Car or sit at airport

[lv2bgoofy]

We come back from the cruise and our flight doesn't leave until 3:30 p.m. - wondering if I would be better off renting a car or just taking a shuttle to the airport? I have looked for tours and haven't found anything that would fit in this schedule....any ideas?

 

Thanks

[Pokeraddict]

I don't know where your from but we are from Canada and just came home on Sat.

We flew United and got to airport 4 hours prior to flight due to the fact that they were closing Kuhio st at 4 pm.

We flew 777 so lots of passengers and there were probably 100 poeple in the line when we arrived.

You have to put your luggage through and agriculture x machine then go to airline ticketing desk. Then go through security.

The airport is one of the nicest with and outdoor Japanese garden/ponds etc. and benches to sit on, lots of shops and eateries so you can easily eat up a lot of time going early.

Remember if you rent a car you will need to put all your luggage in the trunk because break-ins are high in Hawaii.

The only other options would be the bags program through the ship(which doesn't work for Canadians)

and/or a tour that includes drop off at airport through cruise line or Roberts.

[lv2bgoofy]

Thanks - how did you enjoy your cruise? Would love to hear about it. We are from AZ and I'm not sure what the latest is that you have to be off the ship but say it is 9:00 a.m. that would mean about 6 hours sitting at the airport. I would use a luggage company to get our two bags to the airport so we wouldn't have that to worry about.

 

Just don't know that I could kill that many hours sitting in an airport.....was check in that long of a procedure....did it take an hour say to get through all the checkpoints?

 

thanks for your help

[herdingdogmom]

We come back from the cruise and our flight doesn't leave until 3:30 p.m. - wondering if I would be better off renting a car or just taking a shuttle to the airport? I have looked for tours and haven't found anything that would fit in this schedule....any ideas?

 

Thanks

 

We checked our bags at the pier building for $5 bag and took a taxi to the Iolani palace. It is a nice tour and isn't too far away. Across the street is the King K. statue. You could also head to Waikiki and hang out on the beach for a couple of hours or shop. If you really are in the mood to shop, you could also go over to Ala Moana mall for a couple of hours - it isn't too far from the pier. Then get back to the pier, pick of your bags and go to the airport about 1:00pm.

[Pokeraddict]

No the check in did not take long, we just had no choice but to get out of Waikiki as I didn't know how bad the trafficc was going to be due to parade, as it turned out it was a $50 cab ride but did work out ok.

The 4 hours we had at the airport went really fast as there are a couple reasonably priced stores in there to mozy through. Didn't buy anything but 2 years ago we bought a couple rare sea shells that come from very very deep waters and they were charging less than i could get them for at the Aloha Market place.

The airport (3rd time we have been there) is very quiet and doesn't seem busy even though 70k pax come and go almost everyday.

You also need to know that you can't check in your luggage any earlier than 4 hours prior.

 

Here is a nother idea. You can check your bags at the cruise terminal for $5 a bag walk to China town and cab it back or vice versa, you can also see al ot of sites in and around the cruise terminal such as the beautiful buildings in the financial area , the ‘Iolani Palace and King Kameamea statue just a coupl blocks from terminal.

 

Don't waste your time going to the Aloha Tower as there are next to no stores there anymore, they keep closing more and more over the last couple years..

[Pokeraddict]

The cruise was great, we did b2b and only had 1 day of rain out of 20, it was just perfect weather. The ship was fine although showing some wear and tear but certainly acceptable. Food was great, entertainment was also good especially Tim the comedian, Frankie Valle Tribute and their new show Lights camera action was also quite good, they put a million bucks into this show.

We ate at the specialty restaurants every night with Bistro being our favorite. They also run a special first night called "The Best of" with best dishes from the other restaurants for $15 bucks, was well worth the money. especially if you like prime rib.

[Pokeraddict]

As for a review I was going to do one but really don't have the time and frankly sometimes I just think their a waste of time as I don't think they get read a lot.

[lv2bgoofy]

Thanks to both of you for the ideas....sounds like storing our bags and doing the taxi to Iolani Palace sounds pretty nice. Thanks for the heads up on the 4 hours prior. Spending some time at Iolani would be perfect and then heading to the airport.

[lv2bgoofy]

Appreciate hearing about the restaurants on POA - thinking we might hit a few of these restaurants while on board as well. I have heard good things about Bistro and also Teppankayi I believe it was. Don't know if we will have the energy to do any of the shows but I have heard good things about Tim

[Pokeraddict]

You don't need to take a taxi to the palace as its only maybe two blocks from the ship.

You can do an audio tour for $13 pp which is quite good and where you go to buy your tickets there is a room that show a video and covers some history thats also quite good.

You can burn an hour an a half just doing the above.

[Pokeraddict]

As for Teppankayi we were talked into going by the maiter'd how use to be a waiter in the Italian restaurant his name is Kwok he is a big Asian man extremely pleasant and use to be one of the morning greeters at the buffet entry doors.

