Is Hawaii so expensive that cruise is a good option?

[NutsAboutGolf]

16 minutes ago, Cruise Junky said:

It is absolutely not an 8 hour flight from Vancouver.  It’s 6 1/2 at most and usually quicker with a tail wind.  

 

Yup!  Will be in the air for under six hours...Delta advertises 6hr 15mins which includes taxiing

[southernbreezes]

 

Would love to know what Airline. The fastest flight I can find is below.

4:03 pm – 9:10 pm

American Airlines

1 stop

DFW

8h 07m

I fly United because of points...

1. 

   2:11 pm – 8:59 pm

   United Airlines

   1 stop

   EWR

   9h 48m

   PBI

    ‐ 

   YVR

[southernbreezes]

10 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

Yup!  Will be in the air for under six hours...Delta advertises 6hr 15mins which includes taxiing

Maybe in the air but the flights are not nonstop. Look my closest friends live in Vancouver they have been coming to visit us for the last 9 years at least once a year. I know the flight times very well.

5:55 am – 11:23 am

Delta

1 stop

ATL

8h 28m

PBI

 ‐ 

YVR

Edited February 17, 2023 by southernbreezes

[LouChamp]

Aloha.  We are blessed to divide our time between hawaii and new york. For a first time visitor a cruise is an excellent way to sample the islands and their individual diversities.  It is a less cumbersome way to vacation in my opinion then to waste half days of air travel between the islands. Factor in the air and hotel costs, transport between hotels and airports and of course meals and it is competitive but a cruise is less tiresome.  That said, we did cruise on NCL a few times and the Pride of Aloha, Pride of America ships with their differences from the mainstream cruise lines did leave a lot to be desired. It is an individual choice. As for air, it really depends on where you leave. We use Hawaiian from Kennedy nonstop to HNL. I get to sleep and the service is fine. United flies from Newark but with points we get upgrades and I believe the service is better even the first class experience at times we avail of it is better. So I think in summary the ability to reduce inter island air is a major advantage. Whatever choice you make, the islands are spectacular. Enjoy!

[LouChamp]

Aloha. Forgot to mention we did sail with Princess one time and had a great experience.  Enjoy!

[rodndonna]

2 hours ago, LouChamp said:

 So I think in summary the ability to reduce inter island air is a major advantage. Whatever choice you make, the islands are spectacular. Enjoy!

 

This is a big advantage for me, and being a poor sleeper where each new bed/location takes a couple of nights for me to adjust makes the inter island hoping thing unappealing. It is the big thing that draws me to cruising in general - it limits time spent with transiting from place to place and allows me to sleep in the same room every night. 

 

We do land holidays as well, but when we do, it's generally a single location holiday. Maybe someday if the 4 or more weeks holidays become a thing for us and our Canadian dollar rebounds to par removing that 35% currency gap (uggh), land based island land hoping would become more appealing.

[NutsAboutGolf]

4 hours ago, southernbreezes said:

Maybe in the air but the flights are not nonstop. Look my closest friends live in Vancouver they have been coming to visit us for the last 9 years at least once a year. I know the flight times very well.

5:55 am – 11:23 am

Delta

1 stop

ATL

8h 28m

PBI

 ‐ 

YVR

 

You're welcome

[jakebloke]

We were planning on doing a land trip to Hawaii last year, but the pricing was just outrageous.  We ended up booking a cruise and felt like it was a good way to get a taste of the islands in a more relaxed way and much less money.   It's too bad this cruise to Hawaii doesn't shave off 2 of the 4 days on the Big Island and go to Kauai.  Then it would be an almost perfect itinerary on a great ship, with great food and entertainment, and relaxing days at sea. 
IMO 4 days on the Big Island is too many.  It was my least favorite island, although granted we were only there 2 days on the the POA October '22.  POA leaves so much to be desired, but definitely gives you a better opportunity to get a taste of the islands. Cruising past the Napali coast was amazing.

Also  we spent a couple of nights before and after the cruise in Waikiki and NEVER need to go there again.  I'd go to Oahu again, but spend more time on the eastern coast and north shore.

