Has Anyone Taken NCL to Hawaii?

[EllieinNJ]

We did the POA last month and just loved it. Didn't just think of it as a floating hotel but an entire experience of traveling to different ports and staying at an inclusive resort, not having to worry about where to dine or any evening entertainment. May wait a few years but would do it again in a heartbeat. Ellie

[mcmomny]

See, that's what I thought. Hawaii is a port intensive cruise. That's why I'm hesitating. I love sea days. I would cruise to nowhere for 7 days not a problem lol

 

It would be cheaper for us, and we'd get the "Hawaii experience" if we just flew to Maui and did snorkeling and the beach there. Or anywhere else. I can't see paying upwards of $6,000 for our crew to do hawaii on a cruise. Thanks for this thread, I think I just decided where our next cruise will be. The Breakaway to Burmuda :D

 

Now we have done both cruises you have mentioned, POA around the Hawaiian Islands and the Breakaway to Bermuda.

 

We enjoyed both very much and we are not sea day fans.

 

Hawaii was amazing and I loved the floating hotel, we came in a few days early and stayed another day after the cruise to relax on land.

 

The POA was just fine, not as fancy as the newer ships but good food and staff

 

The Breakaway was enjoyable as Bermuda was so relaxing, very pretty ship, good food and service and tons of shows but sea days we disappointing as the swimming and sun decks were so over crowded.

 

And I must have gotten a great deal for the POA as it was a cheaper cruise than the Breakaway to Bermuda was.

 

We both agree that we will return to Hawaii and take the cruise again some day as to us it was a perfect way to get a taste of the islands.

 

Bermuda was nice but I have other places I want to see and do before returning to Bermuda, don't get me wrong it was pretty and relaxing but I will return to Hawaii first.

 

Just my opinion

[SissasMomE]

See, that's what I thought. Hawaii is a port intensive cruise. That's why I'm hesitating. I love sea days. I would cruise to nowhere for 7 days not a problem lol

 

It would be cheaper for us, and we'd get the "Hawaii experience" if we just flew to Maui and did snorkeling and the beach there. Or anywhere else. I can't see paying upwards of $6,000 for our crew to do hawaii on a cruise. Thanks for this thread, I think I just decided where our next cruise will be. The Breakaway to Burmuda :D

 

Yep. Exactly the reason we are taking a cruise from CA. I want to cruise. Want the sea days, and also to see Hawaii. If I wanted to be on a different island every day, I'd fly there. Check out princess and royal caribbean. They are anywhere from 9 to 14 nights from CA, and really are not that expensive.

[punkincc]

See, that's what I thought. Hawaii is a port intensive cruise. That's why I'm hesitating. I love sea days. I would cruise to nowhere for 7 days not a problem lol

 

It would be cheaper for us, and we'd get the "Hawaii experience" if we just flew to Maui and did snorkeling and the beach there. Or anywhere else. I can't see paying upwards of $6,000 for our crew to do hawaii on a cruise. Thanks for this thread, I think I just decided where our next cruise will be. The Breakaway to Burmuda :D

 

Yes, if that is what you are looking for, then it is a waste of your money to fly all the way to Hawaii for either a land or a cruise vacation, and to cruise from the mainland there will take a couple weeks roundtrip. There is so much more to Hawaii than snorkeling and the beach. If you are not really interested in seeing it, you can find a beach and water much cheaper in the Bahamas or Caribbean or for that matter any other state with a shoreline. Maybe rethink the whole Hawaii idea.

[mugtech]

See, that's what I thought. Hawaii is a port intensive cruise. That's why I'm hesitating. I love sea days. I would cruise to nowhere for 7 days not a problem lol

 

Perhaps TA would be a good choice for your tastes.

[Barb Nahoumi]

Yep. Exactly the reason we are taking a cruise from CA. I want to cruise. Want the sea days, and also to see Hawaii. If I wanted to be on a different island every day, I'd fly there. Check out princess and royal caribbean. They are anywhere from 9 to 14 nights from CA, and really are not that expensive.

