POA Christmas Cruise & Oahu Trip Report

[oz61]

Thanks for all the help in planning. We had a great trip, made better by some planning thanks to these boards.

 

Our family of four with two daughters in their 20s flew into Honolulu for the first time from Australia. We stayed four nights pre-cruise at the Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel in Ocean view rooms. We had two rooms with good views of Waikiki Beach, not that we spent much time in the room or on the balcony. It was across the road from the beach, a short walk to the Waikiki shops and the "surf beach" area near Dukes. The hotel has a nice Tiki bar which had good happy hours. There was free wifi around the pool, but it was fairly slow and you had to re login every time you used it. Overall a good place to stay and well priced in comparison to most beachfront places. The free breakfast was muffins, cereal, pastries and if early enough, fruit.

 

Our TA had booked us on a Pearl Harbor and Missouri tour through Diamond Head vacations. It was due to leave very early but we had to wait for a while to get picked up. The tour also took us through the Punchbowl cemetery and pointed out some of the key sights around Honolulu.

 

We had a beach day on the Thursday. We met friends for drinks at Dukes and stayed there for the evening, sunset and dinner. We met a number of people as they shared the spare seats at our table.

 

We had debated taking a circle tour or hiring a car which meant braving the "other" side of the road. We were keen to see the big surf and we concerned some reports of circle tours said they only drove past without stopping. We also decided to combine the trip with a stop at the Waikele Outlets. Hiring a car was a great move. I had the route all mapped out with directions. We picked the car up from Waikiki Hertz (booked through our TA). We would return the car the same day to avoid any parking fees. We had been told by the TA we couldn't get a GPS but to our pleasant surprise there was the Hertz Neverlost in the car. This was great as it had all the popular tourist stops, beaches, towns and shops pre-programmed into it, making the entire journey a breeze. We were able to stop for a short time or a long time, while the big buses would take over half an hour just unloading and reloading. There were a few tense moments with the backseat drivers giving far too many instructions, I turned the wipers on at every corner and lane positioning took a bit of adjusting, but we made it around unscathed despite signing up for all the insurances just in case!

 

Our route took us around Diamond Head to Haunama Bay, Halona blow hole, Nuuanu Pali lookout (very cold and windy), Byodo Inn (we didn't stop), Kualoa Beach Park & Chinaman's hat. We stopped for some very garlicky shrimp (yum!) and then continued around the top of the island.

 

We stopped at Sunset Beach, Banzai Pipeline and Waimea Bay. The surf was not as large as we have seen on TV, but it was good to see. I had planned to go up Puu O Mahuka Helau but the family was keen to move on. We drove through Haleiwa and past Dole Plantation and then onto the Waikele Shops where we found out how ripped off Aussies are for clothes and cosmetics!

 

Another day would have been great, but we still had a week on the Pride of America!

[MalervyC]

More please!! This is great!

[oz61]

With four of us, a taxi was the easiest and cheapest way to get to the port from Waikiki. Our cabin on the Pride of America was a 2 bedroom family suite (SH) on the starboard/aft corner. We had debated getting two balconies but the suite privileges and the size of the room swayed us as the cost was similar. Embarkation was very easy. We were there before 12 noon and there were plenty of others there also. After going through security and checking in our bags, they took us to a lounge to wait for our butler, who arrived before we had time to sit down. He gave us a brief overview and then escorted us to lunch in Lazy Js Steakhouse. We all felt very special with very attentive service and wonderful food. DH recommended the NY strip steak. The chocolate brownie with macadamia icecream was to die for! Dessert for lunch seemed indulgent. Towards the end of the cruise, I found myself “skipping dessert” as if I was being good, haha! I did try to do a few laps of the ship and use the gym to justify all the food!

 

By the time we had finished a leisurely lunch, our cabin was ready and we were escorted there. These corner cabins are fantastic – the balcony was big enough for 20 people – it had 4 lay down loungers, four chairs and was probably bigger than the inside space! The balcony was wonderful throughout the cruise for viewing – sailaways, sunsets, sunrises, etc. - you could see things on all sides with the dual aspect. The champagne on ice was a nice touch and we came home every afternoon to treats (not that we needed to eat anything else!)

