My Review and Excursion Report -- POH 7/9/07 (multi part)

[CC Help Michell]

We have just returned from a fabulous Hawaiian vacation, and I am pleased to post my review here at Cruise Critic, which was so important to me in planning for this trip! Fair warning – this is long and detailed! First, the basics – this trip was for my SO and I (we are both 40-somethings) to celebrate ten years together. We are both experienced cruisers, with me having the edge in the number of cruises – I’ve previously sailed NCL, RCCL, Carnival, and an old line called Regal. We flew into Honolulu on Saturday, 7/7, and sailed on the Pride of Hawaii on Monday, 7/9. We returned to Atlanta via a red eye that arrived about six hours ago, on Tuesday, 7/17. Yes, I’m tired, but I just couldn’t wait to work on my review while it’s still so fresh in my mind!

 

A couple of notes about the pre-cruise planning we did. I read every single review here at CC on the POH, and also the Pride of Aloha and Pride of America. I’ve haunted these boards the last couple of months and asked a zillion questions! We used the Revealed books, as well as a couple of other Hawaii guidebooks. I pre-ordered (and paid for) the Drive Guide magazines for each island (www.driveguidemagazines.com), and also the maps from Travel Graphics International (www.tgimaps.com). These maps were very helpful in planning. I bought the Hawaii Entertainment book, and utilized AAA services as well. We joined Thrifty Blue Chip. For the trip itself, I took a big expanding file, and in it I put one folder for each day, which contained our itinerary for the day, the pertinent maps, phone numbers we might need, copies of reservation confirmations, car rental info, that day’s Freestyle Daily, etc.

 

I thought about doing a separate ship review and excursion report, as so many do, but decided not to as I reviewed my journal from the trip. That’s not because we didn’t love the ship (we did!) but because for us this trip was SO much about Hawaii we didn’t think of it as a “cruise” per se, but as a total “vacation,” so most of the ship remarks are sort of integrated into discussing what we did at each port.

 

I have tons of pictures and movies which I am working into material suitable for posting at webshots and on youtube – I’ll post links here once that’s done – there are pictures and/or movies of almost everything I discuss in this review. Okay, enough preliminaries -- here it is, day by day!

 

Day One (Atlanta to Honolulu): We prepaid parking at an off-airport lot in Atlanta using a AAA discount, booked online. Our flight (arranged through NCL) was a nonstop Delta flight scheduled to leave Atlanta at 10:10 am. We flew out of Terminal E at Hartsfield, which was a very nice terminal. The plane was about 30 minutes late in boarding; it had arrived from Peru that morning and we were told the delay was necessary to complete cleaning and security checks since the plane had been on an international flight before ours. We didn’t mind – we were so excited and it was a beautiful day! We had the chance to chat with several young people who were heading to HNL to begin their contracts on Pride of America – they were very nice and so eager to start their new jobs – that was great to see!

 

The flight itself was uneventful – the airline did a good job of keeping us fed and watered and amused with three movies (this flight is nearly ten hours long – we could have flown to Budapest faster!). The plane was full of happy people beginning a vacation, and it didn’t feel like such a long flight. Landing at Oahu was so special – I had tears in my eyes, I’m not ashamed to say – visiting Hawaii was a dream come true for me.

 

We were met at the gate by friendly representatives of NCLA, who guided us through baggage claim and onto the bus for transfer to our pre-cruise hotel, the Ilikai. While not right on Waikiki Beach, we liked this hotel for several reasons, and one of them was that its location made us the first stop for the bus from the airport. On the way to the hotel we saw the Pride of America in port – a beautiful ship, if not exactly “Hawaiian” in flavor. Check in at the hotel was smooth – it took five minutes, and our 24th floor room was huge. It included a refrigerator, two closets, separate bathtub and shower, and had a very nice balcony with a city view.

 

We walked across the street to pick up our convertible at the Alamo city office – we used Alamo here instead of Thrifty specifically because the office was directly across from the hotel. We went to Sam’s Club and Walmart for non-alcoholic drinks, and souvenir shopping (Sam’s Club had very nice cast resin Kim Taylor Reece hula figures for $54 – we saw them elsewhere for $70 and up during the trip). We did a little sightseeing, then returned to the hotel and had dinner at Tanaka of Tokyo, which is in the hotel – we used an Entertainment coupon for $22 off the meal. The food was excellent here, and very reasonably priced even before the coupon (total bill was $61 before the coupon – we tipped on the total, of course). By that time it was 10:00 PM Hawaii time and we were tired, so off to bed!

 

Day Two (Honolulu/Oahu): We woke up at 5:00 AM without a wake up call – no problems with jet lag, and we were so happy to head out in our convertible for a day on Oahu! We went to the Aloha Bowl Swap Meet (opens at 6 AM, admission is $1 per person) and bought a couple of pieces of luggage, along with more souvenirs. At 7:30 the sun was out and it was getting hot, so it was time to go!

 

A friend of my SO’s lives in Wahaiwa, and used to be a tour guide on Oahu – we had made arrangements to pick him up for some sightseeing. The first stop, however, was at a UPS store in Waipahu (I’d researched in advance to find one open on Sunday). We took all the souvenirs/gifts we’d purchased at Sam’s, Walmart, and the Swap Meet, had them boxed up, and shipped them home. This worked out VERY well for us – the rest of the trip we did pick up a couple of things here and there, but we didn’t have to haul home 1-2 suitcases worth of goodies – we put that all on the front end and were so glad we did! Then it was 9:30 AM and time for sightseeing!

 

Our first stop was at the Kukaniloko Birthstones – the ancient place used for royal births, and a very sacred spot to Hawaiians. From there we stopped by Dole Plantation, then drove on to the North Shore. We stopped at Matsumoto’s in Hale’iwa for shave ice – mmmmm!! This was so good, and very reasonably priced, too -- $1.50 for a small with ice cream! We continued East on Kamehameha Highway. We stopped at Kawailoa Beach where we were thrilled to see and film several green sea turtles basking and swimming – they were huge!

