First trip to Hawaii... cruise or fly?

[KeepCalmBearOn]

On 12/15/2022 at 11:44 AM, Paula_MacFan said:

We are long-time Princess cruisers but for Hawaii in January 2023 we are doing NCL's Pride of America.

 

It is not a very good cruise. Maybe it's improved. We did it once and thought it was bad, but 10 years later we figured the first time was a fluke. Nope. It was still bad in terms of service and food. The ship was nothing to write home about either.

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

So we're still going back and forth.  We'll probably put a refundable deposit down when Princess releases the itineraries, just in case.

 

I don't think this would be a once in a lifetime trip to Hawaii for us. 

 

It seems the cruise would be more of a sampler consisting of 4 islands, while a land vacation would really be in depth.  Advantage of the cruise is we'd get a better idea where to stay, and what to do, for the land vacation sometime in the future.   

 

My next question is this: with kids 12 and 15, which island (or 2 max) would you recommend staying on, if we go with the land?

[KeepCalmBearOn]

4 hours ago, PrincessArlena'sDad said:

It seems the cruise would be more of a sampler consisting of 4 islands, while a land vacation would really be in depth.  Advantage of the cruise is we'd get a better idea where to stay, and what to do, for the land vacation sometime in the future.   

 

A land vacation is more in depth, but you can really only do 2 islands in two weeks for a lot of reasons.

 

4 hours ago, PrincessArlena'sDad said:

My next question is this: with kids 12 and 15, which island (or 2 max) would you recommend staying on, if we go with the land?

 

Oahu and Kauai.

 

Hawaii Island (the Big Island) is too big for just 7 days, you really need 10 days (9 nights) and Maui has become way too crowded.

[loupana]

We choose to Fly to Honolulu 5 days before our Ovation of the Seas Cruise so this allows us to spend about a week in Hawaii between the 3 Islands before the Pacific crossing to Vancouver. 5 days in Honolulu, 2 days in Maui and the one day (9hrs) in Kona. Hopefully this give us a good taste of the Islands. If not I guess we'll just have to go back 😀

 

02 MAY HONOLULU, OAHU, HAWAII (Departs 9PM)

03 MAY LAHAINA, MAUI, HAWAII (Arrive 7AM)

04 MAY LAHAINA, MAUI, HAWAII (Departs 9PM)

05 MAY KAILUA KONA, HAWAII (Arrive 7AM, Depart 4PM)

11 May VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA 

[princeton123211]

16 hours ago, LouTheGlue said:

2 days in Maui and the one day

The overnight call in Lahaina with 2 full days would be a real highlight for me on this one-- it's a shame more cruise lines don't do it. You can accomplish a lot given you are going to be tendering in much better located Lahaina vs Kahului and you have the flexibility of doing things you cant on a standard day port call like having dinner on Maui the first night. 

[terpshockey77]

On 12/24/2022 at 11:19 AM, princeton123211 said:

The overnight call in Lahaina with 2 full days would be a real highlight for me on this one-- it's a shame more cruise lines don't do it. You can accomplish a lot given you are going to be tendering in much better located Lahaina vs Kahului and you have the flexibility of doing things you cant on a standard day port call like having dinner on Maui the first night. 

What are your recommendations for tours in Lahaina?

[KeepCalmBearOn]

4 hours ago, terpshockey77 said:

What are your recommendations for tours in Lahaina?

 

It depends on what interests you and when you are there.

 

In whale season, personally I'd book a zodiac tour. Out of whale season I might do the Trilogy catamaran snorkel trip to Lanai.

 

I a not a fan of the road to Hana. I do like Haleakalā National Park.

 

I am also fine just walking around Lahaina.

 

If you are there overnight, you can do the Old Lahaina Luau.

[princeton123211]

8 hours ago, terpshockey77 said:

What are your recommendations for tours in Lahaina?

With the overnight you have the luxury of time. I agree with Scott-- unless the Hana Road is at the top of your list I wouldn't spend an entire day on it (although you have the ability to if you wanted). Far more relaxing things to do. 

 

Personally I wouldn't do an organized tour- the area you are in is very easy to handle on your own. You have the option of renting a car if you wanted to explore and head over to Haleakala, or if you really, really wanted to do the road to Hana) but that would be the only reason to rent a car. The beauty of tendering in Lahaina is that you wont really need one unless you are bent on doing one of those two things. 

 

You could do something as simple as just taking an Uber up to Kaanapali Beach which is about 10 minutes to the North of where you'll be dropped off. It's a fantastic beach with a ton of resorts and Whaler's Village for shopping. You could also take an Uber further up to Kapalua where you have the option for golf or just take in the sunset/eat/drink at the Montage or Ritz up there. 

 

If you are looking to dine off of the ship that night one of my favorite restaurants in the world, not just Hawaii, is Lahaina Grill right in town and walking distance to your tender. Fleetwoods on Front Street (as in Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac) is also a favorite for the rooftop bar. 

[terpshockey77]

Thanks for the suggestions.