Has anybody done the Spirit ~ Ensenada to Hawaii?

[mohavemommy]

Did you go thru customs the first port since you were back on American soil?

 

Where do you get your Sail and Sign cards?

 

How do you get to Ensenada?

 

Were the seas rough on the way to Hawaii?

 

Did you have plenty of time in the ports for sight seeing?

 

Did you see US Post offices or UPS offices close to the ship? (thinking of being able to ship stuff home)

 

Any other tips/suggestions?

 

Just considering this itinerary and have questions. Maybe this will be the one....hhhmmmmmm........

[AllenF]

I have this cruise booked for next year. I am pretty sure you do all your check in in San Diego and then they bus you to Ensenada from what i have read. I read on the Hawaiian Board that the 1st 2 days the seas were a little ruff and the wind was pretty hard. But hopefully somebody who has done this trip and give more exact info and more answers to your other questions

[mohavemommy]

Well... I found out that you are bussed from either the airport in Los Angeles or San Diego, but I don't know what happens from there.

 

AllenF~~ you are booked on the exact same sailing that I am considering. We may be the beginning of a CC cruise! Are you sailing alone or do you have others with you?

[voyagerfl]

I have been looking at the April 29th cruise, from Hawaii.

I think it would be better to have the sea days after the cruise so we can rest up.

You guys given any thought to that week ?

 

Glad to know about the bussing from / to San Diego, I had done some searches on Ensenada flights.

[voyagerfl]

With that Info.......I just found a flight for $570 instead of the $850, i had been finding before.

This cruise is looking more and more likely.

Expecially since we have $1000 off coming from our Carnival Master Card.

[AllenF]

Well so far it is just the wife and myself. A local TA books an Hawiian Cruise every year and they have any where from 40 to 60 rooms booked so there should be some ppl from our home town going even though we do not know any of them yet LOL I am sure we will meet some on the flight there. This is the cruise they have choosen so its the 1 we are doing but I agree the sea days at the end appeals to me more the price for this cruise it pretty good thru local TA and since they have done it every year for a while they also have it organized pretty good so I have been told by some friends who have done it in the past.

[MrPete]

Did you go thru customs the first port since you were back on American soil?

 

Where do you get your Sail and Sign cards?

 

How do you get to Ensenada?

 

Were the seas rough on the way to Hawaii?

 

Did you have plenty of time in the ports for sight seeing?

 

Any other tips/suggestions?

 

We did this cruise back in '98, but on the Jubilee.

 

We chose to do the trans Pacific before Hawaii stictly for the dates. Turned out there were plusses and minuses.

 

I did not expect it to be as cold as it was sailing from Ensenada once out at sea. Made me wish I had brought a sweater. I imagine the trip post Hawaii to Canada must be colder.

 

The 5 days at sea were marvelous, looked choppier than it felt. I do wish we had the 5 sea days tacked on the end, but like I said, I wished to remain more southerly.

 

Rent a car in all your stops, and you won't feel rushed. Book them before you leave, as they triple the price if you try go get one when you arrive.

 

The rates they charge for these AMERICAN tours are outrageous.

 

Customs didn't occur until the last day we got off the ship (OAHU), which was strange as we were there for two days.

 

We were bussed to Ensenada, and did our boarding stuff during the 2 hour ride. Looked closer on the map.

 

Happy sailing. I wish to do this once more in the near future.

 

WARNING: The avg age on this trip is pre death. You will hear snoring during the early shows in the lounge, and the ship will be all yours after 10 PM.

[voyagerfl]

The avg age on this trip is pre death

:eek:

 

LoL.....it was that way on our Alaska Cruise.

I was hopping Hawaii cruise would be a little more lively...:)

[voyagerfl]

AllenF,

 

I can see why you would want to go with others from your home area.May I ask about the prices your TA has? I'm always looking for a better deal.

 

I'm finding the following prices.

