Review of Our Hawaii Great Golf Cruise on NCL POA 4/30-5/7/11

[phillygirl63]

Since there are very few reviews that focus on golf, I thought I should post this one.

 

We were 3 couples intent on playing as much golf as possible at some of the most beautiful courses in Hawaii. A lot of research and planning went into our itinerary. Timing was very important since we were booking most of our tee times on our own and not through NCL. We had to allow for enough time to get the rental cars and travel to and from the course. I booked our rental cars through discounthawaiicarrental.com and they hooked us up with Thrifty. I joined the Blue Chip program, which was strongly recommended by many CC members. At all ports (except Kona) there were free shuttles to the Thrifty location. In Kona there is a Thrifty desk in the King Kam hotel, which is located at the end of the pier where the ship tenders. Each day we had a minivan which accommodated all 6 people and 6 golf bags.

 

We had all booked BA balcony rooms on deck 10 port side near the mid-ship elevators, but just 5 days prior to the cruise, we all received upsell offers to AD penthouse suites. DH and I and one of the couples took the offer, but the other couple was satisfied with their BA. The two penthouses were located on Deck 10 port side adjacent to each other and the one balcony room was just down the hall, so we were all still pretty close to each other. The port side rooms are the best for the sailby of the Napali coast.

 

NCL has a golf program in Hawaii, which includes valet service for the golf clubs. The cost is $20 per person for the week, which I thought was very reasonable. POA does not permit you to keep your clubs in your cabin, so you must use the valet service. NCL also offers excursions to several courses on the islands and the golf pro is on the ship to give lessons if desired. He also acts as the valet and takes care of getting your clubs whenever you need them. Our pro was Corey and he was great. All of our clubs were waiting for us as we disembarked in each port. Since we wanted a little more flexibility, we only booked one golf excursion through NCL (Poipu Bay on Kauai). I'll talk about that later.

 

Prior to booking tee times, I called each course to find out what their aeration schedule was. This would make a difference on which courses were were going to play. We did not want to spend $250 to play a course that had just been aerated. Not any fun! Once we determined which course, I made sure to call as soon as possible to book the tee times. Some of the courses are 90 days in advance, but some are only 30 days.

 

Now, I'll talk about each day.

[phillygirl63]

PRE-CRUISE ARRIVAL IN HONOLULU.

 

We arrived at HNL on Friday, April 29 at 2:00 p.m. All 3 couples were coming from different areas of the east coast. We arranged our flights so that we all connected in Chicago to fly on the same flight to HNL. Everything went according to plan.

 

Upon arrival at HNL, we met our driver from Jay's Limousine Service who took us to the J.W. Marriott Ihilani KoOlina Resort which is about 30 minutes from the airport. Since we had 6 people with all their suitcases and golf clubs, it was necessary to have a larger vehicle. Jay's came with a stretch limo which was very nice; however, I would have preferred a minibus (which is what I thought I was getting), as one of the men in our group has a slight mobility issue and it was difficult for him to enter and exit the limo.

 

We arrived at the J.W. Marriott at about 3:00 and checked into our rooms. We had an ocean view balcony which was really nice. The hotel is very nice with a large man-made lagoon which serves as the beach area. The entire hotel is set along the cliffs of the ocean and the views are incredible. Disney is building a big resort right next door, but the construction is complete on the outside so there was virtually no noise coming from there.

 

After freshening up a bit, we all met for our reservation for dinner at 6:00 at Azul Restaurant in the hotel. The food was delicious. I would highly recommend.

 

After dinner, we had a couple of cocktails by the pool, but we were all ready for bed after our long journey to paradise.

[phillygirl63]

SATURDAY, 4/30

 

This was our planned itinerary:

 

8:40/8:48 tee times at KoOlina Golf Course ($159 pp) on the hotel property

2:00 meet Jay's Limousine for transfer to POA

4:30 mandatory muster drill

5:00 Cruise Critic meet and greet in Gold Rush Saloon

5:30 sign up for pub crawl in Gold Rush Saloon

6:00 pub crawl

7:00 POA departs Honolulu

 

Everything went according to plan. We all played the KoOlina golf course. The course is a typical resort style course. A little easier which was a good way to get us warmed up for the other courses we planned to play on the other islands. It was ladies against men, and we had a blast. Everyone really enjoyed the course. The weather was sunny and low 80's, and the course was in great condition. The landscaping is beautiful. The really neat thing was that the Black Pearl from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies was docked in the harbor and you could see it from several vantage points on the course. Really cool!