 

If I went to Hawaii again, this would be the way I'd do it. I love sea days, so sailing from California for 14 days would be an option for me.

 

Our first Hawaiian cruise was on the Pride of Aloha, which started life with NCL as the Sky. She has since been reflagged as such.

 

We did enjoy the cruise, and each Island that we visited. At the time, we had a friend who lived on Maui, so we were able to spend lots of time with her.

 

We did think of the ship as a glorified island ferry, thus service and entertainment were just secondary to the island tours.

 

Of all the Hawaiian Islands, Maui was our favorite.

[Traveller20074]

Now we have done both cruises you have mentioned, POA around the Hawaiian Islands and the Breakaway to Bermuda.

 

We enjoyed both very much and we are not sea day fans.

 

Hawaii was amazing and I loved the floating hotel, we came in a few days early and stayed another day after the cruise to relax on land.

 

The POA was just fine, not as fancy as the newer ships but good food and staff

 

The Breakaway was enjoyable as Bermuda was so relaxing, very pretty ship, good food and service and tons of shows but sea days we disappointing as the swimming and sun decks were so over crowded.

 

And I must have gotten a great deal for the POA as it was a cheaper cruise than the Breakaway to Bermuda was.

 

We both agree that we will return to Hawaii and take the cruise again some day as to us it was a perfect way to get a taste of the islands.

 

Bermuda was nice but I have other places I want to see and do before returning to Bermuda, don't get me wrong it was pretty and relaxing but I will return to Hawaii first.

 

Just my opinion

 

thank you! something to consider, since my grankids are with us and the swimming any time they wanted was a highlight :) I was looking at the dolphin excursion in Bermuda, that might be fun. We did enjoy the port day on the Pearl where everyone but us got off lol

Edited June 11, 2014 by Traveller20074

[Traveller20074]

Yep. Exactly the reason we are taking a cruise from CA. I want to cruise. Want the sea days, and also to see Hawaii. If I wanted to be on a different island every day, I'd fly there. Check out princess and royal caribbean. They are anywhere from 9 to 14 nights from CA, and really are not that expensive.

 

oh...good ideas! thank you :)

[Traveller20074]

Yes, if that is what you are looking for, then it is a waste of your money to fly all the way to Hawaii for either a land or a cruise vacation, and to cruise from the mainland there will take a couple weeks roundtrip. There is so much more to Hawaii than snorkeling and the beach. If you are not really interested in seeing it, you can find a beach and water much cheaper in the Bahamas or Caribbean or for that matter any other state with a shoreline. Maybe rethink the whole Hawaii idea.

 

wow. snarky, much? ;)

 

 

don't get me wrong, I've BEEN to Hawaii. I loved the atmosphere, the people were incredibly nice and just a different feel to it. I just want to be on the ship more, and not use it as a hotel.

[Traveller20074]

Now we have done both cruises you have mentioned, POA around the Hawaiian Islands and the Breakaway to Bermuda.

 

We enjoyed both very much and we are not sea day fans.

 

Hawaii was amazing and I loved the floating hotel, we came in a few days early and stayed another day after the cruise to relax on land.

 

The POA was just fine, not as fancy as the newer ships but good food and staff

 

The Breakaway was enjoyable as Bermuda was so relaxing, very pretty ship, good food and service and tons of shows but sea days we disappointing as the swimming and sun decks were so over crowded.

 

And I must have gotten a great deal for the POA as it was a cheaper cruise than the Breakaway to Bermuda was.

 

We both agree that we will return to Hawaii and take the cruise again some day as to us it was a perfect way to get a taste of the islands.

 

Bermuda was nice but I have other places I want to see and do before returning to Bermuda, don't get me wrong it was pretty and relaxing but I will return to Hawaii first.

