POA 5/22 Review with a few pictures

[vbmom87]

Brandy - Thanks for the excellent review so far! I noticed for the day in Hilo, you didn't eat lunch until you were back on the ship. If you stopped for lunch during the day, do you think you would have been able to Rainbow Fall, VNP, and the Punalu'u? I'm concerned we won't be able to get all 3 in and we've got to eat lunch along the way. (I am hypoglycemic.)

 

Thanks in advance!

 

We packed lunches from the ship which worked for us. Sure, you can fit in everything you want to do, but you just won't be able to spend a lot of time at any one spot. Make sure you get off the ship as early as you can. I could not convince my group to get up early for this day. In the end we chose to spend 6 hours in Volcanoes National Park and it was not enough for us. All four of us just enjoyed seeing something like nothing we had seen before. We debated the black sand beach, but we were satisfied with see the black sand beach along the Road to Hana. ( we weren't sure we wanted to use up an hour and half driving time to see another black beach beach) I had really wanted to see Akaka Falls, but it didn't happen; We just loved VNP too much. I think we would have had time to see Rainbow Falls, but frankly, we were pretty tired after our 6 hours of touring, and I just liked to have a bit of a cushion when returning the car.

[LovetoTravel82]

Brandy - Thanks for the excellent review so far! I noticed for the day in Hilo, you didn't eat lunch until you were back on the ship. If you stopped for lunch during the day, do you think you would have been able to Rainbow Fall, VNP, and the Punalu'u? I'm concerned we won't be able to get all 3 in and we've got to eat lunch along the way. (I am hypoglycemic.)

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Hi Rebecca...As others have said I think you could do all three, you just wouldn't have as much time at each spot if you wanted to stop for lunch. We took snacks with us and ate those in the park. I had intended to stop somewhere for lunch between VNP and the black sand beach, but we didn't see any places to stop. I think the making sandwiches idea is great, we should have done that.

 

Rainbow Falls really doesn't take long at all. It is beautiful, but there is not a lot to do there, so we didn't spend very long there.

 

 

--Brandy

[LovetoTravel82]

do you mind saying what your cabin number was. We are boarding the POA on Saturday and we are also on the 9th deck. once again your pictures are great, what type of camera do you have?

 

We were in cabin 9086. Thanks for the compliment on the pictures. My camera is a Canon PowerShot SX120.

 

--Brandy

[LovetoTravel82]

Today was our lazy day. We slept in and then had a late breakfast. We waited until they had went to open tender for the tenders to shore (around 10:30 ish). We waited in line less than 10 minutes for a tender to the shore. The process went really smoothly.

 

Once on shore, we took a taxi to Kahalu'u to go snorkeling. I was not impressed with this beach or the snorkeling here. I didn't see very many fish and the rocks/formations in the water were not particularly interesting. I felt like this was sort of a wasted day. The area where you entered the water had a lot of slippery rocks. After about a few hours here, we decided we were not really enjoying this beach and so we took a free bus back to the shops near the harbor.

 

We picked up some souvenirs and browsed the shops. Then we hung out in a bar called Kokonutz for awhile. They had some good happy hours special and very good live music. It was a very relazing, low-key day. I enjoyed hanging out at Kokonutz. It was pleasant to sit and look out at the ocean and drink my margarita.

 

We enjoyed taking a bit of a break from our hectic vacation schedule this day, but we have discussed it since and wish we had either rented a car and went to better beach or scheduled a snorkeling excursion.

 

--Brandy

[kwbound]

...We waited until they had went to open tender for the tenders to shore (around 10:30 ish). We waited in line less than 10 minutes for a tender to the shore. The process went really smoothly.

 

Would you have been able to get on an earlier tender? We have a non-NCL snorkeling excursion planned and we are supposed to be at their site at 8am. Which means getting off the ship and catching a taxi as early as possible. Are we going to have problems getting off early if we are not on NCL excursions? We don't mind getting up early to wait in line.

 

Thanks for the info. I am enjoying your review.

[vbmom87]

Would you have been able to get on an earlier tender? We have a non-NCL snorkeling excursion planned and we are supposed to be at their site at 8am. Which means getting off the ship and catching a taxi as early as possible. Are we going to have problems getting off early if we are not on NCL excursions? We don't mind getting up early to wait in line.

