Pride of Aloha - NoroV and short review

[Tikimark]

Sailed March 4-11, 2007 from Honolulu. Pre-stay 3 days in Waikiki and post-stay for a week in Kauai. AWESOME trip.

 

First off, I got sick on the ship. And I wasn't the only one! I may never know how many passengers were stuck in their cabins on this cruise, but from all appearances, it was a lot. The ship kept stepping up their sanitation activities. Day three, we weren't allowed to dispense our own coffee and suddenly all crew were wearing gloves. Bad sign. We kept getting cryptic comments from the crew, like 'are you sure you don't want bottled water?' vs. ship water and 'we're being extra sure everyone disinfects their hands before entering the restaurant today'. It didn't help. Norovirus was here. I was quarantined our last day in Maui, the day before getting off the ship in Honolulu (our 'drive the road to Hana' day!) In my favor, that was the only bad-weather day of our entire 17 day vacation, I'm told. Not in my favor is that they quarantined my wife as well, who was NOT sick and NOT happy about it.

 

The ship was nice. It was big enough, new enough, clean, well painted, everything worked, nothing needed fixing. The plastic flooring on outside decks hurt your bare feet (other ships use softer astro-turf like carpet.) Our cheapo inside stateroom looked brand new and was actually a great size for us. We like the perfect darkness and slept like rocks. My only complaint would be the large windows throughout the ship, which unfortunately were always dirty and stained. Our pictures through them all look bad.

 

The service. Well, it seemed most crew were new and being trained (and constantly told us so.) Some dinner service was slow, but not horrible. Can't really complain but I did miss the international-flavor of a usual cruise. I can't say the crew were nice, but they were trying to be efficient and were never put off or angry or rude. Hard to say...they were just there. One HUGE complaint is the ship's daily newsletter, the Freestyle Daily. It was worthless. It never showed arrival time or when the ship left or when to be back on board. VERY frustrating. Anything we felt important was either missing or buried in small print on page 3 or 4. Why bother printing it? Our first one was on DAY 2! Too late.

 

The passengers. 90% American, some Canadians. Some young honeymooners and families but most were in the 60-80 range. Hate to say it, but the latter were pretty rude and angry and definitely PUSHY. It got crowded at times and I felt like a ping-pong ball. I heard a lot of passengers being angry and rude to crew, for stupid little things! Calm down people! Enjoy your vacation!

 

The food. Again, no complaints, and really pretty good. A few meals were excellent! HOWEVER...what tainted our entire experience from day one were the lines. Standing in line for 30 minutes only to find out you are in the eggs-only or waffle-only section of the breakfast buffet made us all very angry. This escalated into all-out yelling and near brawls amongst passengers! UGLY scene. You stand in lines that go out the doors, either down the pool deck or out the aft deck. Having both of these doors open causes a hurricane-force wind to blow through. So, you stand in line for half an hour with angry, yelling passengers in a very annoying howling whirlwind. Get your food (it's cold) and go find somewhere to sit and eat. Aft deck is extremely windy and full of smokers, pool deck is crowded. NCL, get a clue; other cruise lines can do this seemlessly. The crew were NO help. For YOU...avoid the buffet at all costs. Go to a full-service restaurant elsewhere in the ship (where we found out you can get espresso INCLUDED with breakfast :) MUCH better and the food was at least warm.

 

Restaurants. These were nice. Some initial lines, but they go quickly. Great views out the expansive (dirty) windows. The only down-side is that they require more formal dress. I had to don PANTS on my Freestyle Hawaiian vacation. The HORROR! I hated this non-Freestyle aspect of the NCL cruise. Crowds were not really a problem here. The specialty restaurants were nice and exclusive and quite good. Don't touch anything, wear rubber gloves, and shower before and after each meal :)

 

Entertainment. Very Good. The magician and commedian were excellent. Fun stuff. Don't be on time, you won't get a seat. Get there EARLY. The on-board Hawaiin cultural center was great.

 

On/Off. Getting on and off the ship was a hassle, but probably not just for NCL. The private security at the port of Maui was downright militant. I felt like I was entering a police state. They yelled at everyone, told us nothing of what was going on, and marched around looking pissed off. Every port you're searched coming back on the ship, so try to do this at odd times avoiding the large busses (more standing in line.) The security people don't like to talk, so you are always left guessing what to do and how to do it. The tenders were efficient, but security and long lines getting to them from shore was a hassle.

