Tips on POAm with Kids

[plan2go]

We are taking a family group of 13 (8 adults, 2 teenagers, 1 preteen, 1 7yo, and 1 3yo) June 28, 08. Any advice on getting on ship, meals, excursions, kid club, etc. would be very appreciated. I have searched the forum and see very few tips on this cruise with kids. Thanks.:)

[cmpaula]

We are taking a family group of 13 (8 adults, 2 teenagers, 1 preteen, 1 7yo, and 1 3yo) June 28, 08. Any advice on getting on ship, meals, excursions, kid club, etc. would be very appreciated. I have searched the forum and see very few tips on this cruise with kids. Thanks.:)

 

 

Are you going on NCLA? If so, there cruises are very port intensive and you won't have much time for kids clubs. These cruises have a much more casual air about them. We ate dinner in the dining rooms and restaurants but the other meals we had at the buffet since we were either hurrying to get off the ship or just coming back from an excursion. There is an excursion for everyone in Hawaii so just do what you and your family/friends like. Are you more interested in bus tours or action?

[whale-watcher]

Hawaii is a very family friendly destination...we had a group of 6, and it was very economical to rent a mini van in each port (about $55-60 plus gas/fees/tax per day) and just explore on our own. We did some hiking (VNP, Haleakala National Park, Kokee state park above Waimea canyon in Kauai) and some beach time as well (pre cruise in Oahu and at Poipu beach on Kauai).

 

Favorite activities included the Maui Ocean center, whale watching (if you are there in whale season), surfing lessons (for the older kids), horseback riding (pre cruise at Turtle Bay in Oahu) and shark encounter (pre-cruise with the older kids through Hawaii shark encounters in Haleiwa, Oahu).

 

The ship itself is very family friendly...my kids (and I) did try out the bungee trampoline and the gyroscope ball, and the poos/hot tubs never seemed too crowded. The buffet has a special area just for children with items like pizza, mozerella sticks, and chicken nuggets. The wide selection of restaurants is fun as well...my kids loved the Teppanyaki room, as well as Little Italy and the Cadillac diner.

 

Make sure you get yourself a good guidebook (s) for the islands...we liked the Moon Handbook, but many people swear by the revealed guides; I'm sure you will find much more to do than you have time for!

[plan2go]

Thank you for the encouragement. I have been reading all kinds of guidebooks. We will mostly rent 2 mini vans and sight see on our own.

 

Can you provide further info on embarkation - lines/waits etc? We are trying to decide if we should go early (like 11) or wait until 3?

 

We are traveling NCLA Pride of America.

Thanks again

[cmpaula]

We sailed on PoAm last June with our 2 teens and had a great time! The embarkation was pretty painless...I think we arrived around noon and didn't have to wait long. Our rooms weren't ready but we had a great time looking around the ship. We used VIP transporation to get to and from the hotel. The taxi line was VERY long after disembarkation!

 

We were with my parents (in their 70s but active) and rented a mini van for VNP in Hilo. We enjoyed seeing the park on our own...on the way back to the ship we stopped at Walmart and stocked up on sodas and bottled water..they will let you on board with cases in Hawaii.

 

We took the kids scuba diving in Lahaina (Maui) and had a great time walking around the charming little town. The next day we went up to Kaanapali and hung out at one of the hotel beaches...we rented beach chairs and umbrellas from them.

 

Kona was a blast with a snorkeling trip with Captain Zodiac...it was one of the highlights of the trip! They pick you up at the pier and take you over to Captain Cook's monument for snorkeling. There is nothing like going 45 mph across the Pacific ocean on a big zodiac! I wouldn't have missed it for the world. It is like snorkeling in an aquarium. AFterwards, we ate a a great place called Quinn's very close to the pier.

 

Kauai was another mini van to see the sights on our own and the second day we walked from the ship to a beach and spent the day there.

 

If you like fine dining, make reservations at the specialty restarants. We ate at the buffet and regular dining room most of the time.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions...sorry I missed the PoAm in the title of your post!

[whale-watcher]

We arrived shortly after 1pm...we had planned a later arrival, but traffic was so bad in Honolulu that we were happy to drop off the car and relax on the ship for the afternoon. There were no lines at all for boarding, and we were able to enjoy the pool and hot tubs and grill, as well as make dinner reservations for the first 2 nights.

