Pride of America - Is it really bad?

[newcruzr]

Hi all,

 

We're planning on a trip to Hawaii in August and have booked 2 cabins (1 for mom and dad -- their 1st ever cruise) and 1 for us (husband, me and son -- 2nd cruise -- 1st was on RCCL in March).

 

I've read some horrible reviews of the ship's service, rooms and food and am concerned. Should we do this or shouldn't we? :confused: :confused:

 

If anyone has cruised recently, is it as bad as everyone says? Sorry, but I'm feeling a great deal of responsibility since I'm the one planning the trip. Any feedback (good or bad) is appreciated.

 

Thanks,

 

Karen

[$40dailycruiser]

The ship is just beautiful, the service on NCLA (America) just is NOT up to par with NCL, or any other cruise line for that matter! Buffet and dining room service seem to be crude and unrefined. I guess it all has to do with the mentality of the crew on board US-flagged ships. Hate to put it that way but I am sure many cruisers will agree as

I am sure many cruisers will also disagree. Just keep an

open mind about it and at the send of the cruise, if you

feel the crew/dining staff do deserve to be paid an automatic $10 daily service fee, by all means tip them.

If not, vote by your wallet and ask to have your automatic service charge removed. You do not have to

pay for BAD service. Just keep an open mind about it.

On our cruise last week, due to the horrendous chain

of events on the Pride of Aloha, we did insist on having our $220 service charge (11 nites x 2 passengers) removed but we did end up giving the entire amount

to our cabin steward in cash cuz he was the only person

that really stood out in terms of service. Just my 02 cents.

[karfest]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=289437

 

Here is a link to my review- it IS NOT a traditional cruise and anyone expected to be pampered should NOT take it!! It was my parents first cruise and they absolutely loved everything. I tease them that they are just simple-minded midwesterners who don't know how to complain and don't know good food from bad and great service from poor!!

 

We had a fantastic time and really enjoyed the American crew. It is a very relaxed atmosphere, more like a floating hotel rather than the typical cruise experience. It is very port intensive so we didn't get involved in any ship activities.

 

Anyone who does their research and knows what to expect will have a great time. Others will report back on this board on how miserable it was to spend a week in Hawaii;)

[CruisinMK]

We did it in october and really loved it, so we booked Pride of Hawaii.

 

The service in the main dining room is slow, I think they are understaffed, and the food needs improvement. The breakfasts in main dining room were consistently really good though, as good or better than other lines (have done almost all mainstream lines).

The pay specialty restaurants are very good, go to jeffersons and the asian restaurant.

I liked the crew. I think the itinerary is so great it makes the other lines look stupid. :)

Very beautiful ship.

[jhodg56010]

I agree with Karfest. We are diamond on RCI and took our first NCL cruise 3 weeks ago (4/15 - 4/22/06) on the Pride of America. We were not disappointed. We were a party of 8 with 3 generations ranging in age from 11 to 71 and we all had a great time. The ship is not as grand as some, but is colorful, clean, quite new, and very pleasant, and we enjoyed the ship, the food, and especially the beautiful islands. We got through dinner within an hour and a half in all restaurants but the posh Jefferson's Bistro, where the food was superb. The entertainment was pretty good, especially the comedians and the surprisingly good crew show. The biggest problem was the long flight to the islands and then back home, taking about 14 total hours each way. I followed reviews for the past 7 months and noticed that they gradually improved. Any of our family would gladly go again. I encourage your family to go and plan to enjoy it. Jim

[bobnsandi]

We were aboard her maiden voyage last summer (Miami to LA), and loved it. Just about our best cruise ever. The ship was beautiful, the food uniformly good, and the crew exceptional. We've been on internationally staffed cruises, and enjoy the friendly and down-to-earth American crew. We especially enjoy the ability to talk and understand the crew without language barriers.

 

We also sailed aboard the Pride of Aloha this past winter, and had an equally enjoyable time. In fact, same as Mike, we're looking forward to our cruise aboard the Pride of Hawai`i's maiden voyage (LA to Honolulu) in twelve days!

 

Possibly we're easy to please (don't really think so), but we just do our best to enjoy everything about a cruise. The truth is that the worst service we ever experienced was aboard an internationally crewed ship.

[pegatha]

While I have not sailed the Pride of America we did sail the Pride of Aloha during the first few months of it's service in Hawaii. We had a couple with us who had never cruised before. They just loved it since they had no comparison experience. We did notice differences (having cruised before on other lines) but nothing that totally ruined our cruise. We had even been called by our TA warning us that we might have a bad cruise. Having advanced information prepares you for some of the issues you may encounter and tends to lessen the blow. Hawaii is beautiful - enjoy yourself.

