Hawaii tips for September cruise

[sargemrs]

For you experienced POA cruisers, I need some input in our planning. There are 6 of us...3 couples cruising. I need to know how far the airport is from the hotels in Honolulu,......Waikki beach seems to be where lots are. Also need some advice on reasonable but nice hotels to stay in the first night. We're wanting to see Pearl Harbor the first day or the next morning before cruise. We're thinking of renting a car and touring or is it as cost effective to book an excursion? Also can you tell me if either an excursion or car rental is necessary for each port, or can we walk and see the sights ourselves? I'm sure these are really ignorant questions but need help to plan sufficiently. Thanks for any help!!!

[puddles99]

If memory serves me, HNL --> Waikiki is about a 20-30 minute drive by taxi, depending on traffic (which can be bad). Waikiki is gorgeous and there are a wide range of accommodations available. I would suggest checking TripAdvisor for ideas for hotels & excursions.

 

In general, Hawaii is very drive-able and you'll typically save money and increase flexibility if you choose to drive yourself vs. booking an excursion (for the record, we made the conscious decision to give my husband's inherent road rage a vacation as well and did not drive at all - it was pure heaven ;) ). However for a group of six you'll need to either rent an SUV or minivan or get two vehicles. The most walkable ports are Kona and Kauai - but I would suggest getting out of the port area in Kauai for sure.

 

You can read a bit about our experience in the review in my signature, but please feel free to post more specific questions and you'll find a number of POA fans around the boards who will be happy to help out!

[buckeye82]

If you are up to the driving (some twisty roads up to the volcanoes, road to Hana and to the canyon in Kauai) you might want to check out Discount Hawaii rental car. You can book cars on line for good prices. I was a little concerned about using them, but after reading the reviews we gave it a try and had no problem. We (five of us) rented a car in every port except Kona. In Maui the overnight parking lot was literally steps from the boat. At each port there was a shuttle bus to take us to and from the pier to the airport (car rental location). It was nice to be on our own schedule.

 

We were in Oahu for a week before the cruise and rented a car there as well. We stayed on the north shore in a rental house and drove all over the island. On embarkation day we dropped off three passengers and the lugguage, returned the car to the airport area and took a taxi back to port (the car rental offered a shuttle to the pier, but we were to excited to wait for it to come back from its current run).

 

In Kona we had a leisurely morning on the ship, tendered in and then shopped in the town, before swimming and snorkling on the beaches just by the tender pier.

 

I don't know what your flight plans are on your return trip, but ours were later in the day so we did the Pearl Harbor excursion on disembarkation morning. For a reasonable price you got the tour, a place to store your luggage (on the coach bus) and a ride to the airport. Very well organized.

[js4rq]

We stayed one night pre cruise at Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach, which is an oceanfront property. It was our first time staying at this hotel. It was worth the splurge, we thought! :) I also recommend Holiday Inn Beachcomber, which is in an excellent location, close to restaurants and shops. Depending on your budget, there are plenty inexpensive Waikiki hotels.

 

If you want to travel in style from the airport to your hotel, I can recommend ABC Limos. Melvin is just a lovely guy. We have used him on two trips. We love his limos! http://www.abclimosvc.com

 

We used Roberts Hawaii for inexpensive pier transfers. We also used them for some shore excursions. You get a discount when booking 3 or 4 combo tours with Roberts Hawaii.

 

You can hire a car or book shore excursions through NCL or Roberts Hawaii, whatever takes your fancy!

 

I agree Kona and Kauai are the most walkable from ports. There are free shuttles at all ports, if you want to go shopping! :D

 

We did the Historic Kona tour, so worth doing, especially for the Place of Refuge! We had time afterwards to go shopping, swimming and snorkelling.