 

After golf, we got all of our luggage together and were picked up by Jay's in the same stretch limo. I made them aware of the situation with one of the men's mobility issue and asked for the minibus for all future transfers. No problem.

 

We arrived at the pier at about 3:30. The ship was very impressive looking. Check-in was a breeze and there were very few people checking in at this time. Since we were in a suite, I expected that someone would escort us to our rooms, but that was not the case. No problem, we found our way, got situated in our rooms, and met for the muster drill at 4:30.

 

NCL's muster drills are very simple. You don't even need to take your life vests with you.

 

Following the muster drill, we proceeded to the Gold Rush Saloon for the meet and greet with the CC members on our roll call. I had started a roll call months earlier, and we had 39 people who committed to attend the M&G. However, only 18 of them actually attended. Not a problem, the ones that did attend all had a wonderful time together. It was really nice to see familiar faces throughout the ship. Some of us even met for dinner one night.

 

My group attended the pub crawl. This was the reason that I held the M&G in the Gold Rush. I didn't want to miss out on this. It was so much fun! You visit 5 bars in about an hour and are given a drink in each bar. I believe the cost was $30 pp. Some of the drinks were very good, but a couple were not worth getting drunk for. There were some people though who thought it a requirement to drink them all. At each bar the leaders say a little toast (you are not allowed to sip or sniff or do anything with the drink until the toast is over). As you proceed to the next bar, everyone is screaming "PUB CRAWL!" What a blast!

 

After the pub crawl we went to dinner at Lazy J's Steakhouse. All of the food was very good, except the oysters.

 

No evening is complete without a visit to the Waikiki Bar at the back of the ship. Some of us in my group smoke cigarettes and one of the men enjoys cigars, so this was the place for us. There was a DJ playing, and everyone was having a very good time. The bartenders are really nice at this bar too.

 

Off to bed to rest up for the next day....

[phillygirl63]

SATURDAY, 4/30

 

This was our planned itinerary:

 

8:40/8:48 tee times at KoOlina Golf Course ($159 pp) on the hotel property

2:00 meet Jay's Limousine for transfer to POA

4:30 mandatory muster drill

5:00 Cruise Critic meet and greet in Gold Rush Saloon

5:30 sign up for pub crawl in Gold Rush Saloon

6:00 pub crawl

7:00 POA departs Honolulu

 

Everything went according to plan. We all played the KoOlina golf course. The course is a typical resort style course. A little easier which was a good way to get us warmed up for the other courses we planned to play on the other islands. It was ladies against men, and we had a blast. Everyone really enjoyed the course. The weather was sunny and low 80's, and the course was in great condition. The landscaping is beautiful. The really neat thing was that the Black Pearl from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies was docked in the harbor and you could see it from several vantage points on the course. Really cool!

 

After golf, we got all of our luggage together and were picked up by Jay's in the same stretch limo. I made them aware of the situation with one of the men's mobility issue and asked for the minibus for all future transfers. No problem.

 

We arrived at the pier at about 3:30. The ship was very impressive looking. Check-in was a breeze and there were very few people checking in at this time. Since we were in a suite, I expected that someone would escort us to our rooms, but that was not the case. No problem, we found our way, got situated in our rooms, and met for the muster drill at 4:30.

 

NCL's muster drills are very simple. You don't even need to take your life vests with you.

 

Following the muster drill, we proceeded to the Gold Rush Saloon for the meet and greet with the CC members on our roll call. I had started a roll call months earlier, and we had 39 people who committed to attend the M&G. However, only 18 of them actually attended. Not a problem, the ones that did attend all had a wonderful time together. It was really nice to see familiar faces throughout the ship. Some of us even met for dinner one night.

 

My group attended the pub crawl. This was the reason that I held the M&G in the Gold Rush. I didn't want to miss out on this. It was so much fun! You visit 5 bars in about an hour and are given a drink in each bar. I believe the cost was $30 pp. Some of the drinks were very good, but a couple were not worth getting drunk for. There were some people though who thought it a requirement to drink them all. At each bar the leaders say a little toast (you are not allowed to sip or sniff or do anything with the drink until the toast is over). As you proceed to the next bar, everyone is screaming "PUB CRAWL!" What a blast!

