Pride of America 2/24/07 Review

[ba91460]

Pride of America 2/24/07

First of all, let me begin by saying that I was not sure what to expect of the Pride Of America after reading so many mixed and negative reviews on this web site. Although I was excited about the upcoming cruise, I was somewhat worried about what I was about to embark on. After having just spent the last week on the ship, I can tell you all with great pleasure that it was FANTASTIC!

 

My husband and I, along with another couple, celebrated our 25th wedding anniversaries in Hawaii on the Pride of America. We flew into Honolulu on Wednesday, and spent some time getting to know the island of Ohau. We stayed at the Waikiki Marriott Beach Resort and it was great. One must keep in mind that it is in the middle of a city, so the peace and quiet of a resort is definitely lacking. But the convenience of the location was perfect for getting around the island. It was a nice way to start the trip and gave us a few days to get acclimated to the time change and see Ohau. Saturday we booked a pre-cruise tour of Pearl Harbor which left right from the hotel and took us to the ship after it was done. The advantage to staying at this hotel was the luggage went right from hotel to cabin without us having to worry about it.

 

The Pride of America is a beautiful ship, although not quite as grand as other ships I have sailed on. Upon entering, it reminded me of a New Orleans kind of look. We were greeted with friendly, smiling faces and a warm feeling of welcome. There are many hidden places to discover on board, so take some time and tour the ship at the beginning of your stay!

Embarkation took about 20 minutes. We arrived at 12:30 and were roaming around the ship before 1:00. Our first stop was to make dinner reservations. NCL has a new policy. You can only book the specialty restaurants for that day and the following day. No booking for the whole week anymore. This worked out well and we were able to get into all the specialty restaurants during the week without any problems. Call early and you will get what you want. The food was good in all of them, with Jefferson’s Bistro and the Teppanyaki Room being the best. The food in both of these restaurants was outstanding. Both Little Italy and Lazy J were good, although not anything overly special. We only ate once in the Liberty Room, and that was good as well. The Aloha Café was buffet style, and the food there was always hot and tasty. Be sure to go all the way to the back of the boat for outside seating. There is also a food bar outside that is not so crowded, especially during breakfast. The Cadillac Café has a limited menu, but the burgers and soup were great. All in all, I have no complaints about the food or the service I received at the restaurants. If I did have a complaint, it would be about the rude cruisers I saw treating the staff with disrespect. This is their job, and they are there to help and assist you, not be your personal servants for the week. Treat them with a friendly attitude and you will definitely receive that in return!

 

Our room was located on the 9th floor, room 9004. It adjoined with 9012. I thought it to be quite large for a ship cabin. It has a king size bed, a small couch, and plenty of storage place to put your close. The luggage fit nicely under the bed and out of the way. The balcony was very large, with 2 chairs, a table, and a lounge chair. It has sliding glass doors, which we kept open when sailing to hear the sounds of the ocean. The balcony was a great place to enjoy that first morning cup of coffee. A coffee maker was in the room, as well as creamers and sugar. What a way to start the day!!! As an added treat, on the pier in Hilo, purchase a cabin bouquet for $10.00. It was beautiful and added a little bit of Hawaii to the room. There was also a hairdryer in the room, but no clock. You can set the wake up call on the phone, but you might want to bring a clock along with you. Our cabin stewart, Carlito, was great!! He introduced himself the first night and always was friendly and attentive to our needs. We saw him everyday, both morning and night. There is a dial by the outside door that you can use when you want the bed turned down or the cabin made up.

 

Entertainment was pretty good. The comedians were very funny and the Pride of America Dancers were good. The band, not so fantastic, but OK. The Lanai Bar up on the 13th floor had a great guitar player. Don’t miss him!

 

As for the itinerary of the ship, it was perfect. We did almost all excursions booked through NCL, mostly for convenience purposes. The exception was the helicopter tour in Kauai.

Hilo – Volcano National Park and Rainbow Falls – great tour. It takes all day, and covers many different aspects of the island, and in particular the volcano. Lunch is included. A stop at the Macadamia Nut Factory allows you to buy products, but because it is on a Sunday, the factory is not open. The tour driver was fantastic and we learned so much from him, not only about the volcano, but about the culture of the Big Island as well. One advantage to taking a tour verses just renting a car is what you learn from the tour guides. These are things you can only find out about from people who live right there on each island. The night viewing of the lava is spectacular!! It starts on the Starboard side and then the boat turns around so the Port side can get a good viewing. Definitely worth staying up for.

Maui – Day 1 – rented a car and toured the island on our own. This was fun as we could stop where we wanted and stay as long as we wanted too. Headed up to the tip of the island Honalua, and enjoyed the beautiful views along the way. Lots of whales along the coast, as well as sea turtles. Amazing site to see! We then headed towards Kaanapali, and beached it for a few hours. Beautiful beaches with public access all along the way, and then went into Lahina. Lahina is a quaint whaling town, with lots of shops and places to eat.

