beardedshark Posted January 31, 2014 #1 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Hello everyone We are thinking of cruising to Hawaii however oceania don't go there. Which cruise line would you recommend? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimandStan Posted January 31, 2014 #2 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) Hello everyone We are thinking of cruising to Hawaii however oceania don't go there. Which cruise line would you recommend? Unless you're willing to settle for the very, very low end NCL Pride of Aloha, I think that you're best off to wait for a Pacific positioning cruise (maybe even on Oceania) which includes Hawaii and appeals to you for the rest of the itinerary as well. Because of the Jones Act all of the better ships which are sailing to Hawaii are doing do on Transpacific voyages, anyway; and if you are going to invest that kind of time and money.... Edited January 31, 2014 by JimandStan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NMLady Posted January 31, 2014 #3 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) Hello everyone We are thinking of cruising to Hawaii however oceania don't go there. Which cruise line would you recommend? If you want a cruise to Hawaii from continental US that ends in Hawaii, I don't know of any that do that. If you want to cruise TO and around Hawaii, Holland America usually has cruises roundtrip from San Diego to Hawaii, visiting some of the ports in Hawaii. If you want a cruise ship that has roundtrip from a Hawaiian port, visiting several ports, then NCL is the one that does that. Edited January 31, 2014 by NMLady Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawaiidan Posted January 31, 2014 #4 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Hello everyone We are thinking of cruising to Hawaii however oceania don't go there. Which cruise line would you recommend? Holland America has one of the best schedules sailing from LA or San Diego down to Tahiti, Samoa and up to Hawaii then back to California about a 28-32 day cruise It will give you 5 or so days in Hawaii and hit all the ports you would want with enough time 1400 passengers. As a second option Celebrity Century does a 15 day rt from LA, I would not take their monster solstice ships with 3000. Now you cant cruise from California to Hawaii and get off...that's against the law...really thanks to the Jones and Passenger service act that only US ships with US crew can carry cargo /passengers between US ports. This means too that you cant get off the ship in Hawaii say in Maui or Hilo and rejoin it several days later. You cant jump ship and have to stay on board the full cruise...there are big fines for the ship and to you if you do And as of this date there is only 1 ship that fills that bill NCL Pride of America. Once a year however, either princess of Holland sails from Vancouver Canada to Honolulu and you can get off. My vote is for you to take Holland, and allow it to take you to all the best spots on the islands. Island hopping is very expensive, no ferrys only short flights on Hawaiian that run between $100 and $213 per person for EACH island even though they are only 150 to 35 miles apart... Don't believe the myth that you have to stay to get the flavor and feel of Hawaii..that's hogwash. In 5 full days of ports you will get to see the best of the best and save thousands in hotel..meals..car.. air.. Best time to come is November and April.... not crowded and best weather But what do I know...I live here...at lest for the time being Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rloke Posted January 31, 2014 #5 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I was researching the same thing the other day...:p http://www.celebritycruises.com/destinations/home.do?dest=HAWAI&cS=NAVBAR#destination_hawaii_itineraries_tab/destinations/sailings.do%3Fpagename=destination_hawaii_itineraries_tab&dest=HAWAI Albeit it will be with the mega Solstice class ship and departs from Vancouver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarpeian Rock Posted January 31, 2014 #6 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Last October we did San Francisco to 4 Hawaiian islands and return on Princess. Had a great experience, although the ship, the Grand Princess, was somewhat larger than we were used to. Quite frankly, the food, level of service, staff friendliness, and overall quality of experience were superior to our last two cruises on HAL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beardedshark Posted January 31, 2014 Author #7 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Guys, you are fantastic as always. Thank you very much:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travelcat2 Posted January 31, 2014 #8 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Or you can splurge and take Regent's itinerary in November -- Los Angeles to Tahiti. This is their itinerary (sorry -- copying and pasting from the website squishes things together): Nov 19 Wed Los Angeles, California 8:00 PM Nov 20 Thu Cruise the Pacific Ocean Nov 21 Fri Cruise the Pacific Ocean Nov 22 Sat Cruise the Pacific Ocean Nov 23 Sun Cruise the Pacific Ocean Nov 24 Mon Cruise the Pacific Ocean