 

Just my opinion

I sure would like to ask you about the Breakaway, but don't want to threadjack, so will private message you I guess. Edited June 11, 2014 by Traveller20074

[ripjerry95]

I'm on the November 1 sailing on POA. My mother and I are going. We are spending a few days pre/post in Honolulu. Both of us have wanted to go to Hawaii for a long time. This was the best way for us to get a taste of it. I compared costs and for us the cruise was cheaper. But I am using my delta miles for the flight. Lol! A few weeks later I will be sailing on the BA to the Bahamas. The ships and ports are apples and oranges. Happy cruising! Oh and my mother was recently on the Dawn and she was telling some people she was going to be sailing the POA and the people who had sailed the POA had nothing but great things to say about it.

 

 

Send from device_name using Cruise Critic your_app_name App

[Traveller20074]

I'm on the November 1 sailing on POA. My mother and I are going. We are spending a few days pre/post in Honolulu. Both of us have wanted to go to Hawaii for a long time. This was the best way for us to get a taste of it. I compared costs and for us the cruise was cheaper. But I am using my delta miles for the flight. Lol! A few weeks later I will be sailing on the BA to the Bahamas. The ships and ports are apples and oranges. Happy cruising! Oh and my mother was recently on the Dawn and she was telling some people she was going to be sailing the POA and the people who had sailed the POA had nothing but great things to say about it.

 

 

Send from device_name using Cruise Critic your_app_name App

 

another Breakaway cruiser to the Bahamas. Can't wait to hear how it went. On another thread. Later lol

[Llamagal]

We took the POA cruise in 2010 and will be doing it again later this month. Needless to say we enjoyed our first trip and are even more excited this time!

Edited June 12, 2014 by Llamagal

[restasured]

No, and personally I would not. We will be looking at RCCL or Princess when we do finally go.

 

Based on??? We have taken it, in 2012 and it was great. Basically the island hop cruise is port intense, so it is nothing like a cruise that has a couple of sea days then a stop then a couple of sea days and a stop. You are stopped at a port everyday, which is a big plus if you are interested in seeing Hawaii and not just seeing water. We haven't but likely will take the cruise from California, round trip to Hawaii, but it definitely cuts down on the "getting to see Hawaii". We flew to Honolulu on Thursday before the cruise and got there are about 1pm so had most of Thursday and all of Friday and half of Saturday to see Honolulu. We booked a couple of excursion and feel like we got a taste of Honolulu. Then on the cruise you get 2 stops that are overnight. So you are at those stops for over 24 hours. Gives you the opportunity to do a couple of excursions and see that island and not a 9 or 10 hour stop. So if you are basing your opinion on others opinions, they are just like mine, and opinion, from that person.

[Dale's gal]

My husband and I have this cruise booked for our 15th wedding anniversary in 2016! I am not letting any negative reviews make me worry. I too am not interested in spending vacation days sailing the ocean - I want to see Hawaii ! Only 770 days left!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[elhenry]

My husband and I have this cruise booked for our 15th wedding anniversary in 2016! I am not letting any negative reviews make me worry. I too am not interested in spending vacation days sailing the ocean - I want to see Hawaii ! Only 770 days left!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

Dale's gal, welcome to CC, and don't worry about negative reviews. I sailed the POA July 2013 and had a great time. Hawaii is, well, Hawaii, you can't go wrong, and the ship is great. The vibe is different, but that doesn't make it better or worse, just different. "Floaing hotel" does *not* mean lesser quality or service. As you will see from this thread, all of the negatives have either never sailed the POA or sailed Hawaii/NCL more than two years ago.

 

Enjoy!

[BDsquared]

For us, it was a grrrrreat way to see Hawaii!! But the cruise itself did not impress me much. Mostly I felt the service was very poor. Again, though, it's a great way to see the islands!!:)

[Quincella]

We did this cruise on the Pride of Aloha (now the Sky) and loved every second.

 

We were in an inside room, which I would not do again for Hawaii, but it's what we could afford at the time. Even that didn't spoil our trip. We did not experience poor service, and the ship was just fine.

 

I actually almost booked this cruise again for next year, but we've decided on a land trip to Norway instead (a bit begrudgingly......).

