Please help last minute cruise booked- NCL Wind

[blyle]

We just booked a last minute cruise and are overwhelmed by all the reading we are doing. This is the Schedule

Hilo 9-5 , Dock

Lahaina 2 days 1st day 8-10:30 ,2nd 7-8, tender

Nawiliwili Kauai 8-5 Dock

Fanning Is

kona 7-5 Tender

You are all so knowledgeable and forthcoming regarding Hawaii information and I find myself in need of help! I am hoping someone can help me make some last minute quick decisions since we don't have much time. We will be sailing in Sept.

 

We would like to rent cars so we can maximize our time. No helicopter rides due to air sickness! We have snorkeled the Caribbean and In Oahu 5 years ago so that is not a must but if we wanted to snorkel which island is the best?We are reading everything but having some trouble with times.

 

Basically if you had the times we have in Port what would you do on each island?

 

In Hilo we are thinking Volcanoes NatlPark Will it take the entire day ? How long to get there? Should we cut it short and do something else. How much time to allow to get back to the port?

 

Lahaina 2 days we have to leave and return the next day from what I have been told.

Hope to rent a car go to Hana but can we just go part of the way ? Where would you suggest we turn around so we can do some other things?

Should we drive it day one or day two?

 

Kauii. Again rent a car. Not much time so what is the quick island tour we could take to see major sights

 

Kona- Rent a car and see the island. Any suggestions for another island tour.

 

The real problem is we want to see everything we read about but know we can't . We are having trouble pacing ourselves. I have been up late at night and trying to read every web site and now I have too much to digest.

 

Don't really want to take ship tours , been there done that.

 

I have helped many others going to the caribbean since we have been there so often and now I find myself needing the same kind of help.

Everyone here is so great you all have so much knowledge of the islands.

 

Thank you Thank you Thank you.

[spleen93]

I would read, read, read this forum. There are a ton of posts with plenty of ideas for people to select from. There are so many things to do on the islands, it's really up to you as to what you want to see and what you want to do. There's a bunch of posts from people who have done the same cruise that you will be taking and have had experience in doing tours and doing their own thing as well.

 

To get you started, here's a few posts:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=202509&highlight=island

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=197915&highlight=island

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=183609&highlight=island

 

Spleen

[blyle]

thanks again! We are leaning now toward a ship tour in HIlo due to the short time there.

[wwinfl91]

We were on the Island Princess last fall for our first visit to Hawaii. We elected to do ship's tours at all the islands for two reasons. One was we didn't want to miss the ship and have to find other transportation to the next stop and especially we didn't want to miss the last stop before the Island headed back to LA. Second reason was when I was researching private companies that did tours I found them to be around the same cost or higher than the Princess tours. I understood that we would be doing "big bus" tours but at least we did get to see some of the highlights of the various islands we visited and we always made it back to the ship. We didn't go the rental car rout because we felt if I was driving and paying attention to the road I would be missing out on a lot of the scenery and sights.

 

In Hilo, Hawaii we saw the Halemaumau Crater, the Thurston lava tube and the Haleakala Park.

 

At our stop in Kona, Hawaii, we saw a coffee factory with a view of Kealakekua Bay, the Puuhonua-o-honaunau park (Place of Refuge) and St Benedicts Catholic Church (the Painted Church).

 

At our port stop in Kauai we saw the Spouting Horn park, the burial cliffs in the Hanapepe Valley, the Waimea Canyon (the Grand Canyon of the Pacific) and the Fern Grotto.

 

At our stop in Honolulu Oahu we saw the Arizona monument and the Battleship Missouri on a tour and then did a walking tour on our own where we saw one of the Hawaiian king's palaces and some of the other sites in downtown Honolulu.

 

When we stopped in Maui we saw the Haleakala Park which has the most spectacular views of a inactive volcano. We lucked out and had a clear day so we got great pictures.

 

Those might give you some ideas of things to do on the various islands.

 

Have a great next cruise.

[blyle]

Thanks so much I appreciate your reply. It really helps!

[spleen93]

FWIW, I don't think that a port time of 9 am to 5 pm when you're docked in Hilo is all that short. It'd be easy to see VNP on your own with a rental car with that amount of time.

 

Spleen

[blyle]

Thanks Spleen93. It appears that we won't be off the ship until 10:30 due to customs and renting a car and we have to be back on the ship no later than 4:30. We are now leaning toward taking the early ship tour that departs at 10:30. It looks like we will see much of the Park.

[Das K]

We returned 8/3. The post may cover some points that will be helpful to you.

[blyle]

Thanks DasK I am heading over to read it

[Happy ks]

I would reconsider the helicopter tour in Kauai. I'm prone to motion sickness and the feeling I got from being in a helicopter was smoother than a ride in a car. When we were on Kauai the first time, we took a drive up to Waimea Canyon and I got very carsick. The last time we were there, we did the helicopter tour in the morning, then rented a car and drove to Princeville, with stops along the way. It was probably one of the most perfect days of our life.

 

We took the ships tour to Volcano Nat'l Park and were disappointed. The bus was sloooowwww, they stopped at a macadamia nut place that was a total waste of time. They only gave us 20 minutes at the information center, they only gave us 15 minutes to get off the bus at the lava fields. I don't remember the time for Thurston Lava Tube, but it was a bit longer. If we had gone on our own, we would have had plenty of time for the volcano, plus another stop somewhere else.

 

Having been to Hawaii a few times, I disagree with the poster stating the organized tours are better. Renting cars is simple, if you do some homework and decide where you want to go, you have plenty of time on each island. The islands are very small and easy to navigate. Just plan your time, so you don't have to rush back to catch your ship.

 

There are plenty of places to turn around on the drive to Hana, we have never made it the whole way, as DH doesn't like to spend his whole day driving. I would choose the longest port day to make the drive. We make plenty of stops along the way, it's all beautiful, plus we get to relax knowing we don't have a final destination, just out for a drive!

 

Our favorite place to snorkel was in Kona. We actually got no further than the dock in Kona, we got right back on our cruise ship after the snorkel tour because our kids were tired.

 

Take along a good book for your sea days to Fanning Island, it's a long trip there and back! We loved it, but were on the Star, so it didn't take quite as long. Take advantage of those days where you have no responsibility, no cares, no time constraints, just pure relaxation. Leave your type A personality at home, if you have one. The natives on Fanning Island are so sweet and it's a wonderful place to buy souvenirs. Not many of your friends and neighbors can say they have been that far from home!

[blyle]

Thanks so much your info has really helped. WE are in the process of renting our cars right now!

[p2lockhart]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=205169

 

the above is my roll call thread for the 11/26 11 day wind cruise. i have been posting the info i have found on this site and other places in this one spot, if that will be of any help to you. i am just about the only poster but i figure that way i can keep track of the info and it might benefit others who eventually find the post.

 

good luck.