[NutsAboutGolf]

4 minutes ago, jakebloke said:

We were planning on doing a land trip to Hawaii last year, but the pricing was just outrageous.  We ended up booking a cruise and felt like it was a good way to get a taste of the islands in a more relaxed way and much less money.   It's too bad this cruise to Hawaii doesn't shave off 2 of the 4 days on the Big Island and go to Kauai.  Then it would be an almost perfect itinerary on a great ship, with great food and entertainment, and relaxing days at sea. 
IMO 4 days on the Big Island is too many.  It was my least favorite island, although granted we were only there 2 days on the the POA October '22.  POA leaves so much to be desired, but definitely gives you a better opportunity to get a taste of the islands. Cruising past the Napali coast was amazing.

Also  we spent a couple of nights before and after the cruise in Waikiki and NEVER need to go there again.  I'd go to Oahu again, but spend more time on the eastern coast and north shore.

 

On the big island, Hilo is about the volcano and Kona is about snorkeling; if you one doesn't like either I would agree there isn't much else.  If visiting by land, book a hotel in Oahu for your entire stay and keep your luggage there.  Book a same day round trip to Maui, book the earliest arrival and latest departure(can be had $100/person) and then on a different day do the same for Kauai

[Cruise Junky]

5 hours ago, southernbreezes said:

Maybe in the air but the flights are not nonstop. Look my closest friends live in Vancouver they have been coming to visit us for the last 9 years at least once a year. I know the flight times very well.

5:55 am – 11:23 am

Delta

1 stop

ATL

8h 28m

PBI

 ‐ 

YVR

There are 2 airlines that offer non stop from Vancouver. Air Canada and Westjet. Who in their right mind takes the routing you are showing above, that’s crazy.  We usually use Alaska via Seattle as I have a companion ticket every year.  

[NutsAboutGolf]

7 minutes ago, Cruise Junky said:

There are 2 airlines that offer non stop from Vancouver. Air Canada and Westjet. Who in their right mind takes the routing you are showing above, that’s crazy.  We usually use Alaska via Seattle as I have a companion ticket every year.  

 

I was scratching my head on that one as well... @southernbreezes, most travel experts use "google flights" to locate flights

[Travelexpert35]

I’ve been visiting Hawaii since the late 70’s as a teenager and it’s my favourite destination. Love the friendly Hawaiian people. I’ve travelled there over 40 times to the various islands. I have cruised twice from HNL to YVR on Celebrity and always stayed an extra week in Waikiki. I do wish Celebrity would add Kauai to their itinerary and remove Hilo or Kona. Kauai is my favourite island. Since retiring, we’ve been staying in Waikiki in a condo when we travel there. We live in a small town now so we enjoy the hustle and bustle of Waikiki. When we were working in a bigger city, we wanted the quiet and relaxation of the other islands. It’s a 12 hr flight with connections from the Maritimes and that hasn’t stopped us from travelling there. 

[LouChamp]

Aloha.  It is fascinating how each island has such a unique character and charm that there truly is something for everyone.  Having been born and raised in Manhattan, we find Kauai to be too laid back for us lol.  The big island is wonderful but it rains to much on the Hilo side and Kona can also lack in energy.  We will sometimes fly to Maui for a few days but we love Honolulu because the vibrancy aka craziness reminds us of Manhattan lol. Also the variety of restaurants provides a real comfort level.  All of the above being said it truly is paradise.  Enjoy!

[Cruise Junky]

1 hour ago, LouChamp said:

Aloha.  It is fascinating how each island has such a unique character and charm that there truly is something for everyone.  Having been born and raised in Manhattan, we find Kauai to be too laid back for us lol.  The big island is wonderful but it rains to much on the Hilo side and Kona can also lack in energy.  We will sometimes fly to Maui for a few days but we love Honolulu because the vibrancy aka craziness reminds us of Manhattan lol. Also the variety of restaurants provides a real comfort level.  All of the above being said it truly is paradise.  Enjoy!

