Best time of year for Hawaii weather on Pride of America

[ctrlbrk]

Hi guys,

 

I'm looking to jump ship from RCL and try NCL, I need some new ports!

 

I'm considering the Pride of America's Hawaii 7-day, and having never been to Hawaii I wonder if I could get some advice on the best time of year to book her. I prefer to go when there are fewer kids, but also want to have the best chance of clear skies and no rain.

 

Any advice?

[Vyhanek]

I'd go during whale watching season. The peak is middle February thru late March.

[ctrlbrk]

I'd go during whale watching season. The peak is middle February thru late March.

 

Thanks. I am not overly focused on the whales, as I get to see them here in South America. I am more interested in having as little rain as possible, but I am not really sure of the 'true' climate of Hawaii and some of those historical weather websites say rain every day but they don't make it clear it may only rain for 10 minutes a day.

 

So just trying to figure out based on others actual experiences.

[barnacle_boy]

Summer/Fall is the dry season. Winter/Spring is the wet season. It can rain year round, but daylong downpours are more prevalent from late November until early April. One of the upsides to coming during the wet season is some of scenery is greener with all the water.

 

Whether or not you get rain is actually more contingent upon what part of the island you are visiting. On Oahu, for example, the windward coast (east side of the island) gets significant rain throughout the year. Rain clouds tends to get trapped on the Ko'olau mountain range and dump their water on Kaneohe. The other, leeward side of the island is thus quite dry by comparison.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Edited May 13, 2014 by barnacle_boy

[JohnCoMo]

It rains a lot in Hawaii, especially in the winter. But when it does, it's usually no more than 30 minutes. I go to Hawaii every year and have only been there a few times when it rains most of the day. However, anything is possible with mother nature.

 

I know this is not going to be a popular thing to say on this site, but I don't think I would recommend taking a cruise in Hawaii. There is so much to see on land and you will feel rushed on a cruise. You don't have enough time in port to truly experience the real Hawaii. If you want to see more than one island, try booking 4 or 5 days on one island and then 4 or 5 on another. You'll appreciate your time there much more than spending just a few hours in port.

[Zimomiller]

We sailed the POA in July and had magnificent weather all week.

The only time it rained was the night we flew in to Honolulu.

[Okmyx]

I know this is not going to be a popular thing to say on this site, but I don't think I would recommend taking a cruise in Hawaii. There is so much to see on land and you will feel rushed on a cruise. You don't have enough time in port to truly experience the real Hawaii. If you want to see more than one island, try booking 4 or 5 days on one island and then 4 or 5 on another. You'll appreciate your time there much more than spending just a few hours in port.

 

Absolutely agree. I returned from 10 days in Maui a couple of weeks ago and each time the ship arrived in Lahaina the entire town seemed to change from a peaceful place with character to a horde of tourists (I try not to visit Lahaina on the days the ship is in). If you want to see the real Hawaii you need to spend time on the islands without the crowds.

[VideoTech]

..........

I know this is not going to be a popular thing to say on this site, but I don't think I would recommend taking a cruise in Hawaii. There is so much to see on land and you will feel rushed on a cruise. You don't have enough time in port to truly experience the real Hawaii. If you want to see more than one island, try booking 4 or 5 days on one island and then 4 or 5 on another. You'll appreciate your time there much more than spending just a few hours in port.

 

I agree that for the full experience of any one island, you want to travel there and stay on that island for several days. However, the POA cruise is a fantastic introduction to Hawaii, allowing you to sample Maui, the Big Island, and Kauai, with what amounts to two days and one night on each of the three islands.

 

No, you won't be able to do everything on those islands in the time allotted by the cruise. But you will be able to do enough to decide which island you'd like to come back to in the future. You'll also be able to spend extra time on Oahu before or after the cruise, if you like.

[MissMet]

Been to Hawaii twice- once in November, once in May. Both were beautiful and they each had their advantages. In November the waterfalls were minimal from the lack of rain. May the waterfalls were a lot fuller. I don't remember seeing rain in November, but in May we had an unusual RAINY day on Maui. May was warmer & probably my favorite time.

[Linda the Book Lover]

I agree that for the full experience of any one island, you want to travel there and stay on that island for several days. However, the POA cruise is a fantastic introduction to Hawaii, allowing you to sample Maui, the Big Island, and Kauai, with what amounts to two days and one night on each of the three islands.

 

No, you won't be able to do everything on those islands in the time allotted by the cruise. But you will be able to do enough to decide which island you'd like to come back to in the future. You'll also be able to spend extra time on Oahu before or after the cruise, if you like.

 

I agree with you about taking the cruise to get an idea which of islands you might wish to spend time on at a later date. When we took our cruise we did a pre-cruise stay which was a nice relaxing way to start the vacation. We had enough time to do a few things. It was a wonderful cruise on the old NCL Wind. We went in April and the weather was fine. There was some brief showers but it sure didn't deter us. I hope you book and have a great time.

[barnacle_boy]

Take it from someone born and raised in the islands. You could spend a lifetime in Hawaii and still not experience and appreciate all that this beautiful place has to offer :) Cruising in general is nothing more than an abbreviated "tasting menu" of various destinations, and Hawaii is no different. If you have only a week and want to experience multiple islands there's no better way than POA. It's certainly cheaper than paying for multiple hotels, car rentals, and airfare between islands. Local airfare is ridiculous (costs ~$200 per person to fly from Honolulu to Kona roundtrip), so POA is actually quite a bargain.