Pride of Hawaii Review (in parts) - 12/11/06

[mitsguy2001]

We didn't go to the Ladies 80s Night dance, so I can only guess. The daily doesn't specify, but I can't imagine that it would be ladies only. I want to dance with my DH, not the girls. I'm certain that it's for women and men. Free drinks? Bwa-haa-haa...Surely you jest. I seriously, seriously, seriously doubt it. The description in the daily made it more like they expect the ladies to want to do the "dress the part" thing. Why they call it Ladies is beyond me--except that it rhymes with "80s."

 

Hopefully you are right.

 

We had a bit of a day here (and I was having a bad health day on top of it),

 

Sorry to hear that. I hope you feel better.

 

and I didn't get online until really late. (No kidding, huh? As if you can't read the time on my post.) Tomorrow should be a bit calmer, and I will do my absolute best to post the ports and answer your questions on the other threads.

 

Thanks. Were you able to find those other threads?

 

voyagerfl: March is a great time to go. You'll see whales and (usually) have less chance of hitting a winter storm. (No matter when you go, it will rain; that's a given. But it tends to rain more December through March.)

 

How can I find out the weather conditions and the roughness / calmness of the water in different parts of the island on a particular day? Someone suggested listening to the radio. Do the staterooms have radios, and if so, what stations do you suggest? If not, then how else can one find out? I'd hate to drive all the way to a particular beach and find out that it is raining or that the water is too rough, when there might be another beach on the other side of the island where the weather is sunny and the water is calm.

[Barb Nahoumi]

Hi,

 

We had a view of the Pride of Hawaii, when we watched a wedding being televised on the Fashion Channel's "How Do I Look." The wedding took place on the ship,

 

Barb

[beachchick]

Aloha everyone. I finally managed to do a few of the ports. I'm afraid it takes me a really long time to get my thoughts together and written down (plus, I have to take breaks often, so what seems like this really long post is actually many, many little parts). Anyway, here's what I've got so far.

 

(mitsguy2001:) Thanks. I am feeling a bit better today. I did find one of your posts and will answer those questions there a bit later tonight.)

 

General thoughts: My DH and I do land trips to Hawaii as often as possible (which is not nearly often enough to suit us, but c’est le budget). I have to recommend that everyone consider at least a few land days pre- or post-cruise, time and budget willing. For those of you coming from points further east, pre-cruise days are ideal because you have time to get over the jetlag and travel fatigue, say aloha to the islands, and just get into the right frame of mind for your cruise. The time change from the east coast means that you’ll be ready to roll at 3:00 am or so. We have in fact seen many east coasters on a coffee hunt even before the sun comes up. (Hint: Bad Ass coffee shops are usually open by 6:00 am.) Also, we do not do ship excursions or luaus. I don’t have any information about storing luggage at the pier after the cruise or the “easy fly” program.

About taking food off the ship. The Hawaii Department of Agriculture does allow it (for the three “Pride of” ships only), but the cruise line doesn’t encourage it. I think it’s because pax order sandwiches, salads, or other perishables (or go to the buffet and get them) and then don’t always keep them properly chilled. The Hawaii heat can easily cause fresh items to spoil quickly. So, there they are with food they think is good, but that isn’t. Then they blame the cruise line for “bad” food. If you intend to take a picnic, bring a good cooler and freezer bags or containers for ice (the mini-bar doesn’t keep ice bags cold enough). Make sure you use enough ice to keep things really chilled, and don’t let anything sit too long.

We ordered room service sandwiches, fruit, and cookies a few times, and packed them up with containers of ice in our cooler (which is also a backpack). (We do not do this when it is not allowed, not ever.) You can’t bring any fresh food with you back onto the ship, so make sure you finish it before coming back aboard. And they do check bags at all ports when you reboard.

If you plan on renting cars, do it in advance (preferably online). Many times companies will be sold out for the day, particularly at smaller ports such as Hilo. Besides that, at several ports the shuttle drivers had lists of cruise pax who had reservations. You were not allowed to get on a shuttle unless you were on that list. If you don’t have a reservation, you could wait until a shuttle driver would pick you up, but you’d have no way of knowing how much it a car would cost (assuming cars were available). It’s much easier to cancel at the last minute than book at the last minute. If you do want to book during the cruise, you might consider paying the higher fee to rent through the ship’s excursion desk because they have arrangements to have cars available for pax. At all ports, you must have your photo ID and ship ID available when shuttling back after returning your rental car. The drivers have to stop and all shuttle pax are required to show both IDs to the guards before the shuttle can enter the pier areas. Security is tight and there is no parking allowed right at the piers anymore. However, there is parking close by.

This lecture is my now infamous “nag” on the Hawaii forum: Please, please, please do not over-schedule your days. Yes, there is much to do and so many wonderful things to choose from, and no, there’s no possible way to “do it all” or even do all the “must do’s” or even “do most” on a cruise. (That’s another reason for the land days, do more and relax more.) Make sure to leave time to just hang loose and take it easy. It was so frustrating to see the number of pax who were so exhausted by day 4 that the rest of the cruise was staring at them like a black hole of endless activities—Don’t let this happen to you.;) (It’s not just cruise pax who do this, we’ve seen it happen to land visitors as well.)

Whenever you want to ask a question about “what to do,” please do make it more than “what are the must do’s” because my “must do” activities might be your “are you crazy?” items. It’s important to figure out what kinds of activities appeal to you, check out some of what’s available (the forums here, the Revealed books and other travel guides, the numerous Hawaii visitor’s websites are all chock full of excellent information), and go from there.

Keep in mind when planning that unlike some ports or areas you might be used to, the state of Hawaii is really not the least bit dependent on cruise pax for tourism. You are competing with the thousands of land visitors who are on the islands every day of the year. There really isn’t an “off” season in Hawaii, although certain times tend to be less crowded (right after Labor Day, early October, a few weeks after Thanksgiving and before Christmas). Hawaii is hugely popular in winter for snowbird visitors. I could not believe the number of flights coming in from Canada and the snowy parts of the US last December—all those poor pasty pale folks; I feel I can mention this because our DD has lived in Seattle for years and is one of them. When we flew her to Maui for a land visit with us, her dad asked, “How will we know which pax are coming off her flight?” I said, “Just look for the pasty pale legs.” Sure, enough we could tell the Pacific northwesters right off. (Did I mention this was in June?):p

Oahu: This is not our favorite island, but there is much about it that is fun. Flying into and out of HNL can be a pain in the patootie, but then flying anywhere isn’t the grand old time it used to be anyway.

The Pier: Taking a taxi to the pier from HNL was a piece of cake. There are guards directing rental car shuttles and taxis, so it runs pretty smoothly. It cost about $25. We arrived earlier than we expected, and the lines were super long. We prefer to arrive after the first crush of pax, but had caught an earlier flight from Maui. Because we were in a suite, we had a pretty short wait. There are bus stops in the pier area and the Waikiki trolley was running. The pier is also in walking distance of Chinatown. Of course, Aloha Tower (and shopping/eating/drinking) is right there.

Waikiki/Honolulu: This is city life. There will be traffic and crowds and all the usual stuff you find in any other big city. The difference is that you can get yourself to a beach and relax on the sand or swim in the warm water. Waikiki is an excellent beach for beginning surf lessons. Most of the length of it has a shallow shore break even in winter, so it’s great for the keikis (kids). Often, people ask what is a good hotel on the beach for under $100. Answer: There isn’t one. Staying on the beach is expense. There are several hotels just off the beach that are not bad, but if you want beach front, expect to pay $150 at a bare minimum.

We stayed at the Royal Hawaiian for several days post cruise. It had been a “must do someday” for years, and I found a great hotel/car package online. When we checked in, we were surprised (and thrilled) to learn that our “cheapo” portico view room had been upgraded to a two-room premium oceanfront suite. Wow! Our sitting room had panoramic windows (which opened) looking out over the pool and beach, and had a great view of Diamond Head. We were also invited to a VIP cocktail party and got a bunch of “goodies” throughout our stay. I have no idea why; DH said, “They must know beachchick is in town…” Yeah, sure.:D

Pretty much any area along Waikiki Beach is nice for sunning and swimming. We enjoyed the area fronting the area between the Sheraton Waikiki and the Surfrider. The Natatorium has been restored and is open again. It’s worth checking out, especially if the water is rough when you are visiting.

We ate lunch at House Without a Key at the Halekulani. Very nice. We had dinner at Duke’s, but not in the dining room. We ate at the outdoor seating area of the downstairs bar. The menu is low key and the view is fantastic. Try the crab-mac nut wontons and the fish tacos. We used the Entertainment Book card for Tanaka of Tokyo. We had a very good teppanyaki meal. BTW, Tanaka is one that is a “repeat” restaurant on the card. They do not punch it, so you can use it as many times as you want. Even with drinks and tips, our bill was less than $50. Of course, most restaurants right on Waikiki beach are pricy. We did several lunches from the Foodland deli because our room had a fridge. Of course, I had to have a mai tai at the RH Mai Tai Bar. I had one at Duke’s too because I had heard they were excellent. It was delicious. It’s kind of a toss up for me between RH and Duke’s. I prefer the Baccardi rum in Duke’s, but RH has an edge in atmosphere. Both have good mai tais, so you’ll have to taste test and decide for yourselves which is the “winner.”