We really enjoy the North Shore of Oahu. It allows us to pop into Honolulu for the day and then escape. Best of both worlds 🤷🏻‍♀️  Big island is the only one we haven’t done a land trip but have been three times on a cruise.  

[Cruise Junky]

On 2/16/2023 at 3:49 AM, southernbreezes said:

We have stayed in Hawaii for extended periods of time and like it. Never would I consider a timeshare, condo, etc. My wife is on vacation also so no cooking, cleaning making the beds, etc.

We are cruising to Hawaill because we love cruising the sea days are wonderful. I would never consider NCL its not for us. As far as tendering my cruise says none but with the Edge Class ships having the magic carpet it is not an issue if we do. Flights to Hawaii from Florida are long over 13 hours many over 20 hours Vancouver is 8 hours. The same can be said about every vacation destination fly and stay longer but we cruise there then stay then fly home.

I think we’re talking about two different things. You’re referring to Florida to Vancouver and I’m talking about Vancouver to Hawaii.  There are now direct flights from Vancouver to a couple of Florida cities.  

[NutsAboutGolf]

5 minutes ago, Cruise Junky said:

I think we’re talking about two different things. You’re referring to Florida to Vancouver and I’m talking about Vancouver to Hawaii.  There are now direct flights from Vancouver to a couple of Florida cities.  

 

Thanks for pointing that out

[Chardonnay Char]

On 2/15/2023 at 1:04 AM, NMTraveller said:

We have been to Hawaii 7 times.  All land trips.  I would do a land trip myself unless you really want all of those sea days.

To repeat, you don't have sea days on NCL.  It has a monopoly on Hawaii and doesn't have to touch a foreign port.  I did the Pride of America in 2011 and enjoyed it.  That said, I'm not sure that NCL has had to invest much in the Pride because it's the only game in town.  We are doing the Celebrity Vancouver to Hawaii this fall and plan to enjoy both our land and sea days. 

 

[southernbreezes]

19 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

I was scratching my head on that one as well... @southernbreezes, most travel experts use "google flights" to locate flights

We were talking about cruises out of Vancouver to Hawaii I have to get to the port from West Palm Beach (PBI). There are non-stops from Miami but that is a 2-hour drive sometimes a 4-hour drive with traffic from where I live. I traveled 28,000 miles last year I know how to search for flights.

[rodndonna]

12 hours ago, Chardonnay Char said:

 I did the Pride of America in 2011 and enjoyed it.  That said, I'm not sure that NCL has had to invest much in the Pride because it's the only game in town.  We are doing the Celebrity Vancouver to Hawaii this fall and plan to enjoy both our land and sea days. 

 

 

I'd be curious to read your comments or comparisons after your return. We bobbled on the fence between POA or doing a one way cruise ..  we are booked on Celebrities 13 day in Sept 2024. Looking forward to sea days as it is a newer ship (Edge) and we could use those days to adjust to the time change before arriving I hope. We'll make the best of it either way though!

[LouChamp]

46 minutes ago, rodndonna said:

 

I'd be curious to read your comments or comparisons after your return. We bobbled on the fence between POA or doing a one way cruise ..  we are booked on Celebrities 13 day in Sept 2024. Looking forward to sea days as it is a newer ship (Edge) and we could use those days to adjust to the time change before arriving I hope. We'll make the best of it either way though!

Aloha.  We always have enjoyed Celebrity having sailed on its first ship the Meridian in the 1990s and then on various ships and itineraries in the Caribbean and Europe but not on the Edge class.  I have been reading about some disappointments in food quality and menu cutbacks including but not limited to my love for prime rib lol and lobster. I do not know what to make of it however.  We did a princess cruise from hawaii visiting the islands and then to polynesia visiting the south pacific which we enjoyed and of course NCL Hawaii. It truly is a matter of personal choice.  I love days at sea including transatlantic so I think your idea of the days at sea and the Edge voyage is certainly an “appetizing” idea.  Keep us posted!