 

After the pub crawl we went to dinner at Lazy J's Steakhouse. All of the food was very good, except the oysters.

 

No evening is complete without a visit to the Waikiki Bar at the back of the ship. Some of us in my group smoke cigarettes and one of the men enjoys cigars, so this was the place for us. There was a DJ playing, and everyone was having a very good time. The bartenders are really nice at this bar too.

 

Off to bed to rest up for the next day....

[phillygirl63]

SUNDAY, 5/1 -- MAUI, DAY 1

 

This was our planned intinerary:

 

8:00 POA arrives at Kahului, Maui -- depart ship to pick up rental car at airport

11:00/11:10 tee times at Kapalua Plantation Course ($268 pp)

Travel back to POA

POA docks overnight

 

Everything went according to plan. My BIL and I departed the ship at 8:00, took the Thrifty shuttle to pick up the car, and then went back to the pier to pick up the rest of our group.

 

The driving time to Kapalua is just a little over an hour, so we got there in plenty of time. We even stopped at the Bay Course to take a look at it. It is absolutely beautiful! The Plantation Course is a very difficult course, mainly because the greens have severe breaks and it was very windy this day, which made it that much more difficult. None of us really played all that well. On one of the holes, my ball landed on the green leaving me with a putt of about 10 ft. When I putted the ball (for a little while it looked like a good putt), but it went a little past the hole. Just as I thought it would stop, the wind took it to about 40 ft. Bummer. I have a handicap index of 15.4 and usually play in the mid to high 80's. I ended up with a 102 for the day, and I think I had about 50 putts. Real bummer.

 

After golf, we had lunch in the clubhouse and then headed back to the ship.

 

We got back to the ship at about 5:30. The main parking lot was full, but there was plenty of space left in the alternate parking lot which is just around the block from the pier. Keep this in mind if you are planning to keep a rental car overnight. The parking at the per is VERY limited, but if you get back early enough it shouldn't be a problem.

 

That evening we met at the Napa Wine Bar for a pre-dinner cocktail and then ate at the Liberty MDR, which is the casual dining room. Shorts are permitted in all dining areas except the Skyline MDR and Jefferson's Bistro. The food at the Liberty MDR was very good.

 

Again, we made our nightly trip to the Waikiki Bar and also had a cocktail at Pink's Champagne Bar before going back to our rooms.

 

Another wonderful day in paradise...

[phillygirl63]

MONDAY, MAY 2 -- MAUI DAY 2

 

This was our planned itinerary:

 

8:00 depart ship

9:11/9:20 tee times at Wailea Emerald Course ($179 pp)

5:00 return rental car

6:00 POA departs Maui

 

Again, everything went according to plan. We already had the rental car at the pier and we had left all the golf clubs inside it, so that was easy.

 

We decided to play Wailea Emerald because the Gold course had been aerated just days before. This is a very beautiful course, not too difficult. The greens and fairways were perfect. The layout of the course allowed for some beautiful views of the smaller islands and Lanai. The landscaping was really beautiful. The staff were very nice. We all played pretty good this day. There was no wind to speak of. We all agreed that this was a course that we would definitely come back to play again. As a matter of fact, we also all agreed that if we were to do it over, we would forget about playing Kapalua Plantation again, and we would play the Gold Course one day and then the Emerald Course the next day. This was a very enjoyable round. The red tees are 5,268 yards, which is a lot shorter than my home course in CT, so I played from the white tees which are 5,873 yards. I shot a 93, and was very pleased with that. For you men, the tips play at 6,825 and the blue tees are 6,407.

 

I should note that the pro shop at this course is to die for. They have a large selection of ladies and men's golf apparel, etc. They even sell Brighton handbags. Plan a little extra time to shop.

 

NCL does offer golf excursions for both the Emerald and Gold courses; however, due to the fact that we already had the rental car overnight, we just did it on our own. It worked out well pricewise too, because I think the ship's excursion was $235 and we paid $179. Really, the ship's prices for the golf excursions are not really that bad considering that it includes all transportation. But, if you want a little more flexibility, doing it on your own is the way to go.

 

After golf, we had lunch in the clubhouse and headed back to the ship to drop the others off, my BIL and I returned the rental car to Thrifty, and rode the shuttle back to the ship.

