Hawaii Cruises

[Tightlinerods]

Ok I cannot find any previous post useing the search feature and we are looking at one of these two, can any cruisers post up their Likes, Dislikes, and lowdown on these two Hawaii Cruises from NCL...

 

Pride of Aloha

Pride of America

 

Thanks , John

[brimicombe]

Go to REVIEWS at the top of the home page and put in the ship name you want and you will get a whole list of reviews on cruises.

 

Hope this helps, Sally

[karen2cruz]

Pride of Aloha was built in 1999 (refurbished in 2004)and is slightly smaller than the Pride of America, built in 2005. There are 4 times as many suites on the Pride of America than the Pride of Aloha. What do you want in a cruise? Which itinerary works best for you? You need to make these decisions and then ask more specific questions.

 

http://www.cruisedeckplans.com will give you physical comparisons

[Tightlinerods]

Thanks Sally, but I'm not looking for a review from a paid critic I'm looking for feedback from fellow cruisers...

 

Karen we are looking for a floating Hotel that allows us the time in different ports to expierence what each port has best to offer...

 

Is the Laua in Kauai the better one to go to??

 

What about the helicopter flights which island is better??

 

Which Island has better golf courses??

 

Is the Scuba better off one island than the other??

 

Which places on board the ship did you like to dine???

 

This is the sort of stuff I'm looking for..

 

 

Thanks,

John

[CC Help Michell]

Thanks Sally, but I'm not looking for a review from a paid critic I'm looking for feedback from fellow cruisers...

 

Karen we are looking for a floating Hotel that allows us the time in different ports to expierence what each port has best to offer...

 

Is the Laua in Kauai the better one to go to??

 

What about the helicopter flights which island is better??

 

Which Island has better golf courses??

 

Is the Scuba better off one island than the other??

 

Which places on board the ship did you like to dine???

 

This is the sort of stuff I'm looking for..

 

 

Thanks,

John

 

Um, at the "reviews" link above, click on "member reviews." You will find tons and tons of them on all three "Pride of" ships -- from unpaid travelers who are members of CC, like you, and like me (my review is at http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/getreviews.cfm?action=members&MemberName=michellp). "Professional" reviews from CC are denoted as such.

 

If you want detailed information on the ports and excursions there (both through NCLA and off the ship), come join us at the ports of call board here for Hawaii -- it's a very, very active community and very helpful.

[mailbroad]

My husband and I were on the PoAmerica in February. We used it as a floating hotel and it was just fine! The staff were very friendly (with the exception of an overworked bartender or two), the food was ok and Hawai'i was awesome!

I'd go on that ship again! Ahhh... I wish I was in Hawai'i now!

We don't play golf or SCUBA. We did go snorkeling and rented cars in some ports. We met the "boss of the Golf Program" and she was a really nice young woman... and she told us where to get some great shave ice in Kona!

[Tightlinerods]

My husband and I were on the PoAmerica in February. We used it as a floating hotel and it was just fine! The staff were very friendly (with the exception of an overworked bartender or two), the food was ok and Hawai'i was awesome!

I'd go on that ship again! Ahhh... I wish I was in Hawai'i now!

We don't play golf or SCUBA. We did go snorkeling and rented cars in some ports. We met the "boss of the Golf Program" and she was a really nice young woman... and she told us where to get some great shave ice in Kona!

 

 

 

Thankyou ....

 

This is more like what I'm looking for ...

 

 

John

[karen2cruz]

As far as Luaus, and beleive me I have researched them, the Old Lahaina Luau is the most authentic (on Maui) and the Polynesian Cultural Center Luau is rated the overall best. However, the PCC on Oahu does not serve alcohol.

 

Helicopter-if you had to pick one- do it on Kauai! Breathtaking and the only way to see mcuh of the island!

 

Scuba-(my husband has 95 dives under his belt) in order of the best -1. Kona 2. Maui 3. Oahu 4 Kaui. If you are sailing April to October Kaui has some great diving north of the island to (Nihau? -might be another small island) - anyhow there are some small islands north of Kaui but very weather dependent. The Hawaii revealed series of books will get you the names of some great dive operators.