 

We found all the crew to be very friendly and helpful. Our butler was fantastic – he greeted us and gave us a run down on everything each day. He offered to do any bookings and suggested if we wanted Teppanyaki on any night, to book in straight away (which we did). Nothing was too much trouble for him and he really made our cruise special.

 

The food overall was very good. There was plenty of choice and something for everyone. We could have breakfast and lunch in Lazy Js which we did a fair bit, though sometimes we found the service a little too leisurely if we were in a hurry to get going. The buffet was best if you were in a hurry, though it could get a little crowded and pushy at breakfast. We wished that Lazy Js had a buffet option but they only had cereals and fruit laid out for quick service. We ate at both main dining rooms and really enjoyed some of the dishes. We tried the Cadillac Diner for lunch which was OK. Our night at Teppanyaki was our only specialty restaurant, as we didn’t see the point in paying extra when the food was fine everywhere. The Teppanyaki was worth the extra – it was entertainment from the chef, the seafood and steak was plentiful and very tasty. It was nice to eat with another family.

 

We went to the shows most nights which we enjoyed. We didn’t do too many other activities on the ship, as by the time we had dinner and went to the late show, there was little time for much else. We did catch some of the musicians in the Champagne bar and Napa bars. Most were talented and entertaining. More tomorrow!

[oz61]

Maui - We hired a car the first day through Dollar which was booked online before we left. The GPS was not a patch on the one from Hertz, though the only time we really needed it was returning the car at the end of the day – everything looked so different at night! We did this on our first day in Maui so we didn’t need to worry about getting back to the ship by a certain time.

 

DH was booked into play golf at Kapalua Plantation. He had debated going on one of the ship golf trips, but the lure of playing at a PGA course and then watching it on TV a few weeks later was the clincher. We had tried to get a cheaper twilight timeslot at 1 pm when bookings first opened, but there were none available and at that time of the year, a later time was not guaranteed to finish, so he took an earlier time around 12 noon. Everyone warned him how windy it could get and how hard the course played, but it was the calmest balmiest day. The course was in immaculate condition as they were preparing for the PGA tournament. He really enjoyed the experience. The PGA tournament had the terrible wind which we watched on TV when we returned. It was good to recognise the course.

 

We drove a little bit further around the coast line past Kapalua. It was quite spectacular and there was some very large surf at a few spots. When it started to get narrow, we turned around and headed back.

 

The girls and I went ziplining at Skyline Kaanapali. We chose it after reading a lot of reviews and it was around the same side of the island as the golf. It was a great day. We wound our way up high in a jeep and then walked to the first of seven ziplines. Jumping off the platform was a little scary the first time, but it was just pure fun, not scary at all! The guides were entertaining and after a few zips, they were twisting us around, sending us backwards, making us go faster and showing us how to steer in mid air. The views were sensational. The only disappointment was that we bought the photo package and then left our cameras behind. But their camera did not work, so we had no photos at all. They refunded our money for the photo pack.

 

After picking DH up from golf, we headed back to the ship for the Captain’s cocktail party. We arrived right at the end but they allowed us to have a drink, meet the Captain, Cruise Director (Alohaaaa, Scotty) and other key personnel.

[Aussiegirl58]

Can't wait to read some more about the Christmas cruise. Would love to hear what you thought about Chrictmas in Hawaii. I am thinking of doing a Christmas cruise on the POA in 2015 so I am interested in anything you can tell me about it. We will be on the POA in May. 49 days to go!

[oz61]

There were a few Christmas things happening. A massive tree in the foyer and Santa Claus made a few appearances for photos, etc. He seemed to have presents, so I am not sure how that worked as we didn't have anyone young enough. Christmas Eve they had a carols/xmas music night. I am not sure which show we missed because of this, but it was nice to get in the mood. There was ham and turkey on the menu for dinner on Xmas night. I am not sure if anyone did Xmas lunch as we had our Xmas dinner out of an esky bag on top of a volcano! This had caused a few "energetic" family discussions when it dawned on the others we were doing this on Xmas Day. It was actually a lovely way to spend time with the family. There were a lot of large family groups on the cruise and I guess because everyone was in families, it was probably a little less social as everyone had their own group. This didn't overly concern us, as we had come to spend time with our family. Overall, what a great way to spend Xmas. No driving around looking for a park, shopping in crowded places, cooking and preparing. We just got dressed and turned up! The Xmas and New Years cruises are more expensive though.