Pearl Harbor: This cannot be said often enough—get to Pearl Harbor early if you want to take the Arizona Memorial tour. Tix for each day are handed out free on a first-come-first-served basis (starting at 7:30 am) until the tix for that day are gone. No one gets priority or can get advance tix; not cruise pax, excursion pax, commercial tour pax, schools, VIPs; nobody at all except actual Pearl Harbor survivors (for obvious reasons). If you are thinking of booking with a company that guarantees you tix or a specific time, run the other way. Everyone is required to stand in line to get tix. You cannot send one person to get tix for a group.

Although you should try to get there early, sometimes there are tix left later in the day. It’s just that there is no way to know. The Arizona Memorial is beautiful, thought-provoking, and gives me chicken skin (Hawaiian for goose bumps). If you have a late flight out after your cruise, consider taking one of the ship excursions because they will store your luggage and take you to the airport after your tour.

All other attractions at Pearl Harbor and on Ford Island have entry fees. We have been in the submarine museum (not the Bowfin itself though). We have visited the Missouri twice, once on our own and the second time for the 2 hour Explorer’s Tour—well worth the extra $$ to go to off-limits areas and hear detailed history and Naval customs. For that tour, you must be able to climb up and down ladders and over bulkheads and be able to tolerate smallish spaces. You are issued a flashlight, hard hat, safety vest (neon), and water bottle (on cool lanyards you get to keep). You also get tix for lunch in the little cafeteria (mess hall). It was really wonderful, and I’m glad DH and I did it when we did because our disabilities have progressed (as expected) to the point where I seriously doubt we could do it now. It’s well worth it to visit the Missouri on the regular do-it-yourself tour.

This December we went to the new Pacific Aviation Museum. Only the first phase is complete. There are three more phases (each in a hanger) and the air tower to restore. There’s no way we would have missed this. Both our families are loaded with pilots and both our fathers were in the Navy in flight units. DH’s dad was a flight instructor in WWII; my dad was an aerial photographer during Korea. (Although neither one was sent overseas.) DH has done some flying and is an enthusiast, so it’s kind of a given that if it involves flying, we’ll go there. The museum is quite interesting and had some exhibits that you will not see elsewhere. When you walk by the air tower, look at the bullet holes in the windows. Yes indeed, those are from the attack on Pearl Harbor. They have no intention of fixing those windows, ever. It’s another chicken skin thing.

One of the volunteers had directed us down toward the end of the hangers to see the footprint left from Hanger Six. That was the first hanger hit and is the one you see exploded and burning in photos. You’re not supposed to go that far down because the museum hasn’t taken over those facilities yet—There were live fire drills being done in one of the hangers while we were there! DH and I were lucky enough to bump into the head of the museum restoration department and the director of the museum. Both were delightful to talk with (even though they had to tell us that we had wandered a bit far a field). They showed us other damage from the attack and talked a little bit about the goal of the museum. We will go back and see the museum again when all phases are complete.

Security Requirements: To make it clear for everyone, there are no bags of any kind allowed at Pearl Harbor (at any of the attractions) or on Ford Island. You may bring cameras (no cases), bottle of water or other beverage, ID and other tidbits that will fit into your pockets. There is a bag check (no full size luggage; it’s for day items) that costs a few $ per bag. The first time we were at PH after 9/11 (about 2 months post); the bag check was in a big truck. They have since built a canteen with eateries, gift stands, seating, and a larger bag check facility. Also, civilians are not allowed to drive onto Ford Island to get to the Missouri or the PAM. You must take a shuttle that leaves from near the Bowfin and ticket area.

North Shore: Of course this is a must do in the winter to see the waves. WOW! I was first on Oahu in a September and all I had to say about the waves was, “You call that puny thing a wave?” This time in December they were definitely waves. I’d say about 15 ft or so, which you could only really tell when you would see people in them and the people looked like miniatures. We stopped at one beach where the shore break was super steep—practically straight down. We were standing on the top and back on the sand, well away from where the waves were pounding. A rogue wave came up and swarmed right up the break so that we ended up more than knee high in water. (A reminder that the ocean is stronger than we are.) We stopped at Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck, but would not do so again. DH really didn’t care for it; I thought it was tasty enough, but the shrimps were swimming in butter and were just not my style.

Kailua Area: The coast from the north shore down to Kailua is almost as spectacular as the Na Pali coast in terms of sheer cliffs, hidden clefts, and waterfalls. Don’t discount it as a scenic drive.

Once again I was able to swim at Kailua Beach Park, which is still my favorite swimming beach in Hawaii. Even in the winter, it was comfortably swimmable. I just watch where the waves are breaking and how the current is flowing. We saw a huge and beautiful sea turtle which was just kind of bobbing along. There were some windsurfers and kitesurfers as well, but there is a “swimming only” area, so you don’t have to worry about being hit.

Hanauma Bay: I was really looking forward to snorkeling at Hanauma again. It’s not our favorite by any means, but it’s kind of sentimental because it was the very first place I ever snorkeled in Hawaii. It is a good snorkel and super for the family. We had not had problems getting in before, but this trip, forget it. We tried to mornings in a row. No matter when we went, there was no parking and they had closed the bay to more visitors. They limit the number of visitors at any one time because of crowding. YMMV depending on when you visit.

Hilo: The Hilo pier is in a pretty industrial area. There really isn’t anything great within walking distance. There were numerous private tour vans at the pier advertising for tours. I do not know the prices, although I overheard one pax mention to her family a price of $40 p/p for a tour to VNP. We had beautiful weather until late afternoon, when the rain clouds came in.

We spent 4 days at Volcano House in 2005, so we decided to rent a car and tour the Puna area. I am so glad we did. We had reserved a mid-size, but were upgraded to a Jeep 4-w/d. I’m terrible with model names, but it was one that’s hardbodied and built like an SUV, as it turned out, a real bonus. First stop was Lava Tree state park. You have to walk just a little to see some of the bigger lava trees, which are fascinating.

We drove out to the end of Hwy 132; the last couple of miles the road was not fully paved and full of ruts and potholes—DH used the 4 w/d. At the end, you are at the eastern-most point of the island. The air here is famous for its purity and is used for scientific testing. We walked out on the lava fields just a bit and watched the thrashing water and waves. Really beautiful. From there we drove along 137 and stopped here and there.

We also drove on 130 past the sign that says “residents only” through Kalapana and Royal Gardens, which were destroyed by the 1986-1992 flows. The lands around the road are private property, but the road is public. However, a good portion of it is merely thin and buckling paving that was done directly on top of the cooled flows. It’s so weird to be driving on the “old” 130 and then all of a sudden be driving on sort of paved over lava, and then after a while be down on 130 again. You could see the bits and pieces of the side roads and parts of the subdivisions. It was kind of eerie. The road is recommended for 4-w/d only, and with good reason. DH used it quite a bit. There were some small tour vans out on the road as well, but I trust my DH’s driving and was glad to be with him. We drove to the end of the road, where we could see the huge steam plumes from the new lava entering the ocean. Always an awe-inspiring sight.

Lava Viewing Night: Tuesday night was lava viewing night. Go to dinner early if you can. Madam Pele was in an outstandingly good mood for us. Lava could be seen in the distance starting at a bit after 9 pm. The best viewing started at about 9:45 (starboard side first). Deck 13 and 14 were very popular and crowded. (What surprised me most was that so many pax didn’t do any lava viewing, but went to the disco or other venues. I know, to each his or her own, but to miss the lava?) Pax came and went throughout the hour or more of good viewing. The captain turned the ship, at which point we scooted up to our portside balcony for “lava part 2.” There were three flows entering the ocean. The main one, a second “pop up” one that was part of the main flow, and a new breakout further west. The entire mountainside was filled with strings of small flows and breakouts that looked like living jewels. What a sight. Remember that YMMV because the flows change all the time depending on Madam Pele’s mood. I’m convinced that ours was wonderful because last trip DH and I had left an offering to Pele on the cross at Halemaumau—we were blessed that trip and doubly blessed this trip. (Doesn’t matter that this would not be considered part of the religion DH and I grew up with. We honor the gods and goddesses because it is the respectful thing to do.)

We had non-stabilized binocs, which were a challenge, but still helpful. DH mounted his digital on our monopod. At the suggestion of our concierge, he used the video mode instead of still mode. Some of the videos are pretty funny because of the ship’s movement. DH is going to pull stills off the videos. Our zoom isn’t strong enough to have gotten really close, but there are some really great frames. Keep in mind that the ship cannot get super close to the lava for safety reasons.

Maui: We spend quite a bit of time on Maui and had just been in Lahaina for several days, so we decided to cancel our rental car and treat the Maui port days as our “sea days.” It was great to have the ship basically to ourselves. We did walk out and over to the grocery store for a few things. Our portside balcony overlooked an oh-so-lovely commercial shipping pier. This port in particular had heavy security. No private cars were allowed to drive in. There were little “slots” along the walkway with signs for various things such as the Hilo Hattie’s shuttle and excursions. There was not a line of private tour vans as there had been at Hilo. Rental car shuttles are cleared in to pick up pax, but if you want to walk out, it’s a hot and boring 10 minutes out to the road, and there’s really nothing to do anywhere near the port.

The beaches on the Kahului side are famous for windsurfing and kitesurfing. They are not great for relaxing beaching, swimming, or snorkeling. For that, you need to go over to the west side. All of Kahului can be very windy, so the open decks on the ship were a bit of a challenge.

