Pride of America and pre stay hotels

[Virginia100]

I was wondering if the experience on POA has improved recently as comments have been negative lately, not going for awhile but interested,

 

Also, for a pre embarkation stay what hotels have previous cruisers used that they like in Oahu ?

 

thanks.

[fabby50]

We stay at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort and Spa.  NCL used to use it as their pre and post cruise hotel and what was great about that is you could do all you check in there, get your room key, book any reservations, etc. there.  I don't think they do that anymore, but we still like the hotel and are staying there in December before our next POA cruise (it will be our third).

 

 

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 hour ago, Virginia100 said:

I was wondering if the experience on POA has improved recently

It's been strangely silent.  I have asked the same question and it's basically been crickets.

[libridge8]

Also looking for recent reviews. 
 

[Crazy planning mom]

We stayed at the Outrigger Reef Hotel in 2017 and loved it.  We had a great view, was on the beach, but not in a super busy spot.  We loved our trip but it was 2017.  For more recent info, the YouTuber parodeejay and eecc Travels recently were in the POA.

[BirdTravels]

We stay at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Nice property, but on the edge of Waikiki. 

[dogdoc2002]

We stayed at the Ala Moana in 2006 (was there for a conference and did the POA after the conference)- it's just outside of Waikiki, on the west side of the Ala Wai canal. We enjoyed it- close enough to walk to whatever we wanted in Waikiki without the expenses. We are going on the POA this November for the 2nd time, staying at the Park Shore this time.

 

[YVRteacher]

I’ve stayed at the following hotels in Waikiki:

Hilton Hawaiian Village (Alii tower)

Outrigger

Sheraton Waikiki

Sheraton Princess

Hyatt Place

Hyatt Waikiki

Marriott Waikiki

 

My favourite is by far the Hyatt Waikiki for the location, rooms, view and price.  I did enjoy the Hilton but they are so short staffed that line ups for check in (even with “priority”) can be hours and the location is not central to the restaurants we live in Waikiki.

 

For years NCL used the Marriott as their pre-cruise hotel then they switched to the Hilton Hawaiian Village but not in a good tower (it was a tower farther back on the property.) Now NCL is back to using the Marriott.

Edited August 8, 2022 by YVRteacher

[casofilia]

We are Best Western people and have stayed in the one near Honolulu Airport, the Plaza.   We have enjoyed both visits.   Easy to get into town with a bus "at the door" and easy to get to Pearl Harbour.

[sberg23]

On 8/7/2022 at 12:58 PM, ChiefMateJRK said:

It's been strangely silent.  I have asked the same question and it's basically been crickets.

Just hang tight until December for my update 😄 as we are going for certain... unless outside forces say otherwise.  We know the current risks with staffing and onboard limitations including restaurants, but are paid in full (reducing the risk of cancellation) and excited to go.  Just need to finalize a hotel, which we'll use the comments here to help decide.  We are also keeping expectations in check, as the primary driver of booking this cruise is to navigate to the other islands much cheaper than island hopping by plane/hotel.

Edited August 27, 2022 by sberg23

[piglet55cc]

I ended up having NCL book the hotel they use. We are staying at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. The cost is $530. The AAA and AARP price for that Friday night is $520 (including tax & resort fees). I had NCL book it because I am coming in from the Ohio. The cheapest flights now on Google Flights has me  landing at 9pm Hawaiian time.  My biggest worry is not arriving until Saturday without my luggage.

 

[rhapsodybluezz]

We stayed 3 nights at the Hyatt Place in February 2020 before our cruise. The price was reasonable, the hotel was 1 block from Waikiki Beach and we enjoyed it.  I would stay there again.

[onelegcraig]

We just returned from POA.  Public restrooms were not clean, and looking at the posted cleaning records, they seem to be cleaned only 2 - 3 times/day!  Dining tables in buffet would sit dirty for quite a while, so sometimes there was lack of seating, unless you wanted to clean your own table.  They ran out of coffee every morning in the buffet, so when they finally got around to filling the machine, it would be a rush to get one before it ran out again.  Only 2 bars were open at a time, so the wait for drinks was long. The bar on deck 13 did not open the whole week, so if you were a smoker, or using the back pool area, there was a bit of a walk to the Ocean Drive Bar, which closed at 6pm everyday.  The bartenders and drink runners worked hard, but they are so short staffed, sometimes we would ask for canned beer instead of mixed drinks to make it easy for them.  Service in Cagney's and Jefferson's was good, but they were the only two specialty restaurants open for the week.  The service in Cadillac Diner was probably the best we found on the ship.  Our stateroom was kept clean (thanks Richard), but no nightly turn down service, and you have to ask for robes and extra towels.

