New to Norweigian going on Pride of America

[Sunflower & The Scientist]

We are new to Norwegian and going on Pride of America October 2017. I will have many questions in the months to come...hope y'all will be patient with me.:rolleyes:

 

1) Do men have to wear closed toed shoes in the main dinning room (including formal night) for dinner? All you super proper people are probably gasping.....my husband NEVER wears anything but closed toed shoes, but packing his dress shoes is always a nightmare on cruises. Beings that this is Hawaii....anyone ever seen something other than closed toed?

 

2) On other lines we always get a deluxe balcony type room...larger than the regular balcony, but not a suite. Floor space is what we are going for. POA you either have regular balcony...or move up to Penthouse Suite. Going to cost us each $1000 more for Penthouse. We aren't into all the things that come with it...we don't need a butler or a special place to go for breakfast or lunch. I know for some people that makes a vacation special, for us...we just want floor space and a balcony. What are the cheapest Penthouse categories? Any suggestions?

 

3) How far is Pearl Harbor from the airport? How far is where we board POA from Pearl Harbor?

 

Thanks....

[chengkp75]

POA docks at the Pier Two Cruise Terminal, off Ala Moana Blvd. Google maps are your friend.

[punkincc]

We are new to Norwegian and going on Pride of America October 2017. I will have many questions in the months to come...hope y'all will be patient with me.:rolleyes:

 

1) Do men have to wear closed toed shoes in the main dinning room (including formal night) for dinner? All you super proper people are probably gasping.....my husband NEVER wears anything but closed toed shoes, but packing his dress shoes is always a nightmare on cruises. Beings that this is Hawaii....anyone ever seen something other than closed toed?

 

2) On other lines we always get a deluxe balcony type room...larger than the regular balcony, but not a suite. Floor space is what we are going for. POA you either have regular balcony...or move up to Penthouse Suite. Going to cost us each $1000 more for Penthouse. We aren't into all the things that come with it...we don't need a butler or a special place to go for breakfast or lunch. I know for some people that makes a vacation special, for us...we just want floor space and a balcony. What are the cheapest Penthouse categories? Any suggestions?

 

3) How far is Pearl Harbor from the airport? How far is where we board POA from Pearl Harbor?

 

Thanks....

 

 

Welcome to NCL! We have done the POA twice. I'll try to answer some of your questions.

 

1. No one gasping on this board. NCL is freestyle after all. NCL has a general dress code, which is more or less uniform on all the ships. It is not strict at all. ( It's Freestyle, remember ). You can find it on the NCL website. Usually, only the more formal, aft MDR and Le Bistro require long pants for men at dinner, but they can be jeans or khakis, with closed toe shoes and shirt with a collar. Men can wear shorts at the more casual MDR. No dress shirts needed, polo or golf type OK as are Hawaiian shirts. Shorts OK everywhere on Embark day and are ok on any night at all other restaurants other than the aft MDR and Le Bistro. The shoes need not be dress shoes. The DH favors sketchers lately. They look good enough for dinner and are great for walking on excursions and are feather light. Great to pack. No ball caps or tank tops at night.

 

NCL has no mandatory formal nights and you will not be banned from the MDR for wearing jeans. Dress up as much as you like on any night, some do, but people are generally pretty informal on NCL, and it is Hawaii, after all.

 

2. NCL's equivalent to the deluxe balcony would be a minisuite, but for some reason, the POA has none, but most other ships do. With suite prices currently starting in the neighborhood of $3200 pp for the cheapest, all the way up to $6599 pp for the top suite, I don't know that you'd find it worth the $. The lowest category would be the Obstructed view family suite. You can do mock bookings and choose various cabins to see what the options are and what your prices would be all in. We did do a POA in a Penthouse Suite with large balcony, but we got one heck of a deal on the price, and another in an aft facing balcony (larger balcony than a regular balcony ) and plenty of room for two.

 

Many people feel that due to the port intensive itinerary with two overnights and no sea days, and the high cabin prices this ship requires, that a balcony is wasted money and an inside cabin is the way to go. Unless you can get a really good deal, I would agree. Save the extra money to do something special in Hawaii that you will never forget. I guarantee you will not be talking about that cabin years from now.

 

3. Pearl Harbor is pretty close to the airport. Take a look at a google map. The airport would be about a 20 minute or so ride from the port/Waikiki area by taxi depending on traffic. Most choose to stay in the Waikiki area for walkability to the beach, restaurants and shopping, and is a quick taxi to the ship.

 

Check out the Hawaii Board here on Cruise Critic for lots of good info as well.

Edited June 26, 2016 by punkincc

[Sunflower & The Scientist]

Thanks SO much punkincc. Your information was very helpful, and exactly what we needed. The shoe thing will work fine for my husband, he'll just wear his regular shoes and jeans. That will save packing dress pants.