 

We visited Waimea Bay, the Banzai Pipeline (not so much on the pipe thing – very flat surf here in July, of course) and wound up in Kuhuku where we had lunch at Giovanni’s shrimp truck. The food was terrific here, and at only $12 per plate very reasonably priced – but the service in the truck was very disorganized (probably because it’s so very popular).

 

We returned our friend to his home and headed back to the Ilikai to get ready for the Paradise Cove Luau. I’d never attended one and I wanted to see what it was about – now I have and I don’t have to do one again! :) We used an Entertainment Book coupon for 25% off and ordered the deluxe package -- $94.25 per person. This included table service (rather than buffet), a flower lei for me and a kukui nut one for SO, a souvenir photo, and front row seating – and I DO mean front row – the stage was in arm’s reach for us. We thought the pre-meal entertainment (lei making, temporary tattoos, etc.) was good for kids but not that interesting to us – however the setting was gorgeous, the drinks (we had SIX tickets each as part of our package, we didn’t use them all!) were not watered down, and the food was very tasty. The show was the main reason we were there and we weren’t disappointed with the dancers and singers at all. It was very beautiful and on the whole very well done. We got our money’s worth. The transportation to and from Waikiki was also painless and efficient (and again, our hotel’s location made us the first stop). Back to the hotel to get bags ready for embarkation!

 

Day Three (Honolulu/Pride of Hawaii): We were awakened at 4:45 AM when a friend of SO’s who didn’t know he was in Hawaii called – that was fun… really. We left our big luggage in our room tagged for delivery to the ship – this was accomplished in our absence, as we were up and out of the hotel at 6:00 AM heading to Pearl Harbor. We arrived at the Arizona Memorial at 6:30 and before we even left the parking lot we met a survivor who was there to share his memories – he wanted to talk convertibles with us! :) We were within the first 40 people in line. It was a beautiful, fresh morning with occasional light showers – we didn’t bother with umbrellas, though. While we were waiting for 7:30, when the Memorial opens, we watched scads of tour buses pull up – by the time the gates opened the line was hundreds of people long.

 

We were delighted to be on Tour Number One. We walked into the theater at 7:45, watched the very moving film, and headed to the Memorial. It was very nice to walk into the Memorial without anyone else being there. This experience is absolutely unique – everyone will react to it in his or her own way – but I wouldn’t have missed it for anything. We got back from the Memorial at 8:45 and went over to the Bowfin submarine. I had an Entertainment coupon for 2-for-1 admission ($10 total for both of us) and we thoroughly enjoyed touring this sub! I think what impressed me the most was how hard they work at keeping her “ship shape” – all the metal is kept polished just as if she were still in service.

 

We left Pearl Harbor, gassed up the car, and returned it to Alamo. Then we walked across the street, picked up our carryon luggage in our room (the big luggage was, thankfully, gone), checked out, and took the NCL provided transportation to the ship. We arrived at the ship at 12:25 PM. (Yes, long-winded, detail-oriented me finally gets to the part about the SHIP!)

 

Boarding was smooth and painless, using the Latitudes line. We were sitting down at the Aloha Bar, mai tais in hand, at 1:10 PM. I put the mai tai on hold and immediately went to make dinner reservations – the lobby computer was acting up and a member of the hotel staff came and took us back to Jasmine Garden to make our reservations. We reserved Jasmine Garden for that night (Monday – 50% off), and Papa’s for the next night. We also had booked the “romance/honeymoon” package through NCL (an outstanding bargain at $79) and we were able to make our Bistro reservation which is part of that package, as well – we chose Sunday night, the last night of the cruise, for that dinner.

 

We hung out in the Aloha Atrium, foofoo drinks in hand, and wandered the ship a bit, SO bought some internet time so he wouldn’t feel disconnected, and we listened to the live entertainer there until our deck was called as ready at 3:30 PM (this was the last deck announced as ready).

 

Our cabin was 9538, a portside balcony cabin. I am pleased to report that the cabin was immaculate. Our previously-ordered shore excursion tickets were on the door, and the champagne and strawberries from the romance package were in the cabin, as advertised. We put away the stuff in our carryons, and went to the Stardust Theater for muster drill at 4:30 – this was quick and painless; it took about 15 minutes.

 

We returned to the cabin and unpacked the one bag (of four) which had been delivered. We headed to Spinnaker’s at 5:30 for our informal “meet and greet” from our roll call – and found a sailaway hula show narrated by the kumu, Kamana’o, in progress. That’s probably why I never did hook up with Jodi or Marilyn – sorry ladies! I suspect you were there but I couldn’t figure out how to find you with the show in progress! We watched the show for a while, then headed to Jasmine Garden for dinner.

 

Jasmine Garden had great food! The macadamia nut kung pao chicken was terrific (and spicy!) – we had it as an appetizer along with shrimp tempura – then SO had Mongolian beef and I had steamed grouper for supper. The banana wonton dessert was super, too!

 

After dinner we went to deck 12 for sailaway – the lights of Honolulu were beautiful. Then we returned to the cabin to find our other bags had arrived, so we finished unpacking and crashed. This was the windiest night of the cruise – lots of motion, but fortunately we like that and slept like babies!