[oz61]

Trip report continued - For excursions, we had taken the Roberts three excursions deal. The volcano trip by itself was half the cost by itself, so it seemed like a good deal. In hindsight, we should have hired more cars. Our first of three excursions was up Mt Haleakala in the morning (not the sunrise trip). The driver was terrible – he droned on with some really negative comments. We stopped halfway up for far too long, but the trip turned out to be a total waste of time as the mountain was completely covered in cloud. You could not see a thing at the top and there was light drizzly rain. They already had our money and the weather is not their fault, but if it is obvious the weather is poor, they should not even go. At least we were back by lunchtime and had time to catch a shuttle and have a look around.

 

Our second Roberts trip was in Hilo to the Volcano National Park the next day. We had been told there would be no food in the Park so we thought we needed to take food, however there were plenty of stops where food could be purchased. We actually ordered room service before we left and packed this in our esky bag that we received from the Aston Waikiki Beach hotel. The tour drove along Banyan Drive and through Hilo. The first stop was the Rainbow Falls (photo stop). The next stop was the Macadamia place. The factory was closed as it was Christmas Day, but the shop was open and you could sample the many varieties and then buy your favourites. Even though have macadamias (bauple nuts) all around us at home, we still managed to come away with quite a few of the variety nuts.

 

We then stopped at the Orchid place which was not very interesting. Then onto the Park which we all enjoyed. There was probably a bit too much time at the Jagger Museum. We walked through the lava tube and walked on the lava where it crossed the road. On the way home they stopped at a chocolate place which we could have skipped. Our bus driver was at least very entertaining and informative, so while it was a very different way to spend Christmas, we all enjoyed it.

 

We had dinner that night in the Liberty Restaurant. There were Christmas items on the menu (ham, turkey), but I don’t think anyone from or group ordered any!

 

That night we sailed past the volcano, the flow was a bit distant but still very clear from the starboard side. It was lovely to sit out on the balcony and sail past.

[oz61]

The next day was Kona, a beautiful sunny spot after the cooler Hilo. We had booked Captain Zodiac as all the reviews were excellent and this was one of the highlights of our entire trip. It was an early start which received a few moans, but water conditions are always going to be better in the morning. We booked through the ship so we were guaranteed a tender and just in case there were any delays, etc. We assembled in the theatre and tendered across to the port. The Zodiac people met us there. We only had nine people on our Zodiac craft, so there was plenty of room to change sides or move around. We had hardly gone anywhere before we were in the middle of a large group of spinner dolphins, leaping out of the water all around. A little further along, we spotted a large manta ray. The crew were young and fun, they drove the boat fast and did a fair bit of manoeuvring which had us hanging on and laughing. We had a pleasant journey along the coast line and they pointed out the key landmarks. We arrived at Kealakekua Bay and the snorkelling was wonderful. The water is turquoise and the fish were colourful and plentiful, swimming right past us all the time. After a brief snack we started to head back, when we spotted a humpback which we followed for a bit. On the way home they took us in close to the lava caves, though it was too rough to go inside them. I thoroughly recommend this excursion, it was a lovely time on the water. We were back by lunch, so had time to return to the ship, shower, have lunch and then return to have a look around Kona on foot.

[oz61]

The next two days were Kauai. The first morning we had the third of our Roberts excursions to Waimea Canyon. This tour was also a little disappointing, made worse by another ordinary bus driver who droned on with the most uninteresting information. The other annoyance was the selfish passengers who were always late to get back on the bus. We stopped a number of times at places for far too long. The bus driver would tell us a return time and at every stop there would be people up to 10-15 minutes late. Sometimes they were wandering around in full view of the bus and did not even come over when the driver turned the engines on. The first stop was the blowhole, it was good for a photo opportunity. There were quite a number of stalls there selling jewellery and other market items. We then stopped on the side of the road stop at the Hanapepe Valley before winding our way up to the Canyon. After a few photos we were ready to go as there is not much else to do there. It is worth seeing, but not when it takes 5 hours for the trip. I think if we had hired a car, we could have seen the Canyon, returned to the ship and then headed off in the other direction to either look at the other side of the island or do an activity like kayaking or another zipline one.

