in the future but hope that the restaurant service on their other ships is quicker.

[taymiss2]

We have booked HHV as a day room as well.

 

What kind of room did you get? Although it probably doesn't matter as we won't be in the room much except to leave our bags and shower prior to going to the airport.

 

What time did you get to the hotel? Our flight is at six so will need to leave a few hour early than you.

 

Did you have to wait long to get a taxi to the hotel?

 

Thanks for the info.

[susanhaw]

Requested and received a King bed, non-smoking room. We were on the fifth floor of the Diamond Head tower (I believe there are 5 or 6 towers) overlooking a garden area adjacent to the chapel. In fact, we saw two outdoor weddings from our balcony! We left the ship about 9:45 and we were in our room at the HHV by 10:15 am. Taxi ride was around $15 plus tip. There were plenty of taxis waiting to pick up passengers and the line moved quickly. We had to check out of the room by 5 pm but they held our bags at the bell desk and we went down to the beachside Tropics Bar and Grill for a drink and watched the sunset. Took the Hilton shuttle back to the port--$12 per person.

[taymiss2]

Thanks for the quick reply. I never thought about how we are going to get back to the airport from the Hilton. We will have four of us. I wonder if a taxi would be less than the $48 that the Hilton shuttle will cost? I will need to investigate that.

 

It was quick if you were off the ship and in the room in $30 minutes.

 

Thanks.

[flashdog_1]

Thank you for taking the time to write your review. it will give many people ideas for their time on the ship and in the islands.

 

It sounds as if your group of 12 did not try to do everything together, just eat. I think that is really smart. No one is disappointed that way, and can do his/her own thing.

 

Why did you take the Hilton shuttle back to the pier? Did you do a back to back?

[susanhaw]

Oops, sorry, I meant we took the Hilton Shuttle from the hotel to the airport.

 

I also forgot to expand upon my brief mention of the view of the lava flow and the Napali Coast from the ship. Be sure to stay up and watch when the ship passes by the lava flow into the ocean (this was around 10 pm after leaving Hilo). The view at night is awesome--you can see the red hot lava flowing into the ocean and the enormously HUGE clouds of steam when it hits the water. It's dark of course, and you are at a good distance, but it is something you won't see anywhere else.

 

Also, when you leave Kauai, the ship cruises down the Napali Coastline for quite a distance and it offers a beautiful view of the green mountains and valleys, part of which we saw earlier in the day on our tour with Kolohe.

 

And yes, we did not try to do everything together...sometimes there were 4 of us, or 8, or even just 2--everyone did what they wanted and if there were others who were eager to join the group, great. We have taken multiples cruises with groups of family and friends (ohana :-) ) from 6 people up to 18 people, and that is what makes it work so well. The ship is plenty big and there are so many excursion options, there is something for everybody.

[Budget Queen]

Just for clarification- you reference "Kona" with your gulf day??? I would speculate you mean Kauai??

[susanhaw]

You are correct, we golfed on Kauai. There were several choices of golf courses offered on the excursions; our guide said that he preferred Poipu Bay to Princeville, which is the other course we considered. The golf carts have video screens in them showing each hole, how far from the pin your cart is, where other carts are on the hole ahead of you, and how many minutes ahead or behind the pace you are. Very handy.

[Nelie]

Hey we were on the same cruise and on the same Body Glove Snorkel excursion. We were the Aussies with one of the little boys who was jumping off the dive platform:p

[susanhaw]

Yes, of course, I remember you...and the other couples with the two little blonde-haired boys. We really enjoyed that Body Glove Snorkel excursion, especially in comparison to the Molokini snorkel we did earlier in the week. We were sitting on the top deck of the Body Glove ship--my husband and his brother (Asian), myself, sister-in-law and her daughter (all *not* Asian :-) ).

[honolulu66]

I wonder if a taxi would be less than the $48 that the Hilton shuttle will cost? I will need to investigate that.

 

It was quick if you were off the ship and in the room in $30 minutes.

 

Thanks.

 

It will cost about $30-$35 for a taxi to the airport from the Hilton. Not only is it cheaper it will take a lot less time.

[shazz43]

hello really enjoyed your post it was very informative,just wondering about the excursions, were they easy to arrange once in port?

or do you hav to pre book with the private excursions?

how expensive were the excursions with the cruise?

thanks for any info

[flashdog_1]

hello really enjoyed your post it was very informative,just wondering about the excursions, were they easy to arrange once in port?

or do you hav to pre book with the private excursions?

how expensive were the excursions with the cruise?

thanks for any info

 

Since the OP hasn't come back I'll give it a shot.

 

Other than grabbing a taxi for a private ride somewhere, I have truly not heard anyone say they picked up an excursion at the pier at any of the Hawaii ports.

 

This is America and they expect American wages, so like in Alaska, excursions cost more than in the Caribbean.

 

It is much wiser to pre-book your private excursions since they CAN fill up. Get what you want, not something left over.

 

For our Hawaii cruise this week only one agency required pre-payment and that was Roberts (gorabbitgo.com). the helicopter, car rentals, and Movie Tour are cfmd reservations but no payment until 24 hours ahead of time. They want us to reconfirm at that time.

 

Be sure, too, that their refund policy is that if the ship can't make it to port for any reason that your credit card will be refunded.

[susanhaw]

Hi, sorry for the long delay in responding. We did not pre-book in Hilo, but were able to find a driver to give us a private tour of the volcanoes park and orchid farm. There are a number of vans and busses parked at the port; we just started talking to the drivers to see what they could do for us particularly because the excursion was sold out, and we did not want to spend 5+ hours on the tour (we spent about 3 hours instead). Negotiate with the drivers and use common sense--two of the drivers were bickering about what was included in their respective tours so we avoided both of them.