 

Day Four (Hilo): We woke up early (still fighting east coast time lag) and went to the Aloha Nui lanai for breakfast – I knew to go back there from tips here and boy is that good advice – the main buffet was a madhouse. The lanai was cool, peaceful, and had beautiful views. Tables were plentiful and promptly bussed. A waitress with a cart was roaming around refilling coffee and juice, as well. I had taken some Ziploc containers with us, and we got some fruit and sandwich fixings from the buffet, along with ice, for our cooler for the day. That worked very well for our destination – Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

 

We took the Dollar shuttle to Thrifty at the Hilo airport (they are sister companies and you can take either shuttle). They didn’t have any standard size cars, so we were upgraded to a Lincoln Town Car – it was just a WEE bit ostentatious for the likes of us – not to mention being a total land yacht in size – but it was fun having the dual temperature controls so I could be as cold as I wanted without freezing out SO! We left the airport at 8:30 and arrived at VNP at 9:15 AM. We went to the visitor’s center first, saw the movie, picked up maps, spoke to the ranger about the current state of the eruption, etc.

 

Then we went across the street to Volcano House – I surprised SO with this one – he wanted to know why we were going to a hotel – until we walked out the back door to the viewing platform and I heard him gasp out loud at the view! This was another CC tip – I doubt we’d have stopped there at all if I hadn’t read it! We stopped at the Sulfur Banks, the Steam Vents, Jagger Observatory, took the hike to the crater to pay homage to Madame Pele, and then headed down Chain of Craters road. It was open all the way – and this is why we packed the cooler for this trip – we stopped at the ocean overlook and had our picnic amid the glorious desolation of the lava fields before driving to the end of the road to see the sea arch. We drove back up Chain of Craters, then went to Thurston lava tube (yes we had a flashlight and yes we went into the dark spooky part, too)! We LOVED VNP and would dearly love to come back here again – not to mention all the rest of the things I would like to do in Hilo and had no time for!

 

We left the park at 3:15 PM and stopped by Mauna Loa macadamia plantation for ice cream (mmmmmm, SO worth the stop) before filling the tank and returning the rental car.

 

We were back on the ship by 5:00. I went to see Patrick Muir, the cruise consultant/Latitudes guy, because we hadn’t received our Latitudes letter for the party. He was very helpful, gave me the letter and pin, and even helped me skip the gigantic line at the shore excursion desk (I was just canceling two excursions, not booking, or I’d have been willing to wait in line – but he took care of it for me and I appreciated it very much).

 

On returning to the cabin we had our first snag with the ship. We had set our wheel to “make up cabin” when we left that morning, but (we figured out by talking to other pax) someone (I would hope children!) had gone down our corridor and turned several of the wheels, including ours, to “do not disturb.” So the cabin wasn’t made up – and we had dinner reservations at Papa’s, no clean towels, and we were stinky and sweaty from our day with the volcanoes! Time to implement my problem solving matrix! (See my post at this link for the background on that -- http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=576898). How to make it better now? Go up to the pool, snag pool towels, take showers and get ready for dinner. How to make sure it’s fixed for good? Call and speak to the floor supervisor for housekeeping for deck 9 – he came to the cabin, and brought Jennifer, “our” steward (though actually on this ship housekeeping is a team project – we had several stewards during the week) – and we explained that we wanted our cabin made up EVERY day, no matter what the wheel said. We never had another problem – the cabin was made up and clean every day.

 

Off to Papa’s for dinner – we had to wait about 20 minutes, but that was no problem – we had a drink at the bar and met Lydia, a lovely older lady who was traveling by herself and also waiting for her table. We had a very nice chat with her, and gave the maitre’d a “high sign” to seat her with us so she wouldn’t have to eat alone. I think we all had a lovely time – I know we did and I think she appreciated the company as well. The food was very good here! The antipasti trolley had the most amazing spicy olives – I had two servings of them! We all had Caesar salad prepared tableside – it was sort of a bummer that they used pre-made dressing for it, though. Lydia and I both had osso buco and it was delicious; I tasted SO’s chicken parm and it was tender and yummy – could have used a more tomato-ey sauce, though. Still, all in all this was a good dining experience – I also really liked the décor in this room.

 

After dinner it was off to bed – this will be a theme here. We aren’t old by any means, but our days were so full of excursions that at night we were just flat beat – never made it to a single show, and didn’t care!

 

Day Five (Maui, Day One): SO slept in a bit while I had breakfast at the Aloha Nui lanai again, and then we debarked to meet our pre-arranged tour for the Road to Hana. We could have rented a car for this, but I value my relationship with SO and I KNEW that road + his driving style + my nerves would jeopardize the chances of us seeing an eleventh anniversary! Instead I did my homework on the web and used adventuresinmaui.com to book this tour with Ekahi Tours. Our guide was Leimomi (English name Debbie), a resident of Hana, and this TEN HOUR tour was just unbelievable. We were on a 12 passenger mini bus, and SO and I were lucky enough to get the two single seats on the right hand side, so we both had a window seat. Leimomi was the factor that made this tour so amazing – her knowledge of Hawaii and Maui history, her thorough knowledge of the road (she could count down for us – “when I say 2, look down… 1… 2”), and her long family history (I bet we ran into ten of her relatives on this trip, as well as seeing the old family home) – it was just SO special and couldn’t be duplicated in a rental car.

 

The tour had tons of stops for photos, etc, and included lunch at the Hana Beach Park on Hana Bay which had a black sand beach, tons of local keikis in a summer school program (so fun to watch the kids having a blast), a stop at Keanae Peninsula which was my favorite part of the tour, the Ohe’o Gulch (yes we went swimming there – and yes those rocks ARE slippery – I went swimming a bit before I’d actually intended to! Fortunately, there was no injury except to my dignity – pratfalls are only funny if you aren’t the pratfaller!). One tip for the pools – we took the lower path and to the right, just before you go down the steps to the pools themselves there is a short path out to a fabulous grassy overlook – we spent some time there just soaking in the sight and smell of the surf and the feel of the wind. We stopped at Lindbergh’s gravesite, as well, which is a very beautiful, old church.

 

We got back to the ship at 6:45 PM, tired but so happy from a wonderful day. We didn’t have reservations so after we cleaned up we went to the buffet about 8:00. I’d recommend going earlier than that – the food was kind of dry and tired by that point. I had the pasta – that was good, not great. The meat was dried out and not good at all.

