Honeymoon cruise booked for Hawaii on NCL Pride of America

[the28thfish]

My husband and I got married in October and didn't have a honeymoon following our wedding. We finally decided on a cruise to Hawaii this summer in July. NCL was the ONLY line offering any Hawaiian cruises during the summer months, so we booked it! The cruise will be on the Pride of America ship, which has just recently been remodeled. I am looking forward to this trip. Has anyone been on this ship to Hawaii sailing with NCL? I've been on a NCL cruise once before, my first cruise actually. I felt it was the best line out of Royal Caribbean and Carnival. <3:hearteyes::champagne-toast:

[punkincc]

Yes, lots of people have sailed on the POA. We've done it twice and it's my favorite itinerary. Have you found your Roll Call yet? There is a link at the top of this page.

 

You'll probably want to find the Hawaii Message Board in the Ports of Call section if you haven't already. It's a good place to learn about the islands and tour ideas. Also, read as many POA trip reports as you can find here on the boards.

Edited March 6, 2017 by punkincc

[deladypilot]

Loved my POA cruise even if it was way back in 2009. It was beautiful and fun. They offer all kinds of free classes, or they did. You can learn to make your own Lei's, learn to hula and what the meaning of all the hand jesters is. Learn your name in native Hawaiian etc.

 

There is so much to do and see so choosing your shore excursions is going to be hard.

 

Make sure you go out a day or two early so that you can be relaxed after flights

 

Have fun

[mcmomny]

Loved our NCL Hawaii cruise also! Can't think of a better honeymoon choice! Congrats!

 

So much to tell you but yes join your roll call as soon as possible.

 

We rented a car on each island, pre-booked them from home, and did our own thing each day. Had a great map and we just stopped and checked out things that sounded good to us. Yes we did the big stuff, Road to Hana, the two National Parks, a luau but mostly we walked beaches and hiked to waterfalls.

 

Amazing trip, but the POA is not the same as the other NCL trips. The biggest reason anyone takes this cruise is for the Islands and not the night life on the ship. You won't find a casino and quite frankly we were so exhausted each night we had dinner, a quick drink and hit the sack so we could start it all over again the next day. Never saw a show, swam in the pools or did any specialty dining.

 

Enjoy!

[the28thfish]

Loved our NCL Hawaii cruise also! Can't think of a better honeymoon choice! Congrats!

 

So much to tell you but yes join your roll call as soon as possible.

 

We rented a car on each island, pre-booked them from home, and did our own thing each day. Had a great map and we just stopped and checked out things that sounded good to us. Yes we did the big stuff, Road to Hana, the two National Parks, a luau but mostly we walked beaches and hiked to waterfalls.

 

Amazing trip, but the POA is not the same as the other NCL trips. The biggest reason anyone takes this cruise is for the Islands and not the night life on the ship. You won't find a casino and quite frankly we were so exhausted each night we had dinner, a quick drink and hit the sack so we could start it all over again the next day. Never saw a show, swam in the pools or did any specialty dining.

 

Enjoy!

 

Thanks for your feedback! Wow! No casinos? That's unusual, and a slight downer since I enjoy table games. I am more interested in having time to explore the islands. I have sailed previously to Bahamas and Bermuda and felt like there wasn't enough to do, nor enough time to do it at the destinations.

 

Would you recommend avoiding purchasing shore excursions on the ship? I would like to just venture out and see what is in the area for us.

 

I have not done a roll call, but I will now.

 

Thanks!

[VideoTech]

My husband and I got married in October and didn't have a honeymoon following our wedding. We finally decided on a cruise to Hawaii this summer in July. NCL was the ONLY line offering any Hawaiian cruises during the summer months, so we booked it! The cruise will be on the Pride of America ship, which has just recently been remodeled. I am looking forward to this trip. Has anyone been on this ship to Hawaii sailing with NCL? I've been on a NCL cruise once before, my first cruise actually. I felt it was the best line out of Royal Caribbean and Carnival. <3:hearteyes::champagne-toast:

 

 

We absolutely loved our POA cruise...it's a great way to see the islands and find out which one you might want to go back to someday!

 

There's a link in my signature below to my POA review and information about rental cars in Hawaii. You might be interested in reading them.

 

Have fun!

[BirdTravels]

Thanks for your feedback! Wow! No casinos? That's unusual, and a slight downer since I enjoy table games. I am more interested in having time to explore the islands. I have sailed previously to Bahamas and Bermuda and felt like there wasn't enough to do, nor enough time to do it at the destinations. Would you recommend avoiding purchasing shore excursions on the ship? I would like to just venture out and see what is in the area for us. Thanks!

 

 

Congratulations! POA and Hawaii are a wonderful cruise. Plan to spend a day or two in Hawaii before the cruise (get over the jet lag).

 

POA is a US flagged ship sailing only to Hawaiian ports (i.e., no international ports of call). Gambling is illegal in Hawaii so it is illegal on the ship.

 

We sail [a lot] and always take the cruise line shore excursions because it is easy. Yes, more money. But no hassle, no fuss. No need to deal with sightseeing companies when things/itineraries change. (e.g., POA had to change itineraries a few times last summer to avoid hurricanes).

[pizzalady1]

We took this cruise in 2008 and will be going again this December. Both times we rented cars in each port or used private vendors. Car rentals are fairly inexpensive if you book early. Researching where you want to go is imperative. We had great maps and we marked the places we wanted to go (this was before GPS's were popular). We had a great time, saw what we wanted to see, stopped where we wanted to stop.

[Kattus]

Congratulations on your upcoming honeymoon! DH and I sailed last May and absolutely LOVED it. I started a review, but never quite finished it, maybe one of these days.;p

 

Hope Mercy is still on the ship; she was the best server!