 

We had a tour booked for Kauai but were knackered from doing tours on previous days so decided to wing it. :) We went to Smith's family luau, booked through Robert's Hawaii. Soooo worth it!!! If you are looking at something to do while on Kauai, this is it! :)

 

Another tour I recommend is the Volancoes National park directly with NCL. We loved this tour! It was one of the highlights of our trip. :)

 

Good luck and happy planning...you'll love cruising the Hawaiian islands!! :D

Edited March 27, 2014 by js4rq

[VideoTech]

For you experienced POA cruisers, I need some input in our planning. There are 6 of us...3 couples cruising. I need to know how far the airport is from the hotels in Honolulu,......Waikki beach seems to be where lots are. Also need some advice on reasonable but nice hotels to stay in the first night. We're wanting to see Pearl Harbor the first day or the next morning before cruise. We're thinking of renting a car and touring or is it as cost effective to book an excursion? Also can you tell me if either an excursion or car rental is necessary for each port, or can we walk and see the sights ourselves? I'm sure these are really ignorant questions but need help to plan sufficiently. Thanks for any help!!!

 

We're just off the POA last week. We rented cars in every port *except* Honolulu, and in general it's easy to do. My island by island summary is here.

 

The islands really benefit from having your own transportation. You can set your own schedule, decide what you want to see and do, and how quickly to do it. You can, of course, take ship's or other excursions, but my feeling is you won't get to see or do as much. There is almost no alternative to those two options (your own car or excursions) on most of the islands. Taxis would be expensive, and local bus services don't seem to be that great.

 

That being said, there are at least two ports where you can just get off the ship, wander the town, or walk to a nearby beach. In Kalui-Kona, you will tender right into middle of town. It's very walk-able. In Nawiliwili, the shops and beach at Kalapaki are a short walk away.

 

As for Honolulu: traffic there seemed uniformly awful. You can do Pearl Harbor by bus, taxi, rental car, or excursion - everyone seems to favor a different way. Remember that you can reserve your Arizona Memorial tickets here, but you must still be at the Memorial park within (I think) an hour of your reserved time to pick them up. If you do the Memorial via an excursion, the excursion operator will reserve and supply the tickets. The reservation does not necessarily mean you will get out to see the Memorial. If the weather is bad or the water is rough, the Navy can and will shut down the shuttle boat. However, the other exhibits at the Memorial park are worth a visit anyway, but I don't think you'd have time to do them, the Memorial, and the battleship Missouri and/or Pacific Air War museum.

 

The Waikiki hotels are going to be expensive. We stayed one night at the Waikiki Outrigger and were very happy to be right on the beach, but it was not budget accommodation. The hotels back from the beach are probably less expensive.

 

Finally, since the POA does not sail until 7pm, you have plenty of time that morning to do Pearl Harbor if you get up and get after it. We got to the pier at noon and were struck by how uncrowded it was at that hour, compared to other NCL sailings. Many people do tours in Honolulu on embarkation day, and get to the pier a little later in the afternoon.

Edited March 28, 2014 by VideoTech

[spurt]

As you can tell we POA cruisers are an enthusiastic bunch and love to share our experiences with newcomers. With just a little research you can plan a great cruise that meets your needs. That includes a reasonably priced hotel in Waikiki and great excursions for your group. Check out my review under my signature of our February cruise for some ideas you may be able to use. But trust me, it is a wonderful cruise.

[MamaWals]

I haven't been to Hawaii in a few years but I did the cruise on the Pride of America and have been there another time on vacation and always had a blast.

 

The airport is about 20-30 minutes from Waikiki Beach but traffic can be bad depending on when you're driving.

 

I don't have any recommendations on hotels because we always stay at the Hale Koa because we're military. If you have anyone in your party who is military or DoD I'd recommend trying to get a reservation there because they have a great beach. Hilton is right next to them but is a little pricier.

 

If you want to see Pearl Harbor go early - like when they open. I've been twice and once it was packed, the other time it was only moderately busy.

 

I think renting a car is a great idea. Just make sure your hotel has parking.

 

You can definitely walk the ports if you don't feel like doing a full-blown excursion. However, Hawaii has awesome excursions. We went snorkeling, whale watching, toured the volcano park, went tubing through old sugar cane ditches, visited a macadamia nut factory, and did a wine tour with downhill cycling.

 

I hope you have fun.

[sargemrs]

I appreciate all the hints and advice on our cruise to Hawaii!!! It's helped!