[Duanerice1]

I’ve been to Hawaii many times over the last 30 years.  Most recently spent 7 weeks there in 2021. 
 

I’d never take a cruise around the islands.  You don’t get to see much.  Couple of hours and your back on the ship. There is so much to see and do….  
 

Pick 2 islands and go over for 10 days or 2 week, 5 days on each island.  So much better.  
 

Same thoughts on the Greek Island cruises.  We are picking 2 islands and going to spend a few days on each to get to ‘know’ the islands.  
 

To me, cruises are good for the Carribean and maybe Alaska but otherwise you really don’t get to enjoy a location.   
 

so my vote is to go and enjoy the islands…   Have fun with whatever you decide to do! 

[Sigyn]

I haven't been to Hawaii since 2001, but when I went, I flew from Los Angeles to Kauai and stayed at a little beachfront hotel with a tiki bar by the shore and had the most amazing time. You don't have to stay in the swankiest hotel to have a fabulous vacation in Hawaii. Get something facing the water and you're set. It's Hawaii. Food is much more expensive there, but once you rent a vehicle you can take yourself all over the island, eat from the food trucks for lunch, coffee shops for breakfast, and splurge on a couple of fun dinners. You can make of it what you will. Or do a cruise. But don't feel like you HAVE to do a cruise to experience Hawaii. 

 

There was so much to do just on Kauai. We went non-stop for four days, going to the fern grotto, doing a helicopter ride over the island to see the Jurassic Park waterfalls from the original movie, visiting the North Shore (have you heard the song Puff the Magic Dragon? That's where Peter, Paul and Mary got their inspiration "From a Land Called Hanalei") and just touring everything. We even did a luau and the kalua pig was the most delicious pork I'd ever had and I don't usually even eat pork. We were exhausted. We were only there five days, so the final day we just laid on the beach and relaxed. I wished we had more time just on Kauai. Here it is, 22 years later and I haven't been back. I need to go and experience things on Hawaii time. One island is plenty. 

 

Edited to say I dug up where I stayed back in 2001. Then, it was $125 a night. Now it's about $300 a night. But it's a fantastic place and still gets really good ratings and you can open the sliding door in your room and step out onto an ocean front concrete path and the beach sand is on the other side of the path. You can even see the tiki bar from my memories in some of the photos: https://www.aquaaston.com/hotels/aston-islander-on-the-beach

Edited February 18, 2023 by njsmom

[NutsAboutGolf]

2 hours ago, Duanerice1 said:

I’ve been to Hawaii many times over the last 30 years.  Most recently spent 7 weeks there in 2021. 
 

I’d never take a cruise around the islands.  You don’t get to see much.  Couple of hours and your back on the ship. There is so much to see and do….  
 

Pick 2 islands and go over for 10 days or 2 week, 5 days on each island.  So much better.  
 

Same thoughts on the Greek Island cruises.  We are picking 2 islands and going to spend a few days on each to get to ‘know’ the islands.  
 

To me, cruises are good for the Carribean and maybe Alaska but otherwise you really don’t get to enjoy a location.   
 

so my vote is to go and enjoy the islands…   Have fun with whatever you decide to do! 

 

You do get an morning arrival, over night and evening departure in both Maui and the Oahu, you get 10 hours at each of the big island ports

[rodndonna]

1 hour ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

You do get an morning arrival, over night and evening departure in both Maui and the Oahu, you get 10 hours at each of the big island ports

 

It's also why we like the Celebrity options - ours (Sept 2024) has overnights on Kona, Hilo and Maui. We end in Oahu and will spend a couple of nights there before heading back. The overnights make quite a difference allowing one day on each island for that extra time for a long day excursions and/or evening out. It was another reason we chose the one way with Celebrity over POA.

[cruisequeen4ever]

Hawaii by land gives so much more time to explore the islands, BUT especially now, it’s terribly expensive. Hotel prices soared there when travel started coming back in 2021 and 2022, and they haven’t come back down. Our Uber driver told us a 3.5 star hotel on Maui was $1,200 on NYE! That makes a Hawaii cruise a huge value!