Have any of you sailed Pride of America?

[2cruisecats]

Yes, a strange question for the HAL thread. I've thought of going on a Hawaiian cruise but figured it would be on HAL or Celebrity and part of an extended vacation (maybe on to more distant islands..). Received and email from sister-in-law today inviting us to join them on the Pride of America on April 2. After a v. bad Caribbean cruise 10(!!) years ago, we switched to HAL, enjoy their ships, and never thought of RCI or NCL again. So my questions -- Have any of you done this cruise on the Pride of America? Is April good timing? (Flying across Canada, to Hawaii, to take a one week cruise is a costly consideration. I figure, if we go, we would take a few days before the trip to see the local Honolulu sites -- any suggestions?)

[mabert]

I took my mother and sister in law on that cruise. We had a suite at the back of the ship. It was starboard, so we had a wonderful balcony. The cabin was very small but pretty it had a small public area, a separate bedroom with a large bed and a second room with a fold out bed. As a convenient way to go to Hawaii within a short period of time, it is a good itinerary. The cabin staff are lovely.

 

Now let me get to the bad part. The rest of the staff.

 

Apparently there is some requirement to hire union (I could be wrong) and have an American flagged ship if a line chooses to only cruise Hawaii. The dining room staff in the buffet area would argue with each other and with their supervisors in the presence of guests.

 

I understand they will have large numbers of staff just leave the ship, quit their job. This instability means they don't how to do their job.

 

Yes, there were those who were nice, without question.

 

But it isn't HAL.

 

So just see it as a floating hotel and you'll be fine.

 

Go to the Pearl Harbor Memorial before or after your cruise.

[blueboro]

My cousin and her family took the Pride of America cruise in October. They have been on several Carnival and RCCL cruises and thought this one was the worst of any. She said the food was horrible and at certain times of the day hard to find. My last NCL cruise was on the Norway in 1980 one month after it started sailing again so I have no personal knowledge.

[seacruise9]

Hi,

 

I cruised aboard the Pride of America in May 2007. Although this ship certainly is not as nice as the ships operated by Holland America or Celebrity, it is a good way to see the major islands in Hawaii in a short amount of time. Because the itinerary is so port-intensive, I spent little time on the ship. I had fun trying the different restaurants on the ship at night. Also, NCL has an excellent selection of shore excursions. Overall, I enjoyed this cruise. Hawaii is beautiful and the weather was perfect.

 

Chuck

[chrispb]

I haven't yet, but I plan to do so next winter, hopefully. I couldn't stand all those sea days on the other cruiselines and would prefer to extend my stay in Hawaii. Otherwise it's a waste of annual leave for me.

[trophy_23]

My buddy and his wife were on the Pride of America for their honeymoon and said it was nice. The only real complaint was about the staff complaining constantly about everything, not the first time I have heard this from people. I have never sailed anyone but HAL and this was his only cruise, so not sure what the situation was. Overall though he was pretty happy with it and found it a great way to see all the islands without taking an extended roundtrip from San Diego or Vancouver.

[tcook052]

Yes, a strange question for the HAL thread.

 

I agree.

[JJPacer]

We booked a cruise on POA. It seemed like a good way to see multiple islands, and a good introduction to Hawaii as we have never visited there before. We also planned to stay a few days before & after the cruise. As we started planning ports, we realized we wouldn't be in port long enough to do the activities we really wanted to do. Traffic is a big factor to consider. Some destinations are more suited to cruises and port days than others.

 

We started doing research into the cost of a land vacation vs. the price of the cruise. We decided to cancel our cruise, and visit 2 islands. We were able to plan a 7 day stay in Maui and a 5 day stay on Kauia (including air fare) for the price of the 7 day POA. We're going in mid May, which is off season. We have friends who have been to Hawaii many times. The information they provided was very helpful.

 

We think we will be more satisfied knowing we spent time on each island seeing and doing what we wanted to do. We plan to go back and visit other parts of the islands, in the future.

[Boytjie]

I wrote a review of our charter on the POA:http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=75998

 

Most other charters/cruises I have been on have been on HAL>

[HamOp]

I agree.

 

I don't find it a strange question for the HAL board at all. The OP likes HAL ships and is trying to find out if like minded people have had experience on the POA. Why is that strange?

[tcook052]

I don't find it a strange question for the HAL board at all. The OP likes HAL ships and is trying to find out if like minded people have had experience on the POA. Why is that strange?

 

Apparently the OP and I agree that there are better venues for NCL inquiries than the HAL board.

[2cruisecats]

Thank you for the pointer to your review. Great reading. It seems we may have the same reasons for going -- destination and friends/family and then there is our preference for HAL. I'm quite torn about this possible trip. It would be great for hubby to take a trip with his siblings but, I see my HAL Scandinavia cruise fund vanishing.

[2cruisecats]

As I prefer HAL, I was wondering how HAL cruisers felt about PoA.

I have been lurking on the NCL boards and may post there for more details on this cruise.

 

Boytjie, your review was great.

JJPacer, the stay on the Islands sounds awesome, enjoy. That gives ability to take the time and see the sights without being rushed by ships departure times.

