Cruise Critic Sailing Aboard Pride of America 4/9 - Ask Us Your Questions

[CruiseCriticAaron]

On 4/7/2022 at 2:48 AM, lgdesign said:

CCA –

 

Can you let us know what type of cabin you will be staying in?  Also, any photos will be much appreciated of all areas around the ship.

 

Thanks!

We've got a regular balcony (Cat BB) onboard, but I've put a couple bids in for suite upgrades, so we'll see if one of those clears!

[CruiseCriticAaron]

29 minutes ago, Caraec said:

We're on the 5/14 tour! I'm interested to see if there's a projected ship capacity that far out yet.

 

Also, I know dining reservations were canceled for this cruise. I would like to know how much/how little of a cluster it is to have everyone making replacement reservations once they board. Are those with speciality dining packages (we've booked a 5-night package) given any kind of assurance of being able to book restaurants at times that work for them?

 

It will make me a bit sad if my reservations are canceled, since I made them at midnight at 120 days out!

I'll definitely be looking at the overall capacity for this sailing along with the impact on dining, and how easy/difficult it is to get a reservation. With so many dining options closed (at least on this initial voyage), I am expecting passenger count to be relatively low. However, fair warning: getting an exact passenger count has been a guessing game on most voyages I've been on recently!

[cruisewiththekids]

I'm interested in the availability of shuttles/taxi/uber at ports to pick up rental cars and also whether overnight parking is still offered at the shopping center near where the ship docks on Kauai.

[Silver Sweethearts]

1 hour ago, cruisewiththekids said:

I'm interested in the availability of shuttles/taxi/uber at ports to pick up rental cars and also whether overnight parking is still offered at the shopping center near where the ship docks on Kauai.

 

Don't forget if you are renting a car for both days in Maui you will need overnight parking there too.

[4 cruisers]

On 4/7/2022 at 11:34 AM, BermudaBound2014 said:

There is a plethora of snorkeling tours here. Not sure what your was cancelled on you :(. The sticking point could be pick up from kahalui. Is there a chance you are tendering into Lahania? That will make things infinitely easier.
 

If you are overnighting in Kahalui, the closest place for snorkeling is Ma’alaea Harbor.  It’s about 15 minutes from Kahului so I can’t imagine a taxi could be all that expensive. Pacific whale (large double decker) and Trilogy (catamaran) are only 2 of the very many snorkeling tours from there. I believe your only choice from Maa’Laea Harvor will be Molokini but that is an iconic spot on Maui.

 

I really like Maa’lea Harbor. The aquarium is right there and between the aquarium and snorkeling you can easily make it a very enjoyable day. They have shopping and restaurants also - my favorite is the restaurant inside the aquarium.

 

Best to you!

Thank you for your great info!  It looks like we don’t tender into Lahaina.  I had to get a bus transfer…around $60 per person!🙄.  I was thinking about taking the ferry to Molokai…is it’s schedule reliable?

[www3traveler]

Prayers and Best Wishes for the crew of the Pride today.  Welcome Back

[CruiseCriticAaron]

16 hours ago, cruisewiththekids said:

I'm interested in the availability of shuttles/taxi/uber at ports to pick up rental cars and also whether overnight parking is still offered at the shopping center near where the ship docks on Kauai.

 

I'll definitely be looking into that!

[mfon1]

On 4/7/2022 at 10:45 AM, 4 cruisers said:

We are on the April 23rd sailing and look forward to reading your answers!  Our question is pertaining to tours…our snorkel cruise in Maui is cancelled.  Let us know what IS available on Maui.  It’s overnight there.  Thanks in advance and “Aloha!”

Yes thank you so much for doing this. I am also curious about excursions. We sail on the POA on June 4 and have booked a couple of excursions on our own. We haven’t booked anything for Maui and Kona. I was wondering if while in port there are Uber/Lyft and private tour operators waiting to provide transport or excursions to cruise guests. 

[BermudaBound2014]

8 hours ago, 4 cruisers said:

Thank you for your great info!  It looks like we don’t tender into Lahaina.  I had to get a bus transfer…around $60 per person!🙄.  I was thinking about taking the ferry to Molokai…is it’s schedule reliable?

There is no ferry to Molokai. Perhaps you are thinking of the ferry to Lanai? If I only had a few days in Maui that would not be my suggestion. 

[4 cruisers]

3 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

There is no ferry to Molokai. Perhaps you are thinking of the ferry to Lanai? If I only had a few days in Maui that would not be my suggestion. 

After I typed that, I went to bed and realized it was incorrect!  We have been to Maui many many times but really just wanted to snorkel one day.  Any suggestions?  One day we will wander around Lahaina.  I read somewhere that you could go to a beach in Lanai near the ferry that had decent snorkeling. 

