Is the Pride Of Hawaii Worth it?

[ninel]

We have never been to Hawaii and for our 5th wedding anniversary decided a cruise to hawaii would be the best way to island hop.

 

My husband has enough frequent flier miles for us to fly first class to Honolulu and I found a great deal of $500-$600 for an inside cabin.

 

I've been hearing so many bad reviews about the ship I'm very concerned.

Our main reason for cruising is being able to see the most of Hawaii, but while on the ship I want to get my money's worth too.

 

Is a vacation on POH worth it?

 

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks,

Ninel

[mikedw]

Just keep in mind that over 2000 people a week take this cruise and you're always going to have a certain percentage of people who are never happy with anything. People who have a good time are the ones who more then likely are never going to write a review, so the reviews are kind of skewed towards the negative. I was onboard the POH for the dedication of the SS United States Library back in April in Baltimore and the ship was gorgeous, the crew that we met were top notch. Go and enjoy your trip.

[tomluvsaida]

We have never been to Hawaii and for our 5th wedding anniversary decided a cruise to hawaii would be the best way to island hop.

 

My husband has enough frequent flier miles for us to fly first class to Honolulu and I found a great deal of $500-$600 for an inside cabin.

 

I've been hearing so many bad reviews about the ship I'm very concerned.

Our main reason for cruising is being able to see the most of Hawaii, but while on the ship I want to get my money's worth too.

 

Is a vacation on POH worth it?

 

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks,

Ninel

 

I am going on my first cruse on my honeymoon in October so my opinion probaly doesn't mean much. You will find both positive and negative reviews here so it is hard to say who is right.

There is one thing you and I can do though. Get out a calculator. Add up the cost of hotels, meals, transportation to each island (air or sea). Then compare that to the cruse ship. You will also need to figure the cost of land transportation to each hotel. Also you must like spending time packing, unpacking and waiting for your luggage to come of airport terminal carosals.

[spleen93]

I'll say that if you can get a deal for $600/person for 1 wk inside cabin, then even at $1200 per couple for the week, you'll be hard pressed to spend less than that even just on lodging in Hawaii. If you add all your other costs on a land vacation, it comes out to quite a bargain.

 

Spleen

[sandyneck]

You are getting an incredible vacation at an incredible price. I am booked on the POH for October. We had a balcony booked, but after reading some reviews, I downgraded to an inside to save quite a bit of money. We are only going to sleep in the cabin and I didn't want to feel I spent a lot of money and didn't get the service I have come to expect when cruising. I am now going with the mind set that this is a land based vacation with a floating hotel. I do expect my room to be clean in a hotel, but besides that, I don't have many expectations. I have also learned thru the years of reading bad reviews is that fortunately I have never run into the problems the posters have. I have almost cancelled trips a number of times due to bad reviews, only to go and have the best time with the best service. I would book it today if I were you!!!

[sweetpea-2]

Just keep in mind that over 2000 people a week take this cruise and you're always going to have a certain percentage of people who are never happy with anything. People who have a good time are the ones who more then likely are never going to write a review, so the reviews are kind of skewed towards the negative. I was onboard the POH for the dedication of the SS United States Library back in April in Baltimore and the ship was gorgeous, the crew that we met were top notch. Go and enjoy your trip.

 

I tend to agree with you, most people will not post a review unless they have something to gripe about....to a certain extent, your vacation is what you make it....if you have a negative attitude most likely your cruise will be not so great where as the reverse is true also...I go with a "it my vacation and I am going to have fun, period"

[Guest moe46]

I just returned from the cruise on POH and found it to be a great way to see Hawaii affordably. I was very satisfied with the ship and services.I had read all the bad reviews also. Regardless, you will spend very little time on the ship so it wouldn't matter anyway. It's pretty hard to have a bad time when surrounded by the beautiful islands.

[Suitecruiser31]

Hey Ninel,

I have just returned from the POH on their June 19th cruise. I had a great time and it is a great way to see all of the islands of Hawaii. This was my 9th cruise and my first time with Norwegian. The ship is beautifully decorated and I found the staff to be very friendly. There are sutle differences between an American staff and a more world wide staff, but I didn't let it bother me.

If you have never been to Hawaii it is a great way to see all of the islands as you get to be on the Big Island, Maui, and Kaui for two days each. You also get to sail by the beautiful north cliffs of Kaui. If you go for a balcony cabin I STRONGLY recommend a port side cabin as this will provide you with the best views leaving Honolulu as well as viewing the cliffs of Kaui from your private balcony.

