Recommendations on Hawaiian Excursions

[cran08512]

Sailing on POA 10/18/08 looking for recommendations on excursions to take on each island visited. Thanks!!

[lambs2]

Hawaii Board would be your best bet!

 

We rented cars on every island except Kona where we took our only ship excusion, the FABULOUS Captain Zodiak raft & Snorkel. (Don't take if anyone has a real bad back, though.) The zodiak raft ride is a BLAST and when you get to the bay it looks like you are snorkeling in an aquarium! Awesome!

On all the other islands we planned our days ourselves to see the maximum.

[ssbeard1]

Did the Capt. Zodiac snorkeling - it was great. I wouldn't book anything through the cruise line. We rented cars every where except Kona also (which is where the snorkeling tour was). We then walked across and took a van to a local beach where we rented snorkel equipment and spent a day at the beach (lots of sea turtles at the beach, very good local restaurant there also). Get the books "Hawaii Revealed" (I believe that is the name of them). They were awesome. We rented a car and did the road to Hana (but did it backwards as recommended by a local to beat the crowds) - the book was invaluable for this trip, especially if you like water falls. Rented a car to go to the volcanos - walked out to see lava flow - AWESOME! Did our own luau (not through the cruise line) - read the hawaii boards for great recommendations. Definitely do a helicopter tour on Kauai. We also did a canoe trip with a drop off to walk to a water fall and swimming area. Don't miss Pearl Harbor if you have never been.

[cran08512]

Which luau did you go to?

[TG2005]

Which luau did you go to?

 

Paradise Cove was really nice on Oahu, booked it for after the cruise.

 

Also renat a car in Maui and drive the road to Hanna, there is so much to see.

[cran08512]

Also did you book directly through Capt. Zodiak - if so did they pick you up at the ship?

[ssbeard1]

Yes we booked through capt. zodiak - they are at the same docs as the cruise ship and they will drop you off back at the docs. Unfortunately, it was 2 years ago when we went and I don't remember the name of the luau. It was the one on Maui - check the hawaii posts. I will check my records if no one chimes in with an answer. I'll also give you the name of the helicopter company - they did not pick you up at the ship, so you would need a rental, it was about a 30-45 minute drive out, but you got more air time over the mountains with them. I keep a folder with all our itineraries and loan them out to friends. I have an OCD problem when it comes to planning for a cruise :D .

[cran08512]

Thank-you sooo much would totally appreciate the info.

[*Luv2Cruz*]

If you like snorkeling, Molokini in Maui is the best place I’ve ever seen!:D Here’s a link with some more info. Hope this helps! http://maui.aloha-hawaii.com/activities/snorkeling+molokini/

[mylesf]

Which luau did you go to?

 

I have been to the islands several times. I have gone to a luau on Maui, Marriott, and twice went to the luau that NCL offers on Kauai. The food was better at the Marriott but the show was better on Kauai. I prefer the show to the food since you get so much food on the cruise.

[CC Help Michell]

Come visit the Hawaii ports of call board here at Cruise Critic! It's a great community of Hawaii residents, cruisers, and frequent visitors -- and it furnishes a wealth of information about all kinds of excursions available in Hawaii. There are, literally, thousands of excursions in Hawaii, in all price ranges.

 

Here's the link to the Hawaii Ports board -- http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=62

[dsjs]

We have been on the NCL hawaiian cruises twice. We have always rented a car at each port and it has been extremely easy to get around. Here is a website you may want to check out for driving tours:

http://www.driveguidemagazines.com/hawaiimaps.html

Hope this helps!

[ssbeard1]

OK I got home and pulled out my file on Hawaii - I lied :D The Capt. Zodiac was booked through the cruise ship. I'm sure I booked through them because I could not book any other way (I would have never booked through the cruise ship if there was an option). But take it anyway - Make sure it is the Raft and Snorkel, otherwise the other boat that comes along about 45 minutes after you have been snorkeling holds about 150 people. As a poster said earlier it is a rough bouncy ride.

 

We did the old lahaina luau in Maui. It is an approximate hour drive from the ship, but the town is beautiful. The luau was not cheap, but neither wasethe one from the ship.

 

The Kauai helicopter tour was through inter-island helicopters, about a 30-45 minute drive from port.

 

Definitely hop over to the hawaii thread and plan away.....Happy cruising.

[TreasureQuest]

Definitely do Capt. Zodiac. It was a blast. We also did rental cars in all other ports.

 

If you want a good description of the Capt. Zodiac excursion, go to post number 16 in my cruise journal:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=821097

 

It was worth evey penny.