 

We then went immediately to bed for a four hour nap, because the next day we were going to greet the sun at the House of the Sun.

 

Day Six (Maui, Day Two): Up at 2 AM. Yes. 2 AM. SO was content to let me plan this trip in full, and his only request was that he wanted to do the famous bicycle trip down Haleakala. All righty, that suited me… as long as we went for the sunrise tour. Again we used adventuremaui.com to book this trip through Mountain Riders. At 2:45 AM we were outside the security gate at Kahului, and there was the van from Mountain Riders. Our van driver, Tom, also turned out to be our guide for the mountain trip (the others he picked up from the ship had different guides). We went to their offices and watched a safety video, then boarded the van for the trip up Haleakala. As we went Tom told us more about himself and our day. The first thing we learned is that his nickname is “Pops” and I’d read a review from someone who did this trip with him before! Small world! To make it even smaller, when he found out our hometown he was amazed – that very afternoon he was flying to Atlanta to visit his son and new grandbaby – in our small suburb town!

 

The van driver was Andres, from Chile – they were both very nice guys and there was never any doubt that safety was the number one priority for this trip. Sunrise on the mountain was…. Well, words fail me. We had super weather for it, only a little wind, temperature about 50 degrees, and the only downside was just a little cloud cover over the ocean, so we didn’t get the full “red ball” effect at sunrise. But going from pitch blackness, to just a hint of red, to a full palette of color – while a ranger performed a Hawaiian sunrise chant….. I’ll never forget it, and I sure can’t describe it.

 

Then it was bike time. I’d had a little light-headedness at the summit (elevation 10,300 feet) and some coughing like with asthma. I decided to be smart and rode in the van until we were out of the national park (with no guardrails) before I got on my bike. As it turned out, that let me get some really cool photos and video you don’t normally see from the bike ride. About 12 miles into the 38 mile ride we were at a lower elevation and I felt much better, so I rode the next 20 miles to the breakfast stop. After that I felt I’d proven my point (yes, a middle aged lady with arthritis and too much “baggage” around the middle CAN do this ride) and I finished up back in the van – that lower part of the ride doesn’t have bike lanes and the traffic made me nervous. SO loved every minute of it, and rode every minute of it, however – I was thrilled for him that it was the experience he wanted, and the sunrise made the day for me. It was a very special day for both of us.

 

We were back on board the ship by 11:30 AM. That afternoon we hung out on the pool deck, getting some sun, chatting with the wait staff at the Bali Hai bar, and just generally relaxing (and yes, dozing some too – 2 AM is really freaking early!) I also roamed the ship to see the bridge view, the giant chessboard, etc. We went back to the cabin around 4 to find the canapé tray from the romance package had been delivered. We ate them on the balcony, watching wind surfers out on the bay.

 

This was formal optional night – we opted for aloha shirt and khaki slacks for SO and a Hawaiian dress for me, and we didn’t feel under dressed, although we did see some suits and cocktail dresses – no true formal wear or tuxes. We attended the Latitudes party, which was nice (good drinks – there was this blue thing that was really good!) – and as usual I didn’t win anything. Story of my life at those things!

 

We decided to try one of the main dining rooms so we went to Alizar after the Latitudes party. There were just two of us, and we said we’d be glad to share a table, so we were seated immediately at a four-top with a nice young honeymoon couple from Indiana (one of about a dozen couples we met on this trip who had been married 7/7/07). I knew from the reviews here not to expect much from the lobster, so ordered that AND prime rib. The small Caribbean lobster was tough and dry, but the prime rib was very well-prepared. During the dinner chat the other couple mentioned that they’d eaten at the dining room every night because they didn’t want to pay extra for the other restaurants – I showed them how to tell which of the specialty restaurants were free (the asterisk in the Daily is for the extra cost ones), and also let them know about the 7 AM reservation option. I didn’t care for the Alizar ambience, by the way – the ceilings were very low, and for me it made the room feel very crowded and noisy. After dinner, it was crash time!

[CC Help Michell]

Day Seven (Kona): In all my vacation planning this day gave me the most angst. I dithered and debated among Captain Zodiac via the ship, a catamaran via the ship, and the Fair Wind snorkel trip off the ship. I’d pre-booked both Captain Zodiac and Fair Wind (we each got a free tshirt for booking online with Fair Wind), but decided early on the heck with it and cancelled the Zodiac. Both Fair Wind and Captain Zodiac go to Kealakekua Bay, which is where I wanted to snorkel – but Captain Zodiac is a rubber dinghy while the Fair Wind is a catamaran with indoor toilets, steps down into the water, a shaded indoor deck, and serves a hot lunch with a cash bar available. So we decided to risk Fair Wind, even though we knew that as Kona is a tender port there was a chance we wouldn’t make it to Fair Wind’s harbor by their 9 AM sail time. The worry was all for naught – we went to the Aloha Atrium at 6:45, got a tender ticket right at 7:00 and were on the first tender that left the ship at 7:15 am. We got a cab right at the pier in Kona and were at Fair Wind’s offices by 7:45. No sweat.

 

This was a wonderful day – the best snorkeling I’ve ever done, with the clearest water I’ve ever been in, on a very healthy reef with tons of fish. I could even hear the crackle sound the shrimp make on a healthy reef. The crew trolled fishing lines on the way to the Bay and caught an ono (wahoo on the mainland) – one of the passengers got to anchor as the fish was reeled in. The gal who was taking video for the optional DVD you could purchase did a presentation on the reef and the animals found there that was very interesting, and on the way back in we had dolphins jumping our wake. I’d recommend this trip to absolutely anyone, including non-swimmers – the crew is very safety conscious and they have a ton of different floats to help folks feel comfortable and have a good time. They station lifeguards at all four corners of the catamaran, and another one on a surfboard in the water. Everyone from tiny tots to the older folks had a great day on this trip.

