Cruises to and from Hawaii in 2025

[jeh10641]

My wife and I are planning a cruise to or from Hawaii in 2025. Any recommendations? We have been to Hawaii many times as I traveled there for business more than 60 times. We have cruised with Costa, Royal Caribbean (twice) and HAL (5 times). Any advice on the various ships (Princess, Celebrity, HAL and/or Carnival) will be most welcome. Thanks in advance.

Jim

[mom says]

If you only want a one way cruise, it will have to be from or to a port outside  the US because of PVSA.  The closest would be Vancouver. You can check out your options with your favorite cruise lines,  then come back once you've narrowed down your choices. Or better yet, have your TA give you a list of options  that fit your cruising style, dates and budget.

Edited November 27, 2023 by mom says

[Flatbush Flyer]

3 hours ago, jeh10641 said:

My wife and I are planning a cruise to or from Hawaii in 2025. Any recommendations? We have been to Hawaii many times as I traveled there for business more than 60 times. We have cruised with Costa, Royal Caribbean (twice) and HAL (5 times). Any advice on the various ships (Princess, Celebrity, HAL and/or Carnival) will be most welcome. Thanks in advance.

Jim

Hawaii (all counties) is a trip best done by land. This is not the Caribbean with mostly scrubby reef islands and third world cultures once you turn left off the Main Street.

And, if you can swing it time/money wise (e.g., at least 7-10 days each trip), I suggest you focus on a single island each time - starting with Kauai, the Garden Isle.

But, if you’ve got your heart set on doing a cruise, my suggestion would be a partial or full transpacific (full between SYD and any west coast port (SFO, LAX) or partial between PPT and California with 4-5 days criss-crossing the Hawaiian Islands along the way. And for either of those options, I’d recommend Oceania since you could put together a variety of multi-segment itineraries that would introduce you to both Polynesia and Hawaii. And if you start or end in PPT, you could add a great extra few days in Polynesia.

Of course, there’s one major caveat: Once you do Polynesia and/or Hawaii and/or the Western Pacific (incl Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu, New Caledonia et al), you’ll say goodbye to the Caribbean.

 

[whogo]

If you want the cruise to begin or end in Hawaii, Oceania's Regatta is the only ship I see doing so in 2025. Regatta's Hawaiian sailings are to and from Tahiti.

[shipgeeks]

OP, Have you ruled out sailing both ways?  I imagine that would give you the widest range of options, re cruiselines, dates, ports, etc.

We did that on Celebrity, and had a wonderful time.  One of the highlights was a group of Hawaiian dancers and musicians who were brought onboard for two performances, both theater and outdoors.

[leaveitallbehind]

11 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Hawaii (all counties) is a trip best done by land. This is not the Caribbean with mostly scrubby reef islands and third world cultures once you turn left off the Main Street.

And, if you can swing it time/money wise (e.g., at least 7-10 days each trip), I suggest you focus on a single island each time - starting with Kauai, the Garden Isle.

The OP stated that he and his wife have been there many times and that he has been there on business more than 60 times. From that I would think he has an understanding of the land travel.  He is looking for information on cruises to and from there, most likely to provide an alternate form of transportation v flying, either to or from a land trip. Just my opinion.

Edited November 27, 2023 by leaveitallbehind

[leaveitallbehind]

As example, both RCCL and Celebrity offer repositioning cruises in April and October on several ships that typically are in the 10 - 13 day range between Vancouver and Honolulu and offer ports of calls in Hawaii.  Typically the April itineraries are from Honolulu to Vancouver and the October itineraries are from Vancouver to Honolulu.  We have done the April sailing a few years back on RCCL Ovation and found it very enjoyable with 5 days in Hawaii and 6 days on the crossing with a port of call in Vancouver Island en route to Vancouver.

 

Princess cruises offers routine long itinerary Hawaii cruises from the mainland to Hawaii between December and April.  I believe they are the only mass market cruise line offering this.

[CruiserBruce]

5 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

Princess cruises offers routine long itinerary Hawaii cruises from the mainland to Hawaii between December and April.  I believe they are the only mass market cruise line offering this.

Huh? Do you mean roundtrips from the mainland? HAL has done roundtrips for years, and still does, and theirs can be a few days longer...like 18 days instead of 15. HAL also does some very long roundtrips to Hawaii and the South Pacific...35 or more days.

[leaveitallbehind]

22 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Huh? Do you mean roundtrips from the mainland? HAL has done roundtrips for years, and still does, and theirs can be a few days longer...like 18 days instead of 15. HAL also does some very long roundtrips to Hawaii and the South Pacific...35 or more days.

They offer both - round trip and one way - of 13 (one way) and 16 (round trip) day itineraries. Mainland departure ports are LA, San Francisco, and Vancouver.  Here is the link to that information:

https://www.princess.com/cruise-search/results/?trade=H

 

The HAL itineraries are of interest as well and I was not aware of them - thanks for adding.

