Pride of America

[Cruiseaholic07]

Good day! We are scheduled for POA this year with the cruise cruisetour package. Of course this is all pending cdc, covid, etc. I was curious about anyone's experiences on the ship, also their thoughts on the ports, and if anyone did their cruise tour package. It's called the Oahu explorer 

[sugcarol]

I looked at that option for my 7 night cruise and would cost 3200.00 more. I am doing my own hotel and all of the same tours and and is  going to run 1200.00. So no, it is not worth that that kind of money with a tour, at least for me. Remember you still have to pay for meals and food is very expensive there.

Edited May 4, 2021 by sugcarol

[jonbgd]

The ship is different from any other NCL ship we have been on BUT this is definitely not a cruise i care about the ship The Hawaiian Islands are about the view of them  not the ship. 

I have not done any cruisetour 

But for me It depends if you want to spend more money and let NCL control everything  and relax or if you want to save money and do what you want, also depends on how much you enjoy the beach

 

Most likely NCL will put  you up In the Sheraton Princess Kaiulani Ok hotel across street from Waikiki beach but have to pay an upgrade for ocean view. Also their luau isnt my favorite to recommend

 

Concerning meals and food

Happy hour is your friend in HNL

 

1st off your 1st day for sure and probably 2nd day will be jet lag  days

From the west Coast we are spoiled and only have a 2-3 hr  time change not a big deal done it lots of time  But also flew from Houston and it was alot different body reaction wise.

If coming from east coast I would actually fly in an extra day earlier.

Fly in Tuesday relax have some Mai Tais and Maybe do a sunset cruise or find a good happy hour(i know plenty) and have an early night 

  Weds enjoy Waikiki and walk around and even try to learn how to surf.

Do a sunset cruise in  front of the Outrigger Waikiki 

Thursday do Pearl harbor and a luau

Friday do the Polynesian village

 

just suggestions and i have lots concerning Da Islands

 

BTW I would do this cruise again if i got a good price for a balcony

Edited May 5, 2021 by jonbgd

[CptBoatface]

We loved it coming from Seattle. Seemed nice to us not at all worn down or ratty in any way.

[kdog3ss]

My wife and I, along with my brother and sister-in-law, will be coming from Dayton Ohio through Dallas late September, a day before the cruise. We'll be dragging. 

[Darcy03231]

We plan to fly in several days ahead of our cruise.   On our way back (we're on the east coast), we're stopping in Las Vegas for a day or two before flying home.  

[corky441]

Please excuse my piggyback...

I was just going to ask a question myself,

 

are meals included on the land portion of the cruise tour? I see that most days you’re touring from 9-5. I’d like to think that they provide breakfast and lunch. 
I wouldn’t mind dinner on our own

[NikiPinkston]

On 5/4/2021 at 4:08 PM, jcu1210 said:

Good day! We are scheduled for POA this year with the cruise cruisetour package. Of course this is all pending cdc, covid, etc. I was curious about anyone's experiences on the ship, also their thoughts on the ports, and if anyone did their cruise tour package. It's called the Oahu explorer 

 

11 hours ago, corky441 said:

are meals included on the land portion of the cruise tour? I see that most days you’re touring from 9-5. I’d like to think that they provide breakfast and lunch. 
I wouldn’t mind dinner on our own

We did the Oahu Explorer cruise tour in 2016 as it was our first time on Oahu and we absolutely loved it!  We were on an upper floor of the Waikiki Marriott with a partial ocean view and a wonderful view of Diamond Head.  There were about 40 other couples & we met in the lobby each morning after breakfast before we boarded our buses.  It was a great way to meet our fellow passengers.  Our tour guide was awesome & we hit most of the major attractions on the island - Pearl Harbor, the Polynesian Cultural Center, the National Cemetery of the Pacific (the Punchbowl), Kualoa Ranch, Na Pali Lookout, the Dole Plantation, the north shore, etc.  At 5:00 p.m., when we returned to the hotel, we were free to explore Waikiki.  LUNCH IS included on the day you go to the Kualoa ranch & you actually take a boat ride to a small island & eat your lunch on the beach, but at the PCC you're given your choice of restaurants at your own expense and you're also on your own at the cafeteria-type restaurant at Pearl Harbor, as well as for your other meals. As I recall, we went to a luau at the Aston Waikiki next door with some fellow passengers one night and we also ate at Cheeseburgers in Paradise a couple of times. (Next time we'll try some local restaurants, but we were tired those evenings & it was close to the hotel.)  It was a great introduction to Oahu and, after rescheduling 3 times from March, 2020, we're now booked for the 7-day POA cruise in October (fingers crossed and saying a prayer) with 4 days booked at the Hilton Hawaiian Village prior to embarkation.  We plan to re-visit the PCC & see Ha (the show), take the Monarch's Tour of the Iolani Palace & the Bishop Museum, and also buy passes for the HOHO bus, just spending some time looking around Waikiki & Honolulu, eating shave ice, shopping, and trying some new restaurants.  NCL's cruise tour was a fabulous introduction to the island & I'm so glad we did it.  We're not really into the big, new ships with all of the bells and whistles, so we love the POA.  Definitely get a balcony cabin on the port side if you can for the sail-by of the Napali Coast the last day.  You're going to have an amazing time!

Edited May 8, 2021 by NikiPinkston
added something

[corky441]

Thank you so much for the info on meals. I think we’re going to do the CruiseTour. We’ve never been to Hawaii and I think this will give us a great initiation to Oahu