Hawaii in Feb/March or October

My husband and I are trying to decide when to take a Hawaii cruise ( for our 30th anniversary). Is the weather better in February/March or in October? Also, who does it better..... Hal or Princess and why? This cruise has been put off twice and we really want it to be perfect!

Thanks in advance for any help and/or insight you can give!

I've been there all three months.

All three were nice.

Personally I would go in February if I was you since it will be very cold in Maryland.

Keith

We saw lots of whales during our January/February cruise. I am no Hawaii or whale expert, but I think they are not there in October. As Keith said, I would get away from Maryland in the winter.

We went to the South Pacific with Princess last October/November and the weather in Hawaii was great. No whales.

Weather in Hawaii is great in February and March.

HAL caters to a much older crowd - I don't know your ages, but typically over 70 is the age group with a few in their 50's.

Princess - you will get a good mix of ages and a lot of Brits and Aussie's.

I would compare ports. If they are the same, then I would choose the less expensive of the two cruises. You are off the ship so much in Hawaii that the ship doesn't matter all that much - it's more a place to sleep, shower, have breakfast and then be off of all day, return in the late afternoon, grab dinner and go to bed. If you don't want to waste time sailing from the west coast to Hawaii, then go on NCL as their Pride of America is over there constantly.

Having lived in Hawaii, I highly recommend you do a land vacation as well. It is easy and quick to fly from one island to another for either a day trip or spend 3 nights in Oahu, then fly to Maui and spend 3 nights there, then fly to Kauai and spend 3 nights there. Really, I can't see any real advantage of taking a cruise around Hawaii when you can see and do so much more if you stay on the islands. You can still take a night cruise out to see the lava flows, but you will be able, for example on Maui to see the sunrise at Haleakala then ride mountain bikes down the mountain or go stay at Travaasa Hotel Hana - it takes 2+ hours to drive out to Hana, so you want to stay out there if you can. I would focus on having quintessential Hawaiian experiences - go to the beach and have a plate lunch - it could be anything, but that's what you do when you have spent your morning surfing or snorkeling - go have a plate lunch. Eat at Alan Wong's for dinner in Honolulu, Sansei in Kapalua, Maui. You might go scuba diving or take surfing lessons or a cooking class. Just remember before you leave, throw your lei's into the ocean so that you can return to Hawaii someday.

My husband and I are trying to decide when to take a Hawaii cruise ( for our 30th anniversary). Is the weather better in February/March or in October? Also, who does it better..... Hal or Princess and why? This cruise has been put off twice and we really want it to be perfect!

 

 

 

Thanks in advance for any help and/or insight you can give!

Put it off again and do a land trip to Kauai instead (flying in to Lihue). Skip Honolulu since it is basically Los Angeles (unless you can get our of town and head to the northshore).

On Kauai, you may want to split your time between Princeville on the north and Poipu on the south. Do opt for a helicopter tour of the NaPali Coast.

The ships matter. Holland America and Princess Hawaii cruises sail from the west coast, Asia, or Australia. There will be lots of sea days.

I was there in February and the weather was perfect. We saw lots of whales who were wintering in the islands.

My husband and I are trying to decide when to take a Hawaii cruise ( for our 30th anniversary). Is the weather better in February/March or in October? Also, who does it better..... Hal or Princess and why? This cruise has been put off twice and we really want it to be perfect!

 

Thanks in advance for any help and/or insight you can give!

We did our 40th Ann. a couple of years ago in March. We did the 30 day San Diego to San Diego on HAL's ship Rotterdam with my two sisters and their husbands. The weather was wonderful (except the first day out of San Diego it was chilly) There will be a lot of sea days coming and going. As far as perfect I don't know about that. It was wonderful! We rented cars on every Hawaiian island (bil had been there many times so he took us to less touristy spots) but we did do a luau and that was a lot of fun and the food was good. We arranged with the ship for a vow renewal ceremony and that was special as it was preformed by the captain of the ship. WE were lucky enough to have a full moon when we got to Bora - Bora and the ship had a wonderful deck party that night. I have pics of us dancing under the full moon. We made arrangements to leave the ship for one night when we got to Tahiti and took the ferry to Moorea and spent the night in one of the over the water bungalows. I have pics of myself and my two sisters swimming in the crystal clear water next to the bungalow. That night I stood outside on our balcony and saw the southern cross in the sky. On one of the islands we snorkeled and had lunch cooked right in front of us on a Motu.

You will find an older crowd. We met a couple who were celebrating their 75th wedding ann. and their son and dil were with them celebrating their 50th! Mostly its an older crowd because it's a longer cruise and not many young folks have the time or money to do it.

I can't comment on "who does it better" as I have not done it on Princess. But I will tell you that only you can make it special. Search out these boards for ideas of what and how to do things. Check out the roll calls for what ever cruise you think you want to do. There is plenty of info and ideas to make your trip a once in a lifetime experience.