Inside 4A (Guarantee) $1099

Outside 6A (Guarantee) $1199

Balcony 8A (Guarantee) $1399

 

[AllenF]

We are paying 2200 per person for a 8A balcony Guar. and that includes flying from Columbia SC tax and port charges....which i believe the flight cost 800 so that price is pretty consistant with what you were quoted. I am sure I could get a cheaper flight from Charlotte or other airport but it will be more conveinent to fly from columbia since we can get dropped off at airport by family. I do know that the Local TA has diffent flight cost from other airports that are closer....Us being all the way on the east coast would pay more then most . I can give you the name of TA if you would like to call them directly...they have a web site but still have last yrs hawwian trip up and not the 2005 yet if you would like to ask them directly

[ccNVcpl]

We're booked on the two Hawaii cruises as back-2-backs. That way we get MAX time in Hawaii. Always take a sweater!

[MrPete]

That way we get MAX time in Hawaii.

I'll say. I envy you. I'm trying to get the 12 days together just to repeat this once.

[seedaz]

We have sailed on the Spirit twice in the last year...Hawaii...Vancouver to Honolulu and the spring sailing...Honolulu to Vancouver. Loved both cruises. Fall and Spring. I think we preferred the spring...Honolulu to Vancouver....we paid only $942.00 including all taxes, fees, port charges and that INCLUDED airfare. Mind you this was an inside guarantee...and we were upgraded to the Panorama Deck inside. Five category upgrade. By far our favorite cruise. Yes, there were older people on the cruise..but certainly not what you might think. We are in our forties and had a blast!! CruCon has these Hawaii sailings offered a couple of times a year! You cannot beat these prices. Air add ons are really cheap.

[ccNVcpl]

We booked 6A cabin, but hoping for upgrade also. The balcony is nice to have, but at prices we got (not quit as good as your's), we can live with a window only.

[DaytonCruiser]

We're booked on the two Hawaii cruises as back-2-backs. That way we get MAX time in Hawaii. Always take a sweater!

 

Can you adopt me? :)

[Chips401]

Hi

 

We just came back from a trip to Hawaii in November. We sailed with Celebrity but I thought I could answer some of your questions as the route was the same.

Did you go thru customs the first port since you were back on American soil?

Yes, the first day we docked on the big island and we had to report to customs. Very annoying but done as quickly as possible.

 

Where do you get your Sail and Sign cards?

How do you get to Ensenada?

I am not sure how Carnival does this but we had a two hour bus ride from San Diego to Esenada. We stopped at a hotel there and we entered to obtain our Sail and Sign cards. We then boarded the bus again and travelled to the peer to go through security. The whole process took us about three hours.

 

Were the seas rough on the way to Hawaii?

We travelled in November and did not find the seas any more significant than any other place we have travelled. One day the captain said there were fifteen foot swells but I did not feel it on the ship. Had no problems.

 

Did you have plenty of time in the ports for sight seeing?

Here I would recommend renting a car. We did the bus tour thing and we travelled more on a bus than saw the sights. If you rented a car, you would have plenty of time for sightseeing. Most of the islands are very simple to drive around, one main road. Plenty of maps available. The also will help you make a rental car reservation right from the ship. At the concerige desk. We did this on the last day on Ohau and enjoyed it immensely. Some care rental companies will meet you at the pier.

Did you see US Post offices or UPS offices close to the ship? (thinking of being able to ship stuff home)

On Maui and Ohau, you stopped near shops, restaurants etc. I am sure if you ask there could redirect you. I cannot remember if I say anything on the big island of Hawaii.

 

 

Any other tips/suggestions?

Rent a car, get a map. Bring plenty of water. Don't plan to do it all, pick something that is really important to you. Take a walk along the beach at dusk. We did this on Maui, it was our favourite part of the trip. All beaches in Hawaii are public. You can walk along the beach in Maui right from the pier.:D

Our favourite places to visit: Volcano National Park, Maui Aquarium(small but nice) Maui Tropical Plantaion, the beaches in Ohau(not Waikii, too busy).