Cruise Review POA Dec 11-18 sailing with PHOTOS

[grenouille123]

This board was so useful in planning our cruise on POA so I thought I’d write a review that will hopefully be useful to future cruisers. Please feel free to ask any question you may have.

 

You can find a photo album of my favourite photos here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/117598706095238614798/HawaiiOnPOACruiseshipDec11182010?authkey=Gv1sRgCO_8u8b3iJSW_gE&feat=directlink

 

A bit about us... We basically did this trip to break up our flights between Canada and Australia. I promised my husband that it would be a relaxing trip so I had to be very careful to schedule in some relaxing time! I’m in my late twenties and my husband in his mid-thirties so we are relatively young cruisers. We are quite active and independent travelers but we do enjoy guided activities that we couldn’t do on our own. We’ve travelled quite a bit (backpacking) but this was only our second cruise (the first one was with Princess in Alaska and got us hooked!). We’d never been to Hawaii before.

 

Pre-cruise: We arrived on Friday evening after a day of flying (from Montreal). We stayed at the Best Western Coconut Waikiki after reading the great reviews on Trip Advisor. We loved it and thought it was great value for less than $150 per night including breakfast for two, internet and newspaper. It’s only a short walk (0.5 mi) to the beach too.

On Saturday morning, we strolled to Waikiki beach, then walked around Fort Derussy park where we enjoyed looking at the different birds. We also looked around the tropical gardens of the different hotels – some of them are beautiful. We caught a cab to the ship at about 12pm. The cab fare was about $15 so I think it’s definitely not worth booking a hotel with a free shuttle to the pier (which we’d considered). Embarkation was very easy and very fast.

 

Morning at Waikiki Beach:

[grenouille123]

The ship: We booked an interior cabin so we’d be able to “splurge” on excursions. I also suffer from sea sickness quite badly so I thought a mid-ship cabin on deck 4 would help me sleep better if the seas were rough...

 

Weather: We were extremely lucky with the weather. We didn’t have a single rainy day on the cruise and we found the December temperatures to be perfect (very warm but not too warm!). The seas were also very calm and I didn’t even feel the need to use the meds and I normally get seasick very easily. I just used the sea bands as a precaution. The water temperature was ok, slightly chilly for snorkelling but perfect for a swim. We’d brought our short-sleeve wetsuits for snorkelling and really appreciated them, although most people didn’t have them.

 

The food: I had read reviews about slow service in the dining rooms so decided to skip them altogether, which made my husband very happy! We ate at the Aloha cafe for most meals and really enjoyed the food there. I’m vegetarian and I was impressed with the variety of foods I could eat (Indian curries or Asian stir-fries with rice, lots of cooked veggies, jacket potatoes, pizza, made to order pasta, salad bar etc.). We loved the outside area of the Aloha cafe and only had trouble finding seats twice. My husband also ate at the Key West Grill a few times and enjoyed making his own burgers. We had one dinner at the Cadillac diner and were disappointed with the quality of the food there (not very hot and so salty it was burning our throats). That being said, we did enjoy the desserts there!

 

The roads: I was the driver on this trip as my husband’s license expired when we were in Canada. We rented cars at 3 ports (Maui, Hilo and Kauai). We took our GPS from home and it really took the stress out of driving. The roads were very nice and reasonably quiet so not once did I wish my husband was driving. We rented with Thrifty and their Blue Chip program (free) was very fast and efficient and it’s definitely worth registering before you leave. We also used the code given on the Hawaii Cruise Cars website and were very happy with the price. One tip though: Make sure your travel insurance covers car rentals. It’s about $40 to add it to your travel insurance for 10 days, but $30 per day to add it with Thrifty.

[grenouille123]

Maui Day 1: We rented a car today. We both love snorkelling so we drove down to Maluaka beach (“Turtle Town”). The snorkelling there was good (not great) but we did spot a few turtles so that made up for the lack of fish. There were lots of small jellyfish in the water so the turtles were busy catching them, which was good to watch. Many people were not getting in the water because of the jellyfish but the stings were mild and only lasted a few seconds so it was fine.