Good luck. I hope you and your dh has a wonderful celebration. come back and let us know what you decide.

Helen

Feb March is whale season and very busy! Oct you won't see whales and less people. Weather should be nice both times.

Couldn't imagine doing a cruise to Hawaii after been to Maui many times and a seasoned cruiser. Once we discovered Maui, a few less cruises for us. Love to explore the beautiful island and not have to rush back to the ship. Our favorite time tho to visit now is whale season! Nothing like watching the whales.

Not familiar with the ships as I cruise only Royal now.

Have a wonderful time! [emoji267][emoji304][emoji259][emoji228]

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I've been to Hawaii in October - the taxi driver who drove us from the airport to our hotel immediately told us that October is their rainy season and he didn't understand why tourists would go there then. Sure enough, it rained heavily every day. We had fun touring around and getting soaking wet but we weren't able to enjoy any beaches. And our luau was cancelled due to heavy rain.

The ships matter. Holland America and Princess Hawaii cruises sail from the west coast, Asia, or Australia. There will be lots of sea days.

You are right, 5 sea days at each end of the cruise, so a total of 10 sea days - seems a terrible waste of time to me when they could spend those 10 days on land in Hawaii instead and then if they really want to go on a cruise to see the different islands, they could go on NCL's Pride of America for 7 days. Having lived there, I'd just stay on the islands and fly to the different islands instead.

However, I respectfully disagree with Flatbush Flyer about skipping Honolulu if the OP wants to see Pearl Harbor and Iolani Palace and maybe go to Chief's Luau or an outdoor movie on the beach. Yes, I agree that Oahu is rather like Las Vegas and super touristy, but it's a good experience to have for a day or two of the trip to experience these things if desired.

I would go in March.

Hi Tweety! We've cruised to Hawaii twice on Carnival's 15-day itinerary. I've also done quite a few land vacations to the different islands over the years. Princess doesn't port/tender in Kona, but I think HAL does. We really love Kona so I just thought I would mention that. If Carnival is a possible option than I would definitely check them out as well.

Our last three cruises were the RTs from LA to Hawaii on Princess, so obviously we love this itinerary. Princess has a Hawaiian cultural program that is excellent and will easily keep you entertained during the sea days. And many of us don't find sea days a waste of time but a wonderful way to relax. For my family, the Princess Hawaiian cruises are fun and relaxing and we get time in Hawaii as a bonus.

All three times have been during the holiday time (including Christmas and New Years). During our time in Maui we've seen plenty of whales on the first and third of those cruises including many whales that were hanging out around the Golden Princess while we were anchored off of Lahaina.

I've also been to Hawaii on two land trips (one a three-islands-in-nine-days guided tour and the other our honeymoon on Kauai and Honolulu). I think you'll get a good taste of Hawaii on this itinerary so that if you return on a land trip, you can select the areas that you want to return to.

Another vote for skipping the cruise and flying to Hawaii to spend the entire time there. If you're really interested in Hawaii, this is a no-brainer. There's too much to see and do to be spending 10 of 15 days, or whatever it is, at sea. And to have the other days limited by the time in port.

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Because we enjoy sea days, we find sailing to Hawaii better than flying - and certainly a more affordable way of seeing several of the islands (without having to put up with NCL's concept of "service") and of escaping from a couple of weeks of New England winter, which is part of the point of the exercise, so we've booked February 2017.

Because we enjoy sea days, we find sailing to Hawaii better than flying - and certainly a more affordable way of seeing several of the islands (without having to put up with NCL's concept of "service") and of escaping from a couple of weeks of New England winter, which is part of the point of the exercise, so we've booked February 2017.

I'm not sure what you mean about more affordable. There are vacation packages for Hawaii to go to 3 islands over 6 days including all flights and transportation plus hotel and breakfast and it's under $1000 pp and you get to stay on the islands vs paying $1100pp for an inside for the cruise alone on Princess and you only get 4 days in Hawaii as opposed to 6 with the air/land vacation package. To me, the cost is a wash but the advantage of being in Hawaii longer and being on the islands is much greater with the land based vacation, plus you don't waste 10 days at sea. The advantage of being on land is you get to spend more time sightseeing on the islands.

NavyBankerTeacher and I will be on the same Feb 17 cruise to Hawai'i next year. There will be 10 sea days, 6 days in the islands, including an overnight in Honolulu, and 1 afternoon/evening stop in Ensenada to satisfy the PVSA (it's a round trip from San Diego). A total of 18 days, including embarkation day. A very nice itinerary, with a minimum of flying for us, as we are on the west coast.

I am extremely fortunate to have lived in Hawai'i, done numerous land vacations in Hawai'i, one previous cruise to Hawai'i, plus stopped there on two trans-Pacific cruise itineraries. February is a great time to visit the islands, as NavyBankerTeacher mentioned, because it's winter on the mainland:). The sea days are actually part of the appeal, believe it or not. We don't consider it a waste (your mileage may vary). February is an excellent time for whale viewing.