 

Also, most of the repositioning cruises I mentioned originally have their origins in Australia, to include the south Pacific and Hawaii en route to Vancouver for Alaska itineraries, and visa versa, and are in that 30 day plus range in total.

Edited November 27, 2023 by leaveitallbehind

[SbbquilterUT]

We are sailing Sydney to Hawaii and then Hawaii to Vancouver in April 2025 - cancelled from 2021 and I am really looking forward to it.

[XBGuy]

It appears that multiple posters have covered the Princess offerings.

 

HAL does regularly offer San Diego-Hawaii roundtrips.

 

I think Carnival offers round trips out of Long Beach, but the frequency is nowhere near that of Princess or HAL.

 

I'm know that Celebrity has offered round trips (out of San DIego?), but I am not sure if they still do.

 

Mrs. XBGuy and I really enjoy the Los Angeles-Hawaii round trips, but we absolutely love sea days.  On a round trip from the West Coast you are probably going to get nine or ten sea days.

 

If sea days are not your thing, I think NCL is still offering a 7-day inter-island cruise out of Honolulu.  So. you can avoid all the sea days crossing the Pacific by flying to Honolulu.

[leaveitallbehind]

15 minutes ago, XBGuy said:

I'm know that Celebrity has offered round trips (out of San DIego?), but I am not sure if they still do.

Celebrity only offers the spring and fall repositioning Hawaii (one way) itineraries and offers no cruises anywhere out of San Diego.  If they did it was a number of years ago.

Edited November 27, 2023 by leaveitallbehind

[whogo]

5 hours ago, whogo said:

If you want the cruise to begin or end in Hawaii, Oceania's Regatta is the only ship I see doing so in 2025. Regatta's Hawaiian sailings are to and from Tahiti.

Oops, as others have pointed out, there are more options. Celebrity Solstice sails Honolulu to Vancouver on April 25, 2025, Royal Caribbean Ovation of the Seas on April 29, Celebrity Edge on May 7.

[jeh10641]

2 hours ago, leaveitallbehind said:

The OP stated that he and his wife have been there many times and that he has been there on business more than 60 times. From that I would think he has an understanding of the land travel.  He is looking for information on cruises to and from there, most likely to provide an alternate form of transportation v flying, either to or from a land trip. Just my opinion.

Hi, leaveitallbehind,

You are the only responder to get it right. Since we have been to Hawaii many times, I am looking for cruise recommendations primarily ships. We have five cruises on HAL, 2 on Royal and 1 on Costa. Thanks for understanding.

Jim

[jeh10641]

2 hours ago, SbbquilterUT said:

We are sailing Sydney to Hawaii and then Hawaii to Vancouver in April 2025 - cancelled from 2021 and I am really looking forward to it.

What ship?

Jim

[jeh10641]

1 hour ago, XBGuy said:

It appears that multiple posters have covered the Princess offerings.

 

HAL does regularly offer San Diego-Hawaii roundtrips.

 

I think Carnival offers round trips out of Long Beach, but the frequency is nowhere near that of Princess or HAL.

 

I'm know that Celebrity has offered round trips (out of San DIego?), but I am not sure if they still do.

 

Mrs. XBGuy and I really enjoy the Los Angeles-Hawaii round trips, but we absolutely love sea days.  On a round trip from the West Coast you are probably going to get nine or ten sea days.

 

If sea days are not your thing, I think NCL is still offering a 7-day inter-island cruise out of Honolulu.  So. you can avoid all the sea days crossing the Pacific by flying to Honolulu.

We love sea days. We just got off a transatlantic crossing on Anthem of the Seas (15 nights) with lots of sea days.

Jim

[jeh10641]

24 minutes ago, whogo said:

Oops, as others have pointed out, there are more options. Celebrity Solstice sails Honolulu to Vancouver on April 25, 2025, Royal Caribbean Ovation of the Seas on April 29, Celebrity Edge on May 7.

I have these as possibilities, thanks. We were on Ovations sister ship last month on a transatlantic (Anthem). We liked the ship and our cabin. Have you tried Solstice or Edge?

Jim

[CruiserBruce]

37 minutes ago, jeh10641 said:

Hi, leaveitallbehind,

You are the only responder to get it right. Since we have been to Hawaii many times, I am looking for cruise recommendations primarily ships. We have five cruises on HAL, 2 on Royal and 1 on Costa. Thanks for understanding.

Jim

Just know that any one way (mainland to Hawaii, or Hawaii to mainland) would have to start or end in Vancouver, to meet legal requirements. Celebrity used to do an Ensenada to Hawaii, and vice versa, but no longer. 

[jeh10641]

34 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Just know that any one way (mainland to Hawaii, or Hawaii to mainland) would have to start or end in Vancouver, to meet legal requirements. Celebrity used to do an Ensenada to Hawaii, and vice versa, but no longer. 