Some Favorite Maui Activities: Snorkel at Honolua Marine Preserve/Slaughterhouse Beach, Kapalua, Airport beach, and Black Rock at Ka’anapali. We’ve recently discovered that the beaches in Wailea and Makena are very good for snorkeling and relaxing too. We do not care for the Kihei area. Snorkeling is almost always better in the morning. If you plan on a trip to Molokini, plan it for first thing on your second day. All of the tour companies leave from the west side and do not provide shuttles to/from Kahului. You will need a car, shuttle, or taxi to get there. Molokini can be very good, depending on the water conditions. We’ve gone out there three times and have had fun every time. I don’t know if this is offered through the ship, but if it is and you don’t want to rent a car, it would be worth considering. Ka’anapali is an excellent beach for the whole family. If the water is rough up on the north-west, consider driving south, and vice versa.

Consider a helicopter flight on Maui. It’s not usually mentioned as a fave, but we thought it was excellent. There is a common fallacy that Kauai is “the only island where you can only see all of it from the air.” This is absolutely untrue. There are parts of each island that can only be seen from the air. The interior valleys on Maui on both the north and south are inaccessible by land. Plus, you get a really different perspective on Haleakala and the island as a whole. If you visit during whale season, you will likely see numerous pods all around the island—talk about a different view. That was really cool. We used Blue Hawaiian a few years ago and splurged on the Eco-Star long flight. It was well worth it.

Drive up to the summit of Haleakala. We are not early morning people, but it was still beautiful late morning. Do be aware that the marine layer is often sucked into the crater in the afternoon. It’s not a bad drive, but it is winding and somewhat steep.

Take a drive upcountry out to Tedeschi Winery. The views upcountry are beautiful. There are botanical gardens too. Stop in Hula for a snack or drink.

Go to Iao Valley/Needle. It’s close to Kahului and really beautiful. It gives you a feel for the wet, tropical rain forests. Bring DEET wipes in case of mosquitoes. There is a visitor’s center and hiking trails. I think there were signs for shuttles to Iao, but I’m not positive.

The road to Hana is not a must do for us. We did it once, but would only do it again if we planned to stay in Hana. It’s long, winding, and fatiguing (for whoever drives). It’s certainly possible to do only part of the road, but always remember that the point of the drive is the stops along the way and not the final destination. For many people it is the highlight of their trip; for us, it’s a nice, but not necessary, scenic drive. If you want to save anyone the hassle of driving, consider taking the ship excursion. You won’t have the flexibility to do your own thing, but you won’t have to fuss with a car or driving. It’s a very personal decision.

Wander through Lahaina. It’s a fun little town with a long history. There are several often overlooked historical sights. NCL offers a “Lahaina on Your Own” excursion for those who don’t want to rent a car. From Lahaina, you can take the $1 shuttle up to Ka’anapali. So that can be an excellent and relaxing beach day. There are no good beaches in Lahaina, but there are numerous tour boats of various types that leave from the harbor. I know that most NCL cruises offer whale watching tours through Pacific Whale Foundation. Those typically leave from Lahaina. PWF has an excellent reputation.

Well, I’m kind of wrung out right now and think I’d better stop for the day. I’ll do Kona and Kauai next time. In the meantime, if I can answer any specific questions, ask away. (Just don’t ask me about ship excursions or commercial tours because we don’t do those.)

Until next time,

beachchick:)

[Browezilla]

This lecture is my now infamous “nag” on the Hawaii forum: Please, please, please do not over-schedule your days. Yes, there is much to do and so many wonderful things to choose from, and no, there’s no possible way to “do it all” or even do all the “must do’s” or even “do most” on a cruise. (That’s another reason for the land days, do more and relax more.) Make sure to leave time to just hang loose and take it easy. It was so frustrating to see the number of pax who were so exhausted by day 4 that the rest of the cruise was staring at them like a black hole of endless activities—Don’t let this happen to you.;)

I really like your appends, but I thought this admonision was a bit biased. I actually don't take vacations to relax. I'm probably in the minority, but I take vacations to see and do. A good vacation day to me is one in which I am exhausted at the end of the day. Just a different perspective.

[frazib]

Hi Beachchick. Do you recall where you got the bus in Lahaina to take you to Kaanapali? Thanks in advance!

[beachchick]

I really like your appends, but I thought this admonision was a bit biased. I actually don't take vacations to relax. I'm probably in the minority, but I take vacations to see and do. A good vacation day to me is one in which I am exhausted at the end of the day. Just a different perspective.

 

Of course my opinions are biased.:D

 

Naturally you should enjoy your vacations however you like, but many visitors to Hawaii want to do everything (not possible on a cruise; not even possible on most land trips) and end up feeling frazzled and unhappy. We saw quite of bit of that (and usually do on land trips as well). It's especially important for cruisers to remember that this cruise has no sea days, and thus no days to take a breather. Sometimes that gets lost in the excitement of planning.

 

beachchick

[beachchick]

Hi Beachchick. Do you recall where you got the bus in Lahaina to take you to Kaanapali? Thanks in advance!

 

Actually, we always have a rental car, so we haven't taken the Lahaina-Ka'anapali shuttle. However, I know that it has stops at Wharf Cinema Center (behind the center, which is across Front St. from the banyon tree). I think it also has a stop at Lahaina Center (which is between Papalaua and Baker); best guess would be that the stop might be near Hilo Hattie. I know it stops at Lahaina Cannery Mall, but that's about a mile up Front St. from the "main drag."

 

beachchick

[beachchick]

She’s back…:eek:

(About my previous and future posts. I trust you all will forgive my mistypes and wrong words. Of course, I always notice them after I’ve typed and reviewed and posted, and it’s too late to make corrections. One of the worst parts of my disabilities is that they affect my thought processes, and I’m pretty slow at putting ideas together. Sometimes I just can’t get the words right.):rolleyes:

Back to those magical ports.

I forgot to mention the disembarkation/re-boarding procedure at each port. And I forgot to mention some shopping opportunities as you disembark the ship. What was I thinking, forgetting the shopping? Oh, that’s right; I somehow missed getting the “girl shopping gene,” for which my DH is eternally thankful. Don’t worry though—in Hawaii, I shop for what’s really important: fresh flowers, alcohol, and aloha attire. One of these days, I’m going to have my DH splurge and get me a true Hawaiian Heritage jewelry piece or two. It’s just that every time I see the price tags, I think, “Dang! That’s half the cost of a cruise…I’d rather have the cruise.”

Embarkation/disembarkation: Boarding and exiting the first and final days is on deck 7. You enter right into the Aloha Atrium. Very nice first impression of the ship. It may only be a two-deck open atrium (not like the four deck deals on some ships we’ve cruised on), but it’s nicely laid out and crew members were all over the place welcoming pax and directing them to the various venues. The pool deck was very popular as a place to wait for cabin decks to be cleared. (I think I mentioned that suite pax in AE and above were directed to the Concierge Lounge-Star Bar for the first complimentary cocktail time.)

On port days, disembarkation is on deck 4, midship. There can be a long line early in the day, but it moves quickly.

Port shopping and visitor info:

There were constant Hilo Hattie’s shuttles at all ports. We saw other shopping shuttles, but I really have no idea about destinations.

Honolulu—There were lei ladies (that’s what they are called) inside the terminal who had gorgeous and intricate leis in both fresh flowers/leaves and kukui nuts or other seeds. Aside from that, Aloha Tower marketplace/shopping center (which has been completely redone since our US Patriot cruise in 2001) is steps away. Chinatown is an easy walk too. If you’re looking for aloha wear, my absolute best recommendation is to take The Bus or Waikiki Trolley to Ala Moana Shopping Center. (Man, that place is growing all the time!) Go to Sears. They have a great selection, tons of styles and sizes, and great prices. We bought some new shirts in cotton lawn and cotton lawn-rayon blend. It is worth looking for the finely woven, smooth fabrics. Go Barefoot is a fave of ours. Tory Richards (I think that’s right) is another good one, but is usually more expensive. In fact, we saw the exact same Tory Richards shirts onboard and at Hilo Hattie’s for full price that we bought DH at Sears for 60% less.

Word of caution: Some labels say “for best results dry clean; may be hand washed and hung to dry.” Read that as: “Dry clean or forget it.” We hand washed several items (in cold on gentle), hung them to dry, and they shrank a full size anyway. I was totally bummed because three of the shirts were cute, girlie print sleeveless ones for me. There’s not a chance I’m going to buy warm-weather clothes that are dry-clean only.

Hilo—When you disembark in Hilo, you walk through the port building and out to the front. I’m trying to picture if there were lei and other Hawaiian gift item stands right there, but it’s fuzzy. There is a visitor’s information center when you walk out to wait for your rental car shuttle or what not. The visitor’s center had tons of brochures, maps, This Week Big Island, and so forth. There’s not much shade here, and it got hot pretty fast. There is no other shopping within (reasonable) walking distance from the port.

Maui—Here, there were a bunch of stands set up in the pax terminal. As you walk through, you can buy souvenirs, leis, floral arrangements, and so forth. There were some stands with brochures and maps. There is shopping “across the street” from the pier, but that street is a hot 10 minute (or more) walk through the commercial dock area. Not horrid, just not lovely. As you walk along the water, you should turn back and look at the ship. There are a couple of really good picture spots where you can take full ship pix. The shopping centers across from the pier are smallish, but have a fair selection of shops and outdoor vendors. The larger Ka’ahumanu Center is a little more than half a mile down the road. Costco is on the way to the airport.

Kona—The tender pier is right in the heart of Kailua-Kona, so shopping abounds. You can walk up the hill or hang a right when you leave the tender pier and walk along the water on Ali’i. You’ll have no trouble finding food, drink, and “stuff.”