We choose HAL because we like HAL, but many people also like Princess. In my experience, HAL offers programs, lectures, and classes on board highlighting the culture, geography, oceanography, and history of Hawai'i. I understand that Princess does the same. Take your pick.

Ultimately, it's about personal choices for personal reasons. Not any more complicated than that. I've never had a bad cruise.:)

I'm not sure what you mean about more affordable.

 

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The point of the exercise is not simply to see Hawaii. There is that, of course, but getting away from a New England winter for 18 days has real value in itself. This February we are sailing from New York to the Caribbean - most of the islands in which we have seen a number of times - we are not that crazy about NCL, but the fact that they sail from New York is a value in itself.

We happen to enjoy sea days - especially on HAL ships, so we do not see them as a "waste of time".

Taken all together: seeing Hawaii, escaping winter, enjoying sea days are all elements we want. Sure, we could fly to Hawaii for a week; then we could do something else in warm weather for another 11 days - but doing it all together is indeed "more affordable".

We have cruised the roundtrip from Los Angeles to Hawaii on Princess twice--once in October and once in January.

One of the above posters mentioned that October was the rainy season. That may be the case. On our October cruise we hit one or two little squalls on the sea days to or from the islands, but nothing of consequence. (My wife, the foul weather sailor was actually pretty disappointed that we did not hit any heavy seas.) In Hilo and in Honolulu we had little rainstorms early in the morning, but both passed before we left the ship. Also, though, the neat thing about the rains is that we saw rainbows at both ports.

On the January cruise, there was a pretty big hurricane southeast of the islands. So, on our way over we traveled farther north than normal, but still arrived at our first port on time. I don't remeber hitting any rain either at sea or in port on this cruise.

We saw no whales on the October cruise. I am not surprised, however, that other people reproted seeing them. We saw lots of whales (humpbacks from Alaska) on the January cruise--a few as we were leaving Kauai and many while anchored at Lahaina. At Lahaina the ship does not dock at a berth. It anchors off the port and tenders are used to take people into the town. On our second cruise, the January one, we stayed on board and never visited Lahaina. My wife sat on our balcony all day and watched the whales. She also watched the Whale Watching cruises travel between Lahaina and the area where we were anchored so they could watched the same whales.

I don't think you would be making a mistake if you went in either October or February/March.

I have never cruised on HAL. So, I really can't give you any first person comment. However, I have several friends who have done so, and they have given me very positive reports. You can flip a coin, but I also like the suggestion that was given above about picking the less expensive one.

Oh, one thing I will mention that my wife and I very much enjoy on Princess is the Ultimate Balcony Dinner--and I can't believe that HAL does not have the same thing. This is a very elegant multi-course meal--1/2 bottle of Champagne, multiple appetizers, cocktails, salad, entree (Filet Mignon, Lobster Tail, or Surf 'n' Turf), an amazing chocolate dessert and a plate (or three) of Petit Fours that lasts for days. On the two times we've done it, the wind was fairly brisk. So, we did not use our balcony, but the little table they (oh, there are two servers who are dedicated to you) brought fit very comfortably in the cabin next to the balcony slider.

I'm not sure what you mean about more affordable. There are vacation packages for Hawaii to go to 3 islands over 6 days including all flights and transportation plus hotel and breakfast and it's under $1000 pp and you get to stay on the islands vs paying $1100pp for an inside for the cruise alone on Princess and you only get 4 days in Hawaii as opposed to 6 with the air/land vacation package. To me, the cost is a wash but the advantage of being in Hawaii longer and being on the islands is much greater with the land based vacation, plus you don't waste 10 days at sea. The advantage of being on land is you get to spend more time sightseeing on the islands.

SuiteTraveler, If I were to look for something like this online what would I look for? I have only seen all-inclusive deals but the prices weren't anything near this. TIA

SuiteTraveler, If I were to look for something like this online what would I look for? I have only seen all-inclusive deals but the prices weren't anything near this. TIA

I'm inclined to think that the price quoted for 6 hotel nights and inter-island flights must have been just a come-on - and, in any case would not have included transportation from the West Coast to Hawaii -- which alone would be close to $600 - $700.

I have cruised round trip LA or SFO to Hawaii with Princess 5 times so far, and thoroughly enjoyed every one. The sea days coming and going are a wonderful way to relax and enjoy just being on a beautiful ship, with all of it's amenities. Plenty of activities for those wishing to participate. The stops in the islands are an opportunity to see a bit of each island, with the idea of seeing which one(s) you would like to visit again.

Princess has an excellent immersion in Hawaiian culture program, with lectures (actually interesting and worthwhile) and numerous activities Hawaii related (such classes as hula dancing, lei making, Hawaiian language), and Hawaiian music performances. They also bring on board students from the hula school in one of the ports, and they put on a great show in the evening.

Even though I have done this itinerary a number of times, it never gets old, and I am hoping to do it again in 2016 ..... with Princess, of course.