Pride of America. Help Please

[ShaleseClements]

I'm going on the pride of America this Saturday, October 17. We are going for our honeymoon and since we've been planning the wedding and moving we haven't had time to plan the honeymoon. We are staying at the Hilton Hawaiian Village October 14 to October 17. Any tips would be appreciated. We looked into renting cars... But since I turn 25 not until next month it's kind of pricey. We can't decide if we wanna rent a car. Should we just take a taxi to the port on Saturday? Or do they have shuttles? What are some fun things to do at every port? Where are the best places to snorkel? We looked into the Molokini crater snorkel excursion. Anything would help! Thanks :)

[Silver Sweethearts]

If you haven't done so already, also post these questions on the Cruise Critic Hawaii message board.

[casofilia]

Take a taxi to the Cruise Ship Wharf, we were out by the airport and shared with another couple; it was so easy.

 

If you want to go to Pearl Harbour catch the 40, 42 or 62 bus from Downtown; takes a while but very cheap. Go early so you are there before all the tour buses. It is a must do trip and you can spend a lot of time seeing everything.

 

I would suggest two half days if the weather is at all hot especially if there are lots of tour buses arriving while you are there.

 

Another tour is a round tour of O'ahu (Grand Circle Island Tour). We did one from NCL but like most NCL tours was a little expensive; I would imagine your hotel would be able to get details for that. The one we had had a great meal included.

 

I would also recommend "Kauai Backroads Adventure", one of the best tours we have done anywhere. Of course you have to do the "Luau Kalamaku", another really great "not to be missed" outing.

 

Mike

Pom by Birth; Retired Coin Collecting Kiwi by Choice.

[DwayneG]

Many on this board and Hawaii board have endorsed discounthawiicarrental.com ... I noticed that their page which lists rental vendors, says brand 4 offers "reduced young drivers fee" on rentals booked through them.

[greatlakesgirl]

We rented cars through Discount Hawaii Car Rental in every port but Kona, where we walked around the town and shopped.

 

On Maui, day one we drove to Iao Valley and then on to Lahaina for lunch, followed by Whaler's Village near Ka'anapali beach.

 

Maui, day two we did the Molokini Snorkel excursion through NCL. Very good, though due to high winds we didn't make it out to Molokini. We went to another location instead. Didn't matter to us, we still had fun!

 

Hilo, we went to Punalu'u black sand beach and then to Volcanoes National Park.

 

Kona, walked around the town and did a little shopping.

 

Kauai, day one we went took the north road up to Hanalei with many beautiful stops along the way.

 

Kauai, day two we took the free shuttle over to Kalapaki beach.

 

Again, we just rented cars. So easy and so fun!

[punkincc]

Second the recommend for Discount Hawaii Car Rental. I would call them re the age min to see if there is a workaround. Tell them you are on a cruise. They usually get people the 2nd and 3rd driver fees waived, so maybe they can help on this as well. A rental car is definately the way to go in Maui and Kauai. You'll save $$$ over tours. ( Unless you will have a big penalty because of age with the cars ).

 

If the rental car is a no go, you can always research each island ( easy to do on google and Trip Advisor for attractions on each island ) and then look for tours you can book through the ship or independently. Look for those that will pick up at the pier. You will not walk off the ship and find vendors so you need a plan. These are mostly industrial ports.

 

In Waikiki, you really don't need a rental car unless you are heading to the north shore. You can easily get t most everything in Waikiki area by foot, bus or taxi. Why waste money for a daily rental. And the hotels there charge $30 parking daily. HHV where you are staying has their own rental desk.

 

As suggested, get over to the Hawaii board here on Cruise Critic and ask your questions one island or port, in the case of the Big Island, at a time.

[gmazz]

We used Johnny Cab for both our airport pickup to HHV and to the pier. I think it was about $40 each time. We grabbed a cab at the hotel to go to Diamondhead and found one waiting in the lot for the trip back. We walked to the diner across the street from the HHV both mornings for breakfast and walked to Dukes for dinner a night. It was about a ten minute walk, not to bad. We didn't rent a car at all, did tours on the cruise and took cabs or walked in Waikiki. Hubby didn't want to drive so I didn't torture him!

 

Highly recommend Mary Lou's tours in Hilo if they are available, we saw a lot during the tour and it is small groups. Also Captain Zodiac in Kona for snorkeling was great.

 

Sent from my XT1080 using Forums mobile app

[cb at sea]

Remember...if they aren't 25...the rental rates are HIGH.....

[Budget Queen]

Even with the high rental costs- I would NOT think you would want any "group" touring, or waiting around wasting time either? The high rental costs- give you a LOT of freedom and value. I would rent in every port.

 

Especially with your snorkeling- with a car- (you would need to do this tour on day 2) you can stay in the area and continue to Lahaina as example. Booking your snorkel tour is also going to be better than a ship contractor, I like Boss Frog. :)

 

So much MORE you can see and do with a car. Hilo- Volcanoes National Park- which is a bargain attraction, and out of Kona- superb snorkeling- I'm always at 2 step, plus the added attraction of Place of Refuge.

[milolii]

If you want to rent cars, I would do that now. Cars are sometimes limited on the Islands, with Oahu as an exception. I know many have reported that cars are always available. That is not always true. Cars are shipped to other islands for certain events. Such as; the Kona Ironman held last Saturday on the Big Island. It will take a while to get the cars back to the other islands, and even over to Hilo, once they are returned.

 

Discounthawaiicarrental is great. But if they do not have cars, check with the individual companies, Hertz, Avis, Alamo, Budget, Thrifty etc.

 

Lots of great advice and suggestions on this board. Look at gohawaii.com as well for information.

[herdingdogmom]

For Oahu, I second Johnny Cab. I used him in July and it was $25 from Airport to Waikiki and back. Well worth it. The HHV does have a shuttle they use that is likely a bit less $ per person but makes many stops.

 

For Maui and Kauai we rented cars with Thrifty. The rates were great, but then again I'm well over 25. Check with each rental company. As I recall rom my corporate travel days, some do not have the 25 year old restriction that Hertz has. As others have suggested there is a ton of good information on the Hawaii ports of call board. Happy honeymoon.

Edited October 13, 2015 by herdingdogmom

[kluv2cruz]

Shaleseclements if you are a foodie look into hole in the wall food tour on Oahu. Also hike diamond head early in the am. All the ports are easy and nice to explore by foot &/or bus. Be sure to explore your hotel grounds and watch the Penguins and other wildlife.

[CruisnDeb]

Try calling Brent at Pacific Shuttle & Tours http://www.pacific-shuttle.com/rates.html His rates are really reasonable--$13 for Waikiki to the cruise port and $18 for Airport to Waikiki (rates include up to 3 people and you are the only riders.....so no additional pickups/dropoffs.)