NCL Wind Excursions - 11 Day Cruise

[EviesCruisin]

Hi,

 

We are cruising the 6/11/05 sailing of the NCL Wind in Hawaii for our honeymoon. If anyone has done the following excursions and has feedback either way, I would greatly appreciate it!

 

Hilo, Big Island

 

Kilauea Volcano Hiking Adventure

 

Lahaina, Maui

 

Ka'anapali Beach Break

Hoku Nui Luau

Molokini Crater Snorkel

 

Nawilili, Kaua'i

 

Waimea Canyon & Wailua River/Fern Grotto

 

Fanning Island, Kiribati

 

Barracuda Reef Snorkel

 

Kona, Hawaii

 

Open Range Paniolo Horseback Riding

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

 

Any golf, parasailing or ATV recommendations? We're staying 3 extra days in Waikiki Beach.

 

Thanks!!:)

 

Evie

[nebraskanative]

no matter what you do, you will love it!

i was on the 10 day cruise in february. i did the ka'anapali beach break. the sheraton is beautiful! it is a public beach, but it was so clean and nice! i didn't participate, but i saw lots of people snorkeling. the hotel has really nice chairs and umbrellas available for guests. we were provided with cheap beach chairs. but it wasn't a big deal! the price included a beverage. as i recall the choices were a soda, rum punch or juice. i was told that a snack would also be provided, but i had to beg the bartender for a small cup of snack mix. the excursion is, i think, 5 hours, so you may want to take your own snacks. hamburgers at the little restaurant at the hotel were $12!!!

it took an hour to get to the beach, spent 3 hours there and then an hour back to the pier. short day, but it was so nice!

i also did the waimea canyon/fern grotto. i really did enjoy this. it was a very relaxing excursion. again, not a full day, so there was plenty of time to go back to the ship and relax. the boat ride down the river was great-there was a hawaiian band and hula dancer. very good! and the grotto was spectacular! afterward we did a short bus tour to see a few other sights.

i had friends on ship who did a horseback riding excursion. not sure which island, but they loved it! saw the photos and it looked great!

Have a wonderful cruise!!!

[rburns44]

I am also looking at some of those exact same excursions for my Wind sailing 7/23. It is nice to read that a couple are good!

 

Becky

[EviesCruisin]

Thanks so much for your input! I don't know if you'll come back and read this - but if so - do you know if the Sheraton where the Ka'anapali Beach break is located is the same spot where the Luau is held later that evening? If so, we'll pack some snacks and stay until the Luau, rather than driving an hour back to the ship and hour back up north again! I was thinking of ordering room service early and bringing the snacks with me. (If anyone else knows, I would greatly appreciate a response!) :)

[pugsbest]

We haven't done our cruise yet (Aug 13), but have been researching it throughly! Here's what we have learned:

 

Kaanapali Beach Break- Since we will be tendering in Lahaina both days we will only be about 10 minutes from Kaanapali Beach, not 1 hour like previous cruises that were on the other side of the island. You could just take a taxi and rent chairs or a cabana from the Sheraton. Rental info is on their web site.

http://www.sheraton-maui.com/act_beachinfosm.htm

 

Hoku Nui Luau- Heard it was okay, but that the Old Lahaina Luau or the Feast at Lele were much better. Since the ship is in Lahaina until late we decided to do the Old Lahaina.

http://www.oldlahainaluau.com/index_main.html

http://www.feastatlele.com/

 

Barracuda Reef Snorkel- I've read an okay review and a couple bad ones, so we decided to skip it, unless we hear different.

 

We are planning on renting a car on Maui and Kauai, so haven't really checked out the reviews on ship excursions.

 

Julie

[nebraskanative]

the luau is at the sheraton. i highly recommend it. my family had lunch in lahiana and then took a taxi to ka'anapali beach for the afternoon. when we saw people start to arrive for the luau, we made our way over to get in line. the show, the food, it was all great! i'm hoping to get some photos posted so you can take a look. the location was ideal for the luau. i've read about others that are held on the beach, as in, in the sand. this was in a pretty grassy area with nice tables and chairs. we had excellent seats for the show and the buffet line. and it includes an open bar. afterward, buses are there to transport you back to the pier. so to me, $100 per person is well worth it!