 

Thanks for the info. I am enjoying your review.

 

Others who have done what you want to do, have posted that you should get in line by 6:30 a.m. for your tender ticket. Those who have done this claim to have gotten on the first or second tenders.

[LovetoTravel82]

Kauai was soooo my favorite island!

 

On the first day we rented a car from Avis. The Avis shuttle was fairly slow in Kauai. This was the only port we had to wait for over 20 minutes for the shuttle. It seemed like some of the other car rental services were running shuttles more often. This could have just been bad timing though. There was no line to pick up the rental when we got to the rental agency.

 

After picking up our car, we drove to Opaeka'a Falls. Then we headed north on highway 56 to Ke'e Beach. On the way to the beach, we stopped at the light house. It was beautiful. We didn't go in, we just went to the scenic overlook.

 

 

 

 

Ke'e beach is at the end of highway 56. We went there and looked around for a bit, but it was very crowded and we had noticed Tunnels Beach on the way up to Ke'e, so we drove back to Tunnels. I loved Tunnels. The snorkeling was very good here, although there was a bit of a current to the water and it gets up to probably 10 foot deep fairly quickly, so probably not the best spot for kids. We loved it though. This was a great combination beach. It has a nice sandy bottom when you first get in and is pleasant for walking or playing in the water. Then just a short way out in the water there are lots of underwater "tunnels" and a lot of fish seem to love this area. Other than Molokini, this was my favorite snorkel spot of the trip. We would have probably spent most of the day here, but then after a couple hours it started raining. Oh, also as a plus for this beach, it has nice restrooms and showers and there was a place to buy snacks. There is also an amazing view of the mountains from this beach. I could have happily spent days here!

 

After it started raining, we drove to Hanalei to have lunch. We had a pleasant lunch at a place called Kalypso's that had a beautiful of the mountains. It had started to look like rain in this area too after lunch, so we headed back south. We stopped at several scenic overlooks along the way. By the time, we were back to Lydgate Beach the weather was better. So we stopped and spent awhile on this beach. It was a pretty nice beach, but it does not even compare to the beauty of the north shore beaches.

 

After awhile at this beach, we left the beach and drove to Wailua Falls. You can't really get a great view from the overlook. We got a much better view of this falls from the flight (more details of that to come in the Day 2 review). There was still some daylight left, so we decided to add a quick trip to Spouting Horn to our day. The waves were not all that high while we were there, so it wasn't spouting a lot, but it was still an amazing site.

 

 

 

 

After this we returned the rental car and took the last shuttle Avis was running back to the cruise ship. This was around 8 p.m. This was a very full day, but it was a lot of fun. It really didn't feel rushed. We went at a leisurely pace enjoyed the day.

 

--Brandy

[LovetoTravel82]

Would you have been able to get on an earlier tender? We have a non-NCL snorkeling excursion planned and we are supposed to be at their site at 8am. Which means getting off the ship and catching a taxi as early as possible. Are we going to have problems getting off early if we are not on NCL excursions? We don't mind getting up early to wait in line.

 

Thanks for the info. I am enjoying your review.

 

We could have definitely got on an earlier tender than we did. I'm glad vbmom responded because I had no idea how early you would need to be there to get on one of the first tenders. Since we had such a low-key day scheduled, we were in no hurry and didn't want to spend a lot of time sitting in Pink's Lounge waiting for our tender to be called. My understanding is that once you have picked up your tender ticket you have to wait in that one lounge until your number is called. Good luck with getting an early tender and I hope you enjoy your snorkeling excursion.

 

--Brandy

[CruisingGoddess]

riofriotex, vbmom, & Brandy - Thanks for answering my question!

 

Brandy - Thanks for continuing your review!! I'm really enjoying reading it!

[riofriotex]

We debated the black sand beach, but we were satisfied with see the black sand beach along the Road to Hana. ( we weren't sure we wanted to use up an hour and half driving time to see another black beach beach).