Day 2 – We did the Haleakala Sunrise and Bicycle Tour through NCL. The Sunrise is not to be missed! Although you must rise early, it is definitely worth it. Sunrise was followed by a 30 mile bike ride, or I should say coast. Although they say this is a strenuous activity, it really is quite mild. You actually coast all the way down, with a short peddling burst of about ¼ mile. Dress warmly, only 40 degrees at the top and during the ride it was quite chilly. Beautiful views along the way, with a number of picture taking breaks. Breakfast is at the bottom, at a general store. This tour is a bit costly, but sometimes you just have to take the adventure and go with it!!

Kona – The girls did the Kona Beach Blast and the guys did a Deep Sea Fishing Adventure. The Beach Blast was great. It included equipment to snorkel, beach chairs, glass bottom boat ride and other ocean activities in the price. The fishing was horrible. The operators were rude and out to just catch the “big one” instead of letting the guys just fish. The fishing is definitely not recommended. Kona has a little shopping area right at the pier, so you don’t have to travel far for any shopping. This is the only place that you tender into. The tenders run about every 10 minutes until 5:00. All aboard is 5:30.

Kauai – Definitely saved the best for last! Absolutely beautiful! On the first day, we did the Kauai Canopy Zipline Tour. Great choice! There a 7 zip lines over a river transcending down the mountain top. Quite a view and very well organized. This is quite the adventure but you will be glad you did it. This tour only takes about 4 hours so you have plenty of time to do something else. We chose to go to the beach just to the right of the boat behind Anchor Cove. This is somewhat hidden, but not to be missed. The guys took surfing lessons and you could rent snorkel equipment as well. It was a much needed peaceful afternoon. If you want a great dinner off ship, Duke’s is the place. Also located right here on the same beach.

The final adventure was a helicopter tour of the island. We chose Air Kauai. This was not through NCL. It was awesome! It was a one hour flight over the most spectacular sites you will ever see. Do not miss this. The ship ends the cruise with an afternoon sail by the Na Pali coast. Unbelievable!!!!! This is on the Port side of the ship, so get a good viewing seat outside as early as you can if your room is starboard. When we sailed by, the whales put on a show as well! Breathtaking!

Anyways, all in all, a fantastic vacation. I have absolutely no complaints about the Pride of America, its staff, the excursions (except for the fishing, but now we know, so we won’t make that mistake again), or the restaurants! Your vacation will only be as good as YOU make it.

 

Enjoy the beauty, the culture, and the emotions of being in Paradise!!!!!

[BeachBumMama]

Welcome back, even though I know you don't want to be back, and HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! 25 years is definately a feat to celebrate!:) And what a wonderful place to celebrate and a beautiful start to the next 25!

[hotspur]

Pride of America 2/24/07

If I did have a complaint, it would be about the rude cruisers I saw treating the staff with disrespect. This is their job, and they are there to help and assist you, not be your personal servants for the week. Treat them with a friendly attitude and you will definitely receive that in return!

I suspect these are the people who come here and post threads titled "Worst cruise ever!!!" And complain mercilessly about the service.

 

Glad you had a great time and made the effort to tell us about it.

[Don Haynes]

Thanks for your wonderful review, it has been a while. I think you hit the head of the hammer on the nail about many of the negative reviews.

[CruisinMK]

I predict this thread gets a tiny fraction of comments as the negative review. :)

[BeachBumMama]

I predict this thread gets a tiny fraction of comments as the negative review. :)

You must use the same crystal ball that I do!:p

It will probably be buried to page 6 before the night is over!

[sreed41]

Thanks so much for a positive review. I've been reading with great dismay the other thread about "the worst cruise" and have to admit it did sent a little panic through me. However, your comments are reassuring. My guess is that knowing the people we're traveling with, we'll be much more in the mindset that you had and therefore, my guess is that it will be a "trip of a lifetime." Thanks again.

[Zeno]

thx for the all the details

 

If I did have a complaint, it would be about the rude cruisers I saw treating the staff with disrespect. This is their job, and they are there to help and assist you, not be your personal servants for the week. Treat them with a friendly attitude and you will definitely receive that in return!

 

I think you may have touched on something important here. It is a pity some "Pride of" cruisers who have posted here do not share your attitude.

[spleenstomper]

Thanks so much for your review; I'm really looking forward to my cruise in June. :D

[umwife11]

So glad to read you had a wonderful time!! Thanks for sharing your ideas and your review.

 

We're traveling on the Pride of Aloha in June and I'm a little overwhelmed with all the things to do and see, so reading some real reviews and real experiences is certainly helpful!

 

Welcome home!

[harleyglide]

:) Even tho im a person of good fortune i have always treated people with the greatest respect and you be surprised how well your treated. It will be 30 years for me and it all started in hawaii in 1977 :D :D

[hello]

I appreciated hearing all of your comments -- we'll be on board in less than 3 weeks -- we can't wait!!

 

Thank you, again!!

