Rare Cruise Junky Posted November 4, 2011 #101 Share Posted November 4, 2011 I've done Celebrity round trip from LA and NCL round trip from Honolulu. I would much rather be spending 6 hours in a cramped airplane seat and 7 days enjoying what Hawaii has to offer, than 8 days on a cruise ship. I think the beaches and other natural beauty that Hawaii offers are preferable to trivia, production shows and the other entertainment offered on a cruise ship. Especially when 4 of the sea days can be pretty iffy. I've found that the first 1-2 days out of LA and the last 1-2 days back can be rough and overcast--they were on my Celebrity Hawaii cruise, as well as many of my Panama Canal and Mexican Riviera cruises out of LA. Or this reported on the live thread.... "I cruised the Golden to Hawaii Oct. 12 - 26. We figure we lost about 14 hours of our trip 'sitting, reading, and waiting' just for the 8:15 (or early) shows. 1 hour a day just for a show - doesn't seem like a lot but when you times it by 14 days - that's almost an entire waking day for us. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruisin' Chick Posted November 4, 2011 #102 Share Posted November 4, 2011 There is no such thing as too many sea days So true!!!! Our second Hawaiian RT was our best cruise ever! We didn't even have great weather (a lot of rain leaving LA and cool for a few days coming and a couple going), but the Golden Princess has so many activities, especially Hawaiian ones. To us, Hawaii is a bonus.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWJs Posted November 4, 2011 #103 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Our 2nd RT Hawaii cruise is coming up December 17th on the Sapphire. I booked this cruise more for the sea days than the islands. As far as islands go, I prefer the Caribbean islands.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Working 2 Cruise Posted November 4, 2011 #104 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Love the Sea days. Time to unwind from daily life. For us it is a gift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ukbecky Posted November 4, 2011 #105 Share Posted November 4, 2011 IMHO this cruise offers two destinations - the ship and Hawaii. Land vacations can be exhausting but cruises with many sea days are just relaxing. Our last big trip was a two week safari in Tanzania. It was the most amazing vacation but not at all relaxing. If I want to just relax in the sun on a beach, I don't have to go all the way to Hawaii for that. If I want to experience all Hawaii has to offer, a land vacation is the only way. YMMV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sincity Posted November 4, 2011 #106 Share Posted November 4, 2011 I love sea days, but 2-days in a row is about all I can handle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Putterdude Posted November 5, 2011 #107 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Our 2nd RT Hawaii cruise is coming up December 17th on the Sapphire. I booked this cruise more for the sea days than the islands. As far as islands go, I prefer the Caribbean islands.:) Interesting, as you know we were on the same cruise... and while we will go back someday, I did find the sea-days combined with the weather in either direction...particualrly within 48 hrs of the mainland not quite what I would describe enjoyable. We have come to love the Caribbean, just not the 5 hr flight to FLL. Oh well nothing is perfect.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kath00 Posted November 5, 2011 #108 Share Posted November 5, 2011 I am reading over and over again that the ship feels very crowded on sea days. You have to get to shows and classes an hour early to get seats. I have never had to do this on any cruise ship before so it has me totally turned off from these cruises. I dont want to just sit in my room but at the same time, I hate the thought of having to leave dinner early to get seats at a show. That doesn't sound romantic our relaxing... I think we are going to avoid all these many sea day cruises until the cruise lines do more crowd distribution.... Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul929207 Posted November 5, 2011 #109 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Or this reported on the live thread.... "I cruised the Golden to Hawaii Oct. 12 - 26. We figure we lost about 14 hours of our trip 'sitting, reading, and waiting' just for the 8:15 (or early) shows. 1 hour a day just for a show - doesn't seem like a lot but when you times it by 14 days - that's almost an entire waking day for us. " I solved that problem. I don't go to the shows. Just sit out on the balcony in the evening and relax with my wife. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul929207 Posted November 5, 2011 #110 Share Posted November 5, 2011 I am reading over and over again that the ship feels very crowded on sea days. You have to get to shows and classes an hour early to get seats. I have never had to do this on any cruise ship before so it has me totally turned off from these cruises. I dont want to just sit in my room but at the same time, I hate the thought of having to leave dinner early to get seats at a show. That doesn't sound romantic our relaxing... I think we are going to avoid all these many sea day cruises until the cruise lines do more crowd distribution.... Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk Not sure what you mean by "crowd disteribution"? But if you mean having few people, that is unlikely. They are sailing full. I never felt the need to get to anything 1 hour early Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Cruise Junky Posted November 5, 2011 #111 Share Posted November 5, 2011 I solved that problem. I don't go to the shows. Just sit out on the balcony in the evening and relax with my wife. I do the same thing actually. Havent been to a show in years. But given a choice, I'll be on my deck "in" Hawaii, rather than enroute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruisin' Chick Posted November 6, 2011 #112 Share Posted November 6, 2011 I am reading over and over again that the ship feels very crowded on sea days. You have to get to shows and classes an hour early to get seats. I have never had to do this on any cruise ship before so it has me totally turned off from these cruises. I dont want to just sit in my room but at the same time, I hate the thought of having to leave dinner early to get seats at a show. That doesn't sound romantic our relaxing... I think we are going to avoid all these many sea day cruises until the cruise lines do more crowd distribution.... Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk We did this cruise exactly five years apart on two different ships, and I know the last cruise, we never had a problem getting seats even when we didn't come very early. And I think that was the case on the one five years ago either. But then, we don't try for the first few rows. The one exception was for the Princess Idol finale, but as I was in the hula show during the "halftime" (after the performances and before the winners were announced), we were told to get there early and sit in front so we can just throw off our shoes, get on stage and impart a bit of "aloha" on the audience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kath00 Posted November 6, 2011 #113 Share Posted November 6, 2011 By crowd distribution I mean offering more open venues and activities that occur at the same time. This way, people have more options for places to go to and therefore aren't ALL in one or two theaters (which seat only a few hundred people despite there being 2500+ pass on a ship). I am reading 3 live threads right now on longer cruises (2 Hawaii plus the 28d Sapphire cruise to Tahiti and back) and they all complain about the crowds, sadly. This may not be a big deal for some but it's just not something I have patience for on a vacation. I actually adore the Sapphire and have never experienced "crowds" on her in the 6 sailings we've been on, so it leads me to believe that the many sea day type cruises may result in overcrowding (because people literally have nowhere to go but to the 1-2 shows and activities). This is why I think it's important for cruise lines to step up to the plate and simply add MORE things to do. They should have 4-5 shows/musical options per night, plus daytime classes like lei making or ukelaili multiple times a day so that it's not standing room only. Just my opinion, of course. We all love different things about cruising so what may annoy one person may be nothing to someone else. Katherine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Umbarger Posted November 6, 2011 #114 Share Posted November 6, 2011 Never done this particular Princess cruise but have cruised to and around Hawaii 5 times. I could never do this cruise. I am a basket case after the second day at sea. I was stir crazy. After 4 days at sea from Vancouver for one cruise to Hawaii and I knew never again. Also, If I am going to go to Hawaii I am going to want to spend more time in Hawaii. This cruise just gives you such a small taste. I just love the NCL cruise around the Hawaiian islands. Done this one twice. Go in a few days early and stay a few days longer in Honolulu and the cruise in the Hawaiian islands is much more extensive. I know many people just love this cruise, however I know it's not for me. You just won't know how you will like or dislike extended sea days until you do them. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LindaM Posted November 6, 2011 #115 Share Posted November 6, 2011 We did that cruise in February. I believe we had 4 sea days, from Hawaii to Ensenada. The biggest problem was that the weather was cold and windy, as we got closer to N. America. I wouldn't do that itinerary unless it was summer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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