Need some guidance on a Hawaii Cruise

[Saraj]

I'll be on a Transatlantic cruise in late November with 6 sea days in a row at the end, and I hope I don't go stir crazy! They'd better offer a LOT of trivia games on those sea days. :D

 

I like the idea of ending in Vancouver. The Radiance repo cruise ends May 4, but RCI won't release their 2012 Alaska cruise plans until next spring. If we do anything post-cruise, I'd rather travel from Vancouver to Calgary (on the Rocky Mountaineer or via rental car) than take an Alaska cruise that early in the season.

 

I loved the days at sea from Europe to Ft. Lauderdale. Had a balcony and enjoyed just sitting out there reading my book. Also went to the culinary events, teas etc and I thought the time went by fast.

[NancyIL]

I loved the days at sea from Europe to Ft. Lauderdale. Had a balcony and enjoyed just sitting out there reading my book. Also went to the culinary events, teas etc and I thought the time went by fast.

 

We didn't book a balcony cabin, although my in-laws will have one. My husband will enjoy reading books...not so sure I will!

[hucifer]

Actually they are not allowed to reflag their ships in order to do the Hawaii Itinerary.

 

The PVSA, sometimes called the "Jones Act" (dating back to the late 1800's) requires that all foreign flagged cruise ships stop in a foreign port on any trip between US ports. Hence, for Hawaii, the closest choices are Ensenada, Fanning Island or Vancouver.

 

The law also requires that all US flagged ships be built in the United States and since there are no major cruise ship building yards in the US, that is a problem.

 

NCL got a special exemption from Congress for their three ships in the early 2000's. The Pride of America was started by a now bankrupt company in the Southern US. When they went bankrupt, NCL bought the hull and got permission from the US Congress to finish her in Germany. The Pride of Hawaii had her steel cut in the US as she was to be a second ship, but she too was bought and taken to Germany for completion. The Pride of Aloha had been sailing as the Norweigan Sky and NCL got a special exemption to reflag her and only sail her in Hawaii.

 

Since they are US flagged, the three ships needed to have All American crews and that was the problem... not enough good workers to go around. So, NCL pulled the Pride of Hawaii and Pride of Aloha out of Hawaii, reflagged them and left just one American flagged ship in the world... the Pride of America. That allowed NCL to only have to staff one ship.

 

The US flag does require the POAm to follow US minimum wage and overtime laws as well as taxes which forces her operating costs up. She also is not allowed to have a casino or bingo due to Hawaii's strict anti-gambling laws.

 

 

If the reviews that you read are 3 years old, then you need to find some newer reviews. 3 years ago, there were 3 American flagged ships and not enough good workers to go around and service was horrible. Since 2009, there has only been one American flagged ship and NCL has been able to pick and choose the best of the applicants, so service has improved.

 

Is service on the POAm as good as on other NCL ships? Nope. There are still problems due to the American work ethic and probably always will be. But is the POAm a bad cruise? Nope. A Pride of America cruise is basically your hotel, evening entertainment, dining location and transportation between the islands. The itinerary is more port intensive than any other cruise in the world. (how many cruises overnight in Kauai & Maui??) On most nights, I was too tired to even go to the entertainment or lounges.

 

As far as the food, with the exception of the buffet, I found NCL's food to be very good. Much better tasting and more varied selections than on RCCL.

 

There are reasons for the way the Pride of America is the way she is and there is not much more NCL can do about it. But at the same time, don't look for any other cruise line to be able to have an American flagged cruise ship. (and don't look for Congress to change the PVSA/Jones Act.)

Wow, that was really informative. Thanks so much for posting that!

[waf125]

I am just starting to look at Hawaii, and I am interested in Radiance of the Seas' repositioning cruise from Honolulu to Vancouver in April 2012: http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/cruiseDetails/itinerary.do;jsessionid=0000K-uqehmCN-pN-etZfMw0qsx:13hldcctq?packageCode=RD12H008&date=201203&selectedCurrencyCode=USD The roundtrips from CA have too many sea days and too few days in Hawaii. The RCI repo cruises (also on Rhapsody leaving April 30, 2012) have almost as many days in Hawaii as Pride of America, but the price of RCI for 12 nights is about the same as NCLA for 7. If you want to cruise to Alaska in early May - the cruise conveniently ends in Vancouver!

 

Hi!

If you are interested in this cruise, check out our roll call. We have over 1500 posts so far and it is a great group! Love to have you join us!! :D

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1188014

[NancyIL]

Hi!

If you are interested in this cruise, check out our roll call. We have over 1500 posts so far and it is a great group! Love to have you join us!! :D

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1188014

 

Thank you for the link and the invitation. April 22 just happens to be my birthday, too! :D

[Budget Queen]

The repositioning cruises do look interesting, but for me 5 days at sea would still be too much, but better than the 8 on the other round trips. I am sure many would find this a wonderful option. Especially if you ended up in Vancouver and then could cruise Alaska. How great would that be?

 

I'm with you, I find sea days pretty boring. BUT keep booking cruises with them. :)

 

The "worse" I've done is in a few weeks with 10 sea days, but a big bargain at less than $500 pp, also gets me back from the UK. I've done three transAtlantics, not my favorite itinerary, but my husband likes them. The first one was the best and all others way down the scale compared to the QE2 and flying on the Concorde.

 

The RCI itinerary does look good and has a good amount of Hawaii time. NCL is the "winner" with all that you can see and do in ports, but ending in Vancouver is attractive as well. :)

[Budget Queen]

Hi!

If you are interested in this cruise, check out our roll call. We have over 1500 posts so far and it is a great group! Love to have you join us!! :D

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1188014

 

This looks like a great cruise. I wonder how many posts you'll have by time you go?? :)

 

I'm not one to book way ahead, and definately not more than a year, which I've only done once. Is coming up next month, and with all the traveling I've done in between, kind of let it go by the wayside. I definately am more into the late booking. So, maybe?? :)

[Blondebomb]

My DH and I are interested in cruising to Hawaii. We live in San Diego, so it would be nice to do a round trip from San Diego or Los Angeles. We have been to Oahu, Maui and Kona but we flew there and stay a week at each island. I have a few questions that I would really appreciate some advise on.

 

1. On a Hawaii Cruise do you really have enough time in port to really see or do anything? I know there are a lot of Sea Days and that's O.K.

 

2. What cruise line would you recommend on going with for a Hawaii Cruise from San Diego or Los Angeles? I am not interested in Celebrity but all other are fine. We always book a balcony, that's a must.

 

3. Are there any cruise lines that stay in a Hawaii port more then a day?

 

4. I see that the cruises from San Diego and Los Angeles stop in Ensenada, which is a waste of time, but I understand that the cruise line has to stop at a port out of the country. Have you done the Hawaii cruise from or to Vancouver and then to San Diego?

 

5. What are the advantages and disadvantages to a Hawaii Cruise?

 

6. What is the best time of year to go on a Hawaii Cruise? I can go anytime.

 

Thank you so much for your help and if you can add anything else I forgot, please do.

 

I was curious, why not Celebrity?