[kenziebaby]

As stated by others, I was so happy to read your positive review from POAm. We booked a Multi-Generational trip for our family of 12 on 7/14/07, and I've had a bit of angst about it, after reading so much negative commentary.

 

I know there must be people who've had a great time on this cruise...please speak up!!

 

Karen

[ItsMeMisT]

My husband and I just returned Saturday from our week and we were pleasantly surprised. We also had heard the complaints and we felt we needed to preview this cruise before we brought a big group of our customers on this trip next year. We found the ship extremely clean, the food very good and everyone more than friendly. I thought the decor was some of the best I have seen on ships. This was our first cruise with this line but we've been on at least 15 cruises. We were impressed. There are no sea days and no casino, I didn't miss the casino but I missed the sea days but then again, I don't know which port I would have left out! Each island is so different! The freestyle dining takes some getting used to... make your reservations or you could spend time waiting in a line for your restaurant of choice. But it fun being able to go somewhere else every night. If you aren't with another couple though, you aren't paired up with different people like you are on other cruises, so if meeting people at meals is fun for you, you might not meet as many people. Plan ahead your dinner mates. Not many people dressed too formally... you can if you want, or you'll fit in fine in something pretty and tropical. Great fun and a fantastic way to get around the islands. Go with a good attitude! We are bringing our group next year!

[cbcloud]

We cruised on the POAm a couple weeks prior, and I totally agree with everything in this review. I rate this cruise one of the top two I've taken (Alaska being the other). I have not posted a cruise review here, but have a "picture review" on my photo site. Lots of commentary with each picture.

 

If you're interested, click on the "Pictures" link at the bottom of my signature. The cruise is divided into different galleries...one for each day.

[hello]

ItsMeMisT I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise, and cbcloud your pictures were just beautiful!!

[cbcloud]

ItsMeMisT I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise, and cbcloud your pictures were just beautiful!!

Thanks for your comment, Hello... Those are just a few of the 700+ photos I took on the cruise. Hawaii is such an amazing place that the photos really cannot capture the beauty of the scenery. I have an old stereoscopic camera that I wished I had taken, and certainly will bring it next time. The vistas from the Haleakala and Kilauea volcanos, the Waimea Canyon, and the Na Pali coast would be spectacular in 3-D.

[swalkr]

If you're interested, click on the "Pictures" link at the bottom of my signature. The cruise is divided into different galleries...one for each day.

Your photos are AWESOME! We are sailing on the POH in April, and looking forward to seeing some of the sites you saw.

[cbcloud]

Your photos are AWESOME! We are sailing on the POH in April, and looking forward to seeing some of the sites you saw.

Thanks for your comments about the pictures.. You've chosen a GREAT cruise vacation..! I'm ready to go back..!

[3forcruising]

We cruised on the POAm a couple weeks prior, and I totally agree with everything in this review. I rate this cruise one of the top two I've taken (Alaska being the other). I have not posted a cruise review here, but have a "picture review" on my photo site. Lots of commentary with each picture.

 

If you're interested, click on the "Pictures" link at the bottom of my signature. The cruise is divided into different galleries...one for each day.

 

 

Your pictures are awesome:) Thanks for sharing, they'll get me by until April 2008.

[Zeno]

Thanks for your comment, Hello... Those are just a few of the 700+ photos I took on the cruise. Hawaii is such an amazing place that the photos really cannot capture the beauty of the scenery. I have an old stereoscopic camera that I wished I had taken, and certainly will bring it next time. The vistas from the Haleakala and Kilauea volcanos, the Waimea Canyon, and the Na Pali coast would be spectacular in 3-D.

 

I finally looked at your photos and WOW! It makes me want to go back to Hawaii tommorrow!

[harleyglide]

Great photos hawaii still beautifull,cant wait to go

[llachance]

And is about to embark on her 3rd cruise through NCL. This cruise was obtained because after the last cruise she wrote her comments, good and bad, in a letter and forwarded them to NCL (the 2nd cruise was a 25th anniversary cruise) which has nothing to do with the complaints that she had but as a seasoned cruiser and one who really appreciates the cruise she wanted NCL to know her thoughts. She was rewarded with vouchers that had to be used by this June and so they go again. My parents use the cruise for relaxation - they don't really need to see the sites after having lived there for 20+ years. My mom is looking forward to reading and watching the waves go by. I am not certain what my step-dad will do :)

[BeachBumMama]

My mom is looking forward to reading and watching the waves go by.

My kind of woman:p . Has she ever read any of Alisa Allan's books? www.AlisaAllan.com The title (I'm pretty sure it's this one?), The Best Man, features a cruise to Hawaii.

 

I'm so glad there have been some recent posts and good reviews. It doesn't bode well to start off a vacation having bad thoughts about it from the beginning.

[ImMom]

Thank you everyone for the positive reviews and comments, it helps eleviate some of my fears from the negative posts. The pictures posted are just awesome! We are now under a month until our cruise on the POAl and sooooo very excited!