[planningdiva]

My DH and I did the Pride Of America (the 7 day cruise) for our first cruise and loved every minute of it. It is the Best way to see most of Hawaii in 7 days. We looked at our ship as a floating hotel as the cruise is very port intensive and we basically slept and ate on the ship as the rest of the time we were off exploring the islands.

 

The staff was great, our Steward knew our names on the first day and never forgot and greeted us every day. The food was delicious, not sure about the entertainment didn't manage to get to any shows but I heard the comedy show was good.

 

The other cruise lines don't give you much time to explore the islands and you miss out on a lot. With NCL you basically have 2 days on each island it's fantastic

 

Good luck picking the cruise for you

[bar1068]

We did this cruise on the Pride of Aloha (now the Sky) and loved every second.

 

We were in an inside room, which I would not do again for Hawaii, but it's what we could afford at the time. Even that didn't spoil our trip. We did not experience poor service, and the ship was just fine.

 

I actually almost booked this cruise again for next year, but we've decided on a land trip to Norway instead (a bit begrudgingly......).

 

Hmmmm....we're considering this cruise for next year to celebrate a "milestone" birthday. Also considering an interior room to save the considerable cost of a balcony..not a big fan of oceanviews, regardless of cost...Going late in September/early October, we thought days would be getting shorter, and with the itinerary being port intensive, especially with 2 overnight stays,maybe a balcony COULD be a bit of a "waste"? But, maybe I'm oversimplfying it to save money?!?!??!

[SFO-F/A]

For my mother's 85th birthday, I took her on NCL's Pride of Hawaii 6 1/2 years ago, when NCL had 3 ships in the islands....Pride of Aloha, Pride of Hawaii and Pride of America. Pride of Hawaii was the newest ship, that's why I chose it. We were in a mini suite.

 

She loves Hawaii, as do I. We both lived there for quite a few years in the mid to late 60s. As we were familiar with all the islands, we wanted the ship to be our main attraction. We spent many hours on the balcony, having breakfast, cocktails, etc. I think we only got off on a couple of the islands.

We had been to all of them while living on Oahu. We seemed to have the ship to ourselves most of the time, it was wonderful.

 

Service was good, not as friendly as we are used to, but no complaints.

 

Currently, there is only the Pride of America left in Hawaii. The prices have more than doubled, as there is no competition. Personally, I would choose a cruise that left from the west coast and returned to the west coast. I like sea days, have seen Hawaii, am retired, no time constraints and the cost is less for more days.

 

To each their own, everyone is different and wants their own experience.

Good luck making your decision.

[Quincella]

Hmmmm....we're considering this cruise for next year to celebrate a "milestone" birthday. Also considering an interior room to save the considerable cost of a balcony..not a big fan of oceanviews, regardless of cost...Going late in September/early October, we thought days would be getting shorter, and with the itinerary being port intensive, especially with 2 overnight stays,maybe a balcony COULD be a bit of a "waste"? But, maybe I'm oversimplfying it to save money?!?!??!

 

In the interest of full disclosure, I'd only sailed in insides at the time I took that cruise, so it didn't feel like any kind of loss to me at all. We did spend a tremendous amount of time on land.

 

Now that I sail with a balcony all the time, I know I'd have a hard time having to sit on deck as we sailed by the Napali coastline, and, if there's active lava flow like there was when we went, past that at night.

 

My favorite part of a cruise is sitting on my balcony, watching the world go by. I would feel the loss now, no matter how much time we spent on shore. Many people would disagree.

 

And if it comes down to taking the cruise in an inside or not taking it at all, book the inside. It's an outstanding vacation. Probably the best I've ever taken.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dogo88]

Hi! My husband and I are NCL fans and have taken several great cruises with them. We would like to do the Hawaii cruise but have heard a couple of very negative reviews from people who have taken it. I don't want to discount it based on such a small sample of unhappy cruisers and would really appreciate hearing from anyone who has taken this particular trip, either the one or two week cruise. Thank you!

 

We did it two years ago and would go again.

 

Dan