Best cruise line for Hawaii??

[CruiserBruce]

1 hour ago, alrose251 said:

Not misleading if you compare each cruise for the number of islands and the amount of time at each island.    All I am saying is NCL gives the most time spent in Hawaii. 7 days in Hawaii!

 

The Pride of America leaves from Oahu (great deal of people do arrive at least a day early),  stops at Maui (overnight), stops at Hilo, stop at Kona and Kauai (overnight).  I think that is more than 2 stops!

 

 

When I say NCL stops at two ports on Hawaii, I am referring to the Island of Hawaii, not the state of Hawaii.

 

Did you actually sail on Pride of America?

[KeepCalmBearOn]

5 hours ago, alrose251 said:

I did extensive research on cruising Hawaii for the perfect itinerary.  Hands down NCL has the best itinerary in my opinion.

 

NCL does spend more time in the islands than most other cruises, but that is offset by the disadvantages of POA. I found the crew lackluster, there is no casino, the food was average at best and no sea days didn't allow any time to relax and enjoy the trip. If my goal was to spend more time on land I'd simply fly to HI and do that.

 

5 hours ago, alrose251 said:

NCL allows the most time (entire time) in Hawaii.  The overnight in two ports opens up some many more opportunities to explore the islands.  Pride of America sails to more Hawaiian islands than any other cruise line (that I could find).

 

More ports maybe, but most of the Hawaii cruises from the mainland hit all four major islands. Some even hit both Hilo and Kona, like POA does.

 

5 hours ago, alrose251 said:

I love sea days, which NCL Pride of America does not have any, but I can get sea days on any other cruise.  My purpose for the Hawaiin cruise is to see Hawaii and NCL will allow me the most time on the islands.

 

But that does not appear to be the OP's desire. As I said above, if your desire is to spend more time in HI, on the ground, do a land based vacation. Even with a port overnight you only get a fraction of what each island has to offer.

 

1 hour ago, alrose251 said:

Not misleading if you compare each cruise for the number of islands and the amount of time at each island.    All I am saying is NCL gives the most time spent in Hawaii. 7 days in Hawaii!

 

Yes it is misleading. Most cruises from the mainland hit all four major islands.

1 hour ago, alrose251 said:

The Pride of America leaves from Oahu (great deal of people do arrive at least a day early),  stops at Maui (overnight), stops at Hilo, stop at Kona and Kauai (overnight).  I think that is more than 2 stops!

 

Bruce was referring to two stops on Hawaii, which means Hawaii Island vs in Hawaii, which refers to the state.

 

1 hour ago, alrose251 said:

I can understand your preference.  For me, I just want to spend as much as I can in Hawaii!

 

But again, not what the OP asked for. They did mention POA, but they also mention primarily liking Carnival and Royal C and mentioned Princess as well. A lot of people like the cruise experience for days at sea rather than having to scramble every day to go do sightseeing.

 

16 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

When I say NCL stops at two ports on Hawaii, I am referring to the Island of Hawaii, not the state of Hawaii. Did you actually sail on Pride of America?

 

A very good question. We did once and it wasn't great for a lot of reasons. I hear it has improved.

[princeton123211]

I'm with Scott on this one. The best cruise to Hawaii is no cruise at all. Do a land based vacation, even for the same amount of days, and see SO much more. 

[Expat Cruise]

Have done several cruises to Hawaii from the US West Coast, also did one cruise on the Pride Of America. NCL Pride is the only major line cruise ship that can do an all US cruise. The others must go to a foreign port to meet the requirements of the Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886. Many think it is the Jones Act of 1920 which regulates maritime commerce in U.S. waters and between U.S. ports, but that act is really about cargo. Even some cruise lines confuse the two acts.

 

Any ways, we would not do another NCL Pride Cruise for several reasons. First because it is a US Flagged ship the costs of a 7-day cruise on Pride is the same or more than a 14 to 16-day cruise from the other lines, leaving from the West Coast.   Also, the US Flagged ship is under US Labor laws, most of the service crew must be US Citizens or Green Card Holders. The level of service provided is not great. The level of food is also below other lines in our opinion. The Pride is also a much smaller ship than the other mainstream lines use. At 80,000 tons carrying 2500 passengers, vs a ship like the Emerald Princess which is 40% larger 113,000 tons and is only carrying 3100 passengers. Much more space per passenger with the Emerald Princess, so the ship feels less crowded.

 

NCL does give you an extra port and the ability to tour before or after the cruise in Hawaii. But the other lines give you a Mexico or Canada Stop and many great sea days. Our Choice would be Princess or Holland America, Carnival Cruises is an option but very limited offerings to Hawaii. 

[vivian02]

This should be of interest to those now looking to do a Hawaiian cruise. Way back before the days of POA I did the research for cruising Hawaii. I believe the winter was 2003 when Norwegian had four ships for cruising Hawaii. I managed to get flights out of Phoenix at the time for a pleasant price of $280 per person round trip into Honolulu. I had booked a ten-day Hawaiian vacation which included a port stop at Fanning Island. These were the days when you could bid for hotels in Wikki and get a four star hotel for under $100. I recall my bids for a two day stay at the Hawiian Prince came in at $96 a night. With a call to the hotel after the bids you could request a ocean side room and yes they did put us in a ocean side room. My wife was amazed. My purchased price on the Norwegian Star for a inside cabin came in at $720 a person. I could have done better had I not picked a room adjacent to the anchor room. That is a real wakeup call when the ship drops anchor, but it only added to the Hawaiian experience at the time. At that time maybe two of three ships made it to Fanning because of medical emergencies. Our ship on the morning out to Fanning made a sudden slow down with the captain announcing a medical evacuation was in progress and not to go out at the rear of the ship. Sure enough a military helicopter made a landing at the rear of the ship and took off with a person that need medical treatment. Because of the evacuation we would not make it to Fanning on time so the rest of the cruise got reschedule. Instead of going to Fanning we got a unexpected day in Kona. Instead of a half a day in Maui we stayed in Maui for a full day. Unfortunately, those really inexpensive days of cruising Hawaii have disappeared. Since then I have learned to enjoy sailing out to the Islands on those 15 and 16 sea days. The Islands await those who want to do cruises or land tours. Everyone is different but I will always remember our first cruise where we never made it to Fanning Island. I say do your homework and enjoy your trip. Tim

[philv]

We did the NCL Pride of America last year. Terrific cruise. I recommend it if you want to maximize time in the islands versus sea days. We did two days prior in Honolulu and will do same in 2024 for our 40th wedding anniversary. Wonderful experience!