 

As always, I value your posts!:-)

[BermudaBound2014]

28 minutes ago, 4 cruisers said:

After I typed that, I went to bed and realized it was incorrect!  We have been to Maui many many times but really just wanted to snorkel one day.  Any suggestions?  One day we will wander around Lahaina.  I read somewhere that you could go to a beach in Lanai near the ferry that had decent snorkeling. 

 

As always, I value your posts!:-)

 

I think your snorkeling tour that was cancelled was to Molokini and not Molokai? I am unaware of any snorkeling trips to Molokai. With only 13 letters in the alphabet it's easy to mix up places in Hawaii :).

 

From Lahaina, the absolute best snorkeling from shore is down at Mala Boat launch. There is an old pier with suprisingly good snorkeling. There are lemon sharks that hang out here and that's always fun.  It's walkable from the Marina area (which is the banyon tree).

 

If you want to take an uber (or the bus which is only $4 for a unlimited hop on hop off day pass) from Lahania up to Kapalua there is decent snorkeling up here at either Kapalua Bay or Napili Bay (I stay in Kapalua so this is the part of the island I am most familiar with).

 

Unfortunately, the reefs are getting very damaged from sunscreen, so please make sure to encourage everyone you know to only use reef safe sunscreen and never ever spray sunscreens (which are damaging to more than the reef). 

 

Let me know if you are interested in using the Maui bus system and I can help out :). I also think you can get to Lahania from Kahalui for less than $60 a person, especially if you can hook up with another couple. There are private transportation companies popping up here because Uber/Lyft are still lacking. Actually, you can get to Lahania using the public bus system from the mall, but it would take a huge chunk of very precious time so I'm not sure that's the best idea. What dates are you going to be on Maui?

Edited April 9, 2022 by BermudaBound2014

[Silver Sweethearts]

1 hour ago, 4 cruisers said:

I read somewhere that you could go to a beach in Lanai near the ferry that had decent snorkeling. 

 

Just FYI, the ferry to Lanai costs $30.00 per person each way and takes about 50 minutes from Lahaina to Manele Bay.  The last we heard it runs four times a day and reservations are a good thought. Do know that the crossing can be a bit rough at times.  It's more time, cost  and health effective to snorkel on Maui.

[da1425]

22 hours ago, Silver Sweethearts said:

 

Don't forget if you are renting a car for both days in Maui you will need overnight parking there too.

 

What do you suggest?  I was planning on just parking it at the airport and taking an uber back to the port

[Silver Sweethearts]

7 minutes ago, da1425 said:

 

What do you suggest?  I was planning on just parking it at the airport and taking an uber back to the port

 

A very wise choice in our opinion.

[tupperstamper]

We are finally underway. Only about an hour and a half late. I asked a crew member why we were late and he said they had to wait for corporate to leave the ship.

[mispi]

Please, in which ports are the hop on hop off tours available ?

[4 cruisers]

2 hours ago, tupperstamper said:

We are finally underway. Only about an hour and a half late. I asked a crew member why we were late and he said they had to wait for corporate to leave the ship.

Oh boy!  Well a big “Aloha!”😎

[4 cruisers]

11 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

I think your snorkeling tour that was cancelled was to Molokini and not Molokai? I am unaware of any snorkeling trips to Molokai. With only 13 letters in the alphabet it's easy to mix up places in Hawaii :).

 

From Lahaina, the absolute best snorkeling from shore is down at Mala Boat launch. There is an old pier with suprisingly good snorkeling. There are lemon sharks that hang out here and that's always fun.  It's walkable from the Marina area (which is the banyon tree).

 

If you want to take an uber (or the bus which is only $4 for a unlimited hop on hop off day pass) from Lahania up to Kapalua there is decent snorkeling up here at either Kapalua Bay or Napili Bay (I stay in Kapalua so this is the part of the island I am most familiar with).

 

Unfortunately, the reefs are getting very damaged from sunscreen, so please make sure to encourage everyone you know to only use reef safe sunscreen and never ever spray sunscreens (which are damaging to more than the reef). 

 

Let me know if you are interested in using the Maui bus system and I can help out :). I also think you can get to Lahania from Kahalui for less than $60 a person, especially if you can hook up with another couple. There are private transportation companies popping up here because Uber/Lyft are still lacking. Actually, you can get to Lahania using the public bus system from the mall, but it would take a huge chunk of very precious time so I'm not sure that's the best idea. What dates are you going to be on Maui?