 

Prior to leaving, I had thought leaving the driving to someone else was a good idea when we are not used to driving on the right hand side of the road. I also thought it would be nice to hear some local info from the driver. But in hindsight, a hire car would have been a better option, especially with four of us. We really enjoyed the activity based things and getting out on the beautiful water.

[puddles99]

Thanks so much for your review! We're booked on the Captain Zodiac adventure & I am so happy to read of your experience! I look forward to reading the rest of your review.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[oz61]

We had the afternoon and the next morning free to potter around. We had done quite a few tours and activities and decided to make our last day and a half free from anything organised. We caught the shuttle to the shops and found a bar with free wifi. The beach area nearby was lovely and we strolled the foreshore and had a swim. The next morning we took a shuttle to the small shops near the beach and to the larger shopping centre with a Macy’s.

 

Friday afternoon was the Napali Coast sailing – we went up to the public deck for a better view portside. It was quite crowded at the back of the ship and it was not easy to hear the commentary. We actually had a very good view from the aft facing side of our balcony and when the ship turned around we were on the right side to view the coast line. The margaritas from the Waikiki Bar at happy hour prices were an excellent accompaniment!

 

Drinks are not cheap on the cruise, particularly when you have to add tax and gratuities to the listed prices. We had bought some onboard credit in advance through the bon voyage when the Aussie dollar was high, in case it dropped, but we still had a reasonable charge at the end of the seven days. I paid some in cash on the Friday to use up some of the US money and the rest was automatically charged to the credit card.

 

I woke the next morning in time to take lots of sunrise photos as we sailed into Honolulu with Diamond Head silhouetted by the rising sun. I have never seen so many sunrises (it comes up far too early here.)

 

The week went so quickly. We had a busy but wonderful time. I had bought post cards which were going to be my Xmas cards this year, but they all came home with me!

 

We were going to walk off with our bags, but our butler advised us to pack the night before, leave our bags outside the door and we just kept out clothes for the next day. This meant a lot less rushing in the morning and we were able to enjoy our last breakfast. He gave us priority tags for our bags so they would be there for us whenever we decided to leave. When we were ready, we called him and he escorted us from the ship. Could not have been easier.

 

We found the crew to be very good. We had towel animals every day, the room stewards always greeted us whenever as you walked by. The dining staff were very attentive. We chatted to several of them about where they were from and how long they worked on the POA continuously, etc. I wrote a note about our butler as he made our cruise special. As well as delivering buckets of beers for DH, he organised anything we asked, as well as advice on where to be to see/experience things at certain times.

 

Finding our airport shuttle was a little confusing – there were agents in Hawaiian shirts in two places directing us, but none when we got outside. But we arrived at Honolulu airport in plenty of time for a lunch time flight home. We flew Hawaiian Airlines so I relived a bit of our trip watching Hawaii 50 on the way home.:)

[Jodez]

OZ61, thanks for the review, sounds fantastic!

I am planning the same cruise for January 2014, as an end of school celebration for my son who is finishing Year 12 this year.

We too will be a family of 4, our daughter will be 21, Son 18. I am just wondering if the cruise caters to this age group? I have a million questions I could ask you, but I'll try to keep it as short as possible.

Also, how long do you recommend spending in Honolulu pre or post cruise? I was thinking about spending 3 nights in Waikiki, cruise for 7 nights and then spend another 3 nights on a different island post cruise. After reading your review I am wondering if you get enough of the different island experiences on the cruise, therefore no need to do any of them independently? Interested in your thoughts.

Thanks

Jodie

[oz61]

We didn't spend a lot of time on the ship when we weren't eating or watching a show as you are in a port every day. Booking morning things got everyone moving, even if it meant no extended sleep ins for the young people! There are pools, a gym, a video arcade (never saw it) and a sports court but there are no bowling alleys or climbing walls. The Pocket Guide the butler gave us says there is a gyroscope, but I didn't see it. The girls watched a few of the movies on TV in the room, they were fairly recent releases, though there were a few oldies as well. I think you may need to be 21 to drink at a bar, the girls always had to show ID if they were making a "purchase" (it all went on our tab). I assume if you had drinks in your room, they would not know who was drinking what. I had thought about separating their accounts and putting a limited amount on it, but they were fairly conservative with their purchases anyway.