 

Maluaka beach:

 

View from the beach:

 

Turtle that ate a jellyfish in front of my nose!

 

Looking towards the beach from the water:

 

We then took the scenic drive around to Honolua Bay, which we both enjoyed. We were planning on going snorkelling there but we felt a bit lazy so we took a few pictures and headed back. Before returning the car, we drove to the Iao Valley State Park, which had some nice views. Parking was a few dollars though and since we didn’t have cash on us, we didn’t stay very long.

 

Iao Needle:

[grenouille123]

Maui Day 2: We’d booked the sunrise volcano bike ride with Mountain Riders. My husband was not initially enthusiastic about the 3:15am pick up but it was fine in the end because we weren’t quite on Hawaiian time yet. We’d brought warm clothes and Mountain Riders gave us good gloves and rain gear (it wasn’t rainy but it worked well against the wind). We still managed to get cold though, especially because we kept taking the gloves off to take pictures of the beautiful sunrise. They take us there very early so it’s completely dark and great for star gazing (we happened to be there during a meteor shower, which was great). It then takes about an hour for the sun to rise so it’s nice to see more and more of the volcano with the increasing light.

 

 

 

 

They then take us down to 7000 ft where the bike ride starts. My husband and I loved every minute of it. The scenery was beautiful and we really enjoyed the ride. We had a lot of fun leaning into the corners but of course the tour goes as fast as the slowest rider, which did get a bit annoying. We felt very safe the whole time though and we’re happy we went with a tour and not independently. It was great to have the van behind us to stop traffic so we could have an entire lane to ourselves for most of the ride. It’s very fast though so I wouldn’t recommend it for people who don’t feel confident on bikes.

 

Ranch we passed when riding down the volcano:

 

The end of the ride at Paia beach:

 

That afternoon, we walked along the beach towards Kanaha beach park. We were hoping to watch the kite surfers there but there wasn’t enough wind that day. On the way back, we saw about 5 very large turtles swimming by the rock wall where the beach ends (very close to the ship). It’s definitely worth the short walk there if you have a bit of spare time.

[grenouille123]

Hilo: We rented a car from Thrifty again. We drove to Akaka Falls via the 4-mile scenic drive, which we both enjoyed. The falls themselves were nice but the walk to the falls was even better.

 

Akaka Falls:

 

We then drove to VNP where we stopped at the Kilauea overlook and steam vents, from where we took the short walk to Sulphur Banks. I think my husband enjoyed seeing the sulphur crystals more than the volcano!

 

Volcano:

 

Sulfur crystals at Sulphur Banks:

 

We decided to skip the museums and walk the Kilauea Iki Trail instead. We came ready with water, sandwiches from the ship and walking sticks. We had printed the trail guide before we left and enjoyed reading about what we were seeing at each ground marker. We really liked the walk. The terrain was very varied between the rainforest and the crater floor so we seemed to be back at the parking lot before we knew it. It took us a bit less than 2 hours, including the lava tube and stopping at each marker and for a bit of lunch. We were back in Hilo by 3:30pm.

 

Walking on the crater floor:

 

Kilauea Iki trail:

[grenouille123]

Kona: We did the Captain Zodiac snorkelling trip. We booked directly with Captain Zodiac for the 8am tour. We went to the Champagne bar at about 7am and got on the first tender. I don’t think we should have worried about making the first tender because there were many zodiacs there taking people as they were ready. We really enjoyed the tour. The zodiacs go quite fast so it was very exciting and very good for people who get seasick like I do. We were also able to catch up to other slower boats and got to the snorkelling spot before them, which was nice. We stopped to check out a pod of spinner dolphins on the way and we loved seeing them jump around us.

 

 

 

There were no whales to be seen that day so we went straight to Captain Cook monument. We had 90 minutes to explore the area and we had about half an hour before the big boat arrived so we were told which spot to explore whilst it was quiet. The snorkelling was excellent with great visibility and lots of fish.

 

School of sleepy raccoon butterflyfish:

 

 

There were so many yellow tangs:

 

We came back to the zodiac after about 80 minutes of exploring and enjoyed chips, cookies and pineapple before leaving. We had a look at the caves along the coast on the way back and the zodiacs were able to go inside some of them, which was very cool.