I only had two problems with the cruise. Our cabin attendant was not very attentive as our cabin was not always cleaned by the time we returned from touring the islands and I did not like the freestyle cruising for dinner, but that is a personal preference. There are several restaurants to choose from, but a lot of people on the cruise ship would make reservations at a few restaurants for the same night and not cancel so you would be looking at an empty restaurant and the hostess would tell you there were no tables available.

Overall I had a great time and would recomment POH. The ship is new and beautiful and if you ignore the complainers that are never happy (even when they are on vacation) and go with the flow, I am sure you will have a great time. If you have any other questions about the ship, just let me know.

[davidvc04]

Just keep in mind that over 2000 people a week take this cruise and you're always going to have a certain percentage of people who are never happy with anything. People who have a good time are the ones who more then likely are never going to write a review, so the reviews are kind of skewed towards the negative. I was onboard the POH for the dedication of the SS United States Library back in April in Baltimore and the ship was gorgeous, the crew that we met were top notch. Go and enjoy your trip.

I disagree to some extent. To lump anyone who has a negative comment into the category of "Some people you just can't please" is really not fair. Who's to say that all these OPs aren't normally easy-going and were deeply upset to have their trip spoiled?

 

I agree that some of the complaints have been petty in my opinion. But for that matter, as has been pointed out, what's petty to one person is serious to another. Other complaints have been quite serious and quite common from one reviewer to the next. In my book, that gives the complaint more credence: it's being experienced by several people.

 

I tend to agree with you, most people will not post a review unless they have something to gripe about....to a certain extent, your vacation is what you make it....if you have a negative attitude most likely your cruise will be not so great where as the reverse is true also...I go with a "it my vacation and I am going to have fun, period"

As for this, I've also heard people say on here that you will find more positive reviews than negative. If that is indeeed the case, wouldn't it negate this argument? Still, that might not be the case. I've seen positive reviews on here, as well, but I haven't counted them. Has anyone else? And for every negative comment from one user, there seem to be a number of people who don't start their own threads but chime in on the OP's to say they had a different experience.

 

There's no way to say how many people would or wouldn't post a negative or positive review from all those who go on any given cruise. In my opinion, if I see enough negative remarks about a certain cruise, then something's going on to drive those people to voice complaints not just to NCL, their TAs, and to the forum-going public.

 

Read the good, read the bad, and decide if it's worth it to you or not. If it is worth it, consider how you'd deal with a situation should it arise. And if you're really concerned, keep a cruise journal and use a camera to record problems.

[u2us4]

We are going on the POH in September for our 15th anniversary. This will be our sixth cruise. Friends of ours just returned from a POH cruise last week and were very frustrated. I'd say the complaint that got my attention the most was that some of the employees were just walking off the ship. Apparently they are complaining that they aren't getting paid and not receiving their tips. That sounds like a big problem.:confused:

 

But for us - we're going anyway. We hope they get most problems worked out. We always get a cheap inside cabin for sleeping and spend the rest of the time poolside, eating, going to shows and off the ship. It's hard to believe we will find much to complain about - but that's just us.;)

 

Question for those who have been on the POH: Was there lemonade and/or punch available 24 hours a day? That has been our experience on most cruises. We always bring along tequila or vodka to mix up some cheap drinks, however, our last cruise on Princess only offered water, tea and coffee.:(

[davidvc04]

I'd say the complaint that got my attention the most was that some of the employees were just walking off the ship. Apparently they are complaining that they aren't getting paid and not receiving their tips. That sounds like a big problem.:confused:

Wow, this is what was happening aboard the Aloha, too.

 

Question for those who have been on the POH: Was there lemonade and/or punch available 24 hours a day? That has been our experience on most cruises. We always bring along tequila or vodka to mix up some cheap drinks, however, our last cruise on Princess only offered water, tea and coffee.:(

Don't know about the availability of the drinks, but I'm pretty sure you can't bring aboard your own alcohol.

[Breezey]

Have been reading all these POH posts on several threads. As a matter of fact I only follow CC when we book a cruise, follow the threads until we leave, post a review when we come back, follow up a bit, and then wait for the cycle to start again.

 

So of course I was anxious to read the first reviews/comments once I knew the POH had taken its first voyage. Needless to say, I dont think any of us would have expected the consistent negative specifics (regardless of some of the good comments). And I wonder, does not having clean towels in your cabin make for an entire miserable cruise? And has anyone done freestyle dining on Princess? While there aren't all these restaurant options, it is rare that you can just walk into any restaurant. So don't understand that concern.