 

Suite...we will have to play around with pricing, but in the end I just don't think it will be worth the suite for us.

 

Thanks again...people like you make newbies lives easier!

[CactusFlower527]

POA is like a floating hotel/restaurant and is used for little else by most of the guests on it. It is not your typical ‘cruise ship’ experience.

When you see negative reviews, that is usually “why”… because it’s just NOT like any other cruise out there.

It is very port-intensive and most everyone spends their daylight hours on the Islands.

It is …early to bed, early to rise.. and busy/long/fun days. The “hallways” roll up on the ship by 9-10 pm (after dinner) as people are pooped out from the day.

 

We did a suite (links to some things in my signature)….in May 2014.

I would not waste money again on one.. we were hardly on the ship!

All we needed was clean beds and a place to shower.. and a balcony.

Next time it will be balcony staterooms .. as 2 of those would be the same or less than a suite and you get the extra bathroom.

Most of the suites only have one bathroom.

 

As mentioned already, dress-code is casual.

Take a lot of shorts, capris (ladies), tank tops and LIGHTWEIGHT cotton tees, swim suit if you doing any beach time, pool, or excursions like snorkeling etc.

One pair of pants should suffice… as well as some sneakers, slip-ons, sandals and a pair of flip-flops for the beach/ocean. There is a lot of walking while on the Islands, so shoes with those gel cushion insoles are great.

It is hot/humid there .

I did not wear half the clothes (polyester, spandex blend.. etc etc) that I took as most of it was “too hot” when I put it on… and found myself changing out and back into a tank top.

 

You will have a great time!!! I can't wait to go back

[Sunflower & The Scientist]

Thanks so much CactusFlower! Your information was very helpful. The thought of a quiet ship at night is...well very nice!!! We aren't party people! I understand your point regarding a suite...we are yet undecided, but will make the decision in the next week. We are a fairly young couple so typically we would be putting in log days at ports, but my husband is post heart attack, and really needs some rest and down time as well as exploring ports. So I kind of think a suite isn't a bad thing as we will spend more time onboard than would be typical. Also with his height we find it hard in a very small room as none of the furniture is comfortable for him to sit in, and he likes lounging in the cabin and looking out onto the ocean.

 

Good clothing info....pretty much what I had anticipated. I thought one pair of long pants for my husband and the rest shorts or swimwear. I'll do shorts and tops...and probably sundresses as they could be worn around ship at most any time.

 

Thanks again!

[CactusFlower527]

I'm not sure about the summer months, but we cruised early May before the schools were out .. and there were maybe half a dozen kids on the ship and not a lot of really young adults. There were a lot of people middle aged and retirees. Of course there were still younger folks on honeymoons etc etc.... but I do think there was a much more mature crowd on our sailing. Possibly, one reason, is that the cruise is fairly expensive as far as cruises go, not just the cost of the cruise itself, but the airfare needed to get to the Island, pre and post hotel costs etc etc. Not something a lot of young people can manage (generally speaking).

 

I think if you get a balcony cabin they are much less confining. My brother had an inside family cabin and it was very claustrophobic. With that said.... I think everyone should do a suite at least once. They are nice, we just didn't use a lot of the amenities.. we hardly saw our butler. Yes you can beat the breakfast lines at the buffet by eating at Cagney's .. but the menu is the same EVERY DAY, and gets boring after day 3-4. If I had to do it over again, I would eat the buffet every other day just to get some variety. Suite guests do get priority on the Kona tender, but you can also get that by taking a morning shore excursion - as they are the first ones off as well.

 

You're in for the time of your life :D

[punkincc]

Sunflower, if you think you might spend a lot of time on the ship, you might just want to go with a suite, if the cost is not an issue. It will be much more comfortable and you get some perks like a coctktail gathering with the Captain and top staff. Also no worries about dinner reservations because the concierge will take care of all that.

 

Yes, breakfast options are the same every day at Cagneys, but honestly, I don't know what else anyone could ask for as far as menu items offered. And there is a fruit, yogurt and pastry buffet as well. I'm always puzzled when I see complaints about the same old menu every day for breakfast. What on earth do people eat for breakfast that's not on the menu?:confused:. It is a beautiful setting, and the service is good. French press coffee. No problem for me.

 

We did switch it up a bit by going a few times to the breakfast in Moderno which is right next to the aft facing Aloha Lanai. Uncrowded and they have a small buffet and cooked to order options. It is open to anyone, but I think many believe it is for fee, or for suite guests only. The Aloha lanai area has tables and you can also get your buffet food for any meal and carry it out there if you like to dine open air. This was our fave spot on the ship. So nice at sailaways or in the evenings. Shaded, nice breeze, padded couches and chairs, a bar and sometimes some quiet entertainment at night.