Please Help re: Cruising Hawaii w/Mom

[JuneauWhatIMean]

I'm taking my 79 year old mother on the Pride Of America in May. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease last year, has been very depressed, and has always wanted to see Hawaii. And I can't wait to show it to her! :) She has lost a lot of weight and is very frail but mobile. Some questions I have are:

 

1) We land in Honolulu at 10:30 (noon by the time we get the luggage) and depart port at 8:30. I would love to visit Pearl Harbor with her. Is there time for this? Are there tours from the airport that can carry the luggage or should I rent a car? If I rent, how do I return the car and get to the port? If she's tired, can we go straight to the ship around 1 instead? Our flight home is at 2:30. Would Pearl Harbor be feasible prior to the flight home? And a possible visit to the Arizona?

 

2) Is there any way to arrange for seperate beds before we embark?

 

3) I know a lot of people rent cars instead of doing ship's excursions but I'm not excited about doing a lot of driving. Are there tour operators at the piers?

 

Thanks in advance,

Ali

[Bettyboop66]

Check out the Hawaii section of the Ports of Call section. You can find answers to all your questions, even questions you didn't know you had. Enjoy your cruise with your mom.

[KeystoneCruiser]

It would be very difficult to do Pearl Harbor on arrival day. Although Pearl Harbor is free, you have to have a ticket with an assigned time to go out to the memorial. The Park Service begins handing those tickets out on a first come first serve basis at the memorial at 7:30 a.m.. They are usually all handed out by 11:00 a.m. and even then those are for very late in the day.

 

NCL does offer some tours on disembarkation day to Pearl Harbor, but I think you have to have a flight that leaves after 4:00 p.m. and your 2:30 flight is too soon.

 

Is there any way to add a day or two to your trip either pre-cruise or post cruise? You have such very little time in Honolulu on just the cruise days and it is well worth it.

 

Also, we were so jet lagged on the day we sailed that we went to bed right after sailaway and missed our first night of entertainment on the ship.

 

If you can possibly squeeze in a couple of days pre or post cruise, it is well worth the money for the full effect of Hawaii.