Kauai—As with Hilo and Maui, the pier is part of the industrial shipping complex. I do not recall shopping opportunities in the pax terminal, though there may have been. There were some brochures and maps available. There are shops and a small shopping complex about a 2 block walk away.

Towels and water: There is a towel station with crew member next to the bottom of the stairs. You can check out as many towels as you like—but you do have to sign for them. These towels are blue. (The cabin/suite towels are white and tan; the pool and spa towels are green-white striped.) When you re-board, you just turn in your wet and sandy towels, and sign off the list. We did have to wait one time because they keep bringing out fresh loads of towels. (Jeez, it was maybe a 2 minute wait and pax were practically screaming that they needed to get off the ship right now. Please, a little patience.)

There is also bottled water for sale right by the towel station. I think it cost about $3, but don’t hold me to that. We had complimentary beverages all week in our suite, so we just grabbed those for the cooler. The bottles were fairly good size. I’m going to say about 1 liter, so really not much more than you’d pay at any resort.

Security: I’m sure you’re all used to the standard security measures. There is only one gangway/tender exit, but there are security crew members (with swipers) on either side of the exit. The line moved quickly. And I should mention that they did check your computer pix against your actual self, every time.

Have your bags and packages ready for inspection when you re-board. It makes the process smoother for everyone. They inspected bags at all ports. You are not allowed to bring fresh food or open containers (such as an open bag of chips or cup of coffee) back onboard. If you take a lunch with you, eat it up or toss the remains before you get in the security line.

Kona: DH and I stayed in Kona for 5 days in December of 2001. We were there during the first big Kona storm of the season. In fact, the two ships that came in during that time were able to tender, but not get pax to shore. This is a rare occurrence, so you can imagine how choppy the water was then. We were able to do some sightseeing, but not much water play. In 2005, we flew into Kona, but left the next morning.

The day our PoH cruise was in Kona, the weather was sunny and lovely, except one little thing: The wind was blowing like the world was about to end. It really did not affect the tenders though because they were going into a protected bay.

Tendering and tender tix: We had VIP tender tix, so I can’t report on crowding or anything like that. Tender tix were available in the atrium on deck 7 starting at 7 am. I know that ship excursion pax had priority over everyone else. We went down about 8:45. There was still a fairly long line, and numerous people hadn’t bothered to get tix. They were sent back up to get them (many grumbling all the way). The procedure is laid out very clearly in the Freestyle Daily, so I really didn’t have a lot of sympathy for those who didn’t bother to read it. (I know, what a meanie.)

We were moved to the head of the line because of the VIP tix. Fortunately, there was no grumbling about that, just a little envy (that would normally have been us saying, “they’re so lucky…”). The seas were pretty mild, IMO, but there were plenty of strong crew members to make sure no one got hurt getting from the ship to the tender (and vice versa later). (DH and I have had a few ship-to-boat adventures over the years that were true challenges, so maybe that’s why we just kind of shrugged and hopped over.) Everyone is told to find a seat on the benches quickly so the process runs smoothly. Disabled pax are boarded last, but are not skipped over. The crew members on board the ship make sure that they are assisted onto the tender in turn. When it’s time to get off the tender, the crew will tell you which section is to go first. That way there are no mobs trying to shove their way onto the pier.

The VIP tix are only good for your “outbound” tender. Everyone has to line up for the return. Late in the afternoon, this line can be extremely long (and out in the sun). We got there about 3:30 and waited about 20 minutes. By the time we boarded the tender, the line was snaking out off the pier and down Ali’i. However, the ship was running four tenders pretty much all day, so they really couldn’t have gone any faster.

Activities: We rented a car from Thrifty at the King Kam hotel. It was about $17 cheaper than Dollar. The car was dirty, inside and out. We didn’t want to spend time fussing, so we just cleaned the inside with wipes and went on our way. When we returned it, we heard several other pax complaining that the Thrifty cars were dirty. Maybe it was just that day; maybe they don’t bother to clean the cars at that Thrifty. I don’t know. The Dollar cars seemed in much better shape and cleaner. (Just an FYI.)

We decided to check out the beaches up the Kohala coast. The wind made beaching pretty much impossible because it was so strong and blasting sand all over. However, we discovered that Mauna Kea, Hapuna, and ‘Anaeho’omalu (A) Bay beaches are “keepers,” particularly A-Bay, which is long, protected, has facilities, and is just gorgeous. In fact, it was the only beach calm enough that day for snorkeling up there.

On past trips, we’ve gone Kona coffee tasting. There are no coffee farms right in Kona. You really need a car or to take a tour. We’ve also visited Pu’uhonua o Honaunau (Place of Refuge), which is a national park. It is really interesting. Green sea turtles frequent the area and often lounge around. Some of the best snorkeling is at Honaunau Bay, which is not the same thing as Place of Refuge, but rather next to it. We’ve driven down to South Point, which is the (current) southern-most point in the US. Talk about wind! It’s really neat, but the road down there isn’t the greatest. In 2001, we visited the Hilton Waikoloa one day, and I was lucky enough to snag a spot for the adult long program at DolphinQuest. This was right after 9/11, so the islands were pretty quiet. Normally, you need to book quite a while in advance and/or get into a "lottery" for a spot.

About Kealakekua Bay: Let’s make this clear. You cannot just drive there, park, and hop in the water. You face a hot 2 mile hike down to the water (and it’s uphill all the way back)—not to mention that the trails have been closed since the earthquake last year. Your options are to rent kayaks or take a kayak excursion, or take a commercial snorkel boat/zodiac trip. There is no beach and nowhere to stand, and you really must not stand on the coral in shallower areas because that damages and kills it. However, K-Bay is regarded as just about the finest snorkeling in the state and would be well worth the effort to get there if snorkeling is your thing. We will be doing it (finally) on our next land trip to the BI.

Kauai: We rented a car for a 24-hour period (mid-day to mid-day). We drove up to Ke’e beach for a picnic and just stopped here and there along the way. The surf was really high (and beautiful). DH took some fabulous shots of surfers way out in the waves. The next morning we drove down to the Poipu area, but the water was too rough to swim or snorkel. However, Poipu has a super shallow area where you can take the keikis even on rough winter days. The Spouting Horn (down the road from Poipu) was in great form because of the strong water action. We parked overnight at the little shopping center a couple of blocks down from the pier. It was $10 for unlimited in/out privileges. Parking is limited, so you might need to get a parking pass earlier in the day.

On our previous visits to Kauai, we visited Waimea Canyon (the site of the infamous broken leg), which is so different from the Grand Canyon that I really wish people would stop trying to compare them. We’ve also done the trek out to Queen’s Bath. It was fun, but by all rights that is where I should have broken my leg. It’s a slippery walk down the side of a waterfall and across open lava beds right by the ocean. I doubt we could do it now, but I’m glad we did it then. We’ve stopped by the Princeville Resort, took a walk through, and sat on the beach relaxing until we were attacked by local ants. We’ve also stopped a many other beaches to relax, swim, or snorkel. Unfortunately, we’ve only been to Kauai in the winter, so we haven’t had that many good water opportunities

Unless you enjoy (or at least don’t mind) spending many hours driving, I cannot recommend that you try to do Waimea Canyon and the north shore on the same day. Please, pick a direction and stick with it. That way you can make several stops and see more of the island and in more detail. It would certainly be possible to do Waimea Canyon early on day two. If you leave early enough, you could even make a stop for a quick swim or snorkel at Poipu or one of the other south beaches. If you don’t want to rent a car, there are many ship excursions. Kalapaki Beach, in front of the Marriot, is within easy walking distance from the ship. Many pax go there for their second morning.

Na Pali cruising: I have to admit that it was nice to have a “sea” afternoon, rather than leaving at or around sunset. The coastline is beautiful all the way, not just along the Na Pali coast. Because we were there in mid-December, the sunset was pretty early. The last part of the coast was kind of lost in the dusk, but it was still beautiful. Although sunrise-sunset times in Hawaii don’t vary by season as much as farther north, there is enough of a difference (a little before 6 in December versus a bit after 7 in June; give or take a little for my faulty memory) that visibility is probably better from late spring through early. In summer, of course, you would have the most light during the cruise (as well as when leaving ports throughout the cruise).

The Na Pali coast is really spectacular all along the way. The exact scope is hard to grasp until you look at the beaches along the way and see teeny, tiny little dots which are boats or markers. Use your binocs for some great waterfall viewing. The captain does not turn the ship around and go back the other way, which would be in the dark anyway. The port side is the place to be. Deck 13 was a very popular viewing spot. We had specifically chosen the port side for our suite because of the Na Pali cruise.

Port views: Best views from the ship by port: Honolulu—Starboard; Hilo—Starboard; Maui—Starboard (although port does have great views of the windsurfers as long as you’re willing to look over the commercial shipping dock below; Kona—Both, but on our cruise port faced the island; Kauai—Port.

Best views when leaving ports: Honolulu—Port; Hilo—Starboard; Maui—Starboard; Kona—Starboard (kind of); Kauai—Obviously, port.

I’m sure I’ve forgotten many, many things, but I think that’s about as much as I can write about the ports. If you’ve got any questions, lay ‘em on me and I’ll try to answer (or at least let you know that I can’t).

Next up: Suite perks.:D

beachchick

[cruizinwithkids]

This review is so awesome and useful. I usually start my day with cruise critic then have to go to work. Same today. I will print this when I get to work and then come home and compare it to my revealed books.

