Hawaii, Carribean or Europe?

[maxciocc]

We sailed on the Pearl to the Eastern Caribbean in April and had the best week of our lives on our very first cruise. My question is this:

My DW does not like to fly and has tolerated flying from NY to Las Vegas but have not gone to Hawaii because of the long flight. With that in mind, I would hate to invest in a Hawaiin cruise and have my wife totally tired and stressed out before embarkation. Would we be wiser just to consider another Caribbean cruise since it is an easy flight from NY to FLA?

[VideoTech]

We sailed on the Pearl to the Eastern Caribbean in April and had the best week of our lives on our very first cruise. My question is this:

My DW does not like to fly and has tolerated flying from NY to Las Vegas but have not gone to Hawaii because of the long flight. With that in mind, I would hate to invest in a Hawaiin cruise and have my wife totally tired and stressed out before embarkation. Would we be wiser just to consider another Caribbean cruise since it is an easy flight from NY to FLA?

 

Well, you've really answered your own question; the shortest flights are the Caribbean itinerary ports.

 

Perhaps you could do a test and take an Alaskan cruise? That would involve a cross country flight from NY to Seattle or Vancouver (about 4 to 5 hours non stop). It would be a small stepping stone up from the shorter Miami/Orlando flights, but not as long as the flight required to get to Hawaii.

[maxciocc]

Thanks Video Tech; but as beautiful as Alaska is we live in Buffalo NY and get an average of 100 inches of snowfall per season, so we prefer warm climate vacations because winter lasts from Nov to April in our neck of the woods.

[veggie59]

We sailed on the Pearl to the Eastern Caribbean in April and had the best week of our lives on our very first cruise. My question is this:

My DW does not like to fly and has tolerated flying from NY to Las Vegas but have not gone to Hawaii because of the long flight. With that in mind, I would hate to invest in a Hawaiin cruise and have my wife totally tired and stressed out before embarkation. Would we be wiser just to consider another Caribbean cruise since it is an easy flight from NY to FLA?

 

There are also cruises to Hawaii that sail from the west coast. You don't have to fly to Hawaii to enjoy a cruise there. It really depends on how long you wish to vacation. If it is only 7 days you would have to fly to Hawaii, if longer you may find an option leaving from the west coast. Of course you have to get there too. We did a Hawaiin cruise in 2002 where we flew to Hawaii. We left from Boston and flew to Denver....it took about 4 1/2 hours. We had a brief stopover and then flew to Hawaii....about 5 1/2 hours. They said we made good time. Depending on where you are flying from/to you could try for a longer layover to break things up. Good luck!!!

[VideoTech]

Thanks Video Tech; but as beautiful as Alaska is we live in Buffalo NY and get an average of 100 inches of snowfall per season, so we prefer warm climate vacations because winter lasts from Nov to April in our neck of the woods.

 

Well, I can understand your desire for warmth then! Best of luck figuring it all out.

[Pokeraddict]

You know the old saying "happy wife happy life".

 

Seriously you need to consider other factors such as Hawaii is a very expensive cruise and y'll want to do it all while your there. Possibly arrive at least 1/2 days prior to cruise to get over jet lag, there is also lots to see and do while in honolulu. Food/eating out is extremely expensive as are groceries even for the locals.

Hawaii is also a very port intensive cruise where you will want to be off the ship doing excursions daily, your first cruise to the island will not be a rest, where as the Caribbean can be both a rest and site seeing. Also much less expensive.

Then there is the cost of flights which will probably be double.

[FinneganGirl]

I do not like to fly either, so this is a question I have grappled with myself. We are in the planning stages of a Mediterranean Cruise for next summer with our four children. We've been there and done that in the Caribbean, and I have no interest in doing it again. We are also from Buffalo (how's that for a small world!) so Alaska really doesn't interest us for the same reasons you stated. We get plenty of cold for 6 months of the year!

 

So the long and short of it is, even though the thought of that many hours on a plane practically makes me break out in a cold sweat, I'm going to suck it up to show my children the world. From where we live, Hawaii may even be longer on a plane, and while I'd love to see that some day too, next summer I'm going to put my fears aside for a once in a lifetime trip with my family.