 

The Islands. How can you NOT like Hawaii?! Personally, we really enjoyed the Big Island and Maui and would like to spend more time there. Kauai was AWESOME. I think a week there is enough to do it all. Smiths luau was fun, good food, and great way to spend the evening. Get out there! We zip-lined, took cat-tours and snorkel tours (on our own), and visited as many beaches as we could. Two helicopters went down our week there so we decided not to tempt fate.

 

The ship itenerary never mentioned sailing the coast of the Big Island to watch lava flows at night. We did, and it was SPECTACULAR. We didn't get as close as I would have liked, so bring binoculars. They also didn't mention cruising the Nepali coast off of Kauai. We did, and again, SPECTACULAR. During that last one, we saw dozens of whales blowing and breaching. Why they don't mention this is a mystery. It wasn't even in the Freestyle Daily. Wouldn't you WANT to know this? Don't get to the outside decks late for these cruise-bys. ANGRY passengers will push you overboard.

 

Hawaii. We were in Hawaii for 17 days. The weather was absolutely gorgeous. We saw lots of whales. NO annoying bugs, anywhere. We overpacked. The water was surprisingly cool, as were the mornings and evenings. On top of Waimea Canyon in Kauai was COLD and clouded one morning, nice on another. Snorkeling was the best we've had, and about the same on all islands. We stayed at Islander on the Beach in Kauai and thoroughly enjoyed it. Food everywhere was excellent. Waikiki was like downtown NYC, but with a nice view.

 

We used Thifty rental throughout (excellent prices!) They were pretty good, friendly, efficient, quick in/out. The cars are mostly cheap Chrysler products. The little Dodge Caliber was VERY loud inside. They only have one shuttle van per location, which makes them slower than all the other rental companies. Fewer people use them, so that wasn't really an issue and you can avoid some crowds this way. We rented a Crossfire convertible in Maui that was so much fun, we might buy one! Jeeps were everywhere, and beware, nobody could figure out how to raise or drop the top on these. It was fun watching the newlyweds near kill each other trying (surprise short rain storms were a daily occurence.) If you want your first argument as a newlywed to be on your Honeymoon, rent a Jeep in Hawaii.

 

If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't cruise NCL here. Honolulu was almost a throw-away. I would spend five days each on Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai and fly in between them for <$50 on Hawaiin Air. We took the cruise to see more islands and save some $$ on food. Not sure if we actually saved money. Being sick for several days, though...sucked.

[AnneNchris]

Sailed March 4-11, 2007 from Honolulu. Pre-stay 3 days in Waikiki and post-stay for a week in Kauai. AWESOME trip.

 

If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't cruise NCL here. Honolulu was almost a throw-away. I would spend five days each on Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai and fly in between them for <$50 on Hawaiin Air. We took the cruise to see more islands and save some $$ on food. Not sure if we actually saved money, though. Being sick for several days, though...sucked.

 

Just wondering...why would you not cruise NCL again...other then being ill...it sounds as though you enjoyed yourself??

[Tikimark]

I just wouldn't cruise NCL in Hawaii. No real issues with the cruise line, or even getting sick specifically, I just think staying on-island would have been better for us.

[AnneNchris]

I just wouldn't cruise NCL in Hawaii. No real issues with the cruise line, or even getting sick specifically, I just think staying on-island would have been better for us.

 

Gotcha...I would think that Hawaii would be enjoyable to spend time there...I LOVE to cruise...but have no desire to cruise an island that I want to explore...so I TOTALLY understand then...:):) I am sorry to hear that you got ill:(:( That can suck

[IDKaren]

Curious..On your car rentals..did you rent those ahead of time or at the port? Snorkeling etc..I assume you just went and found your own beaches-did not sign up ashore for equip etc? Sorry you got sick-that is a bummer!. Know what you mean about windows-that salt water can really mess them up!

[Barb Nahoumi]

The cruise on the Pride of Aloha gave us a nice overview of the islands. When we return to Hawaii, we will fly to Maui and stay in a hotel.