We stayed at Kapalua when it was supposed to open as a “Rock Resort!”  It must have been 1976 or so!  
we are arriving on Pride of America on April 25th and depart the 26th!  The hop on hop off bus is a great idea!!  
 

is there anything of interest near the harbor we dock at?  
 

as always, thank you for your help!🥰

[NikiPinkston]

7 hours ago, mispi said:

Please, in which ports are the hop on hop off tours available ?

We haven't done the HOHO bus in Maui yet, but here is the link.  Plan to do it day one in Maui on our upcoming POA cruise this fall.  It picks you up right at the port. 

https://hulahulahopper.com/kahuluitrolley/

(We don't snorkel, so day two we're doing Lahaina & the submarine.)

There's also a HOHO bus in Waikiki if you plan to stay there a few days pre- or post-cruise:

https://waikikitrolley.com/

[NikiPinkston]

So excited that you're underway!  Can't wait to hear all about your cruise. 😊😎

[4 cruisers]

On 4/7/2022 at 11:34 AM, BermudaBound2014 said:

There is a plethora of snorkeling tours here. Not sure what your was cancelled on you :(. The sticking point could be pick up from kahalui. Is there a chance you are tendering into Lahania? That will make things infinitely easier.
 

If you are overnighting in Kahalui, the closest place for snorkeling is Ma’alaea Harbor.  It’s about 15 minutes from Kahului so I can’t imagine a taxi could be all that expensive. Pacific whale (large double decker) and Trilogy (catamaran) are only 2 of the very many snorkeling tours from there. I believe your only choice from Maa’Laea Harvor will be Molokini but that is an iconic spot on Maui.

 

I really like Maa’lea Harbor. The aquarium is right there and between the aquarium and snorkeling you can easily make it a very enjoyable day. They have shopping and restaurants also - my favorite is the restaurant inside the aquarium.

 

Best to you!

Perfect!!!  Sounds like a perfect day!  Thank you!!!!!!!

[BermudaBound2014]

Let me clarify hop on/hop off. I meant you pay one daily fare and can ride as much as you want. In other words you can hop on in lahania, hop off on kapalua, and hop back on in kapalua, hop off at whalers village, etc…

 

This isn’t a swanky hop on hop off tour bus like you find in major cities. It’s a regular old public bus system that, if you time it right, comes complete with the tweaker  sleeping in the back seat. 
 

With that said, it is reliable, on time, and cheap. There is a Maui bus app that you should download if you plan to use this transportation. It gives real time tracking which is always great. If you plan to get on the bus in Lahania and head up to kapalua (and anywhere in between in the west coast) you will want route #28. BUT, as I mentioned, while cost effective, it may not be the best choice with precious time. If you download the app, you can see all the routes and times and go from there.

 

So happy that POA has returned!! I feel like it’s one step closer to normalcy in the cruise world  🙂

 

 

Edited April 10, 2022 by BermudaBound2014

[BermudaBound2014]

1 hour ago, NikiPinkston said:

We haven't done the HOHO bus in Maui yet, but here is the link.  Plan to do it day one in Maui on our upcoming POA cruise this fall.  It picks you up right at the port. 

https://hulahulahopper.com/kahuluitrolley/

(We don't snorkel, so day two we're doing Lahaina & the submarine.)

There's also a HOHO bus in Waikiki if you plan to stay there a few days pre- or post-cruise:

https://waikikitrolley.com/

I was referring to Maui bus system, not this trolley. I have no experience with the kahalua trolly at all, but I have ridden the kaanapali trolly which is infinitely nicer than the public bus I was referring to 🙂 

[BermudaBound2014]

6 hours ago, 4 cruisers said:

We stayed at Kapalua when it was supposed to open as a “Rock Resort!”  It must have been 1976 or so!  
we are arriving on Pride of America on April 25th and depart the 26th!  The hop on hop off bus is a great idea!!  

 

is there anything of interest near the harbor we dock at?  
 

as always, thank you for your help!🥰

Kanaha Beach is absolutely worth visiting for the kite surfing (not to be confused with kahana lol). This beach had a problem w/ homeless last year to the point ir was not recommended for tourists but I’ve been there several times this year and it’s very much cleaned up.  I make this a stop each time I pick someone up and drop them off at the airport.

 

I can’t think of anything else of interest near the port. It’s industrial. Maybe silversweet has better ideas. 

Edited April 10, 2022 by BermudaBound2014

[BermudaBound2014]

@CruiseCriticAaron so happy you are officially sailing!! Sorry for thread Hijack, there are two current threads on POA and I got them confused.

 

Do you know the number of passengers onboard? Crew?

 

Weather should be great this week, happy sailing!!