 

Goddess Pele looking unhappy:

 

We had lunch on the ship and headed back out to shore in the afternoon. We just walked along the main street and stopped at a nice little place where we had a Kona cappuccino followed by some shave ice. Overall a great day.

[grenouille123]

Kauai Day 1: I got up early and went up to the promenade deck as we were approaching the port. I saw a few humpback whales jumping in the distance, which was a very nice welcome. The sunrise was also beautiful. We were quite excited that morning because we were looking forward to our no-doors helicopter flight with Jack Harter (booked for 11am). They picked us up from the ship at 10:15am, we checked in at their office, which included a quick and very private weigh-in and a safety brief. We were then driven to the heli-port and waited about 10 minutes for our helicopter to arrive. My husband got to sit in the front right seat, which I think is the best seat as he had the floor to ceiling windows in front and the absent door to his right. I got the middle seat between the pilot and my husband. Of course I would have preferred to get seated by the door to get the full “no-doors” experience, but I booked the flight fully expecting to get the middle seat because I am quite small. I didn’t get much elbow room, but the seat was much better than I thought. I was able to take photos left (over the pilot who encouraged me to do so), front and right, which was good. My husband was able to take some amazing shots from his spot. Unfortunately we’d forgotten the polariser for the good camera, but the photos still turned out ok. I also took a few videos, including coming over the ridge into Waimea canyon!

 

The flight was exceptional. We were very glad we booked with Jack Harter. We got deeper into the canyons and closer to the ridges then the other helicopters we could see. The others also quickly went ahead because we were spending a lot more time at every point of interest, which we really appreciated. The lack of doors was not as much of a thrill as we expected. We were strapped on very securely and never felt the need to hold on. We also appreciated the ease of taking pictures and the fact that every seat was a good seat too so. I definitely recommend the flight.

 

Waimea canyon:

 

Napali coast:

 

 

 

 

At the end, we asked the driver to drop us off at the airport so we could rent a car to drive to Kipu Ranch. We did the 3-hour ATV ranch tour there, which we also enjoyed. We decided to try the 2-seat Rhino (side by side) as we’d driven ATV’s in the past and wanted to try something new. The ranch is in a beautiful setting and the guides were fantastic. They were Hawaiian and told us a great deal about their culture, the ranch and the numerous movies that were filmed there. It was very enjoyable, but of course nothing can beat a helicopter flight so it was a bit “boring” in comparison.

 

[RollTideFansinTenn]

Thanks so much for taking the time to write out this great review. My DH and I are thinking about taking this cruise in October and I am trying to gather any and all information I can on POA.

Did you have plenty of room with your inside cabin? Or would you upgrade if given the chance?

We are going to celebrate our 10 year anniversary so we want to do it all! What was your favorite thing/place during this cruise?

Thanks!

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

Love your review. Can't wait to see/hear more.:)

[grenouille123]

Kauai Day 2: This was our token lazy day so we slept in a little, then strolled to Kalapaki beach. I rented a paddle board ($25 for first hour) and had a blast. I tried very hard to catch a wave but unfortunately wasn’t able to. My excuse is that the big beginner’s board I rented was too slow and that the waves entering the bay weren’t powerful enough. Still had a great time trying. We then sat by the beach on the grass under the palm trees and could have stayed there forever.

 

 

Chooks by the beach:

 

We got cocktails at the Waikiki Bar as the ship was leaving and saw many humpbacks waving us goodbye. The Napali coast sail-by was very nice and we saw more whales there too.

 

 

Napali coast sail-by with whale spout in foreground:

 

Napali coast sail-by:

[grenouille123]

Oahu: We were planning to catch “The Bus” to the North Shore but we felt a bit lazy towards the end of the trip so we went for the NCL half day tour to the North Shore. They take care of the luggage and drop people off at the airport at about 2pm.