 

Golf- cant help you - but the "revealed" book series can lead you in the right direction

 

Food- cant go wrong in Lazy J Steakhouse or Jeffersons Bistro (on other ships they're called Le Bistro or Cagneys steakhouse - same food different name)

 

Hope this helps.

 

Karen

[DaisyL]

We were on the PoAm last Oct. and absolutely loved it. It's a port intensive itinerary so you will basically use it as a hotel.

 

The dining attire is much more casual than other cruises and the service in the dining rooms is understaffed so the waits will be longer for tables. If a specific time for dining is important then make reservations nightly. We liked the French Jefferson's Bistro, the Steak restaurant and the Italian but the main dining rooms were good too. The food quality, on a whole was pretty good just not up to par with the meals on the Dawn. But we did manage to find something to enjoy!

 

We often arrived back on the ship late afternoon, and the dining room and buffet were closed, we would grab a quick lunch at the outdoor Grill upstairs above the pool, (can't remember the name) ... Sooo nice having a snack and drink outside. There's also a 24 hr diner type place but we never tried it.

 

We did a mix of excursions and car rentals that worked well for us. We probably did more pre-planning for this cruise than any other, and it was well worth it. This was a vacation of a lifetime, and we wanted to make the most of it.

 

Definitely check the Hawaii post on the Ports of Call section, there's many knowlegable people there and several who live in Hawaii and love to help. Take the reviews wit a grain of salt though, I have found nothing is ever quite as bad as it's reported. I didn't even write a review because of all the negativity at the time, I felt I would have been the sole supporter, so I try to answer posts like this one, instead.

 

BTW, we had friends who golfed in Kauai and made all arrangements through the golf shop on board. They really enjoyed it.

 

Be sure to check back again if you have any specific questions... we love to help.

[Gon2hwe]

Was on PoAm in June. Absolutely loved it. DH played golf in every port except Hilo. He was very impressed with Golf Program. It was very pricey but in Hawaii.....Most beautiful: Waimea Gold, Maui. Most Challenging: Ko'Olau, Oahu, Best overall: Poipu Bay, Kaui, For a different experience: Mauna Lani, Kona. Came back with pants ripped to shreds from Lava rock here. There are several courses in each port. Do your research and decide on your playing level and price. I did Heaven and Earth Helicopter in Kaui. It was wonderful. This was an all day trip. Wish I had just done helicopter without the tour though. Did Volcano and Rainbow Falls in Hilo. Ask for Cousin Larry's Bus. Road to Hana in Maui. Beautiful scenery but too long. Lot of Mom & Pop shops along the way and our driver must have dreams of being a Race car driver. On the ship the two main dining rooms were very good. Really enjoyed Teppinyaki. Husband has hot fudge ice cream cake several times at Cadillac diner. Ask for the drink of the day, it's cheaper. Bring your own sodas . Shuttles to walmart at every port I think, to restock drinks(soda), souvenirs ect. You'll have a great time. Just do some research before booking excursions.. If you havent booked yet the front cabins have bigger balconys, twice as wide. Have a great time. ji vercery e

[muse_clio]

Sally,

This is muse_clio, Tracey, from the Grand Princess Med cruise. Lost your email address in computer crash and would like to say hello in MA in person in late Feb.

 

Email me, will ya?

tracey

[whale-watcher]

We were on the POAM last month and had a great cruise...here is a link to our review on the Hawaii board:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=691664

 

You should also browse through the last several pages of the Hawaii board (and search for specific areas of interest)...there is TONS of information to be found.

[catlady461]

We were on Pride of Aloha in September,2007. We ate at the main dining room for dinner the second night of the cruise and enjoyed it. We ate at the Palm Bistro one night & Pacific Heights one night. Palm Bistro was good but we were not impressed with Pacific Heights. We also ate at Kahili 5 nighs because my husband enjoyed the pasta, also the food & service was great. We requested the same servers everynight(Graydon & Jackie). If you get a chance to go here to eat & they are still there request them,you won't be sorry. At breakfast & lunch we went to the buffet & brought our food back to the room to eat on the balcony. Food was good to great depending on what you picked.

Hopethishelp with the questions you have &enjoy your cruise.

This was our first on NCL cruise & have booked our next one for July on the Spirit out of New York.

Loved Freestyle after cruising RCCL & Celebrity.