 

The service aboard the Pride was fair, but we knew that from reading these boards.

 

Barb

[cotts]

I did the 7 day cruise in Oct 2004. It was my first cruise and despite a lot of negatives I had read prior to going I enjoyed the cruise.

The crew were all trying very hard to please - only problem there appeared to be because of my accent, the bar tender thought I'd ordered a regular bear!

My grizzle came at the end of the cruise when I went to collect my liquor that had been locked up during the cruise. Someone had knocked off a bottle of whiskey. I filled out a form and 2.5 years later have not heard anything from NCL. It's bad enought to have property stolen, presumably by someone in the crew, worse still that a company that thought my money was good enough to bank have not even given me the courtesy of a reply.

If you've never been to Hawaii before, a cruise can work. I reckon though that any return trip would be land-based.

[aldewitt]

I think cruising the islands is a good way to see them all, and a more cost-efficient method. I've been on Pride of America and we're going on Pride of Aloha in June. We're taking a group from our hometown, so we know what to do and what to avoid.

 

If I was going with just my wife, we'd go to Honolulu and stay the full time there. We love Oahu.

[newmexicoNita]

Sailed March 4-11, 2007 from Honolulu. Pre-stay 3 days in Waikiki and post-stay for a week in Kauai. AWESOME trip.

 

First off, I got sick on the ship. And I wasn't the only one! I may never know how many passengers were stuck in their cabins on this cruise, but from all appearances, it was a lot. The ship kept stepping up their sanitation activities. Day three, we weren't allowed to dispense our own coffee and suddenly all crew were wearing gloves. Bad sign. We kept getting cryptic comments from the crew, like 'are you sure you don't want bottled water?' vs. ship water and 'we're being extra sure everyone disinfects their hands before entering the restaurant today'. It didn't help. Norovirus was here. I was quarantined our last day in Maui, the day before getting off the ship in Honolulu (our 'drive the road to Hana' day!) In my favor, that was the only bad-weather day of our entire 17 day vacation, I'm told. Not in my favor is that they quarantined my wife as well, who was NOT sick and NOT happy about it.

 

The ship was nice. It was big enough, new enough, clean, well painted, everything worked, nothing needed fixing. The plastic flooring on outside decks hurt your bare feet (other ships use softer astro-turf like carpet.) Our cheapo inside stateroom looked brand new and was actually a great size for us. We like the perfect darkness and slept like rocks. My only complaint would be the large windows throughout the ship, which unfortunately were always dirty and stained. Our pictures through them all look bad.

 

The service. Well, it seemed most crew were new and being trained (and constantly told us so.) Some dinner service was slow, but not horrible. Can't really complain but I did miss the international-flavor of a usual cruise. I can't say the crew were nice, but they were trying to be efficient and were never put off or angry or rude. Hard to say...they were just there. One HUGE complaint is the ship's daily newsletter, the Freestyle Daily. It was worthless. It never showed arrival time or when the ship left or when to be back on board. VERY frustrating. Anything we felt important was either missing or buried in small print on page 3 or 4. Why bother printing it? Our first one was on DAY 2! Too late.

 

The passengers. 90% American, some Canadians. Some young honeymooners and families but most were in the 60-80 range. Hate to say it, but the latter were pretty rude and angry and definitely PUSHY. It got crowded at times and I felt like a ping-pong ball. I heard a lot of passengers being angry and rude to crew, for stupid little things! Calm down people! Enjoy your vacation!

 

The food. Again, no complaints, and really pretty good. A few meals were excellent! HOWEVER...what tainted our entire experience from day one were the lines. Standing in line for 30 minutes only to find out you are in the eggs-only or waffle-only section of the breakfast buffet made us all very angry. This escalated into all-out yelling and near brawls amongst passengers! UGLY scene. You stand in lines that go out the doors, either down the pool deck or out the aft deck. Having both of these doors open causes a hurricane-force wind to blow through. So, you stand in line for half an hour with angry, yelling passengers in a very annoying howling whirlwind. Get your food (it's cold) and go find somewhere to sit and eat. Aft deck is extremely windy and full of smokers, pool deck is crowded. NCL, get a clue; other cruise lines can do this seemlessly. The crew were NO help. For YOU...avoid the buffet at all costs. Go to a full-service restaurant elsewhere in the ship (where we found out you can get espresso INCLUDED with breakfast :) MUCH better and the food was at least warm.