 

I chose four nights in Oahu, but in hindsight I would have probably liked an extra day or so. There are things I would have liked to do, e.g. we didn't go up Diamond Head, it would have been fun to do the outrigging on Waikiki Beach or hire a surf board. My girls thought the 2 hours we spent at Waikele Outlets was just a warm up, but DH was champing at the bit to move on. We didn't go up to any of the waterfall/hiking areas at the back of Honolulu (Tantallus, Manoa falls). We didn't snorkel at Hanauma Bay, nor stop at Byodo Inn, Haleiwa or the Dole Plantatation. DH only played golf once and there are so many beautiful courses on every island. The Hawaiian baggage limit is massive, so he could have brought his clubs, gone to golf while we shopped in peace, haha! Parasailing was another reasonably priced activity I would have like to have tried, though I am not sure if all travel insurances covers it. The other thing I would have considered was a football game, but there were none scheduled while we were there. We didn't spend much time in Honolulu (as opposed to Waikiki). The other thing we chose not to do was a luau. I couldn't see the point in paying for the one on the cruise, when you have already paid for dinner. I would do this before/after the cruise if it is on your list.

 

If I was doing it again, I think I would leave time for more active pursuits and less "sightseeing" bus trips. You will get a good taste of the other islands on the cruise, so I would probably do your extra time on Oahu. If you wanted a change of scenery, you could spend a couple of nights on the North Shore. With four people, hiring a car is definitely worthwhile. We chose not to do another island as you seem to lose a day by the time you check out, get to the airport, travel to your accommodation, etc. I really liked the cruise as with four adults with different tastes, there was no onus on me to come up with meal plans three times a day and our itinerary was semi decided also.

 

Read these boards, Trip Advisor and the travel books, so you can decide a rough plan of what you want to do before you finalise your booking. You are welcome to ask more questions.

[Jodez]

Thank you so much for all the info, it has now made my decision easy!! I think we will do the cruise and then aim for 7 nights at Waikiki. Your family sounds similar to mine in there likes/dislikes and it was great to get your perspective on things.

So did you book the whole trip through your TA? and was that cheaper than doing it yourself? I've started getting prices for air fares, cruise and accommodation and can't believe how expensive it's going to be! the air fare alone is around $6500 for the 4 of us through Jetstar, does that sound about right to you??

[oz61]

For this trip we booked most of it through a travel agent,however I would look at the price online first and get them to match it. When we booked they offered us a discount if we booked by the end of March (or it may have been 9 months in advance.) Their prices were similar but different to NCL's but included the daily gratuities and taxes (everything in the US is quoted pre-tax and pre-gratuities). We were originally down to stay at Waikiki Ocean Shore which is a 2 bedroom self catering apartment/condo on the beach. But it came back as unavailable for our dates. I looked online and the TA matched prices I saw on sites like Expedia.

 

The car in Waikiki was through the TA as it was a better price than I could find online, but the one in Maui was direct through Alamo ( I may have said Dollar in my trip report, but it was Alamo). I booked online, but I couldn't prepay which was annoying as the dollar was high (like it is now), though in the end, it was high when we travelled also. I booked the ziplining, some excursions and golf online direct.

 

We flew Hawaiian and they were around $1690 return ex Sydney but it was closer to $1900 from Brisbane. A month after we booked they introduced direct flights from Brisbane for half the price(intro offer), but I couldn't change, grrrr. Qantas also flies x Sydney and they are also full service. You may pay for extras on Jetstar. Air Pacific fly via Fiji to Hawaii, but the connections required a stopover in Fiji on the way back and for us it would have meant been mid air for New Years Eve. I was fine with this, but was strongly outvoted on that one by the family!

 

The costs add up fast when you multiply everything by 4! I used to see all the ads in the paper for flights plus so many nights for much cheaper and wonder, but the deals probably weren't for school holidays/Christmas.

[Jodez]

Thanks so much for the info and your advice, its helping me heaps in planning. I too have seen the specials in the paper, but when I enquire it's not for the time we need to travel :mad:

Isn't it annoying that the TA's can't quote on the absolute best price and you have to do all the ground work just so they can match it? Well..... I will do what you have suggested and find the best price and then go to the TA, OR is it better to do it the other way around? I guess I just have to find a good TA now!

Thanks again,

Jodie