 

Later on, we met at the Napa Wine bar for our customary pre-dinner cocktail and ate at Little Italy. My food was just o.k. I had the chicken parm, but some of the others had the osso bucco, which they said was very good. The waiter was a bit rude when we asked if we could have the tortellini for the table to share. He commented that the portions were very large and that we would not have room for anymore. Anyway, we insisted on the tortellini and did, in fact, share and finish it. So there!

 

After having some cocktails in one of the many great bars on the ship, we all went to our rooms to sleep and get ready for our next wonderful day in paradise....

[phillygirl63]

TUESDAY, MAY 3 -- HILO, BIG ISLAND

 

This is was our planned itinerary:

 

7:00 POA docks in Hilo

9:00 pick up rental car at airport

6:00 POA departs Hilo

 

Since there are no golf courses to speak of in Hilo, we decided to play this day be ear. All of us had been to Hawaii before, and we had all seen VNP. Therefore, we cancelled the rental car and just took a cab into town. We had lunch at Cafe Pesto, which has great food. We had the pizza and it was very good. I highly recommend. After walking around and doing a little souvie shopping, we got a cab and headed to Hawaii Candies and then back to the ship.

 

That night we met at the Napa Wine Bar for our customary pre-dinner cocktails, and then had dinner at Jefferson's Bistro. This was the best food so far. We loved it. I had the salmon, and it was delicious. Others had the lamb and raved about it. This would not be our last time to eat here for sure.

 

One of the nights we went to the Jersey Boys show. I think it was this night. It was very good.

 

After hitting one or two of the bars, it was off to sleep in preparation for yet another wonderful day in paradise....

[phillygirl63]

WEDNESDAY, MAY 4: KONA, BIG ISLAND

 

This was our planned itinerary:

 

7:00 POA arrives in Kona

7:00 DH to do deep sea fishing excursion booked through NCL

7:30 everyone else to take tender and pick up rental car at King Kam Hotel

9:48/10:00 tee times at Mauna Kea Golf Course ($259 pp)

4:45 return rental car to King Kam Hotel

5:00 last tender for ship

6:00 ship departs Kona

 

Again, everything went according to plan. DH went on his fishing excursion, but did not see any fish at all -- not one bite. It turned out to be a very expensive boat ride.

 

The rest of us played at Mauna Kea which was a good one hour ride from the pier. The way back took a little longer because of construction and traffic. So, if you plan to play at this course or any of the other courses nearby, make sure that you head back to the ship immediately after finishing your round so that you don't take the chance of missing that last tender at 5:00.

 

Mauna Kea is a beautiful course, but the winds were howling that day at about 45 mph. At one point, after my visor had blown off my head in mid-swing a couple of times, causing me to not hit a good shot (that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it), I shouted "I'm not having much fun!" It was my BIL who had suggested we play this course and Kapalua Plantation, and when we got in the car, I accused him of being a masochist. At one point, the winds were so bad that we could not even put our clubs in our golf bag without using two hands. One of the other wives almost got knocked down to the ground. I'm not kidding, it was that bad. I ended up shooting a 111! There is just no way I am ever going back to that course again. Even the ranger said that there have been men who have quit in the middle of the round and demanded their money back. Of course, they did not get it. Even the pros will not play this course anymore. They used to, but too many of them complained that the course was just too difficult. My point is that if you really want to play a nice, relaxing round of golf and enjoy great scenery, pick another course. Mauna Lani looked really nice and so did Waikoloa. You pass both courses on your way to Mauna Kea.

 

One good thing was that we did not have a drop of rain at Mauna Kea, but it rained the entire day in Kona. I guess it wasn't all that bad of a day.

 

After catching the tender back to the ship, we met at the Waikiki Bar for some afternoon cocktails and enjoyed the DJ. Dinner was at Skyline MDR, and was very good.

 

I think this is the night we went to hear some Karaoke in the Gold Rush Saloon, but no one got up to sing. Oh, well. It was still another wonderful day in paradise.....