 

Anyway, the bottom line for me is while I appreciate all the reviews, good and bad, there are many of us who have booked already, are not in a position, or even would consider cancelling. So my option is to stop following these threads or hope that even those who have not a great experience on the ship itself, can share their wonderful experiences in Hawaii.

[Guest moe46]

They only have tea,coffee,and water available with sodas etc. for purchase. You cannot bring alcohol on board although they do allow sodas and water to be brought on.

[u2us4]

Oh please - we've taken alcohol on all six of our previous cruises! One cruise we even took on cans of beer and bottles of wine coolers. But most of the time we put silver tequila and rum (with triple sec) in green plastic Sprite bottles. For dessert there's always Bailey's Irish Cream for the coffee. There's no way I'm racking up a $100-500 bar bill!

[Breezey]

Oh please - we've taken alcohol on all six of our previous cruises! One cruise we even took on cans of beer and bottles of wine coolers. But most of the time we put silver tequila and rum (with triple sec) in green plastic Sprite bottles. For dessert there's always Bailey's Irish Cream for the coffee. There's no way I'm racking up a $100-500 bar bill!

 

Wait tell me more. Got spoiled buying bottles of really inexpensive but great wine in each of our ports in Europe on the Princess and either paying the corkage to have it at dinner or just opening it up ourselves in our cabin. I am not happy but dont mind paying the corkage fee for the dining room but what I have read is the wine being taken and being charged a fee for corkage in your cabin? Makes no sense to me so tell me that isnt so.

[garycarla]

Wait tell me more. Got spoiled buying bottles of really inexpensive but great wine in each of our ports in Europe on the Princess and either paying the corkage to have it at dinner or just opening it up ourselves in our cabin. I am not happy but dont mind paying the corkage fee for the dining room but what I have read is the wine being taken and being charged a fee for corkage in your cabin? Makes no sense to me so tell me that isnt so.

 

The corkage fee is NOT a dining room fee. It is a "we need to make a profit" fee. So it is the same in cabin, on deck, in buffet or in dining room. Feel free to do a search on WINE to find a few thousand discussions on this topic.

[garycarla]

For the person that has enough miles to get free first class air to Hawaii. Before you plan too much, do some checking to see if there are seats available. This is probably the most requested award and people are often disappointed that there are no seats left for freebies. Some do manage, but not many.

 

Go the the flyertalk . com message boards to check out your SPECIFIC airline and of course to the actual airline website to attempt a booking.

[Breezey]

For the person that has enough miles to get free first class air to Hawaii. Before you plan too much, do some checking to see if there are seats available. This is probably the most requested award and people are often disappointed that there are no seats left for freebies. Some do manage, but not many.

 

Go the the flyertalk . com message boards to check out your SPECIFIC airline and of course to the actual airline website to attempt a booking.

 

Listen to carycarla on this. We booked a year to the date we were going to Europe last year to ensure we were able to get first class. We got the last four seats available! For Hawaii we had little luck only giving about five months notice and weren't able to get first class but luckily regular seats were available (easy to get spoiled in first class on long trips thats for sure)

 

Garycarla - re the wine. Yes I have read the thousands of wine postings, thought you had some insight and better news about the corkage fees. As I said NCL is the first line I have heard of that charges a fee for bringing on bottles of wine even if the intent is to drink it in your own cabin. We were able to bring wine in carry-on's and while in port with Princess no questions, comments, complaints and especially no charges. Ridiculous

[newmexicoNita]

If there is one thing about NCL that really pi##e# me off it is the liquor and wine policy. Many lines are starting to check more closely for hard liquor but most say little about the wine. We got busted on our Sun cruise and had to pay the $15 corkage as we embarked, but we had a 3 liter box that made it through. Go figure. That being said, this isn't what the OP was asking, she wanted to know about the POH and should they cruise her? My answer would be: if they can get the frequent flyer seats (which may be tough) yes, for the price I would grab it. Sure, we all know, sailing NCLA is not the same as sailing NCL or other lines, but it is still a great way to see the islands on a budget. The ship is new and quite beautiful, the itinerary is great and hopefully by the time they sail some of the nicks will be ironed out. Right now the POA is getting mostly raving reviews: 2 years ago, it was a nightmare. NMNita

[newmexicoNita]