 

I am ridiculous when it comes to planning, but it is so much fun and with a full year before we go...

 

I, like Browe, am one who has an attitude. If I want rest, I can stay home and rest for free. I'm not paying all this money for rest. But I do laugh when at Disney and see the parents with the crying kids. Everyone is exhausted. I just say to myself, "WOW, you're paying to have this much fun?!?!?"

[POHherewecome!]

“They must know beachchick is in town…”

Beachchick, maybe they did know... I am sure you are becoming a legend on this site with your great advice to would-be cruisers and visitors to Hawaii. Your review is fantastic! I'm sure its the most comprehensive one ever done. I wish I had read it before we did our cruise in January. Anyway, I eagerly await the next instalments...

[beachchick]

This review is so awesome and useful. I usually start my day with cruise critic then have to go to work. Same today. I will print this when I get to work and then come home and compare it to my revealed books.

 

I am ridiculous when it comes to planning, but it is so much fun and with a full year before we go...

 

I, like Browe, am one who has an attitude. If I want rest, I can stay home and rest for free. I'm not paying all this money for rest. But I do laugh when at Disney and see the parents with the crying kids. Everyone is exhausted. I just say to myself, "WOW, you're paying to have this much fun?!?!?"

 

Oh, gosh. That is so true! You just look at the frazzled parents dragging along the exhausted whining kids and think, "Why?":rolleyes:

 

Do as much as you like, but I want to mention that "resting" in Hawaii isn't exactly like "resting" at home. It's a whole different type of thing, IMO. But hey, if you don't mind going home exhausted knowing you did as many things as possible, go for it. I'm more concerned with the very many folks who don't realize until halfway through their cruise or trip that they've scheduled themselves to the point where it's no longer fun, but more like work (and that they could certainly do at home).

 

beachchick

[beachchick]

Beachchick, maybe they did know... I am sure you are becoming a legend on this site with your great advice to would-be cruisers and visitors to Hawaii. Your review is fantastic! I'm sure its the most comprehensive one ever done. I wish I had read it before we did our cruise in January. Anyway, I eagerly await the next instalments...

 

What a very nice thing to say. I might add that your review was no "slouch" either.:D I just replied about your smoke in the cabin issue. (I'm so sorry you had to deal with that.)

 

I originally intended to do my review right after our trip, but I just wasn't up to it. (Of course, I had the best of intentions to write a part a day, and that hasn't exactly worked out either.)

 

Sounds like you had a good time overall. We sure did.

 

beachchick

[beachchick]

Aloha again.

When DH and I booked the PoH, we knew we’d be perfectly happy in our “usual” balcony cabin. We were very happy the day I managed to “nag” us up to a mini-suite. That we got an upsell to a suite was, well, sweet. We have never cruised in a suite before; heck, I’ve always felt we were lucky to be able to cruise with a balcony. (OTOH, we discovered early on that a balcony is a must for us because our health limitations mean that we spend more time in our cabin than many pax, and having a balcony makes it pleasant. We cruise less often, but that’s okay.)

Let me say right off that the suite perks for AE and above that I’m listing here are only those I know for sure. I know that many of the suite perks for courtyard pax are also perks available for the AE through AB suites. I just don’t want anyone to be disappointed because I gave wrong information. I’m certain that someone who has actually stayed in an AE through AB will be able to fill in the blanks and confirm the other perks for those suites.

Embarkation/Disembarkation: There is a line (a separate door) for VIPs, suite pax, and Lattitudes members (not sure which levels). It is also the door where crew members check back onto the ship. Our ID and paperwork were inspected at the door, and then we were directed to the appropriate line inside the terminal. Toward the end of the check-in process, the counter agent signaled our butler that we were ready. Our butler, Dennis, met us as we left the check-in counter. He introduced himself and gave us some of the 411. Then he sent us up to the ship (we were lei-d on the way in and had to pass through the usual “photo op” area) to the Concierge Lounge (which is the Star Bar at night) on deck 13 to relax and have complimentary cocktails. What a treat to walk into a cool, comfy lounge; plop down on cushy chairs; put up our feet; and have a cocktail server by our sides asking, “What may I bring you to drink?” Oh yeah, that was good.

I mentioned earlier that I know on many ships that the butlers/concierges escort suite pax directly to their suites. Frankly, I thought this was much better. Sitting there sipping cocktails while we took in the sights was a great way to start our cruise.:)

For disembarkation, we received a bunch of VIP luggage tags the night before. After the ship is ready for disembarkation, suite pax can pretty much leave at whatever time they choose. We decided on self-disembarkation and didn’t leave until about 10:30, which is pretty much the latest you can disembark. You are not rushed out of your suite at the crack of dawn and have plenty of time to go for breakfast, take a shower, and so forth. (We got to take tours of the A3, A2, and Garden Villa, which was fun.)

Tender tix: We received a letter from the concierge along with VIP tender tix the night before we got to Kona. I’m fairly certain that the cruise excursion pax were first. Suite pax can go to the head of the line any time after that. VIP tendering is for going off the ship, but not for returning. If you are uncomfortable “cutting” in line, you can ask your butler, concierge, or any crew member to escort you.

VIP cocktail reception: We were invited to a suite pax cocktail reception with the captain and officers on Tuesday (early evening, well before the lava viewing). It was held in the Spinnaker lounge. We met the captain and several officers, sat and listened to live music, and chatted with Eric, the concierge. He had some great tips about how best to enjoy the lava viewing (such as using the video mode on our digital and then pulling stills from it later). There were servers circulating with champagne, wines, and beer. I had champagne at dinner, so I stuck with that. DH doesn’t drink, so the servers brought him club sodas; I imagine that you could ask for other alcoholic beverages too if you don’t want wine or beer. It was about an hour long and pretty quiet; the captain didn’t make any big speech or anything. It was enjoyable.

Although I believe children do not belong at cocktail parties (no matter where the party is held), there was one little cutie out on the dance floor. She was having so much fun and was so entertaining, that we really couldn’t complain. Still, had the party been full of rowdy kids, we would have been annoyed. (I know that seems hypocritical, especially because I’m usually one who asks “where do you draw the line” when it comes to things like kids at adult events. In this case, that’s the way it goes. She was cute.)

Room service menu: The suite room service menu is not bad. It has a more extensive selection than the regular menu, including a nice beef wrap and other yummy items. There are gourmet items that you can order for an extra cost, but we never felt the need. The door tag to order breakfast is also more extensive then the regular one, and you can write in add-ons. Alternatively, you can call your butler directly to place an order. In fact, we used the iTV room service option the first time we ordered lunch, but Dennis brought our order and reminded us that we should call him instead so he could take care of our orders.

You can also order anything from any restaurant (when the restaurant is open, of course) and have it delivered. If you order from the upcharge restaurants, the same fee applies if you have it delivered to your suite.

Cagney’s breakfast and lunch: This was a truly nice perk. You enter through the Star Bar, where you check in, and are seated in the intimate Cagney’s satellite dining room. You may not bring guests. (The entire suite staff is very good about remembering who belongs in the various suite venues.)

The breakfast menu is not huge, but it is very good. A couple of mornings, DH wasn’t feeling up to going down to breakfast, so I popped down and ordered our breakfasts “to go.” No problem getting exactly what we wanted (and extra pineapple!). I highly, highly recommend the crab cakes benedict. The crab cakes at Cagney’s are very good (light, fresh, not greasy, lots of crab), so turning them in to benedicts in an absolute indulgence. Yum, yum, yum. My DH doesn’t like poached eggs, so I suggested that he order it with scrambled eggs instead. No problem at all. The other item I really enjoyed was this poached egg thing in a light creamy sauce with tomatoes, shrimp, crab, and chunks of lobster (many good-sized pieces of very tender sweet lobster—not at all like the icky whole lobsters we were served at Cagney’s for dinner). (I’m sorry, but I can’t remember what that particular breakfast item was called.) All the food was cooked to order, so we didn’t have to deal with the runny and sometimes horrid mass-cooked scrambled eggs. The mixed berry bowl with sabayon was really tasty. It was really nice to have breakfast in the quieter setting, rather than the dining room or buffet.

We only ate lunch at Cagney’s one time because we were usually off the ship mid-day. It was fine, but not anything spectacular. I don’t know if they change the menu, but a few of the items I’ve seen mentioned here on CC were not on the menu that day (such as the steak sandwich, which I had been looking forward to trying). As with breakfast, part of the pleasure was simply being able to dine in a small, quiet restaurant.

Dining reservations: Along with the other VIP welcome items in our suite, there was a form we could fill out to have the concierge make dining reservations. I decided to pop on down to Cagney’s and do it there instead of waiting. We definitely received VIP treatment because the couple ahead of us in line could not get the ressies they wanted. When I handed the hostess our list, she promptly got us everything exactly as requested—even when the computer listed no availability. Later, Dennis brought us the confirmation printout. The dining reservation lists at the restaurants include your suite number. I assume that is why we were usually promptly seated in the best seats.

We changed a few of our dining places and times during the cruise, and never had any problems with doing it at the last minute. The only exception was Teppanyaki because there are only the three seatings each night, and they fill up fast. You can request that the concierge check for cancellations, but do not plan on calling and getting in later in the week. If you want Teppanyaki, make sure you reserve it right away.