 

We weren’t expecting much and we were reasonably happy with the tour. We only did 3 stops: Byodo-in temple (very nice), Mac nut farm (we’re Australian so nothing new for us) and Dole plantation (again, not our kind of stop but we enjoyed looking at the rainbow eucalyptus at the front). Our only stop on the North Shore was sunset beach (a quick 5-minute stop). We were fine with this as the surf wasn’t big on the day but we would have been devastated if it had been big. Of course, that’s why we don’t usually go on tours and that’s the price to pay for convenience. The guide was interesting though and made the trip worthwhile.

 

Sunset beach:

 

Byodo-in temple:

 

Rainbow eucalyptus at Dole plantation:

 

The tour dropped us off at the airport, where we got the free shuttle to our airport hotel (Ohana). It was a very convenient hotel as we had an early morning flight on Sunday morning. They had free shuttles running to the airport every half hour and free internet, which is always a bonus.

 

Overall we had a great trip. It’s a great stop between North America and Australia (it splits the travel time and jetlag quite nicely!). We loved Hawaiians and their land is amazingly beautiful. We loved the cruise as a relaxing way to see a lot of Hawaii in a short amount of time. We will definitely be back.

 

Please feel free to ask any question! :)

[grenouille123]

Did you have plenty of room with your inside cabin? Or would you upgrade if given the chance?

We are going to celebrate our 10 year anniversary so we want to do it all! What was your favorite thing/place during this cruise?

Thanks!

 

Thanks Jenny! The inside room was tiny! That being said, there was plenty of storage so everything had a place when we unpacked. We honestly didn't spend much time in our room so I'm glad we didn't pay for an upgrade. Especially seeing we were sailing in winter... It was basically dark anytime the ship was going anywhere. Just my thoughts ;)

 

Our favourite place was Kauai and the helicopter flight was worth every penny! We also loved Kona, especially snorkeling at Captain Cook monument - amazing!

 

Happy planning to you!

[brunolvr]

Beautiful pictures and a great review! Thanks for sharing!:)

[Molokai-Chuck]

Very nice review of your sailing....and great pictures too!

 

Chuck

[TSUmom]

Enjoyed your review and pictures - thanks for sharing!!!:)

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Thank you for your great review and amazing pictures! I can't wait to go.:)

[tone1]

Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful pictures and positive review. Have lots of questions - hope that's ok?:)

 

How did you find service from the crew on POA? Did you attend any shows, lounges or ship activities or were you too tired at the end of each day touring?

 

What did you order from the Cadillac that was salty and which desserts did you like?

Did you miss not doing a luau or did you figure it wouldn't be worthwhile since you are a vegetarian?

 

Was the stop at Byodo-In worth it? How long were you there and what did you get to see while you were there?

[grenouille123]

Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful pictures and positive review. Have lots of questions - hope that's ok?:)

 

How did you find service from the crew on POA? Did you attend any shows, lounges or ship activities or were you too tired at the end of each day touring?

 

What did you order from the Cadillac that was salty and which desserts did you like?

Did you miss not doing a luau or did you figure it wouldn't be worthwhile since you are a vegetarian?

 

Was the stop at Byodo-In worth it? How long were you there and what did you get to see while you were there?

 

Thanks everyone for your kind words :o

 

We both thought the service from the crew was very good. We were always warmly greeted with "Aloha" and everyone was keen for a chat about their experience in the Hawaiian islands. Some staff went out of their way to point out whales to us, which we really appreciated.

 

No, we didn't attend any shows or lounges, mainly because we were enjoying the sunrises every morning so we never went to bed late. Also we quite enjoyed a few laps of the peaceful promenade after dinner - we were sometimes alone there! People who did attend the shows sounded like they enjoyed them though.

 

I had the vegetarian lasagna at the diner and it was very salty. I can't remember what my husband had but it was also too salty. It might have been the preference of the cook though and not actually part of the recipe? Anyways, the desserts were great! I had the brownie and my husband had the strawberry shortcake and we were both happy with our choices!

 

About the luau, it was just not part of the things we wanted to experience in Hawaii. For us, it was just something the people do day after day for a living and not something that was "special". It's a very personal choice though and I'm sure lots of people would disagree! We don't think we missed out on the Hawaiian culture by not going to a luau. The guys at Kipu Ranch especially shared a lot of their legends with us and pointed out important foods and medicinal plants, which was really interesting.

