NCL Wind in Hawaii - a newbie review

[GregGH]

Hello to all

 

First - this has been a great message board for us to get our info in planning for our trip. We are sitting in Chicago airport on our way home -- Just finished a 11 day Fanning Island Hawaii cruise ...here are some thoughts

 

1) NCLWind was a good ship - for the money -- it was good value ( despite the many reviews elsewhere by perhaps people who just want too much?) -- some have said it is what you make it -- so true ...have good friends and enjoyed it.

2) Car rentals - on this cruise very few passengers did car rentals ... and most shuttle vans wait 1/2 hour before they show up ...so if you worked hard to get off early - say 8:00 --then you waited for 8:30 often( but not always ). YES - Budget in Kona DOES NOT pick up ( the message board told me - but I didn't believe ...so much for a good rate when you add on $20 each way for the cab. Also - Lahaina is awkward - a tender port ( so longer delays ) and the longest wait for the shuttles ( so we grab a cab to start ) --and they all close at 5:00 so the last shuttle is at 4:00 --so another cab ride back since we didn’t leave port til late

3) saw much discourtesy by passengers on 'hogging' deck chairs to and from Fanning Island - they would stake out a chair and NEVER use it - NCL didn't do anything - so some passengers suffered - very windy on way back from Fanning Island since you heading into the prevailing wind. Loved the stern deck on level 8 – most passengers didn’t even know it was there.

4) 50 people missed the boat - due to fog in Detroit - after some err -- much complaining they got NCL to do something -- but still the boat pulled out and they had to make their way to Hilo for the next day ...moral of story --go a day early ...ps - Prince Hotel at $105 is sweet for a 4 star hotel

5) I do NOT think I read about the corkage policy on NCL here -- but found out soon -- you can take your own wine and pay $10/ bottle when you take it to dinner. In Maui we brought back 4 bottles - no problems --when we tried again in prep for long sea voyage --only to find out their policy is one bottle per person per boarding ( our friends had many as well ...security asked if we could pass some to 'other friends' - but we didn't want to impose ..so they took excess ...only to have it sent to our room within 30 minutes --nice gesture NCL- thanks

6) yes - Bistro is worth extra -- we found ( by accident) a 2 for 1 dinning first day towards Fanning in Le Bistro ...portions are big ...we were all really stuffed ...seemed much bigger portions that elsewhere ( tuna salad is a meal into itself )

7) The days are short on shore - watch for local traffic - especially Kona when trying to make it back to the boat. North shore in Kauai was much busier than our last time 7 years ago (see - never tell others of a great spot - you pay the price in traffic )

8) very suprised at how many people on t5he cruise that get sea sick ---lots of women with patches and twin arm bands ... our group had not problem -- but there certainly is a good 'roll' when the trade winds are abeam the boat. You can tell when you got in the lee of the islands - the swell went right down.

9) we did our own air - our friends had NCL do it -- didn't like the policy of having seat assignments only 24 hours prior to flight - and some returns seem to be on the midnight flight --not what I would have picked for sure. ps - on our flight from HNL to ORD Chicago someone got sick and we landed in LAX -- the family get off then change their mind and leave the poor fellow in LAX all alone on his way to the hospital --that is odd – some family ...of course - most of us have now missed our connections ..so I am writing this from Chicago --waiting....

10) exercise --hah -- taking the stairs for 11 days -- forget the exercise room. Then add on some trips like over the lava ( take LOTS of water ) and you will work off the food.

11) can't say enough positive remarks for the wizard publications travel books (http://www.wizardpub.com) - they really show you the hidden spots ... on the road to Hana we skip the first water fall as they suggest and stop at the telephone pole - to see another car there - we meet an elderly couple coming back on the path and they had our travel book ...as we leave two more cars pull over - they too had the same book --hah .… If you have the courage – in Lahaina – take the West Maui road – the north part is totally awesome – take it ‘clockwise’ - you will see why – you can do it easily on the time available –watch for whales from this road when you stop – you are looking down on them. Latter on the south side you can see them in the bay. Ah heck- you see them right off the boat very often –so bring binoculars.

12) snorkeling excursion in Fanning is poor - they keep you off shore ( away from waves ) but it is TOO deep - 30 feet to 100 feet ...who can snorkel that ...over 50 feet the bottom disappears. The Napali Beach extra cost of $20 is worth it - even with no washrooms.

13) having ice in the room is sweet ..especially if you 'accidentally' left some rum in your suit case ( after a long day of exploring - a rum and OJ in your room is very much needed. PS - some had booze in water bottles that they had in their suit case – and where found ...take these water bottles out and put in your back pack in plane view.

14) Costco in Honolulu --- on the map it looks a lot easier to find .... walk towards the airport along the water ( away from the hotels ) -- after a bend turn right - you will see the a Super K Mart one block off the water -- the Costco is behind it ...see the large yellow parking garage and the yellow office building ( the late Dole Pineapple building --kind of behind that ...you can tell we had a bit of trouble finding it on foot -- but really appreciated the OJ and water we brought back ( take a big back pac -- Costco sizes & qty's are large ). Costco also has a great selection of wine - see corkage above. We found them thru our travel books in Maui & Big Island

15) the baggage storage mentioned at Aloha Towers - it is in the Terminal building - it is $5 a bag and they will hold til 7:00 pm. Since you don't want to drive around with your stuff due to crime especially on the north shore - and you can't check in too early for the airport ...the option of day rooms the cruise was pushing did seem like a good idea - especially if you had one of the late flights.