 

The same cab driver who had taken us to the harbor met us (we’d arranged it on the trip down) and took us back to the ship. We cleaned up and had dinner at the buffet – it was “steak and shrimp” night and both were really excellent. It was a much better experience that the previous evening at the buffet.

 

By this time we were tired. We’d had a lot of sun, some very early mornings, a lot of physical activity – we went back to the cabin early and used our laptop to watch a lava DVD we’d bought at VNP (since there was no visible lava during our trip), and looked at the slide show of our photos.

 

Day Eight (Kauai, Day One): We had room service deliver breakfast at 8 AM (we slept in some today by comparison to other days!), and were off the ship by 8:30. We rented with Thrifty here – and regretted it. I’m not the first to say so, but the Lihue Thrifty office is just abominable. We waited 20 minutes for a shuttle, which then had us and one other couple, each of us Blue Chip members. We arrived to an otherwise empty office with three clerks all busily doing something on computers. After about ten minutes one finally asked “are you Blue Chip members?” When we said yes, she resumed her task, and finally a different woman came over and got us situated. However, when we reached our car, it was blocked in – SO had to go back inside and get someone to move the blocking vehicle – no way it should have taken 45 minutes from leaving the ship to driving away from the office.

 

We’d rented a convertible, but by that point had had enough sun, plus even for Kauai this was a rainy morning, so we left the top up. We went to Wailua Falls overlook, then to Opaekaa Falls overlook (the falls are WAY to the left at this stop – we and a bunch of others spent a few minutes going “um, okay, where are the falls?”) – then we backtracked a tad and went to the Wailua Marina State Park for our reserved boat trip to Fern Grotto -- $18 per person if you book online. My grandmother always said this was the best thing she’d done in Hawaii – and I dithered about whether to do it when the landslides made the actual grotto unsafe – but finally decided to go for it, and I was glad we did. It wasn’t nearly as cheesy as I’d feared. The boat ride was very pleasant, the narration informative, and the grotto itself quite beautiful. The entertainers on the trip are also good – we really enjoyed the songs and hulas (even the one they made us all perform with them)!

 

We left there and drove up to the North Shore – as we passed through Kapa’a we saw a craft market that looked really neat, so changed some of our plan for the rest of the day to come back in time to visit it. We proceeded to Kilauea Point and lighthouse – oh, what a lovely spot and amazing views. We went on to Princeville and walked through the hoity-toity Princeville Hotel (yep, I felt intimidated and out of place, but was determined to see the view of Hanalei Bay!) We didn’t stay long, but the view from the hotel’s terrace is quite lovely. Then we went to the Hanalei Valley overlook and headed back to Kapa’a. The craft market was a lot of fun, and we found some very nice items there – the only real shopping we did after Oahu. We then drove through the Marriott grounds and viewed Kalapaki Beach, then returned the rental car.

 

The Thrifty location was just as bad at turn in. We returned the car with a full tank of gas, and had purchased the full CDW for the day – yet the check-in guy sent us back into the office, where we waited again for one of the oh-so-busy clerks to help us – at which point she decided she needed the mileage (what was the parking lot guy for?!) and went back outside. A full 20 minutes later they realized “oh, we’re done with you, you can go.” We took the shuttle back to the ship.

 

A good percentage of the pax were at the Luau this evening, so we went to the sushi restaurant for supper. It was DELICIOUS! If you are a sushi person, don’t miss it – it’s a bargain at $15 pp too. Only downside was they didn’t have Asahi beer, which my SO likes with sushi. We did a little Pride of Hawaii souvenir shopping in the Galleria, and visited the photo gallery, then returned to the cabin and got into swimsuits. We spent a very enjoyable hour all by ourselves in one of the hot tubs before it got busy again, so we headed in and crashed.

 

Day Nine (Kauai, Day 2): Since we had early sailing today, we had a quick breakfast at Aloha Nui lanai, then took the ship’s excursion to Waimea Canyon (booked in advance online). This was our only “big bus” excursion and were we glad we hadn’t done more of this! The guide, Yolanda, told us this is her part time job and she was.. um… less than knowledgeable. We heard all about how twisty some road we weren’t going to take is…. What sugar mills closed when in the early 90’s…. How “some of these places were important to ancient Hawaiians”… how her husband once killed a deer out of season with his crane…. all with a background of “ums.” She was a nice enough person – just didn’t seem knowledgeable enough to be a tour guide for money! I even asked her (at the shopping stop) what the word “Waimea” meant, since I knew “Wai” means water, or fresh water. She didn’t know. :( I looked it up later on the web – it appears to mean “reddish water.”

 

Anyway, we did get to see monk seals down near Poipu, Spouting Horn was spouting as advertised, and the views at Waimea Canyon were really astonishing – so all in all it was worth the time. I would add, however, that the shopping stop featured X-rated items (ashtrays in the shape of… um… male anatomy, and I’ll stop there but there were other items as well) – I don’t consider that appropriate for this type of tour, where children may be present (not being a prude myself, however, I did find it hilarious to watch one man pick up an ashtray by the… handle… saying out loud “what is thi….” And then drop it like a hot potato as he realized what it was). ;)

 

We returned to the ship and went straight to the Blue Lagoon for lunch. This was surprisingly good. SO had the wings and really enjoyed them, while my burger was very tasty. We then went to the cabin and began packing.

 

About an hour before the Napali sail by I went up to the atrium to take care of some stuff. I had a small issue for the reception desk – handled promptly with a smile, and picked up a “helmet of beer” at the Aloha Bar for the cabin during the sail by. I also booked the Future Cruise deal on this trip. We were charged $250, and immediately were refunded $100 on our ship charge account. That leaves a net expense of $150, which gives us a $250 deposit on ANY NCL cruise we decide to take in the next 30 months. We just have to book it within 12 months – and that deposit will hold the cabin for us, all by its lonesome. That’s a good deal – we will cruise again with NCL or NCLA, and an outlay of $150 to hold a cabin until final payment is due is much better than the cruise line having a regular full deposit all that time.

