princeton123211

Agree with Scott here-- its more of a modern interpretation, the food is very ok (and its pre plated so you don't have choice like you do at others), and it is breathtakingly expensive for what you get. Far, far better values on more traditional luaus than the show they put on at the Royal Hawaiian.

If you've stayed somewhere in Stamford before that you liked I would do the same thing here. The drive from Stamford to the BCT isn't terribly different from the one to the MCT until you get to Manhattan (where you can either drive down the East Side and take the Battery Tunnel over to Brooklyn or you can just stay on the Brooklyn Queens Expressway essentially straight in). Coming in on a Saturday you will not have any significant traffic unless there is some sort of major accident. Yonkers, while certainly doable, would be a little bit out of the way coming down from NH. Stamford would be along your normal route.

Elbow Beach is in fact defunct with no plans to reopen. Most of the furniture has been auctioned off so it's not like this will change anytime soon. I think really the only game in town right now is Coco Reef which is nice- good stretch of beach but a climb in and out via a steep stairway. The other alternative, if you have an overnight stay with the ship, is to book into one of the nicer resorts which we've done and can be a lot of fun. Certainly pricey but enjoyable.

To be fair Veendam, while a lovely ship, really was/isn't that small. Still 57,000 GT. She's small in comparison to most cruise ships today, but typically the older liners that would regularly (and successfully) call on Montreal (vs stopping in Quebec) were around half the size at 22,000 GT like the Saxonia, Carinthia, etc in the 50's. Vistafjord, later Caronia, which we took to Montreal a few times, was also around 25,000 GT. When you get above 50,000 GT its a crapshoot in Montreal. Good news is, if you do get diverted, Uber works quite well in Montreal.

You have to be careful there-- you aren't booking directly with a vendor or operator, so if something goes wrong, the recovery might not be what you hope it will be. You have very little recourse when things go sideways.

To be fair, when you stayed on her in 1978 she was actually managed by Hyatt. Its always depended on what type of room you book-- there are plenty that are pretty bleak and small but the suites, mini suites, and deluxe staterooms are all outside, wood paneled, reasonable bathrooms, and very equivalent to 3-4 star hotels. The rest of the rooms are not quite there.

You can literally go to any bank ATM in Canada with you US debit card and receive the current exchange rate without any markup like you'll most likely get at a ship's pursers desk. We all make choices for convenience-- I get it-- but you do have very easy ways here to save a bit.

To lx200gps' point there is definitely a Hertz (or at least was when we were last there in 2019) in the Westin that is very close to the dock-- just across a parking lot. I would double check their website and definitely make a confirmed reservation ahead of time.

Very walkable-- maybe 10-12 minutes. There is a walkway along the water that takes you right there.

This is getting silly. When's the last time you walked up Kekaa Drive through the golf course from Whalers Village? Big hill. You don't go there for Poke-- shocked you don't know that because you seem confident you know everything else.

I think its the big hill out of Kaanapali coupled with the need to walk along the highway that made me think it was further whereas the walk from Lahaina to Whalers is flat. Regardless-- they both are at least an hour walk with some (not all of it) along some pretty unremarkable stretches of road. Would highly recommend the OP use some form of transportation. Very few folks walk either of these. Kapalua is a different story. During the day up there Uber's can take a bit-- even at night I've had to wait 15 minutes for pickup in Kapalua. From our place in Kaanapali they are fairly available starting around 1-2 in the afternoon and are readily available in the late afternoon and evening. The OP should not have an issue getting one in Lahaina where the most of them are. Which is great, and I'll give you a honk and a wave next time I drive by you, but I think you have to also put it in the perspective of who you are giving advice to. Those of us who are fortunate enough to live there at least part of the year can spend way more time doing things that someone who is only visiting for 1-2 days, and may never come back, might think is a waste of time. If I was on a limited 2 day port call, on a once in a lifetime trip to Maui, and I followed advice and walked 2 hours each way along a highway to go to an unremarkable strip mall for chicken teriyaki (or their dreamy Mahi in lemon caper sauce) I might regret my decision not to hang out on the picturesque beach I had left.

We have very different definitions of walking distance. Walking from Lahaina to Whalers is one thing (which is far for a visitor with limited time-- doable but a chore), but walking from Whalers to Honkowai Okazuya is nuts. Its a taxi or Uber ride but well worth the trip for plate lunch or dinner. The OP needs to know that Uber is readily available if they want something more effiecient than public transportation from Lahaina-- it will be faster in the late afternoon/evening (5-10 minute wait in and around Lahaina) but will be still be an option earlier in the day if you give yourself about 15 minutes. You are not reliant on the bus.

Generally not in the way you might be thinking that you've seen elsewhere in places like the Carribbean. Taxis in Kauai exist but demand far outstrips supply on days with large cruise ships. You are best to arrange for a private tour or book a taxi that advertises tours in advance. Otherwise you might be stuck with an hours long line to get a taxi (which might not be willing or qualified to give a tour anyway).