Nov 25 Tue Nawilwili, United States 8:00 AM 6:00 PM Nov 26 Wed Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii 7:00 AM 8:00 PM Nov 27 Thu Kahului, United States 8:00 AM 7:00 PM Nov 28 Fri Hilo, Hawaii, Hawaii 8:00 AM 4:00 PM Nov 29 Sat Cruise the Pacific Ocean Nov 30 Sun Cruise the Pacific Ocean Dec 1 Mon Cruise the Pacific Ocean Dec 2 Tue Cruise the Pacific Ocean Dec 3 Wed Nuku Hiva, French Polynesia 9:00 AM 6:00 PM Dec 4 Thu Cruise the Pacific Ocean Dec 5 Fri Fakarava, French PolynesiaAnchor Port 8:00 AM 2:00 PM Dec 6 Sat Bora Bora, French PolynesiaAnchor Port 12:00 PM 7:00 PM Dec 7 Sun Papeete, Tahiti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoHoHo Posted January 31, 2014 #9 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Don't know where you prefer to embark from. I am assuming you are coming from the UK. Depending on your plans in the USA you could also fly direct to Vancouver (shorter taking the polar route &more pleasant as.it is all international flight vs a long domestic flight from east coast to the west coast port). There are several cruises to Hawaii on several lines, Celebrity, HAL, Princess, Royal Caribbean. Some end in Hawaii and some end in California so you could then fly back just once across the continent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silver Sweethearts Posted January 31, 2014 #10 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Island hopping is very expensive, no ferrys only short flights on Hawaiian that run between $100 and $213 per person for EACH island even though they are only 150 to 35 miles apart... Don't believe the myth that you have to stay to get the flavor and feel of Hawaii..that's hogwash. In 5 full days of ports you will get to see the best of the best and save thousands in hotel..meals..car.. air.. We can island hop on several local airlines plus Hawaiian for $59 for some shorter flights or up to $108 from one end of the state to the other. It is hardly possible to see "the best of the best" on each island with less than one full day at each location. You could see some of the best things, but it would be a shame to come all the way to Hawaii and not have time to tour in a relaxed and complete way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RetiredFL Posted January 31, 2014 #11 Share Posted January 31, 2014 We are holding our noses and doing NCL Pride of America in May. We really want to spend several days in Honolulu to see all the sights and most cruises from the mainland only spend 8 hours in Honolulu. We were booked on a HAL cruise to Vancouver from Honolulu but the idea of spending 4 days at sea just didn't appeal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypercafe Posted February 1, 2014 #12 Share Posted February 1, 2014 I guess it depends what you want to do. If you want to see the islands I would fly and take the NCL ship. It is very different than most as it is US flagged with a US crew, I do not think you will need to hold your nose though. If you like sea days go with a foreign line RT from the mainland. I can not recommend HAL as on my last trip on them the ship was really run down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginabab Posted February 1, 2014 #13 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Hi Princess to and from LA or SF seems like a good option Big ship Lots of sea days 15 days total with 3 formal mights and photographers 4 HA stops Check out the videos on the Princess site and it will give you some idea of what's different from Oceania We like both lines for different reasons Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PirateShark Posted February 1, 2014 #14 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Holland America has one of the best schedules sailing from LA or San Diego down to Tahiti, Samoa and up to Hawaii then back to California about a 28-32 day cruise It will give you 5 or so days in Hawaii and hit all the ports you would want with enough time 1400 passengers. As a second option Celebrity Century does a 15 day rt from LA, I would not take their monster solstice ships with 3000. Now you cant cruise from California to Hawaii and get off...that's against the law...really thanks to the Jones and Passenger service act that only US ships with US crew can carry cargo /passengers between US ports. This means too that you cant get off the ship in Hawaii say in Maui or Hilo and rejoin it several days later. You cant jump ship and have to stay on board the full cruise...there are big fines for the ship and to you if you do And as of this date there is only 1 ship that fills that bill NCL Pride of America. Once a year however, either princess of Holland sails from Vancouver Canada to Honolulu and you can get off. My vote is for you to take Holland, and allow it to take you to all the best spots on the islands. Island hopping is very expensive, no ferrys only short flights on Hawaiian that run between $100 and $213 per person for EACH island even though they are only 150 to 35 miles apart... Don't believe the myth that you have to stay to get the flavor and feel of Hawaii..that's hogwash. In 5 full days of ports you will get to see the best of the best and save thousands in hotel..meals..car.. air.. Best