 

The Napali sail by is everything advertised, and more. It was a highlight of the trip, and being able to watch it from our portside balcony instead of up on deck with hundreds of our new friends was extra-special. That night we went to the Bistro for our romance package dinner. The package covered our upcharge, as well as a bottle of wine with the meal. We were seated at a table for two by the window, and our waiter, Franklin from Pee Wee Valley, Kentucky, was quite good. The food was excellent – even SO ate escargots and he doesn’t like them – these were the most tender I’ve ever had.

 

After dinner we went back to the cabin and finished packing. We used Easy Fly, so we were able to put out four very stuffed suitcases and have minimal carry on luggage left.

 

Day Ten (Honolulu): We set no alarm and slept in until about 7 AM. SO didn’t want breakfast but I did and I wanted to see the Grand Pacific, so I went there for a delicious breakfast. I liked this one much better than Alizar, and the service was impeccable (Donovan from Newport Beach, CA), even for the last morning of the cruise.

 

We debarked about 9 AM for our gorabbitgo.com “Little Circle” Oahu tour. At $19 per person this was a deal and a half. We saw Diamondhead Beach, Diamondhead, the Halona blowhole (which wasn’t blowing), Sandy Beach, Hanauma Bay (spectacular – next time we spend a day there), and Pali lookout, before the bus dropped us right at the Delta lobby at the airport. The driver, Kyle, was very knowledgeable and had a lot of good historical information about Oahu. We enjoyed this tour a lot – it was much better than staring at our luggage at the airport for six hours.

 

The flight home on Delta left on time and was uneventful – except the part where I cried for like ten minutes because I didn’t want to leave Hawaii! :)

 

Conclusions:

 

I know this is long. I enjoyed writing it, though, as I got to relive so much joy and breathtaking beauty from our trip to Hawaii. I hope it helps someone out there – I tried to include a lot of details and tips.

 

Would we sail NCLA again? Yes – this itinerary is totally amazing and I could do this trip again next week with all different excursions and have an equally marvelous time. Even outside Hawaii, I will sail NCL again because I’m just not that picky a person, their prices are fabulous, and I like having a variety of port choices and cruise lengths. We’ll probably use the deposit we placed on an international cruise next time – we did miss having a casino in the evenings, and days at sea!

 

Was this ship a “typical” cruise experience? No. The “tag team” approach to housekeeping is very different from other cruiselines, and freestyle dining is definitely NOT for everyone. It worked extremely well for us because a) I knew to make a couple of reservations immediately on boarding; b) we aren’t terribly picky eaters; and c) there were only two of us. I met a lady in line for the information desk who was irate because her group of 18 hadn’t been able to eat all together. I can understand her disappointment, but that’s a large group for the type of small restaurants this ship offers. I did ask and she hadn’t tried to arrange a private gathering through the cruiseline, which might have helped her have more fun.

 

I thought the service on board was acceptable in every way. Even when a problem happened, people were willing to go out of their way, with a smile, to make it better – and I really don’t ask more than that.

 

I highly recommend the romance/honeymoon package – a bottle of champagne, chocolate covered strawberries, canapés, one free photo, two cover charges at Le Bistro, a bottle of wine there, and also a champagne and cake party we missed ‘cause we were napping – great value at $79.

 

I also thought the ship was really well-designed. I loved the pool and hot tub area, the aft lanai buffet and bar, and the cabin showers just flat rocked – I want one in our house!

 

Miscellaneous advice: Get up early if you possibly can. Sleeping in on vacation feels SO good…. But I could have done that at Destin, Florida and spend 1/10th what this trip cost. The early bird really does get the worm. Also, please don’t forget to factor into your expenses a tip for your tour guides. We tipped Leimomi from our Road to Hana excursion $20 each and felt that was a bargain – we were flat embarrassed to realize a family of four on that ten hour tour tipped her $5.

 

This was a vacation of a lifetime, and despite having a few criticisms, we really had a marvelous time! Do your homework in advance, and then take the time to marvel at the beauty surrounding you. Mahalo for reading this far and letting me share with you! :)

[RachieLnnn]

Thanks for the review! I knew you would have a great time with your great attitude - it really sounds wonderful!!!

 

Now, if only November could come fast enough! :D

[Zeno]

An absolutely great review - so full of excellent userful detail!

[Crusinman29]

Thanks for the detail review, MichelP. I too am in Atlanta and looking very forward to our upcoming cruise in September.

 

Bryan

[santaloveroh]

Thank you Michelle for such a detailed review. I've been watching your posts before you left and knew you would do a review on return. Your detail is incredible. I was glad to hear that you were able to get reservations without problems even though you weren't in a suite.

 

We are so excited about our trip. DH and I have never sailed before or been to Hawaii. I think I'll have to add the romance package now. :D

 

I did budget in for the tour guide tips. My DH is doing the deep sea fishing so had to budget a really big one there.

 

I do have a question on tips for you. Did you tip your housekeeper/room steward on a daily basis? Did you tip the waiters at the specialty restaurants. As a reader of these boards, you knew very well the confusion/differing opinions on this.

 

Thanks for your help. Glad you had a great time.

[Disneyworld]

I really enjoyed reading your review and great tips. You went on a couple of tours that we have booked and were "wondering" whether we made the right choice ie.adventuresinhawaii Ekahi tours. We are doing the same two you did, so we're glad you enjoyed it.

We can't wait for our cruise!! especially after reading your review!!:)

[Disneyworld]

I have posted a question on this thread a few times and never got an answer. So, I am hoping you heard of someone who took the Mountain Safari Adventure in Nawiliwil Kauai. We have booked this and it is quite expensive 119. each but no one seems to have taken this.:confused: :p

Any input? Thanks

[KKCruisers]

Aloha MichelleP,

 

You have just made me so enthusiastic about our cruise in 40 days! I think your review is one of the best I've read because you were able to be critical in a nice way. You look at life in an almost full attitude and that's great.