 

Restaurants. These were nice. Some initial lines, but they go quickly. Great views out the expansive (dirty) windows. The only down-side is that they require more formal dress. I had to don PANTS on my Freestyle Hawaiian vacation. The HORROR! I hated this non-Freestyle aspect of the NCL cruise. Crowds were not really a problem here. The specialty restaurants were nice and exclusive and quite good. Don't touch anything, wear rubber gloves, and shower before and after each meal :)

 

Entertainment. Very Good. The magician and commedian were excellent. Fun stuff. Don't be on time, you won't get a seat. Get there EARLY. The on-board Hawaiin cultural center was great.

 

On/Off. Getting on and off the ship was a hassle, but probably not just for NCL. The private security at the port of Maui was downright militant. I felt like I was entering a police state. They yelled at everyone, told us nothing of what was going on, and marched around looking pissed off. Every port you're searched coming back on the ship, so try to do this at odd times avoiding the large busses (more standing in line.) The security people don't like to talk, so you are always left guessing what to do and how to do it. The tenders were efficient, but security and long lines getting to them from shore was a hassle.

 

The Islands. How can you NOT like Hawaii?! Personally, we really enjoyed the Big Island and Maui and would like to spend more time there. Kauai was AWESOME. I think a week there is enough to do it all. Smiths luau was fun, good food, and great way to spend the evening. Get out there! We zip-lined, took cat-tours and snorkel tours (on our own), and visited as many beaches as we could. Two helicopters went down our week there so we decided not to tempt fate.

 

The ship itenerary never mentioned sailing the coast of the Big Island to watch lava flows at night. We did, and it was SPECTACULAR. We didn't get as close as I would have liked, so bring binoculars. They also didn't mention cruising the Nepali coast off of Kauai. We did, and again, SPECTACULAR. During that last one, we saw dozens of whales blowing and breaching. Why they don't mention this is a mystery. It wasn't even in the Freestyle Daily. Wouldn't you WANT to know this? Don't get to the outside decks late for these cruise-bys. ANGRY passengers will push you overboard.

 

Hawaii. We were in Hawaii for 17 days. The weather was absolutely gorgeous. We saw lots of whales. NO annoying bugs, anywhere. We overpacked. The water was surprisingly cool, as were the mornings and evenings. On top of Waimea Canyon in Kauai was COLD and clouded one morning, nice on another. Snorkeling was the best we've had, and about the same on all islands. We stayed at Islander on the Beach in Kauai and thoroughly enjoyed it. Food everywhere was excellent. Waikiki was like downtown NYC, but with a nice view.

 

We used Thifty rental throughout (excellent prices!) They were pretty good, friendly, efficient, quick in/out. The cars are mostly cheap Chrysler products. The little Dodge Caliber was VERY loud inside. They only have one shuttle van per location, which makes them slower than all the other rental companies. Fewer people use them, so that wasn't really an issue and you can avoid some crowds this way. We rented a Crossfire convertible in Maui that was so much fun, we might buy one! Jeeps were everywhere, and beware, nobody could figure out how to raise or drop the top on these. It was fun watching the newlyweds near kill each other trying (surprise short rain storms were a daily occurence.) If you want your first argument as a newlywed to be on your Honeymoon, rent a Jeep in Hawaii.

 

If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't cruise NCL here. Honolulu was almost a throw-away. I would spend five days each on Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai and fly in between them for <$50 on Hawaiin Air. We took the cruise to see more islands and save some $$ on food. Not sure if we actually saved money. Being sick for several days, though...sucked.

Of course being sick would add insult to injury. As for not doing Hawaii on a ship, I can understand your reasoning but I think many enjoy it because it is an affordable way to get a little taste of the islands. Even when doing the Caribbean it is somewhat the same. To really enjoy an island you need to do a land vacation, to get an overall view, a cruise is a great way.

 

Thanks for a fair and balanced review, I am sorry you were sick, what a cruddy way to spend any part of a vacation. NMNita