time to come is November and April.... not crowded and best weather But what do I know...I live here...at lest for the time being Cheers Second vote for HAL - 15 day circle of Hawaii out of San Diego. Had a great time, you get to see what Hawaii has to offer in full and then, if you desire later, you can make a pretty informed choice as to what island you'd like to take a land vacation to. As Hawaiidan said, if you find none of the islands appeal to you, you have save thousands of dollars and lots of heartache if you pick the "wrong" island for a land trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawaiidan Posted February 1, 2014 #15 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Second vote for HAL - 15 day circle of Hawaii out of San Diego. Had a great time, you get to see what Hawaii has to offer in full and then, if you desire later, you can make a pretty informed choice as to what island you'd like to take a land vacation to. As Hawaiidan said, if you find none of the islands appeal to you, you have save thousands of dollars and lots of heartache if you pick the "wrong" island for a land trip. That is the crux of what we have here.... as to $59 flights.. ( I defi anyone to come uo with an under 90-100 fare from Honolulu to Kona)... good luck maybe 2 flights on a single engine lite plane. Do not plan on this...We as locals can seldom get a fare that cheap........... Urban myth. The best for a first time visitor is to sail the 15-16 day round trip. Holland does it best..... all the others are double the passengers and half the service You will see the very best and without others telling you what you like, make an informed decision. It is very possible and real to do. After seeing ALL the islands and (saving about ($800 in air) you can make an informed decision as to what YOU like. Not me. Not the guy down the street . There are in fact NO must see things. It is all based on your taste and likes. Forget this forum follow your heart. Forget Trip Advisor, Forget every guide, they are not YOU Follow your heart. it will not let you down Hawaii is great, but it is a polished visitor center...Kauai a laid back hippie island ; Oahu , LA with pineapples, Maui; Hawaii as the ideal of So calif beach play time and what they they think Hawaii should be. ; Hawaii, rural and rugged, everything that the others are not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silver Sweethearts Posted February 1, 2014 #16 Share Posted February 1, 2014 That is the crux of what we have here.... as to $59 flights.. ( I defi anyone to come uo with an under 90-100 fare from Honolulu to Kona)... good luck maybe 2 flights on a single engine lite plane. Do not plan on this...We as locals can seldom get a fare that cheap........... Urban myth. The $59.00 quote was for a single engine aircraft on a popular inter-island carrier, but Hawaiian Airlines does offer six non-stops (Boeing 717) between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. for $92.20. If you are a very early riser, they even have a flight at 5 a.m. for $79.20. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beardedshark Posted February 1, 2014 Author #17 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Thanks again guys, I'm thinking probably out of USA and round trip, so it looks like HAL or Princess. The trip would be a couple of years away so no hurry but i suspect the longer options to papeete etc would be out of our price range - pity :rolleyes: Hawaiidan, thanks for your breakdown of the islands Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
computerworks Posted February 1, 2014 #18 Share Posted February 1, 2014 (edited) Unless you're willing to settle for the very, very low end NCL Pride of Aloha.... Very, very low end? Hmmm.. :rolleyes: The Pride of Aloha stopped sailing the Hawaii itinerary in 2008. The Pride of America sails 7 day r/t Honolulu 52 weeks a year. Edited February 1, 2014 by computerworks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondorner Posted February 1, 2014 #19 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Both our travel agent and ourselves cruised from San Diego to Hawaii and return on Celebrity. We did it ithis past March, and they did it in late Summer. It was a 15 day cruise, 5 sea days to Hawaii, 4 ports in Hawaii, thn back to San Diego. The Jone Act was met with a 3 hour evening stop in Ensenada, Mexico. This was aboard Celebrity's smallest ship, Century. Unfortunately, Century is slated t leave the fleet. However, this has been such a popular cruise with Celebrity that I feel certain they will assign another ship to the itinerary. Many of the loyal Oceania participants on this forum consider Celebrity to be their favorite non-Oceania cruise line, while many others no longer consider HAL or Princess to be up to that level. My only problem with any of those others is their ships are too large. My problem with many of the other suggestions in this thread is they are too long, too expensive or involve too much flying. After much research, they Celebrity solution was best for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PirateShark Posted February 1, 2014 #20 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Both our travel agent