We did this cruise for the itinerary, not the ship.  However, it was a huge difference in service and cleanliness from our HAL cruise in May.

We stayed at Aston Waikiki for 2 nights pre-cruise, and Hilton Hawaiian Garden for one night after.  We like the location better for Aston, but the hotel is showing it's age.  The Hilton is beautiful, but too big and busy for us, lots of walking, and the location on the strip is not the best.

[Linsuesue]

3 hours ago, onelegcraig said:

We just returned from POA.  Public restrooms were not clean, and looking at the posted cleaning records, they seem to be cleaned only 2 - 3 times/day!  Dining tables in buffet would sit dirty for quite a while, so sometimes there was lack of seating, unless you wanted to clean your own table.  They ran out of coffee every morning in the buffet, so when they finally got around to filling the machine, it would be a rush to get one before it ran out again.  Only 2 bars were open at a time, so the wait for drinks was long. The bar on deck 13 did not open the whole week, so if you were a smoker, or using the back pool area, there was a bit of a walk to the Ocean Drive Bar, which closed at 6pm everyday.  The bartenders and drink runners worked hard, but they are so short staffed, sometimes we would ask for canned beer instead of mixed drinks to make it easy for them.  Service in Cagney's and Jefferson's was good, but they were the only two specialty restaurants open for the week.  The service in Cadillac Diner was probably the best we found on the ship.  Our stateroom was kept clean (thanks Richard), but no nightly turn down service, and you have to ask for robes and extra towels.

We did this cruise for the itinerary, not the ship.  However, it was a huge difference in service and cleanliness from our HAL cruise in May.

We stayed at Aston Waikiki for 2 nights pre-cruise, and Hilton Hawaiian Garden for one night after.  We like the location better for Aston, but the hotel is showing it's age.  The Hilton is beautiful, but too big and busy for us, lots of walking, and the location on the strip is not the best.

I hate to hear this! We are on the Pride of America in a couple of weeks. There is definitely a limited supply of specialty restaurants to experience. How full was the ship? Was it in the 40% - 50% range?

[BirdTravels]

34 minutes ago, Linsuesue said:

I hate to hear this! We are on the Pride of America in a couple of weeks. There is definitely a limited supply of specialty restaurants to experience. How full was the ship? Was it in the 40% - 50% range?

But it sounds like the poster was looking for things to complain about... "you had to ask for robes and extra towels"... the ship should have hired a mind reader to know when extra items are needed . Coffee dispensers in the buffet run out of coffee... sounds like just about every ship I been on. 

[ChiefMateJRK]

On 8/7/2022 at 10:09 PM, YVRteacher said:

Hyatt Place

Hyatt Waikiki

 

On 8/7/2022 at 10:09 PM, YVRteacher said:

My favourite is by far the Hyatt Waikiki

Which Hyatt in Waikiki?  There are three.

[Middleager]

We've stayed at several hotels in Waikiki, in several trips to Hawaii.  The prices have been going up and up over the years, and now quite expensive.  There is a special attraction in Waikiki, and many Japanese girls dream of getting married in Hawaii.  There is a very happy feeling in Waikiki.  Many enjoy people watching in Waikiki (and many enjoy being watched).

 

Waikiki is not big.  There are 7 hotels that are right at the beach, all expensive, but all good.  There are many hotels from budget (even budget is expensive these days) to very expensive.  It's not a long walk to the beach even if you're a few blocks away.  So if you stay at a cheaper hotel a few blocks from the beach, you can still enjoy Waikiki fully.

 

The cruise terminal is not in Waikiki. It's in Honolulu, by the Aloha Tower, west of Waikiki.  Traffic gets quite heavy, roads jammed up during rush hour, but if you avoid rush hour, it'll be fine.

 

It's usually good to get to Oahu, Waikiki or Honolulu, a few days before cruise.  That way you get used to time change, and get to enjoy Oahu in addition to Waikiki.  There is so much to do/see in Oahu, the Pearl Harbor, Polynesian Cultural Center, Pali Lookout, Hanauma Bay (actually not that good for snorkeling, and gets too crowded, but still a well known place so you can check off the list), North shore and shrimp trucks, Diamond Head, Punchbowl Cemetery, .

 

The cruise ship itself may still be short staffed, but the ports are just so wonderful to visit.

Edited September 17, 2022 by Middleager

[Linsuesue]

4 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

But it sounds like the poster was looking for things to complain about... "you had to ask for robes and extra towels"... the ship should have hired a mind reader to know when extra items are needed . Coffee dispensers in the buffet run out of coffee... sounds like just about every ship I been on. 