 

I was actually disappointed in Punalu'u, particularly compared to the black sand beaches I saw on Road to Hana. My mother and aunt, though, with their limited mobility, had not really seen those, and wanted to go to this one. It was very cloudy and overcast while we were there. I was turned off by the ticky-tacky souvenir shop right on the beach, and it seemed rather trashy that day, not as beautiful as the travel brochures and postcards lead you to believe. I think the delay from stopping in Pahala so my parents and aunt could eat also hindered my enjoyment; I was worried about getting the car back and getting to the ship on time, and we did not spend as much time here as perhaps it deserves. It is probably nicer the further down it you walk, away from the people (and the souvenir shop). As it was I did not get the car back to Thrifty until 4:26 PM and then had to wait quite a while for one of their tiny shuttles, so I really felt I was cutting it close.

 

Bottom line, if you think you want to do this (Punalu'u), make sandwiches and bring fruit from Aloha Cafe, and plan to have a picnic either at the beach or at VNP depending on how your time goes.

[annecolorgreen]

Thanks for your continued updates!

[CruisingGoddess]

I was actually disappointed in Punalu'u, particularly compared to the black sand beaches I saw on Road to Hana. My mother and aunt, though, with their limited mobility, had not really seen those, and wanted to go to this one. It was very cloudy and overcast while we were there. I was turned off by the ticky-tacky souvenir shop right on the beach, and it seemed rather trashy that day, not as beautiful as the travel brochures and postcards lead you to believe. I think the delay from stopping in Pahala so my parents and aunt could eat also hindered my enjoyment; I was worried about getting the car back and getting to the ship on time, and we did not spend as much time here as perhaps it deserves. It is probably nicer the further down it you walk, away from the people (and the souvenir shop). As it was I did not get the car back to Thrifty until 4:26 PM and then had to wait quite a while for one of their tiny shuttles, so I really felt I was cutting it close.

 

Bottom line, if you think you want to do this (Punalu'u), make sandwiches and bring fruit from Aloha Cafe, and plan to have a picnic either at the beach or at VNP depending on how your time goes.

 

Thanks for your sharing your experience. I think we will probably skip Punalu'u then. We will also being seeing a black sand beach during Road to Hana and I'd rather spend more time in VNP than driving out to Punalu'u. Thanks again!

[LovetoTravel82]

Sorry for my delay in finishing this review.

 

Day 2 in Kauai may have been my favorite day of the whole cruise. We went for a flightseeing tour with Wings Over Kauai. It was amazing! They picked us up at the ABC store near the cruise ship. The flight was amazing and much more reasonably priced than helicopter tours. The Napali coast and Waimea Canyon are absolutely gorgeous from the air.

 

After returning from the flight, we walked over to the beach in front of the Mariott and spent a little while there. Then picked up some souvenirs in the shops at Anchor Cover, before returning to the ship.

 

We got lounge chairs on deck 13 and laid out in the sun until we got to the Napali coast. This provided a different, but equally amazing view of the Napali coast than we had earlier in the day from the flight. Kauai is such a beautiful island.

 

 

 

 

 

--Brandy

[annecolorgreen]

What gorgeous pictures! But I'm sure it's nothing like being there ;).

[LovetoTravel82]

On the last day, disembarking was really simple. We ate breakfast in the Aloha cafe and finished packing, then walked off the ship with our luggage with us. We had a rental car from Thrifty this day and a shuttle quickly arrived to take us to the airport location to pick up our rental car. They offered us an upgrade to a convertible, but unfortunately our luggage wouldn't fit in the trunk, so we had to stick with our original rental. We kept our luggage with us in the trunk, which I know lots of people recommend against keeping personal belongings in your rental car, but we decided to gamble on this approach since our flight was not until 10 p.m. that night. We had kept belongings in our trunk throughout the week and we had no issues with this on any of the islands.

 

We drove to the Waikiki area and ate at Cheeseburger in Paradise. Then we hiked Diamond Head. This was amazing and well worth the time. However, it was around noon by the time we started hiking and was very hot. I would recommend starting earlier in the day, if you can. The hike is not that difficult and the views are well worth it.

 

After hiking Diamond Head, we went to the end of Waikiki Beach near the zoo (i.e. away from the hotels). This area has public restrooms and showers, so it was convenient to change here and then shower off after our beach time.