[phillygirl63]

THURSDAY, MAY 5 -- KAUAI DAY 1

 

This was our planned itinerary:

 

8:00 POA arrives in Lihue, Kauai

8:05 depart ship to play at Poipu Bay Golf Course (booked through NCL) ($239 pp)

5:00 dinner at Duke's Canoe Club at Kauai Marriott

POA docks overnight

 

Well, this is the day that things got turned around a bit. We booked our golf excursion with NCL. This was the only one we booked with NCL. Since everything else we wanted to do was close to the ship and within walking distance or a quick shuttle ride, there was no need for a rental car. However, just after embarking the ship on the first day, we received a note from the shore excursions desk stating that the Poipu Bay excursion was cancelled and the course to be played would be Puakea. Now, Puakea is very close to the ship, and because some of the people who booked the Poipu Bay golf excursions wanted to make it back in time to go to the luau (which left at 4:00), the entire excursions was cancelled. I really think that NCL could have accommodated those of us who did not care to attend the luau and still wanted to play Poipu, but that's just my opinion. Really, how much would it have cost to get a minibus for us and let the others who wanted to do the luau play Puakea. Anyway, I ended up booking a rental car and then calling Poipu directly for tee times It turned out to our advantage anyway, NCL charges $239 pp to play Poipu; however, since the ship was staying overnight and we weren't in any hurry, we were able to get tee times for 1:10/1:20 and the cost was only $145. I moved the reservation for Duke's to 7:00 and all was good with the world.

 

Poipu Bay is an absolutely beautiful course set along the cliffs. The ocean waves crash against the cliffs creating very dramatic scenes. There are areas along the piles of black lava rocks that are designated as historical native burial grounds. The course was in very good condition, and the greens were prestine (like carpet). Very easy to putt. It's a very manageable course even for the first time, but it would be a lot more enjoyable the second time around I'm sure. It was a little windy, but at least the holes ran so that you were into the wind on one hole and had the wind at your back on the next. I shot a 101, and was not really disappointed. I would strongly recommend having this course on your itinerary. All of us agreed that this course and Wailea Emerald were are favorites. On our way to the airport to get the rental car, we saw some of Puakea. It looked nice, but I can't imagine that it was anywhere near the course that Poipu Bay was.

 

After golf and returning the rental car, we went to Dukes for dinner. We sat upstairs along the rails, and had an absolutely wonderful meal with a great view. The torches were lit. It was wonderful. Since I was the one who did all the research for this trip, I had read many reviews about the hula pie and how great it was, so I insisted that everyone save room for it. They had no idea what the big deal was, but when that hula pie came out to the table (at first we had just ordered one to share), it was quickly gobbled up by my gang and we had to order another one. Dukes is a great place to hang out on this night since you don't have to be back to the ship at any specific time. However, after 9:00 p.m. the shuttle stops running, so you will have to walk. It's only a 15 min. walk though.

 

We returned to the ship, had our nightcap at one of the bars and went to our rooms.

 

Again, we had to prepare for another wonderful day in paradise....

[phillygirl63]

FRIDAY, MAY 6: KAUAI DAY 2

 

This was our planned itinerary:

 

7:15 myself and one other to go to Anchor Cove Shopping Center to get shuttle to AirVentures Air/Ground Combo tour ($161.46 pp).

8:30 all others to go horseback riding excursion through NCL ($159 pp).

2:00 POA departs Kauai

 

Since this was a short day at the port and since the Kiele Ocean 9 course at Kauai Lagoons is closed until some time later this month, we decided to forego golf. Myself and one of the men in my group booked the AirVentures air/ground combo tour, which included a 50 min. plane ride of the island and then a 90 min. boat cruise up the Wailua River to the fern grotto. In my opinion, everyone must see Kauai from the air at least one time, either by helicopter or plane. We chose the plane, as my friend was just a little over the 250 weight limit for the helicopter, and the plane had no weight limit. We had a fabulous time. Due to the recent rains had on the islands just days prior, the waterfalls were gushing and there were rainbows everywhere. We even had a full circle rainbow that followed us for about 15 mins. It was a wonderful morning.

 

The others went horseback riding through NCL. They enjoyed it very much. The ranch was actually right next to the Poipu Bay golf course that we had played the day before. They rode on the beach and on the cliffside along the ocean.

 

After returning to the ship, we had lunch in Lazy J's, which is a suite perk. It's the only time we got to take advantage of it. It was delicious.

 

After meeting for our pre-dinner cocktails, we had dinner once again in Jefferson's Bistro. Again, it was the best meal ever.