[clr0806]

Yes, a strange question for the HAL thread. I've thought of going on a Hawaiian cruise but figured it would be on HAL or Celebrity and part of an extended vacation (maybe on to more distant islands..). Received and email from sister-in-law today inviting us to join them on the Pride of America on April 2. After a v. bad Caribbean cruise 10(!!) years ago, we switched to HAL, enjoy their ships, and never thought of RCI or NCL again. So my questions -- Have any of you done this cruise on the Pride of America? Is April good timing? (Flying across Canada, to Hawaii, to take a one week cruise is a costly consideration. I figure, if we go, we would take a few days before the trip to see the local Honolulu sites -- any suggestions?)

 

We were on one of the first few sailings. Having been on RCI and Celebrity prior it was not a good comparison. Mind you not a terrible trip but we would not do NCL again. We are doing our first HAL and are excited to try this line.

[austriaworldtraveler]

Das yes, the crew are very bad und the food is worse. Best way to see the islands. It is not RCCL, Princess, HOA, Celebrity, Carnival or any other. Keep this in mind und you will not be disappointed.

[Boytjie]

Das yes, the crew are very bad und the food is worse. Best way to see the islands. It is not RCCL, Princess, HOA, Celebrity, Carnival or any other. Keep this in mind und you will not be disappointed.

 

While not the most polished crew I did think they were very friendly and trying hard to do their best.

[hillside]

We were in Hawaii for almost 4 weeks last March. We stayed in Waikiki and Maui, primarily, but took the POA one week cruise so that we could get to all the islands. We'd never been to Hawaii and wanted to at least see a bit of each island. I would say one week in Hawaii is not very long given the distance traveled, but we all have to work around our schedules and time available. (We are retired and decided to take a long trip.)

 

The reviews that say to think of the POA as a floating hotel are correct. It is definately different from a typical cruise experience, but we liked the ease of going to each island. We had an aft balcony and that was terrific. We spent a lot of down time there. We ate in the MDR once, or twice, and all other meals were in the Lido. (Think giant cafeteria) This cruise is about the islands and not the ship in my opinion. We were tired from our day trips and didn't do much on the ship. Our cabin steward was great. He was as good as our experiences on HAL, Celebrity, and Azamara. The wait staff in bars, Cadillac diner, were not on that level. We knew that from all the reviews and it didn't bother us. It was all about the islands. The cruise by the Napali coast was fabulous. Mother nature didn't cooperate with a lava flow between Hilo and Kona. But, Hawaii is a fabulous place to visit and we were happy we could fit the cruise in as part of our Hawaiian vacation.

[caltnl]

Have sailed with HAL a number of times.

 

However I had never been to Hawaii so decided that we would go several years ago on one of the last cruises of the Pride of Hawaii.

 

We went with the idea that would be on a floating hotel and the service would probably be like in many hotels in the US. They did not disappoint me.

 

Of course any cruise is better than being at home.

 

Have to say the Grandsons really enjoyed the cruise and the old man got to see Hawaii and enjoy myself.

[vbmom87]

The NCL Pride of America was my second cruise (May, 2010). My first was on the HAL Volendam (June 2008), which we loved. I read all about the POA on the NCL and Hawaii boards, so I was prepared. Let me say that we did not choose this cruise for the ship. We chose it because it made the most sense for us to see the Hawaiin Islands. We flew out the Tuesday night before the cruise and were able to see a good deal of Oahu. The cruise allowed us to see the other three main islands, without having to take flights between them. We planned very well, and got to see the main highlights of each island. It was a wonderful vacation. We had no regrets.

 

That said, the NCL POA was not comparable to our experience on the Volendam; however it met out needs. We were on that cruise to see Hawaii, not for a great cruising experience. Unlike many others, we found the staff to be wonderful. We did not come across anyone that was unfriendly or grumpy. And I have to say it was kind of nice having a staff that spoke the same language as I did. The area I found the ship lacking was food. It was no comparison to our Volendam experience. I have to say the fruit on our June 2008 cruise was so much better than what we had on our Hawaiian cruise. We ended up eating mostly in the buffet, which was not my choice, but that of those I traveled with. We did not go to the specialty restaurants, as we just couldn't see spending twice to eat. (Food was included in our fare, so why would we spend extra money to eat in a special restaurant?) Yes we are thrifty travellers.

 

Would I recommend this cruise? Absolutely, IF you are going on this cruise to experience Hawaii, not because you want a great cruising experience. A lot of how much you will like this cruise will be based on your attitude. If you go not wanting to like it, you probably won't. We went with the right attitude, and it worked out great for us.

 

As far as April I am not sure. I do believe the rainy season usually ends in March, so it should be a nice time. The Hawaii forum should give you more help with what it is like in April. We loved May. I would have liked to go when we could have seen the whales but I did not want to travel from the Midwest in the winter with potential for travel delays. I also wanted to go during the drier season. Worked well for us. The only rain we had was a half day on the Road to Hana. However, that is in the rain forest, so we got what we expected.