[punkincc]

Thanks for your feedback! Wow! No casinos? That's unusual, and a slight downer since I enjoy table games. I am more interested in having time to explore the islands. I have sailed previously to Bahamas and Bermuda and felt like there wasn't enough to do, nor enough time to do it at the destinations.

 

Would you recommend avoiding purchasing shore excursions on the ship? I would like to just venture out and see what is in the area for us.

 

I have not done a roll call, but I will now.

 

Thanks!

 

Car rentals and self guided tours work especially well in Maui and Kauai. You can get a rental car in Hawaii for $30 or $40 for a full day. Many of the best sights are simply drive up and look. Why book an expensive excursion costing you 4 X as much for only a few hours? Wiamea Canyon, Mt Haleakala, Road to Hana for example. The shuttles will meet you at the dock and the rental offices are at the airport minutes away. Use Discount Hawaii Car Rentals website to book. No money in advance and no cancel fees. The driving is very easy, but if you'd rather not drive, find a few like minded people on the roll call and suggest joining up to share a van to maybe Waimea Canyon am and Poipu Beach in the PM or whatever peaks your interest.

 

 

Although it's possible to tour by car in Hilo and Kona as well, we do like to use a private excursion company for Volcano National Park, the waterfalls, etc. in Hilo, and for land tours in Kona. We use Mary Lou's Big Island Tours in both ports. Small group, usually 6 people and family guided only, reasonable price. You'll see them mentioned often on the Hawaii Board and Trip Advisor, which is a great resource for researching what there is to see and do in each port, and reviews of the various independent tour companies. If you like to snorkel, Kona has great water. Research Fair Winds morning snorkel & barbeque which goes to Kealakekua Bay next to the Captain Cook Monument.

[mcmomny]

Thanks for your feedback! Wow! No casinos? That's unusual, and a slight downer since I enjoy table games. I am more interested in having time to explore the islands. I have sailed previously to Bahamas and Bermuda and felt like there wasn't enough to do, nor enough time to do it at the destinations.

 

Would you recommend avoiding purchasing shore excursions on the ship? I would like to just venture out and see what is in the area for us.

 

I have not done a roll call, but I will now.

 

Thanks!

 

Yes, book your own excursions! Check out ports of calls on cruisecritic to get ideas and suggestions from others, read tripadvisor about each island to get ideas and suggestions. Read posters reviews for ideas! Also a tour book of the Islands will give you the highlights. We liked a map from frankosmaps it's a website with really nice maps and highlights of places to see

 

We pre-booked our rental cars online from home and they emailed us directions on how to get to the rental places, all pretty quick and easy.

 

We knew certain things we wanted to do on each Island and made those our priorities and then wandered in-between our stops. Ate at small little local places, hung out on lots of quiet beaches, we where there during prime whale season so we saw lots of them off shore. I am not a big shopper but I do remember coming across a small artsy community on Kauai and really enjoying the area.

 

I booked my own luau online, and the helicopter trip also but the weather was bad so it was cancelled. Everything we booked on our own was much cheaper than using the excursions from the cruise ship.

 

Have fun!

[metrolady]

My husband and I got married in October and didn't have a honeymoon following our wedding. We finally decided on a cruise to Hawaii this summer in July. NCL was the ONLY line offering any Hawaiian cruises during the summer months, so we booked it! The cruise will be on the Pride of America ship, which has just recently been remodeled. I am looking forward to this trip. Has anyone been on this ship to Hawaii sailing with NCL? I've been on a NCL cruise once before, my first cruise actually. I felt it was the best line out of Royal Caribbean and Carnival. <3:hearteyes::champagne-toast:

 

 

 

So glad I found this thread....My son is also looking at a POA cruise in Aug for their honeymoon. This will be a first cruise for both of them.

Are the beverage pkgs included in the cruise fare for this itinerary? I doubt that it would be worth the cost to purchase one onboard, due to the port intensive itinerary.

[zerooveride]

I can relate to the OP. Me and my wife were married last April but instead of going on a Honeymoon we bought a house. A year later we have extra money to finally take our belated honeymoon. We're also going to sail in July. I've sailed both eastern and western caribbean and am looking forward to the Hawaiian islands. The only thing I think I am going to miss is a sea day or two. Those were always relaxing.

[Rwjx2]

We sailed on the POA last August. Amazing time!

We love to snorkel so we spent half our time hitting those spots. Sometimes as a tour and sometimes on our own. Renting a car makes seeing the sights so easy.

 

POA doesn't have a casino. Nor does it have the drink packages like other ships. For alcohol you pay per drink. If that's a problem I suggest you take the $80 per person per day and just budget it for your final bill. You can purchase a wine package onboard and buy buckets of beer. Both have a discount.

[punkincc]

So glad I found this thread....My son is also looking at a POA cruise in Aug for their honeymoon. This will be a first cruise for both of them.

Are the beverage pkgs included in the cruise fare for this itinerary? I doubt that it would be worth the cost to purchase one onboard, due to the port intensive itinerary.

 

No UBP type packages are offered as promos for POA bookings or on the ship for purchase due to Hawaii's liquor laws. They do offer a wine package which is available the first couple of days. Not sure if it is offered precruise.

[NutsAboutGolf]

Was there for my honeymoon last August...Assuming you're staying at least the night before in Oahu, look into booking pearl harbor tickets the morning of the cruise...Unless you have zero interest in it, you could always cancel if you decide that morning to skip it otherwise they will run out of tickets so better to get them ASAP...Also the cruise departs on Saturday, unless it changed there are Waikiki fireworks every Friday night and that's the perfect night to do a luau dinner if you desire one...

 

Please let us know your budget, zero judgement just need to know if you want to rent cars or book a helicopter tour at every island...If you stay in a penthouse you get different dining options so we could have different recommendations on that...