[phillygirl63]

To sum it up, this was an excellent way to do a golf trip in Hawaii. The Pride of America is a beautiful ship and does not deserve any negative reviews. Certainly, there were things that I would change, but nothing that has anything to do with the ship. For instance, if I was to plan this trip again, I would not bother playing Kapalua Plantation or Mauna Kea. There are plenty of other courses that would fit the bill nicely. Specifically, like I said before, instead of Kapalua, I would play the Wailea courses both days in Mauai. It's the most beautiful part of the island and the driest from what they told us. I would also consider disembarking in Hilo and making the over 2 hour trip to Kona, play golf in the afternoon, stay at a hotel for the night, play golf in the morning, and then get back to the ship in Kona. However, you would have to be ready for Plan B if the ship decides not to tender in Kona. Plan B would be to fly to Kauai to meet up with the ship.

 

Other than that, there is absolutely nothing that I would have changed about this trip. It was a wonderful vacation, and everyone in my group loved it.

 

If anyone has any questions, please feel free to post them, and I will try to check back often.

 

Thanks for listening to my rambling.

[Zimomiller]

Excellent review!

 

I am sure the golfing cruisers will be thrilled that you took the time to do that.

 

We are cruising the POA in July so I have just a few Q's.

 

Were you in a position to utilize the services of your butler and concierge? If so any feedback/comments/names?

 

Did you take advantage of the breakfast and lunch perk for suite cruisers in Lazy J's?

 

In Kona, did you get priority tender tickets?

 

Embarkation sounded easy, how was debarkation?

[phillygirl63]

We saw our butler only 3 times during the entire week, but he made sure we had plenty of Diet Pepsi in our frig, which was really the only request we had. He also delivered the nighttime snacks to our room, but we rarely saw him.

 

We ate breakfast a few times and one time lunch in Lazy J's. It was really nice. They have a buffet with cold items and then a very nice breakfast menu. I had the steak and eggs each time. Great!

 

Priority tender tickets were delivered to our room for Kona. I don't remember ever giving them to anyone, but we had them.

 

Debarking was just as easy, but DH and I carried our own bags off. The others set their large suitcases our the night before and carried their overnights themselves. Our golf bags were waiting there along with the large suitcases. It was very easy and quick.

 

I hope you have a wonderful cruise in July. The weather should be great. Are you planning to play golf?

[Raison]

Thanks for your review! I have read it out to DH who is an avid golfer. He was interested to hear what you had to say about the courses. Mauna Kea did not sound like a relaxing game of golf with all the wind! DH played the Kona Country Club mountain course in Kona and said it was a lovely course.

 

He played 4 times when we were in Hawaii, and he loved the Wailea Gold course (would have played more if I had said it was ok I'm sure:p). He cancelled Kapalua Plantationa and played the Gold course instead, he was hapy with his decision!

 

Glad your plans all worked out and you had a great trip.

[Zimomiller]

I hope you have a wonderful cruise in July. The weather should be great. Are you planning to play golf?

 

 

Thanks for the reply. No we will not be playing golf.

[GolfHawaii]

Thanks for the timely review. We just sat down to plan golf with our group for our Feb 2012 cruise. I will make sure they read your review, as a lot of it describes what is in our plan. Currently we are only planning one round on each island. Not our whole group is golfers, so we have to split time.

 

Did you try to find a muni in Hilo or were you just looking at the resort courses? We are going to try to find a hidden gem in the Hilo area.

 

I also like the $20.00/week valet club service. Did you use any of the other on board golf services?

[phillygirl63]

Thanks for the timely review. We just sat down to plan golf with our group for our Feb 2012 cruise. I will make sure they read your review, as a lot of it describes what is in our plan. Currently we are only planning one round on each island. Not our whole group is golfers, so we have to split time.

 

Did you try to find a muni in Hilo or were you just looking at the resort courses? We are going to try to find a hidden gem in the Hilo area.

 

I also like the $20.00/week valet club service. Did you use any of the other on board golf services?

 

Good luck in finding a course in Hilo. My research showed that there was only one course in Hilo and it is currently closed. I guess it went under just recently. Anyway, it was a good day to just enjoy the ship since there are no sea days on this cruise. And, since you have to appease the non-golfers in your group, this would be the ideal day to do it. You could go to Akaka Falls, Volcano National Park, the Botanical Gardens, beaches, etc.

 

The valet service was very good. However, be aware that it is just one person who does everything, and that was Cory the pro on board. We tipped him very well at the end, because he really was good and $20 just didn't seem to be enough, especially since we didn't do any of the golf excursions through the ship. I think that is where he makes most of his money.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to post them here. I'll be checking.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the review.

 

 

Kirk