If you don’t feel like going “out” to eat, just call the concierge or butler, who will bring you any menu you like, take and place your order, and serve you in the dining room area of your suite. We had not planned on doing that, but we really enjoyed it the night we had our problems in Cagney’s. (I should mention that, as we sat there in the middle of the bustle for 20 minutes being ignored in Cagney’s, I asked myself if I’d be so annoyed if we were cruising in the usual balcony cabin. I really didn’t want to get into that “I’m a suite guest, bow down to me” attitude. I realized that I would have been just as ticked :mad: ; I simply wouldn’t have been able to call the concierge later and ask him to rescue the evening for us. :D )

Suite amenities: We had an espresso/cappuccino maker in the dining area of our suite. There was ample barware, coffee cups (all types), and other necessities of life. The bathroom amenities were upgraded and replenished daily. I really enjoyed having the loufas and other special items. The suite stewards do the whole towel animals, turn-down, and such, but you do have to remember to turn the little wheel by your door to what you want (welcome, do not disturb, make up cabin, turn down cabin) to make sure. We had a nice tropical floral arrangement in our living room, so I didn’t have to go purchase one.

I know I’m forgetting some things, so as always please feel free to ask any questions. I’ll list courtyard-specific perks with my courtyard and villas post. BTW, I’ve decided to add an addition part to my review. There are many things I’ve learned when visiting Hawaii that I think might be useful for first-time visitors, so I figured I might as well blather on a bit about them. I’ll also try to include any little tidbits that I may have forgotten along the way.

beachchick:cool:

[capnstubing24]

Could you just clarify which type of suite (or even cabin number) you were in? A lot of these perks listed refer to what I thought to be only for Penthouse and above. I was sure mini-suites didn't have a dining area and espresso machine. We are sailing in March on deck 11 AF= mini-suite.

 

Thanks! Your review has been very helpful to us!

[aucruiser]

beachchick,

 

Thanks for taking the time to post all of the detailed information. I am looking forward to your first-time visitor to Hawaii tips and tidbits. DH and I are preparing for our first visit and we have just under 2 months left in our countdown.

[legalcruiser]

beachchick,

 

Thanks for taking the time to post all of the detailed information. I am looking forward to your first-time visitor to Hawaii tips and tidbits. DH and I are preparing for our first visit and we have just under 2 months left in our countdown.

 

War Eagle aucruiser! Good signing day for us!

[beachchick]

Could you just clarify which type of suite (or even cabin number) you were in? A lot of these perks listed refer to what I thought to be only for Penthouse and above. I was sure mini-suites didn't have a dining area and espresso machine. We are sailing in March on deck 11 AF= mini-suite.

 

Thanks! Your review has been very helpful to us!

 

We were in a Courtyard Villa A4. The perks I wrote about so far are ones that I know for sure are for AE and above (including Courtyard), but do not include Courtyard perks that I am not positive are for AE, AD, AC, and AB. Yes, AF and AG are mini-suites and not eligible for the full suite perks, that's why I tried to make sure that the title of my post and opening paragraphs listed specifically that the perks I was talking about were for AE and above. I know AF/AG has concierge access (but not on a priority basis) and a few of the other little things, but no butler or Cagney's breakfast/lunch or suite room service menu, etc. And the mini-suites do not have a dining room/area and such.

 

Hope that helps clarify.

 

beachchick

[aucruiser]

War Eagle aucruiser! Good signing day for us!

 

War Eagle legalcruiser! I hope the "experts" are right about this class of signees.

 

Beachchick, will you post the first time to Hawaii tips here or on the Ports of Call-Hawaii board?

[Anomaly]

I can only echo the thanks that others have expressed and admiration for your recall and descriptive narration.

 

As I noted in another thread, I'm getting married Memorial Day weekend and then sailing on POH beginning 6/4. After much agonizing, I decided to go for the AE hoping to assure that we avoid some of the complaints others have had about NCLA (though I take them with more than a grain of salt - we're fairly easy to please). The more I read your posts the happier I am that I did and the less I can wait to go. I think I'm going to print out your thread and keep it handy as we do our planning in the next two months.

 

Two questions - both HNL related. First, what is it about flying into HNL that is so awful? Second, is it worth it to fly in on Sunday instead of Monday? I don't have interest in Pearl Harbor, at least not on this trip, and we're coming from LA, so no jet lag problem.

 

Thanks again for all the time you're putting into this.

[beachchick]

Anomaly: Mahalo for your compliments. I'm glad you're finding all my rambling to be helpful. You won't be sorry you decided on the AE--especially for your honeymoon, you deserve it.

 

To answer your questions. Flying into and out of HNL is a pain in the patootie in the same way Chicago O'Hare, LAX, Dulles, JFK, et al. are a pain. They're busy, busy, busy and crowded. Flying into isn't so much a bother, but flying out of (even late at night) means long security lines and all the usual hassles that go along with air travel these days. (OTOH, we're spoiled when we leave from our local airport because it's a regional one--small, quiet, and easy to get through the security process.)

 

Yes, yes, yes to flying in on Sunday instead of Monday. I'd say that no matter what. It's always best, IMO, to fly in a day before the cruise because you just never know what might happen to delay your flight. Even though jet lag won't be an issue, it's still better to get through the airport nonsense a day in advance and wake up on your cruise departure day already in paradise.

 

aucruiser: I was planning on just doing my Hawaii tips as my final part on my review here.

 

Everyone: I'm working on the courtyard and courtyard perks now and will post in the next couple of days.

 

beachchick

[Brownies52]

Beachchick, Thanks so much for such a detailed account of your trip. I have been seeking information since last April on the Hawaiian Cruises. I booked our cruise for this May, last year on the first day they became available. We will be staying in an AD and my kids and friends(in their 20's) will be in an AF. I think I've read every post on Hawaii and the POH since, except I missed about 6 weeks around the holidays, just didn't have the time. Now I'm trying to catch up. And I realized it's not a year away anymore and I need to plan what we're going to do. Your advice on the beaches is great and complements what others have said. We will be renting a van in each port since there will be 6 of us. I'll probably start spending time on the Hawaii boards to get some specifics, especially for scuba and ziplines. When I'm on vacations like this, I want to be going and seeing as much as I can each day. Unfortunately, DH likes to sit somewhere and take it all in. So we kind of do a happy medium, which is probably best for both of us. I'm so looking forward to trying the Chocolate Obsession, you got my mouth watering. I hope I remember to check out the statues in the Blue Lagoon. It was so much fun reading along with you before your trip and now it's great to hear all about it.

Thanks once again. Looking forward to the next chapter.

[beachchick]

Warning: Extremely long, rambling post ahead!

 

It goes without saying (but I’ll say it anyway) that having the chance to upsell to a Courtyard Villa was really exciting for me. We had never cruised in a suite of any kind and had turned down two previous offers for an AE or AD because having suite the perks and amenities just wasn’t that important to us. But the Courtyard was another story entirely. The idea of a “ship within a ship” was very appealing. We far prefer smaller inns to huge resorts, so the Courtyard seemed like it might be just our speed. I didn’t think I’d care much about all the goodies, but they turned out to be pretty cool. I felt really pampered and kind of special. (Don’t worry, I don’t think having a courtyard suite makes me a “better” person; just a lucky one.);)

First impressions and general thoughts: After we left the Concierge lounge, we took the stairs up from deck 13. Now, I admit this is picky, but there are carpet color and pattern changes that are pretty horrid. Deck 13 aft: swirling bright yellow/teal/black; stairs up to deck 14 entry: bright red with orange; rest of stairs and deck 14 common areas: green/teal/purple/pink (and other colors) of stylized plumerias. It’s just jarring—who could possible have thought these patterns and colors would go together in any pleasing way. There’s a very heavy door with ship card slot halfway up the stairs. Be prepared because it’s self-closing too.

We stepped into the Courtyard and my first thought was how pretty, tropical, and inviting it looked. Very peaceful and quiet. (DH and I both noticed that the orchids and other plants were artificial, but we got over that disappointment. Some of the leaves are fading already, and they really need to wipe off some of the sticky salt build up more often, but those are little quibbles.) The predominant colors are purple, teal, blues, and kind of burnt orange with white. There’s always movement because of the fabric coverings, wind catchers, and other “movable” items that make it seem open and fresh even when the retractable roof is closed. Overall the courtyard feels very intimate, and it was never crowded.

The colors are less vivid than they seem in some of the pix. The hot tub is large and tucked over in one corner. The pool is very small, but it has an endless pool option, so you can either lounge in the water or take a swim. There is a counter with cabinets at one end. This is where the butlers set up breakfast every morning. The butlers’ preparation area is a room separated by a hallway that crosses the far end of the courtyard. All in all, the area looks classy and does have the “exclusive” feel advertised.

There are teak stairs up to the deck 15 sundeck, which is lovely. There were hardly ever people up there because of the intense port schedule. On our cruise, the cabanas and covers had been taken down, but it made sense because it was very windy pretty much all the time. The hammock was really nice, but it was right over our villa (14514). At first my DH thought someone was out there rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic at night, but then he realized it was the hammock tipping and moving in the wind. As reported, the design was changed so that the private sundeck is only on the port side. I know several people have been disappointed, but we thought it was a fine size. True, you couldn’t go out there to see the starboard lava viewing, but that’s not enough reason to make it the major complaint.

The suites: I can only describe the A4 in detail, but we did get quick looks at the other suites. We did not tour the AA Owner’s Suites on decks 9 and 10.