We have always eaten at the Asian Restaurants as we have always found the seafood to be stir fried to perfection and I must say I was impressed with the food at Teppankayi just remember to ask for extra shrimp and scallops when ordering and they will accommodate you if that's what your ordering ( I forget whats its called on the menu).

[Boytjie]

Thanks - how did you enjoy your cruise? Would love to hear about it. We are from AZ and I'm not sure what the latest is that you have to be off the ship but say it is 9:00 a.m. that would mean about 6 hours sitting at the airport. I would use a luggage company to get our two bags to the airport so we wouldn't have that to worry about.

 

Just don't know that I could kill that many hours sitting in an airport.....was check in that long of a procedure....did it take an hour say to get through all the checkpoints?

 

thanks for your help

 

When we were on POA in November 2010 we used their luggage service and airline check-in - not sure if it is still offered. We out our bags out the last night and were luggage free until we got home. We rented a car and drove to the North Shore - but our flight was around 8 pm. I think you could still do it, or maybe go to Waikiki for some last beach, lunch and/or shopping. It is much easier if you don't have to drag your luggage around.

[lv2bgoofy]

My husband doesn't do very well walking so even though it is a short walk I think we would still taxi it over there.

 

I would definitely be ordering the shrimp and scallops so thanks for the heads up on the extra....guess I will be making a trip to reservation desk when I get on board.

[lv2bgoofy]

When we were on POA in November 2010 we used their luggage service and airline check-in - not sure if it is still offered. We out our bags out the last night and were luggage free until we got home. We rented a car and drove to the North Shore - but our flight was around 8 pm. I think you could still do it, or maybe go to Waikiki for some last beach, lunch and/or shopping. It is much easier if you don't have to drag your luggage around.

 

 

Unfortunately they don't have that service any longer so I think using the pier service is the best option or the service that will take your luggage directly to the airport...

[Boytjie]

Unfortunately they don't have that service any longer so I think using the pier service is the best option or the service that will take your luggage directly to the airport...

 

I suspected that. It was wonderful!

[Pokeraddict]

I hope you have a whale tour booked for Maui. We had whales around our boat holding us captive as the boats are not allowed to have their engines running if the whales come for the boat which they did, as a result we were held up an hour longer than tour was suppose to be. There were so many whales that day that it was like watching popcorn popping. We got some amazing pics as well as about 15 min of video, these whales were touching the boat with their flippers thats how close they were, they were rolling over and and showing their under belly, swimming on their sides, going back and forth under the boat it was just unbelievable.

[herdingdogmom]

My husband doesn't do very well walking so even though it is a short walk I think we would still taxi it over there.

 

I would definitely be ordering the shrimp and scallops so thanks for the heads up on the extra....guess I will be making a trip to reservation desk when I get on board.

 

It is about 4 city blocks in 75 degree heat w/humidity to the palace from the pier. The taxi ride was only $3-4, but the taxis lined up at the pier only want fares to the airport so plan ahead and call a taxi from the ship/pier. Our taxi driver was awful and took another family who was going to the airport. If you call, they can meet you right outside the gate (something about pier permits) and whisk you over to the palace. We had the docents call us a taxi to pick us up after our guided tour (I hate those audio things and it was pretty comparably priced). The taxi took us back to the pier and waited while we got our bags and took us to the airport.

 

Re: specialty restaurants, we also enjoyed the $15 first night sampler special in Le Bistro. Our favorite was Lazy J's and East Meets West was quite good - especially the lobster special on Wed. night. Plus you can see the Teppanaki "show" from the East Meets West tables.

[lv2bgoofy]

Thanks for the heads up about the taxi - I will make sure that I make a call prior to heading out there so I don't have the problem.

 

How late can you get off the ship?

 

Thinking we will definitely do the sampler and the lobster night for sure....

 

Yes 75 degrees....well the heat portion won't be a problem for us but the humidity might be....we are from AZ so 75 is perfect....since we are use to 115 but the humidity is not a friend of mine.....as they say it is a "dry heat" here...:p

[herdingdogmom]

Thanks for the heads up about the taxi - I will make sure that I make a call prior to heading out there so I don't have the problem.

 

How late can you get off the ship?

 

Thinking we will definitely do the sampler and the lobster night for sure....

 

Yes 75 degrees....well the heat portion won't be a problem for us but the humidity might be....we are from AZ so 75 is perfect....since we are use to 115 but the humidity is not a friend of mine.....as they say it is a "dry heat" here...:p

 

It is very muggy in HI and after a week of excursions I doubt you will be wanting to walk around the industrial port or office buildings.

 

The latest baggage tags were for 9:00am. You put them out the night before vs. taking the big bags off yourself. We ate in the buffet around 8:00 and got off the ship at 9:00am. You could probably leave a little later. The pier bag check in line was long at 9:00am. If you do leave the bags out the night before, be sure to start looking for the bag tags near the guest services desk (across from where you make dining reservations) starting Wed or Thurs. The 9:00am tags are the first to go.