Pride of America

[lakegirl16]

Looking at booking a Pride of America cruise for February 2020.  We have cruised frequently.  I'm finding this to be quite expensive.  I love the idea of seeing all of the islands.  Just trying to decide if I can justify the cost.  How's the food?   How's the ship?  We have sailed Princess and Celebrity in the past.  Thanks. 

[BirdTravels]

The POA is the only way the cruise Hawaii. No wasted time getting from/to the west coast. 7 days in Hawaiian ports (including 2 overnights to allow you to experience a luau or bike down a volcano at sunrise). The food is cruise ship food.

[TheTides]

Easy... Just do it.  One of our best vacations.  If you have never been to Hawaii this is a fantastic way to see all 4 of the islands.  Each have their own charm and will allow you to come back and really know where you want to invest a week or 2.  The food/service is all standard cruise ship food, but honestly you are there for Hawaii.  I could easily argue its the best way to see Hawaii for the first time.  

[FenixRising]

It is an awesome cruise. It's expensive because as an American registered ship, they to pay all kinds of taxes and fees which drive the cost up. The ship itself does not have the bells and whistles that other ships have but it doesn't need them. You are in port so much that you basically sleep onboard and nothing else. When I was on POA, the food was pretty good. I definitely did not go hungry.

[Linda the Book Lover]

This cruise was worth the cost. My DD and I took my DGD. we stayed in Honolulu a few days and toured and enjoyed the hotel amenities and then boarded the ship. I had not expected the wonderful service and nice employees we met during our week on board. Yes, there is always one that is rude (waiter walked away when we sat and never waited on us or asked what we might like to drink) but it was handled when we brought it to the attention of another employee. We did not allow this to upset us and enjoyed our fabulous week. We stayed in balcony cabin and we not only enjoyed the views but the time being together. We all agreed this would be a cruise we would repeat. 

[vaddco]

We cruised on POA in 2012. It is one of my favorite cruises to date. We combined it with about 6 days in Oahu at the start and loved being able to spend 2 days in Maui and Kauai. I will say that we didn’t end up doing a ton on the ship because the days were so packed. I didn’t find the food significantly different than any other NCL cruise I have been on.

[Luv my furbaby]

I agree with the other comments. POA is the way to go to see all of the islands without a lot of sea days - though I love sea days, I wanted to spend my time on the islands. For the amount of time to sail from California, I spend 6 extra days in Honolulu. Got to go to Pearl Harbor, North Shore, swam with the sharks, spent time on the beach and got to have dinner with my cousin and his boys. 

The ship is old, do not expect all of the bells and whistles. Was not fond of a lot of the crew, food was, as others have said, cruise food. 

By spending 2 days in each island, I know I want to go back to Maui and Kauai. But, I would do the cruise again. 

[Beachiekeen]

This cruise is about Hawaii not the ship. The ship is basic as most passengers spend the majority of the cruise on island. 

[ighten]

Awesome just do it - as someone said earlier if you want to cruise Hawaii this is the only way to do it - full trip report from this years POA click here

Edited July 28, 2019 by ighten

[rtread]

The way I put it to my wife is...."If we are going to do it, let's do it. The cruise companies try to make the cruises attractive and for the most part, they do. But.....it's a huge money grab for them. It's gotta be or they wouldn't exist. The Hawaii cruise on POA is an excellent way to see the islands. If we tried to put together a similar itinerary on our own, no way we could afford it. So let's do it and don't look back" So she quit worrying about the money and now it's LET'S HAVE FUN!

[Imalismom]

We booked a suite on the POA.  After cruising, I said to my husband, I wish we had booked the cheapest inside cabin.  You literally use the POA as a floating hotel room.  You get up in the morning, leave the ship, and come home just in time for dinner and we were so tired we feel asleep right away, to get up in the morning and do it all over again.  I highly recommend this Hawaii cruise, but again, I would not book a very expensive cabin - save the $$ for different tours.

[fiftyguy]

51 minutes ago, Imalismom said:

We booked a suite on the POA.  After cruising, I said to my husband, I wish we had booked the cheapest inside cabin.  You literally use the POA as a floating hotel room.  You get up in the morning, leave the ship, and come home just in time for dinner and we were so tired we feel asleep right away, to get up in the morning and do it all over again.  I highly recommend this Hawaii cruise, but again, I would not book a very expensive cabin - save the $$ for different tours.

Agree. A cruise that’s definitely worth the extra money. NCL is the only option for a strictly Hawaiian cruise. We’ve done it twice. You get to see four islands without packing/repacking to get flights. It’s your floating hotel. This is a port intensive cruise and you’ll be out most of each day to see all there is to see and do. We would do it again and we have to travel from the east coast. If you decide to book - enjoy.