 

Hope this info helps someone. IT is a good trip - especially if you go in a positive frame of mind and have or meet good friends.

 

Got to run now – finally going for our next flight …. Hope you have a great trip as well.

 

Regards

Greg

[candydane]

Thanks for the review! We're going in August so it's nice to hear good things. :D

[Peanut_Kitty]

Yes!! Thanks soo much! :D

[Colorado Babe]

I can't wait to go now..We're leaving on 3/19/05....

[NCmom]

Thanks so much for the review--I have a hard time finding info on the Wind. Looking forward to our June trip.

[aquatic]

Great to hear from you, nice of you to do this on your way back. I hope this does not post twice, I couldn't tell if it went in or not, site is running slow and said "server error" when I tried to post reply.

-Do you know if the seas will be any calmer in June?

-What time did they start boarding the ship? I want to check in luggage, and then do more sightseeing before boarding.

-Love the tip about storing bags after arrival, thanks, rather than driving around with them in the car, as we won't depart until late that evening.

-Did anyone use the Aloha Gold Card for discounts on attractions?

-NC Mom, Hi, had a great trip to the Wolfpack territory, kids loved the schools. Do you think we should start a roll call for our sailing?

[breeding]

Love to read the good reviews!! We also leave in June and I'm starting to get very excited. We have 3 of our port days (Hilo, Fanning, Kona) narrowed down but are still trying to decide what to do the other days.

[pengu1n]

Thanks for the review, Greg. Did you dress up for formal nights? What did most people do? Were the casual dining rooms extra crowded on formal nights? We were thinking about taking the 'fancy duds' to beat the crowds assuming most would go casual, however if the dining rooms could handle the casual crowd, it would save having to pack all those extra clothes.

Do you do any ship excursions? Any recommendations based on what you did or heard about? We're thinking about a helicopter trip in Hilo, to see the volcano. Did you get to see the lava flow from the ship at night?

Is it OK renting a car or is time really too short in the ports?

Thanks for any info! Hope you've arrived safely at home by now! :D

[deltachi96]

Thanks for the great review! It is so nice to read one from an open minded person. We are going for our honeymoon and got engaged on a cruise there 2 years ago so I don't know how many shoer excursiona we will be doing but any suggestions will be appreciated!

[nygirl07]

Glad to hear a good review, I leave in April.

 

I was wondering about cabs on the islands. If you are not renting a car is it easy to get around on the islands. My cousin is in Hawaii as we speak and gave me some great places to visit in Hilo, but he said he doesn't see many cabs around. He mentioned Akaka falls and Rainbow falls and said they are about a 20 minute drive. He said we could probably catch a cab from the dock but he doesn't know how you would get back. How did that work out for the non car renters.

 

Also, how many formal night were there?

 

Thanks again for the review and if you have any more info I'm sure we would appreciate it.

 

Thanks

[hello]

Let me add my "Thank You" for your review and suggestions!!

[hoopsreferee2001]

Glad to hear a good review, I leave in April.

 

I was wondering about cabs on the islands. If you are not renting a car is it easy to get around on the islands. My cousin is in Hawaii as we speak and gave me some great places to visit in Hilo, but he said he doesn't see many cabs around. He mentioned Akaka falls and Rainbow falls and said they are about a 20 minute drive. He said we could probably catch a cab from the dock but he doesn't know how you would get back. How did that work out for the non car renters.

 

Also, how many formal night were there?

 

Thanks again for the review and if you have any more info I'm sure we would appreciate it.

 

Thanks

 

We were just there in January. When you get off the ship, there will be people licking their lips at your sight. These are "independant" tour guides. We decided to try it because the guy went to rainbow falls and Richardson Black Sand beach. He charged $30 per person. I was very skeptical, but it was worth the money. You'll go some other places too - the tour lasted about an hour & half if memory serves me correct.

[GregGH]

-Do you know if the seas will be any calmer in June?

-What time did they start boarding the ship? I want to check in luggage, and then do more sightseeing before boarding.

 

Yes - they are calmer in Summer ...well - a bit calmer -- I did not think that the seas in feb were real rough - just normal.

 

You can start boarding at 12 - but I read where they might make you wait for your room until 1:oo -- we went on a bit after 1:00 and have just a short wait -- when we finished looking around the ship and a quick bite to eat in the sports bar on 12 then we left for 'shopping' around 3:30 and there was quite a line up to get thru security and check in.

 

Another couple of questions on Formal Night -- it might have been the crowd on our boat -- but we saw some shorts in the dining room! ... a very underdressed bunch. They had one formal night - and just for one of the restaurants. Some people were so well dressed and some were so poorly dressed -- you will fit in with just about anything ( but - please - no shorts after 5:30 -- gee - just one cruise & I am a snob already ...:-)

 

Another question on cabs -- we seemed to always see cab's -- but one time at Kona we were wishing the cab would hurry up and get to the car rental ( Budget ) -- it was tight to get back thru the traffic -- BTW - the ship was late leaving that night - we were not the only ones to fight traffic. ps - other car rental companies are tight for return rides from Kona airport - check it out with your for details.

 

On the question for the falls - might that we be an excursion available thru the ship? We found renting a car was so much less money than the ship excursions.

 

Have a great time

 

Greg

[sandyj15]

Can anyone tell me when the ship pulls into the ports, are there beaches close enough that you can go to for swimming and sunbathing.

Any suggestions on what beaches are best to visit.

Going in May 05.

 

Sandy:)