If there is one thing about NCL that really pi##e# me off it is the liquor and wine policy. Many lines are starting to check more closely for hard liquor but most say little about the wine. We got busted on our Sun cruise and had to pay the $15 corkage as we embarked, but we had a 3 liter box that made it through. Go figure. That being said, this isn't what the OP was asking, she wanted to know about the POH and should they cruise her? My answer would be: if they can get the frequent flyer seats (which may be tough) yes, for the price I would grab it. Sure, we all know, sailing NCLA is not the same as sailing NCL or other lines, but it is still a great way to see the islands on a budget. The ship is new and quite beautiful, the itinerary is great and hopefully by the time they sail some of the nicks will be ironed out. Right now the POA is getting mostly raving reviews: 2 years ago, it was a nightmare. NMNita

[newmexicoNita]

If there is one thing about NCL that really pi##e# me off it is the liquor and wine policy. Many lines are starting to check more closely for hard liquor but most say little about the wine. We got busted on our Sun cruise and had to pay the $15 corkage as we embarked, but we had a 3 liter box that made it through. Go figure. That being said, this isn't what the OP was asking, she wanted to know about the POH and should they cruise her? My answer would be: if they can get the frequent flyer seats (which may be tough) yes, for the price I would grab it. Sure, we all know, sailing NCLA is not the same as sailing NCL or other lines, but it is still a great way to see the islands on a budget. The ship is new and quite beautiful, the itinerary is great and hopefully by the time they sail some of the nicks will be ironed out. Right now the POA is getting mostly raving reviews: 2 years ago, it was a nightmare. NMNita

[garycarla]

re: The wine and booze policy.

 

Sadly this is a result of the cheaper cabin prices, so they try to make up the difference and then some by selling booze. If they can not sell it directly, they will get you with their markup (called corkage fee). Just a business decision. I think some of the others will get there.

[sunshine 229]

I tend to agree with you, most people will not post a review unless they have something to gripe about....to a certain extent, your vacation is what you make it....if you have a negative attitude most likely your cruise will be not so great where as the reverse is true also...I go with a "it my vacation and I am going to have fun, period"

 

I am sure that there are people on every cruise who go have a good time and never bother to post about it on CC. This should be true for every cruiseship, so, when I notice any one cruiseline or ship that seems to be getting a more than normal number of negative reviews or comments it does make me suspect that something may be amiss with that particular cruise.

 

It is my impression that the NCLA ships in general have been getting more negative reports than I have seen for most other main line cruise ships.

 

Does that mean that you shouldn't book on any NCLA ships?

 

Well, I think it depends a lot on what you are expecting and what is important to you. If you read the negative reviews and find that many of the complaints that you read about seem petty and unimportant to you, if you feel that having those things happen to you wouldn't spoil your vacation,and if your main purpose is to see the most islands, in the least time and for the least money then a cruise with NCLA may be perfect for you.

 

If you feel that some of the things others complain about would bother you, or if feel that a cruise without super service and lots of on board activities would be a big disappointment to you then maybe you should look somewhere else.

 

The way I see it, there are probably lots of people who cruise with NCLA, run into no problems or disappointments, and love the whole experience. Given the number of negative comments I've read about these cruises though, I think we have to expect that there is a better than usual chance that you will run into a few glitches or disappointments so, if I were booking one of these cruises, I'd be prepared to accept some imperfections in service etc. and take them in stride.

 

If I felt that the sort of things reported in the reviews would spoil my vacation then I would probably find another way to see Hawaii. That way, if everything goes perfectly you will be pleasantly surprised and if things are not quite perfect, at least you will be prepared and hopefully will not let it get to you.

How does that saying go?

Prepare for the worst but hope for the best? :)

[cruzfiend]

Well said, Sunshine! That is going to be my plan.:)

[newmexicoNita]

re: The wine and booze policy.

 

Sadly this is a result of the cheaper cabin prices, so they try to make up the difference and then some by selling booze. If they can not sell it directly, they will get you with their markup (called corkage fee). Just a business decision. I think some of the others will get there.

you are right and we can see little signs of it already. There was a time no one cared whether you brought booze on or not as long as it wasn't flunted: You could buy it in the duty free shops and take it to your cabin: then came the policy, from some lines: if you buy it at the duty free shops you had to pay a fee to take it to your cabin and NCL wouldn't let you bring booze on period. A couple of years ago NCL relented and agreed to the wine as long as you paid the corkage fee but often didn't enforce that either. Celebrity started cracking down on hard stuff, especially if you embarked in San Juan. Then along comes the bar set up: this is the latest thing, only Princess doesn't have it. It is better than having to buy every drink at the bar, but still pricey. As much as I don't like the policy it does keep prices down. For those who do not drink they should be happy. You will soon see other lines adopt the NO BOOZE policy and enforce it. Carnival has even talked about not allowing sodas to be brought on. NMNita