I would say that Onelegcraig has the right to explain his experience, and I appreciate his taking time to post. I personally am accustomed to meeting the cabin steward right off the bat. At that time, I give the heads up for robes, extra towels, pillows, ice… and I am done with requests. In a very port intensive itinerary like POA, it would be easy to not run into the steward much. Maybe he was in a suite, and robes should have been in the room already. POS is not a cheap cruise. Our trip on it in October is a rebooking of a cancellation, another cancellation, another cancellation, and another cancellation. I have been on 13 cruises and have never had to wait for coffee on the buffet which shouldn’t be happening since the main dining room isn’t even open for breakfast and lunch on that ship. NCL really sells those free at sea offers and now we are lucky if there are even enough specialty restaurants open to even use them at during the week. I would say there is justification for complaint with diminished experience that doesn’t accompany a diminished price. 

Edited September 17, 2022 by Linsuesue

[steamboats]

@onelegcraig sounds that nothing has changed since May.

 

We stayed in three different hotels in May:

 

Shoreline Hotel in Waikiki - second row but really close to the beach, very nice, decent price

Moana Surfride - high price, right at the beach oldest hotel in town

Best Western Plaza - at the airport, nice, decent price, bus right in front of the door (we had an early flight the next day, so an airport hotel was more convenient)

 

steamboats

[YVRteacher]

18 hours ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

 

Which Hyatt in Waikiki?  There are three.

Sorry!

My favourite is the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort and Spa.

[ChiefMateJRK]

17 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

Sorry!

My favourite is the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort and Spa.

Thanks.  We use Hyatt points and the Hyatt Place is normally our preference.  Sometimes they don't honor points at all locations, so it was looking like the Hyatt Regency for our planned-but-now-aborted October POA itinerary.  We'll just have to see what's what when we again try to finalize a HI itinerary.  I'm committed to planning nothing firm until I have days/weeks of reports of the POA issues being "solved."

[onelegcraig]

On 9/16/2022 at 10:53 PM, Linsuesue said:

I hate to hear this! We are on the Pride of America in a couple of weeks. There is definitely a limited supply of specialty restaurants to experience. How full was the ship? Was it in the 40% - 50% range?

Some staff said 40%, others said 50%, so lets say 45%.  Pack your patience and sense of humor.

[onelegcraig]

On 9/16/2022 at 11:33 PM, BirdTravels said:

But it sounds like the poster was looking for things to complain about... "you had to ask for robes and extra towels"... the ship should have hired a mind reader to know when extra items are needed . Coffee dispensers in the buffet run out of coffee... sounds like just about every ship I been on. 

I'm very sorry if I sounded like I was looking for things to complain about.  We have traveled to many countries, and have had very few complaints, we tip well, and make a point to meet the staff and the locals. We travel with a wheelchair, so believe me when I say we pack our patience and sense of humor, as it is always needed.  We spent over $15k on this cruise,  which is at the top end of our vacation budget.  We did not meet the stateroom attendant till the third day, and that was only by accident, and communicated by sticky-notes on the mirror.  We were provided with two large towels, one hand towel and one face cloth, which in our opinion was insufficient.  We did receive more once we asked, so perhaps the cruise line is cutting back on linens in general.  The staff worked very hard, and we spoke to a few that were looking forward to the end of their contract, and were not planning on renewing.  Also, we spoke to a few guests who had the gratuities removed from their account, but we would never do this.

Also, given the fact that covid is still out there, it was surprising that the common areas (bathrooms/tables) were not kept clean and the buffet was self serve.  (HAL in May was staff serve only). 

I was only trying to say, the services were very different than what we experienced on our last POA cruise in 2018, but the costs were much more.

(BTW we travel to Cuba annually, we are Canadian, and the resorts there are not at capacity, and not fully staffed, however we did not notice much difference in service from pre-covid).

I hope you have a wonderful day, and blue skies and calm seas. 

 

Edited September 18, 2022 by onelegcraig

[piglet55cc]

Thank you for the heads up on what you experienced. I would rather know what to expect in advance. This will be my 13th cruise. I know what I have experienced. To get less service for a full price cruise is sad. But unfortunately that is the world we live in now.  So many restaurants have closed down in Cleveland because they can't get enough workers, just like POA.  

I like that you still gave the correct gratuity, instead of taking it off like some people.  It is because of those kind of people that the staff doesn't stay for more than one tour.

You have prepared me, and I appreciate your help.

[NCStateCruiseLover]

Anyone know if PoA overnight sailings allow you to get on and off the ship 24 hrs? Or does the pier open and close during the overnight hours?