Now I have some questions and will probably have more after I read over your review.

 

You mentioned Thrifty wasn't very helpful in Kauai, do you know what company would be better to use? I have booked BC Thrifty everywhere except Honolulu, where I'm using Avis because they had the best rate there.

 

In Kona, you mentioned Fairwinds, was that through the ship?

 

Did you see firewoorks as you were leaving the port in Oahu? Someone else mentioned they saw them and were wondering if it was for the departure.

 

You mentioned you got a lot of sun, was it really very hot there? I noticed you live in Florida like me, so how was it comparably? I really want to snorkel, but I have to wach the sun. My past sun experiences are catching up with me, if you know what I mean. I did order some spf shirts to wear in the water, but they haven't arrived yet. Speaking of snorkeling did you bring your own gear?

 

I will probably have more questions later,right now I have to get off this computer we have a bad storm coming our way.

 

mahalo,

Kat

[RachieLnnn]

Oh, I had a question - how did you know that the family of four only tipped $5? Just wondering! ;)

[Illinimom]

What an entertaining review! Thanks so much for all the info - we are sailing on POH in December and can't wait! It's nice to hear about all your adventures and not just complaints about the ship/crew like some reviews.

[Heytoots]

What an enjoyable review that was!!!! DH and I are cruising in Sept on POH, and now....we are more excited than ever!!!!

 

You obviously had a wonderful time, and didn't allow ANYTHING to interfere with that!!! Good for you!!! We are hoping to do the same...we are low maintainance, and not looking for the cruise experience on this ship, but, a fabulous once-in-a-lifetime Hawaiian vacation...!! ;)

 

Thanks!!!!

[MommyJamiex4]

That is the best review I have ever read!! I was on the lookout for it and am so glad I found it. I am so glad that you guys had a great time. Now if only November would get here already!:D

[Desert Tink]

What a pleasure to read your account of your glorious vacation, Michelle! I can hardly wait for the 29th of July to get here and my DH and I will be sailing in Hawaii! Thanks for the tip regarding the Romance Package on board; I will have to look into that. ;)

 

Question: On Kauai, did the tour guide from NCL detract too much from the excursion to make it unenjoyable? Did you have enough time at the canyon itself? We have booked this excursion with NCL for the 2nd morning in Kauai and now I am wondering if I should shuffle our first day plans and rent a car and go ourselves to the canyon.

 

Thanks again for posting your review. I hope DH and I have as good of a vacation as you did.

 

~Lilli :)

[NAS-KARR]

What a detailed and totally positive review you gave.....it was a pleasure reading it.

45 days till sail-a-way !

 

 

CIAO,

[CC Help Michell]

 

I do have a question on tips for you. Did you tip your housekeeper/room steward on a daily basis? Did you tip the waiters at the specialty restaurants. As a reader of these boards, you knew very well the confusion/differing opinions on this.

 

Thanks for your help. Glad you had a great time.

 

I could have sworn I answered this before I went to take a nap -- but now I don't see it -- guess jet lag got me! Anyway, we tipped Jennifer, the steward we met the second night, $20 at that time. If we hadn't happened to meet her I wouldn't have tracked her down to do that, though -- and we didn't otherwise tip housekeeping (apart from the added service charge on our ship account). At the specialty restaurants I asked how it worked, and the explanation I was given at the Jasmine Garden was that tips we added there were divided among the waitstaff in that restaurant -- don't know if that's true or not. At Papa's there is no upcharge, so the only bill was for drinks -- we tipped the normal 15% there. I also asked how tips worked at the sushi bar, because if the sushi chef was just lumped in with the wait staff I was going to give him a cash tip -- but he and our waitress explained that the two of them split tips there because it's a "niche" service.

 

Hope that helps -- I wasn't sure how it worked, either, which is why I asked about it.

[CC Help Michell]

I have posted a question on this thread a few times and never got an answer. So, I am hoping you heard of someone who took the Mountain Safari Adventure in Nawiliwil Kauai. We have booked this and it is quite expensive 119. each but no one seems to have taken this.:confused: :p

Any input? Thanks

 

I didn't encounter anyone who had done that excursion, Disneyworld -- you'll have to be the trailblazer and let us know! :) I'm glad you saw the review; I remembered that Ekahi thread during our road to Hana tour. We loved our guide, and she was so used to and easy with the road she only made a couple of comments here and there about the road or other drivers, mostly advisory in nature -- "this is a one lane bridge, here's how these work in Hawaii."

[CC Help Michell]

Aloha MichelleP,

 

You have just made me so enthusiastic about our cruise in 40 days! I think your review is one of the best I've read because you were able to be critical in a nice way. You look at life in an almost full attitude and that's great.

Now I have some questions and will probably have more after I read over your review.

 

You mentioned Thrifty wasn't very helpful in Kauai, do you know what company would be better to use? I have booked BC Thrifty everywhere except Honolulu, where I'm using Avis because they had the best rate there.

 

In Kona, you mentioned Fairwinds, was that through the ship?

 

Did you see firewoorks as you were leaving the port in Oahu? Someone else mentioned they saw them and were wondering if it was for the departure.

 

You mentioned you got a lot of sun, was it really very hot there? I noticed you live in Florida like me, so how was it comparably? I really want to snorkel, but I have to wach the sun. My past sun experiences are catching up with me, if you know what I mean. I did order some spf shirts to wear in the water, but they haven't arrived yet. Speaking of snorkeling did you bring your own gear?

 

I will probably have more questions later,right now I have to get off this computer we have a bad storm coming our way.

 

mahalo,

Kat

 

1) I really don't know which would be better -- I did chat with someone on the ship that night who had used National and they were pleased with them.