 

Whatever you decide, enjoy!

[spacepotatoes]

Hawaii is too beautiful to pass up, no matter how much your DW hates to fly :) As a previous poster suggested, it's best to add a land-based holiday to the cruise to make that long trip worthwhile. We did the Pride of America for our honeymoon and stayed in Waikiki for 3 days before the cruise. It was perfect for us - we got adjusted to the time difference before getting on the ship and had a chance to explore Oahu. We were able to get on the ship relaxed, rested, and feeling the aloha spirit.

 

Another option that friends of mine have done is to split up the long flights. They flew to LA first and spent a night there, doing a little sightseeing, then flew on to Honolulu the following day.

 

Either way, it is definitely worth it!

[HelliCap]

You know that you can do both Bermuda And Caribbean Cruises right from NYC, just a short drive from Buffalo. Of course parking will eat up the savings.

[4774Papa]

We sailed on the Pearl to the Eastern Caribbean in April and had the best week of our lives on our very first cruise. My question is this:

My DW does not like to fly and has tolerated flying from NY to Las Vegas but have not gone to Hawaii because of the long flight. With that in mind, I would hate to invest in a Hawaiin cruise and have my wife totally tired and stressed out before embarkation. Would we be wiser just to consider another Caribbean cruise since it is an easy flight from NY to FLA?

If my DW told me that she didn't like to fly and I wanted to go to Europe, I would still be on the plane to Europe, alone is necessary.

[scapino]

There are also cruises to Hawaii that sail from the west coast. You don't have to fly to Hawaii to enjoy a cruise there. It really depends on how long you wish to vacation. If it is only 7 days you would have to fly to Hawaii, if longer you may find an option leaving from the west coast. Of course you have to get there too. We did a Hawaiin cruise in 2002 where we flew to Hawaii. We left from Boston and flew to Denver....it took about 4 1/2 hours. We had a brief stopover and then flew to Hawaii....about 5 1/2 hours. They said we made good time. Depending on where you are flying from/to you could try for a longer layover to break things up. Good luck!!!

 

7 1/2 Hrs - DEN/HNL

[Cruiser Bruiser]

I just did the Hawaii cruise last October/November and it was the best vacation ever!

 

We flew into Honolulu a day early and spent a full day in Waikiki. Waikiki was awsome, and our partial-ocean-view room turned out to have a floor-to-cieling full-on ocean view. We did an outrigger canoe surfing "excursion", and it was the most rediculous kind of fun.

 

The cruise itself was a blast; just enough time in each port to feel like you've been there. Sailing past the Kilauea volcano at night and seeing the lava flow into the ocean was thrilling. Sailing past the Napali coast at sunset and seeing it all with a helmet of beer in the hottub just couldn't be beat. Favorite excursion: catamaran sail plus snorkeling plus free lunch and booze in Kona. :o

 

The cruise was my first-ever trip to Hawaii, and it's true what they say: there's no place like it.

[Jenbo57]

We go to Hawai'i every year, and last year we did the POA cruise. Honestly, for a first timer, I'm not sure it's the best way to see Hawai'i. Hawai'i is laid back and relaxed, and this itinerary is go, go, go. If you want to do it just to say you've been there, great, but if you want to really experience Hawai'i, pick an island and spend a week in one place. Truly paradise!

[STARFISH*4]

lots of places to go in the Caribbean and then there is Bermuda too so do all you can and work your way to Hawaii eventually.

[veggie59]

7 1/2 Hrs - DEN/HNL

 

Maybe it is supposed to take that long.....but it didn't. Maybe I am mistaken on the 4 1/2 hrs,,,,,,but no parts of our trip took longer than 5 1/2 hrs. Our flight back was LAX to Boston and the was quick too. The pilot said we had good winds. Point is with good planning and a layover it wouldn't be a straight 11 hr flight.

[maxciocc]

Thank you for all your replies. I think what makes the most sense is to work up to longer flights.