[BamBamGo]

We had a fantastic time last week. I was very cautious after reading all of the reviews too, but we had a great experience. I will try to post a full review of our trip this weekend. BAM

[margaretmerrill]

Ship was beautiful, but service and food were not.(main dining room) Seems like a lot of people who loved it, ate in specialty restaurants. If we had done that, I think we would have had a much more positive experience. Also, seems a lot of people who loved it also stayed in minisuites or above. We stayed in a balcony cabin, and while it was small, we were happy with it. Seeing Hawaii was great. Glad I went, but will not do another american branded ship again. Wish I had removed our tip and given it directly to our cabin steward, as he was very good, although ready to quit.

[margaretmerrill]

Seems like the people who really enjoyed the cruise ate in specialty restaurants. If we had done that, I think we would have had a more positive cruise. The ship was beautiful, and Hawaii was great. Wish I had removed my tip and given it to our cabin stewart as he did a great job, but he was ready to quit.

[newcruzr]

Thanks again to all for their comments. I've been reading these boards (and others) who have been VERY critical of both the Pride of Aloha and Pride of America. All 5 of us are by no means fussy so I think we'll be alright. I really appreciate the time you each have taken to post your thoughts. BAM, I look forward to your review.

 

We're actually very lucky since we 1) got frequent flyer miles to go for all 5 of us and 2) are spending just over 2 weeks in Hawaii -- 1 on the ship and 1 on Oahu's North Shore at a beach cottage.

 

I'm really hoping to make this trip special for my parents and my son. My parents aren't getting any younger and my dad has always wanted to go to Hawaii and see the Arizona. My mom just wants to consume all the Kona coffee she can (an i.v. would be fine for her) and see the beautiful gardens. My husband and I just want my son to have a great (and memorable) experience with his grandparents and enjoy the longest vacation we've ever had.

 

Thanks again to all.

 

Karen

[Dolphins]

Wondering if any recent cruisers on Pride of America have enjoyed pianist-vocalist Pamala Stanley on Pride of America?

[no_wake]

My extended family of 22 are booked on POAM for Christmas. I am concerned that the crew who have "worked out the kinks" will be off for the hoiidays and we'll be faced with a "second-string" crew leaving things a little rough around the edges. We'll see how it goes. Even with terrible service, what can be bad about cruising the Hawaiian Islands for a week?

[cosmo1027]

We're actually very lucky since we 1) got frequent flyer miles to go for all 5 of us and 2) are spending just over 2 weeks in Hawaii -- 1 on the ship and 1 on Oahu's North Shore at a beach cottage.

I would love to hear about your experience when you return. We are planning for June 2007 or PoAm or PoH. We are going to spend maybe 4 nights on Oahu prior to the cruise and I love your idea of the beach cottage! I hope you have a wonderful, memorable trip!!

[newcruzr]

Hi Kim,

 

We're renting a beach cottage in Haleiwa from a gentleman from Chicago. So far, he (and his property manager in Hawaii) have been terrific. I'll post a complete review when we get home. If you send me an e-mail to msklcassidy@hotmail.com I'll gladly provide you with his name and a link to the beach cottage we are renting. In the interim, I'd suggest checking out www.vrbo.com which is where I found this place.

 

Karen

[Onessa]

My extended family of 22 are booked on POAM for Christmas. I am concerned that the crew who have "worked out the kinks" will be off for the hoiidays and we'll be faced with a "second-string" crew leaving things a little rough around the edges. We'll see how it goes. Even with terrible service, what can be bad about cruising the Hawaiian Islands for a week?

 

We were on-board for Thanksgiving week. In speaking to the Matre'd at Jeffersons and the head of the children's program, both indicated that traditional vacation restrictions applied to the crew during the holidays and that additional seasonal help had been brought on to accommodate a higher number of 3 or 4 per cabin.

 

We had NO problems! We did eat in the specialty restraunts or the buffet for dinner all but one night - and did note that the service was slow that night. Lunch service in the dining room was fine.

 

As my city-mate Karfest related, it is not a traditional cruise experience. If you are expecting the pampering and puffery associated with a Carribean cruise, you'll probably be sorely disappointed. If you are looking for a great way to see a lot of HI in a short period of time, nothin's better! Because you are in port so much a lot of the fru-fru games and other entertainment is not emphasized.