[mikaula]

We rented cars and did sight seeing on our own. One of my favorite tours was "tubing the ditch" on Kauai.

 

What ever you choose you'll have a great time and want to go back again!!

[cruisenshop]

All good advice. We rented a van (two families) and did our own touring. Except for Kona where we took a cab/van to the public snorkeling beach.

We liked snorkeling at Black Rock on Maui, but the snorkeling in Kona was like sticking your head in an aquarium at the Atlantis. Unbelievable. Public beach (rocky wear tevas or keens) about 3 miles from the port. The cab drivers at the port will all offer to take you there. While there are a lot of folks there, the snorkeling cannot be beat.

 

Maui - also went to Hookipah beach to watch surfing, did the first leg of road to Hana (too crowded even though we started early and a yawn for the kids), Black Rock, shopping, Lehana, Whale museum, lots of shave ice, we also drove to the END of the island.

 

Kauai - we also did Tubing the ditch. It was our favorite as well. Water was a bit chilly at first, but it was so fun, who cares... also went to Poipu beach and saw the sea lions. The Marriott there is fantastic.

 

Big Island - did Volcanoes national park, Big Island Chocolate Co., few other parks, black sand beach.

 

Oahu- Paradise Cove luau was fun. Food was ok even with the upgraded ticket. Diamond head hike. Waikiki beach, Pearl Harbor and the Aloha Stadium swap meet.

 

Loved our NCL Hawaii cruise. Aloha!

[wahine56]

We also rented cars in Maui (did road to Hana, it was great) and Kauai. I don't recommend Kona Beach Blast (it was not worth it). Volcanoes National Park was great. We spent a few days before the cruise doing Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head etc. This was one cruise I would do again in a heartbeat. Enjoy.

 

Pat

[alibubba]

We also rented cars everywhere and did our own thing, except for one. We did the ziplining with Kauai Backcountry through the ship. Highly recommend. On Kona we got off the ship and rented snorkel equipment and took a bus to Kahalu'u Beach. Got good photos underwater and turtles, but it is rocky and you can get cut if not careful. It is so easy to get around all the islands and see everything you want if you plan ahead.

[MommyJamiex4]

Roberts Hawaii-- We booked the VNP and rainbow falls, The Wialua river and fern grotto, and Kona Highights through them. All the tours were fantastic and a great price to boot!

 

I highly recommend the Hawaii board. It was a great resource for me.

 

Most of all have a wonderful time. Hawaii is magical.:D

[kayo kruiser]

SSBeard1:

 

How do you do the Road to Hana "backwards"? I thought rental cars couldn't get to Hana from the southerly highway - either because it was too rough or something?

 

Any insight would be great!

[elmoalex01]

We loved the ditch tubing on Kaui, along with a helicopter ride. On Maui, we rented a car, drove to the winery and Maui Ocean Center and Lahania. On Kona, we just walked off and found a shop that rented snorkeling equipment and drove us to a beach with wonderful snorkeling for about $12 per person. It was awesome!

 

We were on Pride of Hawaii in 2006.

[4evrwild]

We were on Pride of Hawaii in Feb. of 07 and rented cars in each port. It was so much cheaper than taking ships tours and we could do several "tour type" activities in a day. The rental places were so easy to get to and didn't take much time to get through or on return either.

 

We drove all over Heilo and saw as much of the volcanos as we wanted to did the Hana Road and Haliakalia SP? plus Ioa Needle, port town and more on Maui and drove to "Wings Over Kauai" at the regular airport in Kauai and had Bruce take us above this garden island. It was fabulous. I didn't want to do a helicopter and was really glad we didn't since there have been at least 6 of them that have crashed since we went. I tend to get air sick and the small plane, and Bruce, was just great.

 

Loved Hawaii and our ship but haven't heard much good about POA. Please write a review after your trip and let us know if they have improved on the remaining NCL America ship.

 

Have a great time!

 

Ruth ;)

[hq82271]

The name of the Luau in Maui is the Royal Lahaina Luau. Very authentic, good food, great show! We also enjoyed a helicopter ride over the volcano. Walking can be treacherous. We rented a car in Maui (a convertible) and drove the road to Hana. Marvelous and yes you can drive all the way around. The road is not all that bumpy. Just take your time and don't rush. It's well worth the ride because the southern route is completely different than the north. We also visited a vanilla plantation and a chocolate plantation and a coffee plantation in Kona. Luch was included at the Vanilla plantation where every course was made with vanilla. Excellent. The islands are so beautiful that it doesn't matter what you do. You're in paradise...what can be bad?:)