I have not stayed at this Ace Hotel but have stayed at the Ace Hotel in Manhattan and also the one in Seattle. Since you mentioned you are seniors it is worth mentioning that the brand as a whole is geared towards the very young hipster demographic. The hotels themselves are a bit sparse, louder music pumped through, very small rooms (even for New York and some have bunk beds), boisterous bars right in the lobby etc. They are well run and clean but just know what you are getting into.

Have been there twice on a ship and both times no issues. It's an enclosed harbor that's protected by sea walls on all sides. It's also a ferry port with regularly scheduled ferries operating there. I can't see any reason, short of something catastrophic, that weather would prevent you from stopping there.

We used an app called Blacklane extensively in Italy this past summer and had great experiences. You can book ahead of time in the app and it provides an all in price (with gratuity). It essentially will then book you with a local company/driver that has been vetted by them and meets their quality standards. All communication and billing is done through the app. Couldn't be easier.

There are a bunch of tour operators that offer options. Roberts is one of the bigger ones. Its a very serious time investment-- some of the sunset ones that I've seen start as early a 1-2pm and finish 7-8pm. It also can get very crowded. Having been up there a few times I might be jaded but there are better places to watch the sunset-- would much rather be on the beach with a Mai Tai than in 30-40 degree weather freezing up there. If you don't want a helicopter tour the only other ways are by boat or fixed wing aircraft. Personally I would do the fixed wing option-- there are a few operators you can google for both the boat tours and airplanes. We used Wings Over Kauai before-- they operate some Cessnas and larger aircraft. Good experience. If you don't rent a car your only option will be to arrange for a private taxi in advance. Don't wait til you get there or else there might not be one available and Uber is very spotty in Kauai at best.

Its a nice hotel in a good location. The last time I stayed there it was managed by Kimpton (Maya Angelou yelled at me for talking on my cell phone in the lobby!) so not sure if much has changed since Royal Sonesta took over but I imagine its still as nice as I remember it. It's not my favorite hotel in town but its a very solid choice for someone who wants something that's upscale and boutique. You can walk to a bunch of things like Pike Place Market. Its a little close to Pioneer Square for my liking (not my favorite part of town) but you still have a few blocks of buffer between you.

To sort of clarify what everyone is getting at-- I seriously doubt you would find a proper limo company that would even accept a ride that is this short. As Nitemare said, the ship to the airport is like 10-15 minutes max. If you want something like a limo, just use UberBlack.

I cant tell you the differences between the two-- we only use iPhones-- but there was no noticeable slowdown with Google Maps-- functioned fine. The only time it slowed down was when we went through the daily allotted data. I mitigated that by only using WiFi while in the room in the morning and at the hotel for breakfast and usually would make it through the day. My wife tried not to use her phone a ton in case mine did slow down and we needed a backup.

Yes. Travelled extensively in Italy with it last year and for the most part a good experience. Just bills $10 a day and you get a text each morning when it kicks in. They do slow down your data after a certain amount so just make sure to connect to Wifi where it is sensible to do so (like your hotel room) as things like streaming, while they will work over the network, will eat your data up quick. Once you go through it, the phone's data slows down noticeably but this has zero effect on making or receiving calls. Data speed is then restored the next morning when the new day kicks in.

Stayed at the W on Bonvoy points and had a great experience. When I was making the comparison between that and the Marriott the W won purely on a far more central location. But I was very pleasantly surprised as to the quality of the hotel itself-- I'm not a huge W fan in general (usually small rooms and loud music in the US) and this was not that. Very large rooms, nicely appointed, received an upgrade/Bonvoy benefits, and some great restaurants on premise. It's across the street from the Royal Palace.

To dock in Venice proper, as mentioned Windstar, Seadream Yacht Club (which I would highly recommend), Star Clipper line. Its small but there are options. Even the small ship luxury lines like Seabourn or Silversea's ships are considered too large.

Just going through the thread here-- if the ship is overnighting the day of arrival into Quebec the ship essentially is your floating hotel that night. The ship will be cleared by immigration upon arrival and at that point you can come and go from the ship as you please until the next morning. Disembarkation the next day will be a lot less hectic than usual as there will most likely be a steady stream of folks leaving from the very early hours to catch early flights-- it wont be bottlenecked into a few hours like a normal disembarkation is with the ship arriving only an hour or so before. By all means do whatever makes you feel comfortable here but if you don't want the hassle an expense of getting a hotel room you wouldn't need one-- the ship would essentially be your hotel.

Second the poke at Foodland-- its some of the best on the island and where a lot of locals go for it. Also another favorite that comes highly recommended. Not going to be walking distance from either Lahaina or from the main Kaanapali resort area near Whalers Village so will be an Uber if they go there.