[pengu1n]

Hi, Evie! We too are on the 6/11 Wind sailing. Still trying to decide on excursions. I think we will rent a car in Hilo & drive to the volcano natl park on our own. There are 4 of us going: me, hubbie, 22yo daughter & 19 yo son. On Maui, I want to go the the Haleakala crater one day, but am not sure if we should drive there - I know the road is steep, winding and narrow. Does anyone have an opinion about this? I think we will do a helicopter ride on Kauai and the kids want to ride horses one day, maybe do that the other Maui day.

Evie, we have a roll call for our cruise if you're interested:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=118651

We leave in just 2 more months!

[Colorado Babe]

We drove to the crater and it was no problem...It is beautiful up there, you and your family will really enjoy it. Make sure you bring a jacket as it gets really chilly up there and also bring your binoculars, and camera.

 

You must do the helicopter ride in Kaui..This was by far the best excursion we did last week.........You can purchase a VHS tape of your ride for $29.00, well worth the money and memories for ever....Go on line and book your excursion with Safari Air...They will pick you up and take you right back to the pier after your done....They are awesome....Plus, you will save yourself a bundle by not using NCL Excursion desk..

[pengu1n]

Thanks for the reply, Colorado babe! How many people ride in the Safari helicopters? I read somewhere if you have 4 people, it's the same $ to charter a flight (although if only 4 fit, what's the difference?) :confused:

[NJcruiser21]

not sure if i'm right..but my parents did the wind 11 day over the summer of '04 and loved it. they went to the arizona and said it was one of the most touching and breath taking things ever. they did a 3 day pre cruise stay so I'm not sure if that was with the cruise or the hotel. but they said it was a not miss.

 

 

enjoy the cruise!

[Colorado Babe]

Six people rode in our helicopter ride, excluding the pilot...It was hubby, daughter and I plus three other women from Florida. I got to sit in the front seat, passenger side,.It was great..Hubby and daughter were in the back. Three people in the front, four in the back. An awesome ride...

[FLbeachbaby]

can someone who's done the 10 night wind tell me if we can go to a luau on maui? we're there from 8-9 wanted and to go to old lahaina. if you have a car what do you do, take it or drop it off and go back? also, how about getting to molokini. don't want to go on the ships's tour. need help!!

[EviesCruisin]

Great feedback and tips! I didn't realize that the Sheraton was only 10 minutes from the Lahaina port. It looked close on the map, but the cruiseline said a 1 hour drive. For $39/pp I might just hop a cab up to the beach at my leisure and rent a beach chair/umbrella. There was another beach further north - maybe twice the distance - that is supposedly real nice too, according to my Frommer's guide.

 

Thanks for the feedback also on the Barracuda Reef snorkel. Sad as it is, I don't really like fish - but the hubby-to-be likes to snorkel. I think for $55 I'll stay ashore and let him make the call if it's worth it. He'll be snorkeling an Hanauma Bay in Oahu after the cruise and the Molokini Crater Snorkel (I'll be having beer & mai tais on the boat!) one of the Lahaina days. Maybe we'll skip this one.

[EviesCruisin]

FLBeachBaby,

 

If you google Molokini Snorkel several independent tours come up. Just check with your itinerary to make sure you can get there in time and get back to the ship in time. I hear Fair Wind is a nice tour operator if their times work out with your schedule. You could try looking for reviews at TripAdvisor.com or asking other cruisers once you narrow down. We're doing the NCL one because we found many independent trips left really early - before we would be able to get off the ship (probably they do that on purpose). You could try an afternoon trip too. Good luck!

[NCA]

Hi!

 

We too will be on the June 11th sailing. It will be my two children, 8 and 11, my 88 year old mother, my husband and myself. I know we will be renting a car in Hilo as I have been there 3 times already and know the area. I have been to Kaui, but haven't decided if we will rent a car or not. I have been looking at some of the snorkling trips for my oldest child and myself. I would be interested in knowing if anyone has any recommendations for what my mother might be able to do. I was thinking of one of the submarine trips or the glass bottom boat. Has anyone done anything that would be suitable and enjoyable for my entire family? Maybe we meet you on board the Wind!

[FSUJim]

Interesting to see someone else scheduled for the Aug 13 cruise.

I thought I had done my homework in preparing...but you sound like you have me beat!

[NCA]

Does anyone know anyting about the Discover Lanai Catamaran & Jeep Safari? It really sounds good. The price really isn't bad considering it is 8 hours and includes many different activities.

 

6 more weeks before we sail! :)

 

Nancy