Need advice RCCL or Princess ?

[spritzy]

We are thinking of taking a cruise to Hawaii and can't decide between the 2 lines . Any feedback would be greatly appreciated . Are the seas rough ? I get seasick easily .

[Splinter]

You never know with the Pacific....it can be rough or calm all times of the year. What do you use for sea sickness? My mother is prone to this and swears by ginger and the acupressure wrist bands....no side effects like with the medications.

 

I would recommend either Princess, HAL or Celebrity RT to Hawaii instead of RCCL. The latter requires you to use Ensenada instead of LA or San Diego as the mainland port, and it wastes a lot of time and is a hassel getting to that port via bus from the USA.

[Host Anne]

We were lucky when we sailed to Hawaii about four years ago. Smooth seas all the way over. But you never know. There are lots of things on the market to help with seasickness. Talk to your doctor about which might work best for you.

 

As for which line, I have to agree it is a hassle to go to Ensenada (which is what we had to do). I'd definitely much prefer to sail from the States. But I'd consider the ship as well. We like both Princess and RCI but I would consider Celebrity as well if that's an option for you. I'd go with whichever gives you the best deal from the most convenient port while factoring in the ships available as well.

[Sammy]

As Splinter mentioned, you avoid Ensenada by doing a RT on any cruise line doing one. RCI doesn't do a RT right now.

 

So, if you can only do a "one-way", even on Celebrity, HAL, or Princess, you will also stop at a Mexican port (usually Ensenada). RCI runs great ships to Hawaii so if you can only do one-way, don't rule it out.

 

Personally, I like leaving from Ensenada rather than ending there. It's much easier crossing the border and the trip down isn't that bad. However, it is a very hard and long trip if you fly into San Diego or LA on a long flight and then go to Ensenada. DEFINITELY spend the night before you take the bus to Ensenada in San Diego or LA in that case.

 

Our RCI cruise on Vision out of Acapulco was the best. Flew non-stop into Acapulco. Our Celebrity cruise on Infinity out of Ensenada also had relatively calm seas all the way. RCI did a better job than Celebrity as far as connections in Mexico; that particular Celebrity ship was new to the route and didn't have it's act together at that time. Everything else was fine.

 

Sammy

[Lando]

I just booked RCCL leaving from Vancouver (hello!) to Hawaii Sept 25/05. Of course I only live an 8 hour drive from Vancouver so I will just drive to the port, hop on the ship and fly back to Vancouver when the cruise is done! :D

[Arlenedow]

We are going on the Island Princess 10/6/04 roundtrip from LA. We chose this for two reasons: we had sailed on the Island in March and loved her and we liked the rt from LA which eliminates a long flight to or from Honolulu. We live in Fl. and decided to go out 1 day early. WE are past Celebrity and HAL clients and hadn't sailed on Princess since '93 but were so impressed with the Island that we booked this cruise while onboard.

 

Help this helps.

 

Arlene

[RvrCrzr]

We chose Princess for the same reasons as above.

No long flight.

No crossing borders on a bus.

We love sea days.

Love Princess. (RCI is great too!)

[HoustonCruisers]

We've been on both lines. We chose RCCL for Hawaii for a couple of reasons - but the main one was the itinerary. For what was available at the time we went, RCCL had the most port time. We sailed out of Vancouver which was fine. Neither of us are bothered by motion sickness so the ocean wasn't a factor for us.