RetiredArmyCruiser

The Spirit is a great ship and if you have small children, there aren't many better kid's pools afloat. We had a wonderful time on the Spirit and would gladly sail her again!

Have a great trip. Our rule of thumb is once the cruise (or airfare) is booked and paid for, don't look back. If the price was good enough to get my to pry open my wallet, then so be it.

Don't sweat the small stuff and just go have fun! I'm quite jealous as we don't currently have a cruise planned.

Does anyone have pictures of any of the min suite, we are booked in 1214 and 1215

go to http://www.youtube.com and search for NCL Sun mini suite and there are several short videos.

OK I took the plunge and am booked (paid the deposit) with my wife on the Norwegian Sun June 30 2014 - Southbound Alaska - Whittier - Vancouver - any tips I would be most grateful for

We're headed off on the northbound Alaska cruise from Vancouver in two short weeks. I'll post a review and tips upon my return.

If you military, retired military, or a DoD employee, I'd recommend the Hale Koa hotel on Waikiki, or if you want something a little more peaceful and rustic, try the beach cottages at Bellow Air Force Station on the Windward side of Oahu.

As was mentioned above, almost all accommodations on Oahu are located in the Waikiki area, although there is a giant Marriott complex and a Disney Vacation Club hotel on the Leeward side near Kapolei, about a half hour (in good traffic) from Honolulu. Turtle Bay on the North Shore, about an hour from Honolulu is gorgeous, but pretty pricey. If you saw "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" that is the hotel it was filmed at.

Whatever you decide, make sure to check many sites as prices can very widely for the same property.

I think it'd be great to have a port call in NYC without having to pay $250 or more for a hotel for the night.

My wife and I took a cruise on the Pride of America in November 2007 and docked right by us in Honolulu was the Pride of Aloha. We also were with the Pride of Aloha in Maui when they were tendering to Lahaina while we were docked in Kahului. When we saw the 10-day itinerary that the Pride of Aloha was on, we wished we had booked her rather than the Pride of America.

Back on task, though. I never really took into account the costs of doing business 100% of the time in Hawaii. Having taken many vacations on Oahu and paying upwards of $5 per gallon for gas, $4.50 for a gallon of milk, etc. it is easy to just absorb a little more in your vacation budget when it just your family there for a week. But when you multiply those food costs by 2000 passengers and 1000 crew, I can see how those costs would multiply quickly and fuel - holy cow - I never really thought about it, but thanks for bringing it to light.

We found the crew to be very fun on the ship. They were not as deferential to the passengers as on other ships we have been on. The crew members we encountered were very approachable, talkative, and friendly. In fact, most of the young crew members reminded me of my own kid who was in high school a the time. It was kind of fun to talk about their home town, the college they were going to, and the kind of work they were doing on the ship. Maybe they didn't have the "polish" of the crew on the Gem (our latest cruise), but in a locale like Hawaii, we loved the casual nature of the crew.

We found the Pride of America to be unique with perhaps the greatest itinerary available, IMHO. We had the trip of a lifetime and it introduced us back into cruising. Thanks for sharing some of the obstacles faced by NCLA as they chart these US waters. It is very interesting to note.

That's awesome! I won $132 playing Bingo on our cruise on the Gem in 2011. I thought that was great, but now I'm really jealous.