Garden Villas: Wow! Yep, they’ve got the grand piano and the curving stairs up to their own sundecks. They’ve got the panoramic windows and all the bells and whistles. The furniture looked really comfortable and was definitely “designer” in feel. The second and third bedrooms actually have their own suite numbers (with doorbells and the whole bit) and are accessed by a hallway from the central area. I had been trying to figure out how that worked. I was surprised at how nice those two bedrooms were. They are spacious with nice bathrooms and small private balconies. I had been expecting tiny little “kids” rooms, but that is not what these are by any means. They’re certainly nowhere near the luxury level of the master, but I wouldn’t turn up my nose at one.

Deluxe Owner’s Suite (deck 15): As far as I could tell, this can only be accessed by stairs up from deck 14. It was also luxurious, but I was surprised that the bedroom was not a separate room, but just a separate area. The whole thing was elegant and lovely with a huge and beautiful bath.

A3/A4: The primary differences between the A3 and A4 were the kids’ bedroom and the depth of the balcony. The kids’ bedroom is right off the entry hall of the A3s. It looks exactly like what you expect: Small room, bunk style, no frills. That is why I would not recommend an A3 for two couples (or any other four adults) traveling together. There is no possible way to make the situation “fair” unless the couple staying in the large master bedroom (with its luxury bath) pays at least twice as much as the other couple or they go through the hassle of switching halfway through the cruise (what a waste of time, IMO).

The A3 balcony is substantially deeper (not wider) than the A4’s. Even so, it’s not huge by any means, but I’m certain the rationale is that all the villas have the courtyard and deck 15 sundeck available.

The two A4s are, as far as I can tell, the least “popular” of the courtyard villas. I’m sure it is because they have a two pax maximum are at the end of the courtyard (oh, boo-hoo, we had to walk a little further and go around a corner), and have the smallest balconies. In fact, our balcony was the smallest of any we’ve had—no room for full lounges (more on balcony chairs later). There is a jog over from the main hallway to the suite door. We liked that because it was always quiet. There is no entry hall, so you just walk into the main living areas.

Dining room/bar area: The dining area has a table and four chairs. Everything is glass and dark polished woods. There’s a counter (also polished wood) with an espresso/cappuccino maker (there are written instructions, but our butler, Dennis, gave us a lesson on how to use it as well), ice bucket and glasses, plus an upper glass cabinet with barware and necessities, and lower cabinets with various cups and such, tea and sweeteners.

The mini-fridge is also built in to the lower cabinets. Dennis stocked our mini-fridge all week (a few times a day) with our choice of complimentary non-alcohol beverages. (This is one of the perks that I think only A4, A3, A2, AA, and GV have, not the AE through AB. I have heard that AE through AB suites have complimentary bottled water, but that they have to pay for sodas and what not.) We did not have to purchase any sodas or bottled water onboard, and we didn’t buy the soda package (which we usually get for the club soda). It was a really nice perk for DH, who doesn’t drink alcohol but enjoys diet coke and club soda. I liked not having to worry about going and finding beverages or buying them in port to have in the suite.

A side note on about sodas and bottled water. The first night we went to Cagney’s, I brought a bottle of wine from our suite. No problem with corkage (no fee because it was complimentary from NCL). We ordered club sodas as well. At first our waiter asked for our ship cards, but when I said, “Oh, that’s okay, I’ll just go on up to the suite and grab a couple” he asked what suite we were in and then said there was no need that sodas would be complimentary. I assumed that it was because non-alcohol beverages were included as part of our suite perks, so they figured it was just as easy to include them as to have us bring them with us from the suite. This was how it worked at Cagney’s and Jasmine, as soon as the waiters knew we were in a courtyard villa. That was not the case in any of the other restaurants or the bars/lounges. So, we would just grab a couple of club sodas from the fridge when we headed out to eat or see a show. No biggie. (For anyone who wants to call us “cheap” for taking advantage of our suite perks, don’t bother. The sodas and waters were included as courtyard villa perks for us to enjoy throughout the ship. We did not “sneak” anything, and we paid for the privileges.)

Living room: When we walked in to our suite, almost the first thing I noticed was the high-hat filled with ice and a bottle of decent (not great, but decent) bubbly—what a lush, the first thing I notice is the alcohol. (I think the Garden Villas and Owner’s Suites get good champagne. But I’ve got no complaint. I do not know if the GVs and OSs get the bottles of liquor as they do on some of the other ships.)

The living room is a fine size for two, but I think it would be a little close for four (A3 living room is the same size). A large flat screen TV is on one wall—ours had lousy reception, but whatever. There is a DVD player in the room as well, but it is built in to the bar cabinets. There is a DVD "library" list in the suite, and you can call your butler any time to ask for one of them. Have more than one choice in mind because sometimes the popular ones are already checked out. The movies available were not first run, but the selection was good with lots of variety for different tastes.

 

The furniture is dark bamboo/rattan with jewel colored upholstery and pillows. There’s no good way to say this, but the sofa and chairs were obviously designed based on available space and by someone who didn’t have to sit in them. They have no arms, are stiff, and are just not comfy. DH thought it might be better suited for a Havana bordello.:D I managed to arrange some of the sofa pillows so that I could relax on the sofa. There is a nice sized coffee table (with a small tropical arrangement on it) in the middle of the room

Balcony: As I mentioned, the balcony was small. The chairs are very comfy (large, big arms, curving with relaxed backs), except—and this is a big deal for me—that one had apparently been broken and had been replaced with a straight-backed dining chair like those in the courtyard eating area. I asked to have another of the balcony “lounge” because it’s not terribly relaxing to sit on the balcony in a chair you might sit in at your great-aunt’s tea party! Dennis tried his best, but after a full day he discovered that the reason the lounger hadn’t been replaced with the same type is that they are one-piece and do not fit through the suite doors (the ones from the hall, not the balcony door). The only way they can go out through the suite is if they are broken and taken out in pieces. (Frankly, I don’t want to know what someone could have been doing that would have broken the original one:eek:…but I heard that others had been broken as well.) I do not blame Dennis for this in any way. The poor guy was so frustrated, and I’m sure it didn’t help that I called him three times over the course of the day for a status check.

In any case, the only way to get a new one onto the balcony is to hoist it up the ship exterior and in through the balcony opening. So, not only do they not have a stock of them on hand in Honolulu, they can’t get them onto the balconies anyway. What kind of idiot was responsible for that chair design??? We really couldn’t enjoy our balcony like we usually do because DH and I both have physical disabilities that make sitting upright for long stretches painful. In fact, the living room chairs were so uncomfortable for DH that he brought the one lounging chair from the balcony and set it up in the living room along with a foot stool. (That’s how we know they fit through the balcony-to-suite doors, but not the suite-to-hallway doors.) The lounging style of balcony chair is really comfortable, but they’ve just got to figure out a way to replace them as necessary.

Bedroom: The bedroom and bathroom are separated from the living and dining rooms by a sliding door. The bedroom is separated from the huge bathroom by thick satin curtains. The bedroom has just enough room for an oversized queen bed, side tables (with shelves), and a flat screen (with DVD player) built-in.

The colors were all jewel tones and not nearly as garish as I had expected. The bedspread and bed pillows were brushed satin. The bedding was really comfy with thick pillows, soft sheets, and enclosed down (or pseudo down) comforters. The bed itself was very comfortable, even for DH’s bad back. There is a separate temperature control for the bedroom, which is nice because we like a cool room for sleeping. I also liked the small reading lights mounted on either side of the bed. Our steward did a nice turndown for us every night with some really fun towel animals. Our suitcases fit underneath the bed no problem, but we don’t bring huge ones.

Bathroom: What can I say here? It’s huge. There is a double sink with long counter and mirror along one wall. There is also a vanity with lighted magnifying mirror mounted on one end of the counter. The fixtures are very simple and elegant—but watch it when you want hot water because it can get really hot. Along the little shelf, we had containers of cotton balls and q-tips and all the little things that are so handy.

At one end of the room, there is a large (not jetted) tub with wide ledges on the window side, which had jars of bath crystals and such. The window goes from the top of the tub to the ceiling and all the way across. (Don’t worry about privacy because the windows have the one-way mirroring so you can see out, but others cannot see in. I have heard that the bathroom and balcony design on the A3s is a little different with a window that looks out onto the balcony, but I cannot confirm this.) There is a flat screen TV mounted above the tub. (Oh the decadence of taking a bubble bath while drinking a glass of wine and watching TV…Sigh.)

The toiletries are top quality spa products and include shampoo, conditioner, lotion, eye cream, face lotion with SPF, after-shave lotion, and bubble bath. Of course we had hand soaps and such as well. I am hooked on the eye cream and bubble bath. (Yep, I took home some of the extras.)

The shower is a huge walk in with adjustable shower head, plus sets of side jets, and a rain forest fixture on the ceiling. You can adjust the water spray for whatever you like. There is also a floor to ceiling window in the shower with a shade you can close, but why bother when the exterior of the window is reflective.

The toilet has its own little room (with a glass door that is partially frosted). There is a drink holder and a phone, just in case you have to make a call from there while you’re enjoying a cocktail. (I didn’t know about the phone in the toilet until my DH called me and asked, “Guess where I am?” It was hysterical.) Watch your arms when re-dressing because I hit the phone at least 10 times and knocked it off the wall twice. The little room isn’t huge.

Closet/safes/storage: There are two safes that are each the standard size of ship cabin safes. You set your own codes, as usual. There were two really nice cushy and soft robes in the closet for us to use onboard. The life jackets were on the shelf above the hanging area.