Hi, CruiserBruce,

Thanks. I know about the extra stop needed on cruises leaving and returning to U.S. ports. I believe that Koningsdam cruises from San Diego (and others leaving from CA) do stop at Ensenada (Princess and Carnival) since I have researched those cruises. What i am looking for is specific information on the ships:

Edge

Solstice

Ruby Princess

Royal Princess

Grand Princess

Radiance (Carnival)

Legend (Carnival)

Spirit (Carnival)

I hope to get personal experience knowledge from people who have been on those ships. I was on Anthem OTS last month so I do not need too much info on Ovation OTS or Koningsdam since we have sailed on Westerdam, Oosterdam and Rotterdam (2021).

Jim

 

 

 

 

 

[Ashland]

I continue to hope RCI will some day do a roundtrip from our San Pedro Ca. home port.

[CruiserBruce]

58 minutes ago, jeh10641 said:

Hi, CruiserBruce,

Thanks. I know about the extra stop needed on cruises leaving and returning to U.S. ports. I believe that Koningsdam cruises from San Diego (and others leaving from CA) do stop at Ensenada (Princess and Carnival) since I have researched those cruises. What i am looking for is specific information on the ships:

Edge

Solstice

Ruby Princess

Royal Princess

Grand Princess

Radiance (Carnival)

Legend (Carnival)

Spirit (Carnival)

I hope to get personal experience knowledge from people who have been on those ships. I was on Anthem OTS last month so I do not need too much info on Ovation OTS or Koningsdam since we have sailed on Westerdam, Oosterdam and Rotterdam (2021).

Jim

 

 

 

 

 

I would be looking on the boards for those cruise ships, and on the reviews pages.

 

There is a difference between the required stop at Ensenada for roundtrip cruises out of West Coast ports, and the ability to travel from one US port to another US port without a visit to a distant foreign port.

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, jeh10641 said:

Hi, CruiserBruce,

Thanks. I know about the extra stop needed on cruises leaving and returning to U.S. ports. I believe that Koningsdam cruises from San Diego (and others leaving from CA) do stop at Ensenada (Princess and Carnival) since I have researched those cruises. What i am looking for is specific information on the ships:

Edge

Solstice

Ruby Princess

Royal Princess

Grand Princess

Radiance (Carnival)

Legend (Carnival)

Spirit (Carnival)

I hope to get personal experience knowledge from people who have been on those ships. I was on Anthem OTS last month so I do not need too much info on Ovation OTS or Koningsdam since we have sailed on Westerdam, Oosterdam and Rotterdam (2021).

Jim

 

 

 

 

 

I have not cruised on Edge class but have been on Solstice class ships and they are very nice ships with a good selection of specialty restaurants, if that is of interest.  Edge is the newest class which has taken the Solstice class to the next level in terms of venues and design. One key thing to keep in mind is that Celebrity's primary demographics is adults and atmosphere and cruising style has an adult orientation to it. 

 

Unlike RCCL, which focuses on families with many whistles and bells on board for family activities, Celebrity has none of that and as a result, very few families with children typically on board.  Princess is somewhat of a blend of families and adults with a bit more of an adult focus. 

 

Carnival, on the other hand, is very much family and young adult oriented and the on board atmosphere reflects that, although perhaps somewhat less so on the Hawaii type of itinerary.

 

If I were choosing, I would stay with Celebrity or Princess, or since you experienced the Quantum class ship on RCCL and if you enjoyed that, I would include RCCL.  When we did our Hawaii - Vancouver repositioning cruise in April 2019 it was on Ovation and we very much enjoyed the itinerary and ship.

 

BTW, Carnival would not be in consideration for my choices. Just personal preference.  

Edited November 27, 2023 by leaveitallbehind

[9tee2Sea]

I have a 2025 cruise booked R/T Los Angeles that goes to Hawaii AND Tahiti.  Lots of sea days, and a very long cruise ( 32 nights)

[SbbquilterUT]

21 hours ago, jeh10641 said:

What ship?

Jim

The Edge

[sanger727]

We did a one way cruise on Celebrity from Hawaii to Vancouver. The one way cruise are repositioning - so go from Hawaii to Vancouver in the spring and Vancouver to Hawaii in the fall.

 

Positives:

We had 5 sea days in a row and that was enough. I can't imagine doing a round trip from California where you have two sets of those in one cruise.

There were different activities than normal on the long sea day stretch. A handful went multiple days (so like a hula class that learned a dance over the course of a week)

We got to spend alot more time in Hawaii than we would have with a round trip cruise

 

Negatives:

Due to the limited season availability and crossing an ocean - it was pretty cold once we left Hawaii. Think the first couple days were nice outside, but it quickly was too cold and windy to go outside. 

You def want to book this well in advance. We tried to go one year and the cruise with the best itinerary was already sold out of balcony cabins. We ended up booking the cruise we took about a year and a half out. 

Edited November 28, 2023 by sanger727