 

Byodo-In was such a beautiful, peaceful place and I would recommend making the quick stop there. We spent about 25 minutes there and thought it was a good length of time to walk around the grounds, visit the temple and try the gong.

[bigtoeswim'n]

grenouille123: Thanks for taking the time to post a review. The hubbie and I are booked for Dec 2011. I like your writing style. It helps a lot to read your details.

 

Of particular interest was your comments on the food. DH and I have 6 cruises under our belt, and we find the more we cruise, the more we graze in the cafeteria section of the ship rather than the MDR. We are in our late 50s and find ourselves very tired after a POC and would rather just eat what we can find. We especially like controlling the fat content.

 

Most likely, I will pick out private tours over driving. At our age, DH does the driving bc I'm directionally challenged. He is tired of driving. LOL.

 

Like your pics too. Thanks again.

[sue402001]

Thanks for the great review of your trip, I enjoyed looking at all of you pictures too.

[wine night]

Hilo: We rented a car from Thrifty again. We drove to Akaka Falls via the 4-mile scenic drive, which we both enjoyed. The falls themselves were nice but the walk to the falls was even better.

 

Akaka Falls:

 

We then drove to VNP where we stopped at the Kilauea overlook and steam vents, from where we took the short walk to Sulphur Banks. I think my husband enjoyed seeing the sulphur crystals more than the volcano!

 

Volcano:

 

Sulfur crystals at Sulphur Banks:

 

We decided to skip the museums and walk the Kilauea Iki Trail instead. We came ready with water, sandwiches from the ship and walking sticks. We had printed the trail guide before we left and enjoyed reading about what we were seeing at each ground marker. We really liked the walk. The terrain was very varied between the rainforest and the crater floor so we seemed to be back at the parking lot before we knew it. It took us a bit less than 2 hours, including the lava tube and stopping at each marker and for a bit of lunch. We were back in Hilo by 3:30pm.

 

Walking on the crater floor:

 

Kilauea Iki trail:

when you rented the car in Hilo from thirfty where did you pick the car up at ? what location do i need to tell them ? thanks for the pictures and information.

[grenouille123]

grenouille123: Thanks for taking the time to post a review. The hubbie and I are booked for Dec 2011. I like your writing style. It helps a lot to read your details.

 

Of particular interest was your comments on the food. DH and I have 6 cruises under our belt' date=' and we find the more we cruise, the more we graze in the cafeteria section of the ship rather than the MDR. We are in our late 50s and find ourselves very tired after a POC and would rather just eat what we can find. We especially like controlling the fat content.

 

Most likely, I will pick out private tours over driving. At our age, DH does the driving bc I'm directionally challenged. He is tired of driving. LOL.

 

Like your pics too. Thanks again.[/quote']

 

Thanks for your feedback :)

 

There were boards in the ship which told us how busy each restaurant was. Most of the time between 6pm-7pm, the 2 dining rooms were in the red and the Aloha cafe was in the green. We never reconsidered!

 

I'm sure you will love your trip! December was a lovely time for the cruise. Hope you're as lucky as us with all the humpbacks in Kauai!

[grenouille123]

when you rented the car in Hilo from thirfty where did you pick the car up at ? what location do i need to tell them ? thanks for the pictures and information.

 

We picked up the car from the airport. They have free shuttles running between the pier and the airport car rental agencies so it's all very easy.

[sage731]

Thanks for the review and the great photos. We are sailing on the 29th and trying to get all the last minute info we can. I hadn't realized the ship sailed so close to the Napali Coast so we will definitely head for the Waikiki Bar that afternoon! We're also taking a helicopter tour at on Kauai--glad we booked it after seeing your photos.

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

I think they were zoomed in on Napali because when I was on the Pride of Hawaii in 2007 we weren't that close. It is still a beautiful sight even if its a distance away, you could still see beaches & caves etc. Looks like the weather was cooperating for OP that day as they are some beautiful pics.