mskaufman

You can walk to the Queens Staircase, the government buildings, or the Straw Market. Jukanoo Beach is also a possibility.

Don't know the earliest, but two weeks ago, we dropped luggage off around 10 am and were not the first.

Last time in Freeport did "Garden of the Groves"

Next week, also taking notes

Sorry, don't know the name. It is the little beach by the tender port.

Taxis can also use the bus lanes and bypass traffic.

We received a future cruise credit when the price dropped. That was this past spring.

FYI, Last week the tickets didn't help as the ferries were not running due to the wind.

Bus Turistic has two routes. Last year we spent several hours using a combined route.

Us too. See you next week!!!!!!!!!!

We were at Pearl Harbor yesterday. Was too windy to get out to the Arizona. Wound up on a tour since we tried to get free tickets six weeks ago and they were already gone.

We DIY'd Kona last week. In the morning we did shopping and took pictures along the shore. Lots of waves. In the afternoon we went to the beach by the tender port. Was a little crowded but did the trick. Also had a fair amount of shaved ice.

We were on POA last week (report on the NCL Board) and did all different excursions. Maui Day 1 - Road to Hana with Roberts. Very scenic. Lots of waterfalls. Maui Day 2 - Sunrise at the Crater - Wow!! Hilo - Volcanoes NP - A little underwhelming. Thought we would see some lava but only steam coming out of the crater. Kona - DIY - Shopping in the am and beach near the tender port in the pm. Had lots of shaved ice. Kauai - Beach in the day. Walking distance from the boat although there were free shuttles. Very nice beach. Kauai Day 2 - Waimea Canyon. Very impressive. Happy to answer questions. Will post photos and videos when I get home.

I have a review of NCL POA from last week (7/8 - 15) on the NCL Board.

We stayed in a small hotel on Ille St Louis (L de Lutece). Location was wonderful. Close to ND and lots of eateries. Also close to the HOHO Boat. Felt more local than touristy.

Will be a couple of weeks until I have a chance to download. Will probably post under the Hawaii forum

A word about us. We are fairly experienced cruisers with multiple cruises across multiple lines. This is our third cruise with NCL. Overview - The itinerary sells this cruise and the itinerary is great (Hawaii). If you are looking for a cruise where the ship is the destination, you might think about a different cruise. (More on that later) A word on NCL Air - For a variety of reasons we did not book air through NCL on this trip (although we have in the past). I know a number of people complain about less than optimal routings when they book through the cruise line. However....... We were supposed to depart Honolulu at 7 pm and at 6:45 the captain came on to inform us that a flight with some guests would not land until 8pm so the departure time what moved to 9:30 pm. Cabins - We had an oceanview. It was small compared to other lines. No place to sit other than on the bed. With the beds in the king configuration they blocked the window. Remember the days with turn down service, towel animals, and chocolate on the pillows? Not here. What you basically get is the beds made an light housekeeping. This might be one of the areas where NCL has had trouble staffing post pandemic. We hardly saw our cabin steward and it appeared that she had a large number of rooms to take care of. Anyway, cabin service was pretty basic. One day, our room was not made up until after 4. Buffer - Pretty standard. Food was varied and good. Dining Room - Food was good. Service was hit or miss. A lot of new staff that seemed like they were learning on the job. More than one told us that this was their first cruise. Specialty Restaurants - We did not do that. Prices seemed to be similar to what we would pay at home, which was more than just an up charge from the dining room. Entertainment - No production shows. Also, there was not a show in the theatre every night. There was a singer and a comedian who each got two nights. There was also a piano player/singer who had a show. Excursions - NCL and third party excursions were sometimes sold out several weeks in advance. In the end we were able to do what we wanted through a combination of NCL tours, third party tours, and DIY. Maui - We did the Road to Hana on day 1 and the sunrise on day 2. Both were excellent. Special call out to Road to Hana from Roberts (Bjorn was an awesome guide). Hilo - We did Volcanoes NP. It was fine. I guess our expectations were that we would see some lava, but not so. Kona - We did some shopping and went to the beach by the tender pier. Also, spent a fair amount on shaved ice. Kuai - Went to the Luau with about 800 of our fellow cruisers. Very good show. Whether it is worth the money has to be a personal decisions. In the morning we went to the beach. We were told it was a 20 minute walk. However, two malls (using that term loosely) ran free shuttles to their malls, which were across the street from the beach. Beach was gorgeous. Next day we went to Waimea Canyon. Very picturesque. Shopping - Plenty of shopping opportunities. All of the ABC stores have the same things. If you are interested in basic souvenirs (hats, shirts, etc.) the Honolulu WalMart has a better selection and a hat that I saw for $19 was $7 in Walmart. Shirts were also two-thirds of the going rate. Pictures - Plenty of photo ops. Will share once I get home and start to go through them. Happy to answer questions.

Last week there were several hundred people there for sunrise. On the bus back we passed about a dozen bike riders and that was it.

Kalapaki is indeed a nice beach. It is about a 20 minute walk from the ship. Two of the malls (I use the term loosely) that are across the street from the beach run free shuttles.

Last week NCL sent 800 people on a Luau shore excursion. May have been a couple of bucks more but worked out fine.

We have used Turistic multiple times and they are good.

Being in the first group at La Sagrada is awesome. You are inside before the crowds and can appreciate the light coming through the stained glass windows. Rather than the HOHO taxi going directly to the sites you want to see might be a less expensive and more efficient option.

Even if the price is the same, some travel agents provide on board credit

Agree. Just walk outside to the taxi stand. Taxis can be used for more than airport to hotel route. They are reasonable to use all over town and there are taxi stands in all the tourist areas.

Hope so and hope that the connections from US East Coast work well. Thanks, Will try to post pictures or video when I get back.