Thinking of Hawaii (someday)

[Grampyshottub]

Now that the kids are gone, and we have a little more time together. My wife and I would like to look at sailing on the Pride of America in Hawaii. We couldn't do it for 2 or three years. Everything I've looked at is way out of reach. It's just the wishful thinking stage and we haven't been to a TA yet. The Airfare alone is a killer to the budget from Boston. Does NCL or any of the Airlines offer any fly & cruise packages?:)

[xlxo]

I notice there are some weeks are cheaper than others..... January often has cheap dates that I'm looking at.

[casofilia]

Now that the kids are gone, and we have a little more time together. My wife and I would like to look at sailing on the Pride of America in Hawaii. We couldn't do it for 2 or three years. Everything I've looked at is way out of reach. It's just the wishful thinking stage and we haven't been to a TA yet. The Airfare alone is a killer to the budget from Boston. Does NCL or any of the Airlines offer any fly & cruise packages?:)

 

NCL does arrange flights but I would think that a package from them would be more costly than arranging the flight yourself and getting a promotion free cruise price.

 

Mike

[flapbreaker]

Alaska airlines would be you're cheapest option either through Portland or Seattle. I know they partner with other airlines through awards programs. Honestly Hawaii is so nice I'd rather pick an island and just enjoy that island and skip the cruise. Hotels can be expensive but you can rent homes or condos through vbro fairly reasonably. Just my opinion from my own experience with Hawaii.

[bonvoyagie]

Yes we did the POA in 2006 - back when it was a wee bit cheaper and NCLA had all three ships there. We live in Portland OR so our flight was a non-stop on Hawaiian Airlines (fantastic flight and service) however now Alaska has good flights from PDX as well - They also have a great nonstop from Boston to either PDX or Seattle that might be able to connect with one of their HI flights.

 

We are heading to BOS this fall for a 14 day NE cruise on the Dawn and have booked flights already - got a killer deal in Feb - prices have gone up and seats are almost gone :cool:

 

We do like balconies however on this cruise it is so port intensive that an ocean view or inside would do nicely. Having been there and done that, I would not use the NCL tours - we did because it was convenient.

 

Our TA was able to arrange the cruise, flight, transfer and hotel for two nights for just under $5k I think we spent another 1k in tours. It has been awhile so my memory is fuzzy on the tour portion.

 

We stayed at the same hotel NCL uses for its tours - they have a small office in the lobby - we were able to arrange a pre cruise tour of Pearl Harbor and the Island Highlights that ended up at the ship which was great.

 

The prior day we spent the whole day at the Polynesian Cultural Center - it was a great way to learn about the various cultures of the islands. They also serve a great Luau.

 

Actually the rest of the islands are a blur - I know we swam in hot pools where thermal pools and sea water blended in tide pools. We snorkeled, saw an aquarium, lots of deep canyons, a zoo, many plantations, did the NCL luau, and perhaps my favorite tour was the cave tubing on Lenai.

 

I believe that all of these can be done on your own with a rental car - or using private tours or even Roberts - the largest tour company in HI. Do more homework than we did - I just discovered CC before this cruise - so you have a leg up on me :D

 

We loved the fresh fruit both on the island and on ship.

[ryarger]

OP, for most Easterners, Hawaii is a once-in-a-lifetime trip. When I went with my wife and MIL in 2014, we decided to combine the best of both worlds and did nearly a month- one week on the POA followed by 10 days on the Big Island (5 Kona/5 Hilo) and a week in Oahu. We managed this by using VRBO/AirBNB and staying in affordable out of the way places. The islands are so compact that nothing is that far away!

 

I hope you have a chance to go, it is completely worth it!!

 

 

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