Will NCL's UBP be honored in Hawaii?

[Sea saw 56]

We booked a repositioning cruise on the NCL Jewel, she's heading to Australia.

It leaves Vancouver, at sea 5 days, then 5 port stops in Hawaii before heading on. The Ultimate Beverage Package was part of the promotion we got for booking a suite.

From all I have read on the boards, all-you-can-drink liquor is not allowed in Hawaii. The Pride of America doesn't allow that package on their cruises. It makes me wonder how that perk is going to be handled once in Hawaiian waters.

Interested in your thoughts, and what do other cruise lines do?

[CruiserBruce]

I would be asking this on the NCL board, as it is a NCL policy procedures issue.

 

I have never heard that unlimited booze is not allowed in Hawaii, but in any event, rules like that generally only apply if the ship is homeported in Hawaii, not just passing through. A similar example is casino. POA doesn't have a casino, due to Hawaiian law, and is homeported in Hawaii. Ships that are just passing through operate their casinos normally.

[punkincc]

We are skipping the Vancouver to Hawaii leg, but are on the two following. We have the UBP for both of those legs. After leaving port in HNL, the ship visits both Kauai and Hilo before heading off toward Tahiti. There has been nothing to indicate our UBP will be suspended while in Hawaii waters.

 

On the other hand, we did the POA reposition from San Francisco after dry dock, and the UBP was never a possibility, even for the trans Pacific days out of Hawaii's waters.

 

I think the difference is in the flagging of the ships. The POA is US flagged and home ported in Hawaii. The Jewel is foriegn flagged, as are the other cruise line ships which do Hawaii seasonally. I've never heard that they follow this no drink package, no gambling rule while in Hawaii, so I think that must be the difference.

[punkincc]

I would be asking this on the NCL board, as it is a NCL policy procedures issue.

 

I have never heard that unlimited booze is not allowed in Hawaii, but in any event, rules like that generally only apply if the ship is homeported in Hawaii, not just passing through. A similar example is casino. POA doesn't have a casino, due to Hawaiian law, and is homeported in Hawaii. Ships that are just passing through operate their casinos normally.

 

 

Lol. The question was asked on the main NCL board, and someone suggested he ask here.:).

 

Just wanted to add that Kapoho2 posted on our repo Roll Call for the Jewel that he had done an Ensanada to Hawaii repo on a foriegn flagged ship, Legend OTS, with a drink package and was able to use it throughout the cruise, and that their casino was open after leaving port in the islands. So I believe you are correct that the restrictions on the drinks packages and casino only apply to the POA, which is US flagged and home ported in Hawaii. The unlimited drinks package has never been allowed on the POA. And since the POA spends most it's time in port, a casino would have been wasted space.

 

So, the Jewel is foriegn flagged and there should be no issue with a casino or a drink package.

[kgymn]

This makes me wonder if the ships with casinos leave Hawaiian waters to operate their casinos or if there is an exemption. POA never leaves Hawaiian waters, so must always abide by state laws. And the state is very strict about gambling.

 

~Katy

[chengkp75]

Lol. The question was asked on the main NCL board, and someone suggested he ask here.:).

 

Just wanted to add that Kapoho2 posted on our repo Roll Call for the Jewel that he had done an Ensanada to Hawaii repo on a foriegn flagged ship, Legend OTS, with a drink package and was able to use it throughout the cruise, and that their casino was open after leaving port in the islands. So I believe you are correct that the restrictions on the drinks packages and casino only apply to the POA, which is US flagged and home ported in Hawaii. The unlimited drinks package has never been allowed on the POA. And since the POA spends most it's time in port, a casino would have been wasted space.

 

So, the Jewel is foriegn flagged and there should be no issue with a casino or a drink package.

 

This makes me wonder if the ships with casinos leave Hawaiian waters to operate their casinos or if there is an exemption. POA never leaves Hawaiian waters, so must always abide by state laws. And the state is very strict about gambling.

 

~Katy

 

No, the restrictions do not apply only to the POA. I know that when NCL had foreign flag ships (Star) operating Hawaii cruises, even with the run to Fanning Island, they had to power down, wrap up the tables and machines, and seal the casino doors for the entire time the ship was deployed to Hawaii. I believe that has changed, but ships must still get outside of 12 miles to open the casino, and for the POA, which spends 60 hours per week underway, and a lot of that time within 12 miles, it wasn't worth it.

 

I can't say for sure, but one way that cruise lines get away with local liquor laws conflicting with drink packages is to actually charge you by the drink when in Hawaii, in this case, and then credit the charges back afterwards.

[Cruise Junky]

We had the drink Package on Celebrity's one way Honolulu to Vancouver. No change at all between sailing and docked in Hawaii. If they did anything behind the scenes it was not visible to the consumer. The casino opened each night after about 45 mins of leaving port I think.

[chengkp75]

One thing different with the West Coast cruises is that the package is sold outside Hawaii, so the prohibition on advertising and selling an unlimited package does not apply.