POA - Hawaii LIVE Sep 30, 2023

[carohs]

Oh man getting out of the airport and checked in took longer than expected. Among the delays, the hotel couldn't find our reservation. But we did check in eventually and even managed to find lunch. Simple sandwiches but tasty. Found an unusual bathroom situation. Why limit access to the women's but not the men's? Anyway now we're waiting on Lyft to head to Pearl Harbor. 

[LauraAnneC]

9 hours ago, LouChamp said:

Aloha.  We love Hawaiian.  Hope you will also.  About ten years ago they started flying nonstop JFK to Honolulu which I love because I can sleep on the plane and the return to NY is a redeye. I find their service commendable and generally on time except if JFK is messed up lol. They will be getting 787s soon and am looking forward to flying in them soon. Looking forward to hearing about your Hawaiian Airline experience as well as your trip. Have a super special time!

Just curious as to how long the flight is from JFK to Hawaii?

[LauraAnneC]

1 hour ago, carohs said:

Oh man getting out of the airport and checked in took longer than expected. Among the delays, the hotel couldn't find our reservation. But we did check in eventually and even managed to find lunch. Simple sandwiches but tasty. Found an unusual bathroom situation. Why limit access to the women's but not the men's? Anyway now we're waiting on Lyft to head to Pearl Harbor. 

Really enjoying reading your report so far. Excited to see all of your exploits. Hopefully I’ll get to Hawaii someday …..

[NJGeorge]

39 minutes ago, LauraAnneC said:

Just curious as to how long the flight is from JFK to Hawaii?

It was 11 hours nonstop from Newark. 

Was offered a first class upgrade for 300.00p.p......jumped on it.

 

[LauraAnneC]

8 minutes ago, NJGeorge said:

It was 11 hours nonstop from Newark. 

Was offered a first class upgrade for 300.00p.p......jumped on it.

 

I would too!!

[carohs]

We had 2pm reservations for the Arizona memorial. We made it with just a few minutes to spare. The ranger came in and gave us a quick what for, starting with remembering this is a memorial not an attraction. We learned about the design of the memorial and how the ship and lives aboard were lost. It's all very shocking how quickly that happened. Even more sad that there were that many men aboard because the ship was scheduled to return to Washington. They had all been writing letters saying they were coming home. Instead the families received folded flags in the months following PH since most of the crew were basically instantly cremated and bodies never recovered. I'll add a few picture highlights. 

[carohs]

 

[carohs]

 

[carohs]

More birdies

And statues

[carohs]

We're back in the room now. I was feeling hungry again but it was only 5. DH points out that it's really like 8pm our time. Duh! Still waiting on delivery too pooped to get out again. But to combat it I found me Taro milk tea 😋😋

 

[carohs]

We also got the kids sworn in as junior rangers. 

[cruiser2015]

4 hours ago, NJGeorge said:

It was 11 hours nonstop from Newark. 

Was offered a first class upgrade for 300.00p.p......jumped on it.

 

Fantastic!

When we flew Hawaiian non-stop from JFK a few years ago, we booked in first. It was 3.5 times the cost of coach.

[LouChamp]

9 hours ago, LauraAnneC said:

Just curious as to how long the flight is from JFK to Hawaii?

Aloha. Approximately 11 hours. There is a United from Newark EWR is used to take which is about the same but I enjoy the Hawaiian experience. I used to sometimes fly to Las Vegas or LAX and change but it just adds unnecessary hours. Hawaiian also flies nonstop from Boston.

[carohs]

4 hours ago, LouChamp said:

Aloha. Approximately 11 hours. There is a United from Newark EWR is used to take which is about the same but I enjoy the Hawaiian experience. I used to sometimes fly to Las Vegas or LAX and change but it just adds unnecessary hours. Hawaiian also flies nonstop from Boston.

11 hours! I don't think I could do a flight that long. I would get figetty and it's not like anybody on the flight would appreciate me pacing either just to stretch out for a bit. 

[Ellis1138]

Just now, carohs said:

11 hours! I don't think I could do a flight that long. I would get figetty and it's not like anybody on the flight would appreciate me pacing either just to stretch out for a bit. 

 

In economy, it's excruciating, even when I did it when I was 22 years old and in decent shape. On the way, back, I couldn't sleep at all in the economy seat and the FA wanted some rest (I kept asking her for more coffee), so she brought me up to the galley, told me I could sit on her seat there, read my book and make all the coffee I wanted for myself. So, yeah, no one wants the fidgety passenger. 🙂

 

The second time I went, in my mid-30s, we broke up the trip with an overnight in LAX, which helped a ton with the jet lag and less discomfort in economy.

 

This time, my husband wants the nonstop, so we saved up United Miles for 11 years so we can go in Polaris seats both ways. (He's 50 and I'm 60). I pondered doing Premium Economy on the way there, since we don't have to sleep going TO Hawaii, but ultimately decided that being able to elevate our legs fully would be better for DVT purposes.