[AussieKathy]

My 9 year old loved kids club couldn't wait to get there every night. We found it was easier to take her to the buffet and she either ate it there or we brought it back to the room. We were usually tied after running around the islands all day that we didn't want to rush and get ready for dinner. We had a relaxing dinner while she was at kids club.

 

The only problems with hours with kids club if you went to the show you had to come out at 10.00pm and pick them up and bring them back to the show. It would be better if the hours were 10.30pm. I suppose you could also pay the extra.

 

Kids Club hours were 7.00pm to 10.00pm I think they also had 9.00am to 12.00pm on the port days as well but that meant you had to come back to the ship or pay the extra fee for them to stay longer. They also have a few family activities that you do together we only went along to the Pizza Making and it was cancelled for some reason. They have a different theme each night in the Club my daughter loved the Survivor Night.

[wmbjr]

As others have said, you spend a lot of time off the ship. However, the kids club for your 7 year old is wonderful. We took a 6 year old with us and she enjoyed it when she went. Unfortunately she could only go on the days we were in port overnight because she got sea sick the first night and whenever we were moving she could not stand being on the 11th deck where the kids club is located.

 

They also have a teen club. It would be more suited for 12-14 year olds in my opinion. We took a 16 year old and a 15 year old in our group and they rather just hang out with people they met on the ship instead of the activities in the club.

 

There is definitely plenty on board to keep them all occupied while not on land. From basketball, to the pools, to karaoke at night, there is a lot to do on board. They should have a great time.

 

We boarded about 3:30 and had no line at all. Walked right up, and right on the ship. Our room was ready, but we did not get out luggage until after the muster drill which was about 4:30or 5:00. We had rented a car in Honolulu so I dropped off part of the group and the other car's driver dropped off the rest. We took the cars back and then met back up with them after a quick shuttle ride. (We had stayed at the Mariott Waikiki booked through NCL so all our luggage was already transported to the ship for us).

 

The buffet was a hit for our group because they have something for everyone. We tried to force everyone into the dining room one night (lobster night) and it was a mistake. We also loved the Cadillac Diner and especially its huge chocoalte brownie with ice cream.

 

Your entire group should have a good time and little trouble finding something they like.

[plan2go]

We boarded about 3:30 and had no line at all. Walked right up, and right on the ship. Our room was ready, but we did not get out luggage until after the muster drill which was about 4:30or 5:00. We had rented a car in Honolulu so I dropped off part of the group and the other car's driver dropped off the rest. We took the cars back and then met back up with them after a quick shuttle ride. (We had stayed at the Mariott Waikiki booked through NCL so all our luggage was already transported to the ship for us).

 

 

This is exactly what we are planning. We just weren't sure if we should turn the car in early and take Marriott shuttle at 11:00 or keep cars and arrive later. Seems like either way we'll be okay and have things for everyone to do!

[mattmommy]

Hi Plan2go. We're on the same with with 8 people. 7 adults and ds7.

 

I was wondering about kids things also. It doesn't seem like a lot of kids will be on the ship although I see a lot of kids flying to HI when we go.

[lynneamycruise]

We were on the POAM last year with my two kids 8 and 11. We loved it but you have to know that IMO this is not the most relaxing cruise (especially w/ kids)...we were first off the ship in each port...rented with Thrifty...grabbed a car and took off...mainly did our own thing..beach, snokeling, sailing trip...it was great!

You just need to go into it knowing that there will not be much downtime with no days at sea.....we were going and going the whole time!

Great fun..but needed a week at home to recoupe!

[whale-watcher]

It can be as hectic week...I don't mind packing a lot into each day, but we did let our older kids spend the last morning in Kauai on board ship so they could sleep in and bum around a bit...we also returned to the ship fairly early on our Maui days and in Kona so the kids could have some afternoon swimming and relaxation time (and DW and I could have a Mai Tai or Blue Hawaiian without worrying about driving afterwards).

[plan2go]

Thanks for more good news! We have tried to plan in some lazy time, since I know my 3yo will be unpredictable! No one in our party has ever cruised before except my DH and me, so hopefully they won't know what they are missing on a day at sea!

[mattmommy]

I plan to stay on the ship and relax on Kona day. We stayed at the Hilton Waikoloa for a few days and while it was beautiful, the beaches weren't so great for kids (or adults for that matter). TONS of lava in the area.

 

That seems like the port we were all least interested in so we decided to make that our "rest" port.

 

Of course we'll make up for the savings on other days with a helicopter ride and I'm sure a few drinks.