 

We then headed to the airport, returned the rental car, and caught our flight home. I wish I was still in Hawaii....it was a great trip!

 

Overall, I think PoA is a great sample of Hawaii. However, if I ever go again I would select only two islands and explore each island I visited more. Kauai would definitely be one of the two I would want to go back to see again. I'm not sure as to the other one I would include if I ever get a second visit. It would be a tough decision between Oahu and Maui.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions for me.

 

--Brandy

[Raison]

Those photos from Kauai are soooo beautiful!! Can't wait to get there!;)

 

We can't decide between a helicoptor or WOK plane flight. What was the plane like? Were the windows big and how many passengers and how many window seats?

[Londen'sMiMi]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review; I've really enjoyed reading about your experiences. We plan to do a lot of the same things when we leave on the POA next Saturday! Mahalo!

[LovetoTravel82]

Those photos from Kauai are soooo beautiful!! Can't wait to get there!;)

 

We can't decide between a helicoptor or WOK plane flight. What was the plane like? Were the windows big and how many passengers and how many window seats?

 

They have two different planes. One that holds 2 passengers and one that holds 4. The one that worked into our schedule was the one that takes 4 passengers. Everyone gets a window seat on the right hand side of the plane, which is the side facing the island with all the great views. The windows were very large, I had a great view. I got a bit of the wing in a few of my pictures, but not many. They provide great personal service and they also gave us a free DVD at the end of the flight that is about 10 minutes of highlights from the same flight path that we took (not from our actual flight). The flight lasts over an hour. I was very impressed.

 

The only negative that I have to say about it, is that I did notice one helicopter near us for a few minutes as we flew over the beginning of the Napali coast and it was quite a bit lower than we were. So you would probably be getting a better view due to being lower. Although, I thought my view was amazing and I love the results of my pictures! For me, the flight being half the price and lasting longer than the helicopter tour swayed me to the flight. I'm sure either one would be amazing though.

 

Hope you enjoy your trip.

 

--Brandy

[CruisingGoddess]

Thanks for finishing your review!! Glad to hear you had such a great experience!

[tripster]

Would you have been able to get on an earlier tender? We have a non-NCL snorkeling excursion planned and we are supposed to be at their site at 8am. Which means getting off the ship and catching a taxi as early as possible. Are we going to have problems getting off early if we are not on NCL excursions? We don't mind getting up early to wait in line.

 

Thanks for the info. I am enjoying your review.

 

We just got back from the 06/05 POA cruise. We went down to get our tender tickets at 7 am and there was no line at all. We were the only ones there at the time. We ended up with something like ticket #s 42 & 43 and were on the first tender out. (I believe they took 90 people out at a time.) There was no problem at all. :)

[kwbound]

We just got back from the 06/05 POA cruise. We went down to get our tender tickets at 7 am and there was no line at all. We were the only ones there at the time. We ended up with something like ticket #s 42 & 43 and were on the first tender out. (I believe they took 90 people out at a time.) There was no problem at all. :)

 

 

Thanks Tripster! That's the just kind of info I was hoping for!

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Thank you for the wonderful review. Your pictures were beautiful.

 

I have gotten so tired of rushing for private tours when I have to tender that I am inclined to go ahead and book a ship tour for tendering ports. That way you save time and maximize your port time. Although I must say that a relaxing day at the beach would probably be a nice way to spend the day by the time we get to Hilo. It is such a port intensive cruise!

[diverearl]

I've been debating Molokini--wondering if I can find equal quality snorkeling from the shore?? My husband does get seasick...and I'm trying to pinch pennies where I can so we can spend more in other areas! We will actually be in Maui for four days before the cruise.

 

You might find a couple of shore diving / snorkeling sights you want to try while you are on the islands on this web sight http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/Hawaii/index.htm just click on the sight you are interested in and read the reviews for that area. Some of the reviews are old so you might want to do a Google on the sight you like to get more information.

 

I agree with the previous poster that the area south of Kona called the Place of Refuge or just a minute past that is a place called Two Steps both have some of the better shore diving / shore snorkeling on the islands.