Storage is the one area (besides living room furniture comfort) where I feel they could have done a much better job. The closet is pretty small, and we did not have enough room to hang everything. There are a few drawers, which were fine, and a couple of deep shelves, but the overall use of space was not that efficient. (Ditto for drawers and storage along the bathroom counter.) We’ve had larger closets and better storage options in regular balcony cabins. Certainly this was not enough to spoil any aspects of our cruise or be something we dwelt on, but it was a bit frustrating finding space to store stuff. Also, there are no door hooks to keep the closet doors open while you are at sea, so it’s a bit frustrating trying to get into the closet without getting hit by a door. (Again, not the end of the world, but a minor annoyance.)

The service: I cannot say enough about the quality of service we received on this cruise. Every staff member who works in or around the courtyard is top-notch—right down to the young man whose job it is to buff and polish everything each day. He was pleasant and professional. I’m going to guess that being assigned to the courtyard is considered a plum assignment.

Breakfast in the courtyard: Every morning, the butlers set up a continental breakfast on the courtyard sideboard. There was coffee (very good, in fact, better than the espresso machine in our suite), hot water for tea (selection of types), juices, fruits (including all the exotics that were not available in the buffet, such as star fruit, passion fruit, papaya, etc.), and wide variety of pastries. It was really nice to just pop out and grab a little morning starter. Dennis reminded us that we could always call him and ask for delivery too, but really, how hard is it to walk out your suite door and head into the courtyard? I teased him and asked if anyone ever called him in the morning and said, “Dennis…Coffee…Grunt.” :p He laughed and said that would be good enough to get the message across.

Butler service in general: We are pretty independent and don’t tend to need or even like being constantly fussed over. But I have to admit we really enjoyed having a butler and concierge. We really didn’t use the concierge for much except a couple of reservations (and of course he was responsible for getting all the VIP invitations and letters to the suites), but Dennis was an absolute gem all week.

(I think that the perks in the paragraphs for this part of the butler service and the concierge service paragraph are ones that apply to all full suites, AE through AB, in addition to the courtyard villas, owner’s suites, and GVs.)

We got plates of little “somethings” every night. They ranged from chocolate covered strawberries to canapés to fruit, pate, and cheeses with crackers—really good brie, according to my DH, who snagged it all. Dennis also made sure that we knew to call him for room service or any other needs like that. I told him that we’re used to doing for ourselves, and he said he wasn’t “scolding” me for ordering room service the regular way, but that he wanted to make our cruise wonderful—that’s his job and he enjoys it. In addition to taking care of room service orders, Dennis took care of bringing menus and placing meal orders for “en suite” dining. For breakfast, you can do this with the pre-order hanging breakfast tags or just call when you wake up.

He was a real pleasure and very interesting to talk with as well. I don’t know about other butlers, but we found that on PoH (with the American crew) that they are professional, but do not “bow down” to their “betters” (as I’ve read about on other ships) because they are not “servants”; I’d call them assistants who are there to ensure you have the best cruise possible. Dennis could not have been more professional in his attitude or service, but he was also fun and personable.

I must admit that I enjoyed having him serve us dinner in our suite one night. My DH took a picture of me being “butled” so I could show my mom, who got a kick out of it. And don’t be afraid to ask your butler for assistance with wine selection. I usually bring several from home and pay the corkage because we live in premier wine country and have access to the best. We had already talked with Dennis about some of that, so when he asked what wine I would like with dinner (and I didn’t have a clue as I hadn’t even read the wine list), I asked him to choose me a dry crisp white on the “reasonable” end of the price range. Well, he made an excellent choice that was a good bargain for the money.

All the butlers work incredibly long hours and are worth every penny. I’m certain that they tailor their service to your preferences and requirements. We are pretty “low maintenance” pax, but others who wanted or needed more assistance seemed equally pleased with the service. If you are lucky enough to have Dennis as your butler, you’ll have a wonderful experience. If we are ever lucky enough to cruise in the courtyard again and have Dennis as our butler, we’ll probably tip even more. We tipped at the end of the cruise, but I don’t know if that’s typical. (Our suite steward was very good as well, so we made sure to tip him extra at the end of the cruise. He did a good job and was anxious to please.)

Concierge: As I mentioned, we didn’t have much interaction with our concierge, but he was definitely efficient. All of our invitations, letters, and other paperwork were delivered promptly. He brought us our restaurant confirmations only an hour after I placed them (I did that on my own at the Cagney’s desk rather than wait). He was very friendly when we chatted at the captain’s VIP cocktail party (and gave us that great suggestion to use the video setting for the lava viewing). Other than that, though the only time I had to call him was the evening of the Cagney’s “incident.” He promptly took care of the problem, called the head of the restaurant, and helped save the evening by suggesting that Dennis take care of our dining that night.

(End of perks that I think might be for AE through AB pax as well as courtyard pax.)

Courtyard/sundeck: The hallways to the villas have the glass walls looking out onto the courtyard with doors to the courtyard at either end. At the aft end, there is the hot tub and stairs up to the sundeck; in the middle is the pool with seating of various types all along the side; at the forward end is the sitting/dining area.

There are several tables and chairs clustered by the counter and storage area, which was under cover all the time. When underway and during inclement weather, the retractable cover is closed. This can make the courtyard get a bit stuffy, but it sure was nice to have that cover the few times it rained. It’s also nice that the courtyard is surrounded so you don’t get wind blown all the time. It can get very windy up on the sundeck, but it’s a really nice private area and was almost always nearly empty (again, I’m sure because of the port-intensive schedule).

I had never used an endless pool before, so I had to learn. First thing: Don’t stand right in front of the current jets when you press the button to turn the thing on! It practically blew me across the pool. Second thing: You can adjust the strength and speed of the current until it is to your liking. I got really good workouts because you can’t just stop and slug in the water—you’ve got to keep swimming. I think the button turns on the current for about 15 minute sessions. The water temp was about 80 and very pleasant. It was pretty interesting swimming at night with the water also going front and back and side to side with ship’s motion. The pool has nice high sides and good drainage. It’s also just plain pretty with teak decking surrounding it.

The most comfortable seats in the pool area are the padded teak lounges with padded ottomans, but the “cabana” seats are a close second. It’s very much the luxury moment to be lounging on your cabana reading as you sip a cool beverage. Actually, all the seating around the pool is pretty comfortable.

The courtyard was never crowded. Courtyard Villa, Owner’s Suite, and Garden Villa pax are not allowed to invite guests (friends, family, whatever) to use the courtyard area at any time. However, you can of course invite guests to your own suite. I know that they were relaxed with the rules on the first day because courtyard pax wanted to kind of give “tours” to family and friends. That was fine as long as the guests didn’t stay and use the amenities. There were several times when were on the elevator and we would slide our ship card into the slot and select deck 14 where other pax would kind of be impressed or ask questions about the courtyard. One time, a couple decided to ride up to 14 with me and then asked if they could come in and walk around the courtyard. It was kind of uncomfortable for me because I had to say “I’m sorry, but no guests are allowed…” I’m sure I sounded like a total snob, but them’s the rules. Another time, a few people did get off the elevator and go into the courtyard, but one of the butlers came over and gently escorted them back to the elevators. (I admit it was kind of neat to say, “Excuse me, I need to slide my card” and then press the button for deck 14. And as much as I take the stairs whenever possible, that’s just not going to happen when you’ve got to go from deck 4 to deck 14 at the end of a long port day or when you’re hauling laundry.)

I’m sure I’m leaving out important information, but my brain is still on overload from everything. Please feel free to ask any questions and I’ll answer them if I can.

 

 

Next (and last) post: Some general suggestions for those cruising or visiting Hawaii.

 

beachchick:)

[beachchick]

I forgot one of the cool perks.

 

There is a section of reserved seating in the Stardust theater. It is starboard side on one of the balcony levels. There's a door to that section which says something like "VIP seating only." (There's a letter in your suite telling about it.) I know some people prefer orchestra level, but we like the sidebox style seating and felt the sight lines and acoustics were very good there. Plus, it was never crowded.

 

On a funny note. The night of the broadway show, my DH and I went into the theater, which was pretty full. I promptly went to the "VIP seating" door and started to open it. He put his hand over mine and said, "Honey, that's for VIPs..." I looked at him, smiled, and said, "Yes, it is, and this time, that's us." He said, "Oh, that's right." We both laughed and went on in.:D

 

beachchick

[tray]

Beachchick: Wow----------this review is MORE than incredible and I'm lovin' the ride through Hawaii and cruisin' the POH through your review!!

 

As you already know (you've been very sweet to answer other some of my other inquiries on various threads), we're cruising POH 6/4/07. I have a question about your section on dining. You mention that you attended the VIP Cocktail Reception which was on Tuesday. This would have been after your day in Hilo, right? It sounded like you ate dinner before the cocktail party (b/c of your reference to sticking to champagne since that was what you'd had at dinner), so what time was the cocktail party? I'm just trying to figure out our dining venues and times ahead so that when we get on there won't be too much confusion. I know on our Jewel cruise they were ready to take our dining reservations in the VIP room as soon as we got on and I was clueless. It was just a bit chaotic trying to figure out which nights we wanted to do what b/c I had not planned ahead. I want to have time to eat, go to the cocktail party and get a spot for the lava viewing. We're on the starboard side on deck 11.................do you think we'd be better off to go up on a public deck or can we have a good viewing from the balconies?

 

Thanks (mahalo!!) in advance for taking the time to answer all these questions!! :p

Tracey

[tray]

oops.......double post!