 

Great trip!!! We were happy we did it. I am sure others would disagree, especially those who put a high priority on a ship.

[Taxguy77]

Yes, a strange question for the HAL thread. I've thought of going on a Hawaiian cruise but figured it would be on HAL or Celebrity and part of an extended vacation (maybe on to more distant islands..). Received and email from sister-in-law today inviting us to join them on the Pride of America on April 2. After a v. bad Caribbean cruise 10(!!) years ago, we switched to HAL, enjoy their ships, and never thought of RCI or NCL again. So my questions -- Have any of you done this cruise on the Pride of America? Is April good timing? (Flying across Canada, to Hawaii, to take a one week cruise is a costly consideration. I figure, if we go, we would take a few days before the trip to see the local Honolulu sites -- any suggestions?)

 

Yes! Maui is great. Two weeks split between Maui, Kuwai and Oahu is what we did (looked for a cruise, but none then) and had a fabulous time.

[kayjo]

It's a good way to see a lot of Hawaii, but if you like to gamble you are out of luck. Since you never leave U.S. water, no gambling on the ship.

[tinsnslus]

Two years ago husband, myself and daughter took the POA cruise around the Hawaiian islands to celebrate our daughter's sweet 16th birthday. This was just our 2nd cruise, 1st cruise was on HAL. I have to agree with the others, in that you want to approach the trip as a floating hotel. We traveled to Hawaii a few days before the cruise and stayed on Waikiki Beach and went to Pearl Harbor on a local cruise suggested by other cc members. We did very little on the cruise ship, generally had breakfast and left the ship for the day. Our daughter loved the evening shows, I have to say I slept thru several of them, after lengthy days on the islands, I just wanted to have some food and sleep! But, you're in HAWAII! You're on different islands, and you don't have to pack up and take a flight from one island to the other. We watched sunrise and sunset from our balcony. We watched the whales. We rented cars on each island, we took a helicopter tour of Kauai, take your GPS so you can tour the islands at your leisure and still be able to find your way back to the port. We had some great meals at little sidewalk type cafe's we wandered upon on the islands. We found it a great way to see the different islands, can't tell you much about the ship except that yes, people got sick and they saran wrapped the stations at the buffet - but if they wanted to serve me everything i wanted, go ahead - I'm on vacation and I don't want to get sick.

 

We approached the trip as a once in a lifetime chance to see 4 of the Hawaiian islands. My daughter and I kept a journal of our trip -- our memorable parts of the cruise: sailing past the park as we departed with all the kids waving and yelling to the ship as we sailed away, arriving at the islands in the morning at sunrise, leaving at sunset and our final arrival back in Oahu with singers and dancers at the port welcoming us back.

 

Our contact with the personnel on the ship was always friendly. Our room was always made up and cleaned. NO, there wasn't notes and chocolate on our beds at night, nor were there different towel animals on the beds. We had ordered the birthday decorations for our daughter and our room was decorated with balloons and banners and had a large cake in the room. Hawaii is wonderful and we personally found the cruise a great way to see. We talk about returning to Hawaii some day and we would do this cruise again.

 

Hope this helped a little in your decision.

[Tamaracboy]

I was on the POA last October/November and was very pleasantly surprised.

I am used to HAL standards and had read very little good about POA.

So I went expecting basically a floating hotel and not much more.

With this itinerary there is almost NO cruising involved.

You are in port all day, and on excursions.

So, this really isn't much of a "cruise".

NCL and the POA staff & crew were going all out to overcome their reputation for our private charter.

IMHO they achieved their goal and more.

This is a wonderful way to see a lot of islands in a short time.

Some of the food and (dining room) service were not up to HAL standards, especially the first night. (possibly the WORST service [?] I have had anywhere, anytime)

Yet at other times I was very pleasantly surprised.

The aft open Lido deck with its duplicate buffet was a wonderful place for breakfast. And, it would be a wonderful space on any ship.

The Jefferson additional charge restaurant had superb service and excellent food.

The open late Cadillac Diner was a lot of fun and with wonderful "saucy" diner-style waitresses. The selection there is very good and it is free, except for milkshakes and a few other up-sell items.

All in all every staff/crew member was friendly and helpful. (with the exception of one "clueless" front desk staffer)

Our cabin steward was efficient and cheerful.

The verandah cabin was a little tighter than on HAL, but certainly adequate and clean.

I had been to Hawaii before, but my partner had never been, nor had he ever cruised. I had warned him not to judge all cruising by NCL/POA.

End result was that he had no complaints (except the very Red,White&Blue decor), had a good time, and would cruise again.

I personally enjoyed seeing the islands again from this sea born perspective.

One word of advice: seriously consider renting your own car on Maui and/or Kauai rather than using the shore excursions.

Their excursions are rather expensive and regimented.

With your own rental you can see more, and linger, and see out of the way places, and save money.

You are on an island so you can't get lost, and in America where you speak the language ;)

 

r.

[Tamaracboy]

Ooooops

[Boytjie]

You are on an island so you can't get lost, and in America where you speak the language ;)

 

BUT you can get stuck in some nasty traffic! :(