 

2) Fair Wind in Kona is not a ship-sponsored excursion. You can find the information at http://www.fair-wind.com/. For a while some reports here indicated that the Fair Wind people didn't like handling cruise ship passengers, but I didn't experience that at all. They did make sure we knew that if the ship couldn't tender or we were late we would still be charged for the trip -- but did so in a nice way. There were several groups from the ship on our snorkel tour.

 

3) No fireworks in Oahu -- apparently somebody just got lucky and had a celebration going on as they were sailing!

 

4) It never "felt" that hot to me except a couple of days on Oahu when it was (apparently unusually) quite humid -- it felt almost like home in Atlanta, where summer frequently brings 90 degree temps and 90% humidity. Everywhere we went in Hawaii there was almost always at least a breeze and often a wind. However, you are not far from the equator, the sun is nearly directly overhead, some of the places are high(er) altitude, and we saw lots and lots of sunburns. Even with sunscreen I still wound up with a bit too much on my face and a little peel, which I hate -- I'm too old to play around with that any more -- more wrinkles, you know! I brought a SPF 50 sun hat from SolarVeil and used that, and for snorkeling, in addition to sunscreen I used a white t-shirt -- a SPF one would have been better but I didn't have one. We also stayed mostly inside the shady part of Fair Wind instead of on the deck. Yes, we took our own snorkel gear; however, SO's mask broke during the snorkel so he borrowed a mask from the Fair Wind people and he really liked it.

 

Hope that helps, keep the questions coming! :)

[CC Help Michell]

Oh, I had a question - how did you know that the family of four only tipped $5? Just wondering! ;)

 

LOL, I saw him do it -- they weren't from the ship, though everyone else on our tour was. Maybe he gave her partial tips during the day and I just happened to see one of them? I don't know but I was pretty shocked -- I could see someone tipping nothing if they don't realize it's part of the expectations (or if they didn't feel they got good service) -- but I couldn't see tipping something that low. Maybe each member of the family gave her $5? At least that would be a little better. :)

[CC Help Michell]

What a pleasure to read your account of your glorious vacation, Michelle! I can hardly wait for the 29th of July to get here and my DH and I will be sailing in Hawaii! Thanks for the tip regarding the Romance Package on board; I will have to look into that. ;)

 

Question: On Kauai, did the tour guide from NCL detract too much from the excursion to make it unenjoyable? Did you have enough time at the canyon itself? We have booked this excursion with NCL for the 2nd morning in Kauai and now I am wondering if I should shuffle our first day plans and rent a car and go ourselves to the canyon.

 

Thanks again for posting your review. I hope DH and I have as good of a vacation as you did.

 

~Lilli :)

 

Mahalo for your kind words, Lilli, I hope your cruise is fabulous as well! No, I wouldn't say the Kauai excursion was unenjoyable -- Waimea Canyon was gorgeous and we had plenty of time there to take it in. I just would have preferred a more knowledgeable tour guide there -- we had two bus loads of people from the ship doing this tour that morning, and some folks from the other bus said their guide was great -- probably just luck of the draw. :)

[RachieLnnn]

LOL, I saw him do it -- they weren't from the ship, though everyone else on our tour was. Maybe he gave her partial tips during the day and I just happened to see one of them? I don't know but I was pretty shocked -- I could see someone tipping nothing if they don't realize it's part of the expectations (or if they didn't feel they got good service) -- but I couldn't see tipping something that low. Maybe each member of the family gave her $5? At least that would be a little better. :)

 

That is quite low, I agree!

 

Thanks again for your review. Did you have any problems making reservations for Le Bistro or the spa as part of your Romance Package? It sounded like you were guaranteed a spot in Le Bistro, is that true?

[Desert Tink]

Sounds like a toss up then for the NCL tour to the canyon. . .Hmmm. I'll give it a bit more thought, but will most likely keep the excursions they way they are. I would not like to shake things up too much this close to our departure date.

 

I'm glad that Kat asked you about the sun exposure. I have a sensitivity to the sun and am very prone to sunburn. I don't want it to ruin our vacation, so I bought a rashguard shirt and a pair of capri length water tights to protect me from the sun. I remember reading on another thread how someone got a bad sunburn on the back of their legs snorkeling and was miserable for days afterwards. My DH and I will be white knuckling it with Captain Zodiac in Kona for our snorkel trip. I hope I survive. :)

 

Thanks again, Michelle!

 

~Lilli

[CC Help Michell]

That is quite low, I agree!

 

Thanks again for your review. Did you have any problems making reservations for Le Bistro or the spa as part of your Romance Package? It sounded like you were guaranteed a spot in Le Bistro, is that true?

 

No problem at all booking Le Bistro -- on boarding the ship when I made my first two reservations for that night and the next one, I mentioned we had this package and asked if I could book Le Bistro for Sunday night then. She said certainly I could and took care of it right away. Yes, it's a guarantee that you have a spot at Le Bistro with the package. We didn't use the spa as that's part of a different package, I believe. Hope that helps! :)

[RachieLnnn]

Thanks, that's good to know!

[Cruisegal1]

Great review....Wow! You provided a very-detailed, well-written review. My husband and I are on the 9/3 sailing of POH and can't wait. My only concern from your review was the Waimea Canyon Tour through NCL. I'm re-thinking it--but I know the scenery will probably outweigh any negatives we might encounter. We, too, are not hard to please, and we won't let the little things get to us--this is Hawaii afterall? Life is too short for anyone to get picky and complain all the time. Life is not perfect, afterall? We are flying from Detroit to Atlanta to Honolulu. It will make for a long day, however, we are flying first class so that should be a big-plus right off the bat! Like yourself, I, too, will provide a thorough detailed review upon my return from this wonderful trip. I can't wait to share all we encountered and will have learned from this trip. Have a great day! :)