 

(I'm honestly not sure if I got a good miles bargain, but it was 400,000 miles for both of us, RT EWR/HNL and then the $12-ish for the fees part.)

[LouChamp]

4 minutes ago, carohs said:

11 hours! I don't think I could do a flight that long. I would get figetty and it's not like anybody on the flight would appreciate me pacing either just to stretch out for a bit. 

Aloha.  Lol. I have been doing it about every six weeks for 10 years. I generally fly premium economy and a few times first class but that is a waste because I sleep most of the time. By the way, if you are flying Hawaiian home they have On The Rocks Mai Tai. It is probably as close to a real Mai Tai as you can get. Liquor stores now sell it. Restaurants cannot make a good Mai Tai on the east coast and most cruise ships either. They use grenadine and in Hawaii they do not. I have yet to have a Mai Tai in Hawaii I did not like. Enjoy!

[carohs]

5 minutes ago, Ellis1138 said:

we saved up United Miles for 11 years

What? I definitely don't have that kind of self-control and dedication. Props

[carohs]

Got only slightly better sleep last night. I still have anxiety I think about what the plans are and all the ways we can be sidetracked and delayed. This is why I hate planning and prefer to go with come what may. But I started looking into it I just didn't feel come what may would work out very well. Or I'd be wasting a whole lot of $ just to end up at a beach. Woke up at 1ish then tried and mostly failed to sleep; finally gave up about 4ish. DD woke up a little bit after and said, "guess what mommy? I still have lots of energy I was just tricking you all night!" 🤣🤣🤣

[carohs]

Two updates from yesterday. They have a highway here that's literally built over another road. It tripped me out the whole way

 

DD also saw and pointed out a rainbow 🌈 in the sky. 

[carohs]

Hotel review: we stayed at the Airport Hotel. For convenience mostly. The room was fine; the hotel clean. But the AC didn't do a good job of cooling. I can stand next to it and feel the very cold air but across the room I'm hot. I can sit in 80 degrees in my house and still cover with a blanket for coziness. It may have something to do with the tickle in my throat (probably from the 🥶 on HA) or from my increased proximity to DH with only a full size bed. I also spotted a roach in the bathroom overnight. I accept that bugs are an inevitable part of life and they tend to invade every space you don't want them to, but still I don't look favorirably on a business that has roaches. Eew. We're staying on the 2nd floor. 

[LauraAnneC]

34 minutes ago, LouChamp said:

Aloha.  Lol. I have been doing it about every six weeks for 10 years. I generally fly premium economy and a few times first class but that is a waste because I sleep most of the time. By the way, if you are flying Hawaiian home they have On The Rocks Mai Tai. It is probably as close to a real Mai Tai as you can get. Liquor stores now sell it. Restaurants cannot make a good Mai Tai on the east coast and most cruise ships either. They use grenadine and in Hawaii they do not. I have yet to have a Mai Tai in Hawaii I did not like. Enjoy!

Now that’s a bucket list goal - to have a Mai Tai in Hawaii! 🤣

[scubacruiserx2]

We're glad that you have made the trip safely and hope that you will enjoy your cruise and Hawaii . One thing that affected us in Kauai when we were driving to certain popular touristic places is that , post Covid , they may require that you reserve parking in advance . This happened to us at the Kilauea Lighthouse . We couldn't park or walk to the lighthouse and had to make a reservation for the next day . Also , we wanted to park at the Haena State Park to hike the Na Pali Coast like we did in 2001 . We were told that we would have park our car in Princeville and take a bus for a half an hour ride and pay extra . Only Locals can park where we did before  at the park . So you may want to try to book ahead if you drive to the Volcanos National Park or any other popular places . 

[carohs]

1 hour ago, LauraAnneC said:

Now that’s a bucket list goal - to have a Mai Tai in Hawaii! 🤣

Now I haveta make a Mai Tai the first drink I get onboard. I hope it's as good as the islands'.

[carohs]

We walked to Dunkins this morning. On the way we say so many baby lizards. I suspect these are full size but they were teeny. We also saw wild chickens and a rooster crossing the road. We had a chuckle at that. On the walk, DD says, "mommy, dare or dare?" That's when you have to make a decision, nip it in the bud or brace yourself for the ask. We're on vacation so I played along. "I dare you for this cruise the whole time to not drink coffee." 🤣🤣🤣🤣 never gonna happen. She's just lucky DH had brewed me a cup in the room and I had already finished it. Now, she wasn't being mean or snarky. Well not solely. She recalled a conversation we had about studies showing you actually get better rest if you abstain from caffeine. After I explained about parents having executive decision making powers, and the fact that I might still need the bit extra from caffeine due to energy expended from activities planned, I said, "besides, if I have to give up coffee you have to give up ice cream." A short walk later she tries it again, truth or dare? Truth. "Are you really gonna make me give up ice cream if you give up coffee?" DS then chips in "according to our family law, the penalty for taking away coffee from Mom is revoking ice cream privileges." 🤣🤣🤣

[carohs]