and ourselves cruised from San Diego to Hawaii and return on Celebrity. We did it ithis past March, and they did it in late Summer. It was a 15 day cruise, 5 sea days to Hawaii, 4 ports in Hawaii, thn back to San Diego. The Jone Act was met with a 3 hour evening stop in Ensenada, Mexico. This was aboard Celebrity's smallest ship, Century. Unfortunately, Century is slated t leave the fleet. However, this has been such a popular cruise with Celebrity that I feel certain they will assign another ship to the itinerary. Many of the loyal Oceania participants on this forum consider Celebrity to be their favorite non-Oceania cruise line, while many others no longer consider HAL or Princess to be up to that level. My only problem with any of those others is their ships are too large. My problem with many of the other suggestions in this thread is they are too long, too expensive or involve too much flying. After much research, they Celebrity solution was best for us. I've sailed on the Century and agree that would be another nice option. Too bad they are taking that ship out of action as we thoroughly enjoyed her :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawaiidan Posted February 1, 2014 #21 Share Posted February 1, 2014 I would defer to the experience where Hondorner had this past year in both Kona and Hilo... both 8-5 he stops.... your on Don !!! Considering that Hawaii is 6 to 10 times the size of every other island that is a good yard stick You can easily on Kauai see everything in 6 hours...twice On Oahu...Valor In the Pacific NHP ( Arizona, sub museum,USS Missouri, Pacific Air museum) and a run through down town Honolulu and Punchbowl is 7-8 hours Maui circle island through HANA finnish in Lahaina in under 8 hours Big island Hawaii 8 hours the volcano and Hamakua coast and 6 hours the Kona side add 2 hours for snorkeling. Water sports like snorkel and diving are best done in Kona, Beaches Maui Oahu and Kauia are ok.... but save yourself I still favor Holland out of San Diego, maybe Celeb Century but no larger. Sailing from Vancouver and SF cross some of the nastiest water in the north pacific. From LA or SF a lake by comparison With some ports in Hawaii being tenders and very small, being on a smaller than larger ship will add hours to your shore time instead of wait time Too solstice ships are going to have a tough time in Maui and Kauai owing to their size. small is better..... I see this every day in Kona... where it can take 2 hours to get to shore... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silver Sweethearts Posted February 2, 2014 #22 Share Posted February 2, 2014 I would defer to the experience where Hondorner had this past year in both Kona and Hilo... both 8-5 he stops.... your on Don !!! Considering that Hawaii is 6 to 10 times the size of every other island that is a good yard stick You can easily on Kauai see everything in 6 hours...twice On Oahu...Valor In the Pacific NHP ( Arizona, sub museum,USS Missouri, Pacific Air museum) and a run through down town Honolulu and Punchbowl is 7-8 hours Maui circle island through HANA finnish in Lahaina in under 8 hours Big island Hawaii 8 hours the volcano and Hamakua coast and 6 hours the Kona side add 2 hours for snorkeling. According to your calculations, 38 hours is all you need to see Kauai + Oahu + Maui + the Big Island. The islands of Hawaii are meant to be a relaxing destination and not part of a whirlwind tour. Out of curiosity, just what route would you take on the "Maui circle island though Hana finish in Lahaina in under 8 hours" tour? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoHoHo Posted February 2, 2014 #23 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Despite the possibility of 'nasty waters' (for possibly how much longer?? as they will somewhat converge) and despite the fact that a polar route flight from the UK is much nicer (and shorter), my main consideration as a foreigner is to not return to the same port as embarkation so as to maximize my traveling experiences. We have but once taken a cruise MIA<->MIA for that reason. Whether HAL or X or O or gasp, NCL I would prefer leaving from one city and disembarking in another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beardedshark Posted February 2, 2014 Author #24 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Great advice guys. So now it seems its between Hal, princess and celebrity. Not overly keen on the massive ships of princess and celebrity (although not tried them) but Hal has been getting poor reviews. Wish oceania went there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacheco18 Posted February 2, 2014 #25 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Just to muddy the waters I would not cruise in Hawaii I would not island hop either To really appreciate the islands you need to spend some slow time -- get that Aloha feeling. We go often. Mostly to Oahu but we have been to all the islands --- one at a time. For us, it takes a few days for that special feeling to sink in. Pick an island and spend some time there -- otherwise you really do not get the experience you deserve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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