Reviews ?

[envy4u]

I am new to the boards and enjoyed your reviews . I was thinking of taking a Hawaii cruise next fall.

[bug_dan]

Well we're back from the 11/14 sailing of the Infinity. This is not a complete review, but we did try some different things on Oahu that we hadn't done before.

 

We took the Pearl Harbor Duck tour on Mon the 29th. The Duck picked us up at the Park Shore Hotel at 8 am and then we went to the Ala Moana shopping center to wait for 24 passengers coming from the north shore. Although they professed to have been to Oahu before, they didn't leave the North Shore until 7:30 and were supposed to be at the pick up point at 8:30. Naturally they got caught in traffic and arrived around 9:30. Maybe the late start was a blessing as when we arrived at the memorial there was no line for tickets and our group got tickets for the 11 am tour. After the tour, we went to Sand Island and "launched" the duck. We only went a short distance out from land, the duck can go at a top speed of 35mph on land but only about 8mph on the water, but we did go out to about the end of the "reef runway". I was unaware that the "reef runway" had been built as an alternate landing site for the space shuttle. Nice views of Diamond Head and Honolulu from the water. After the water trip, the Duck returned us to our hotel with a brief detour by Iolani Palace etc. We were returned to our hotel shortly after 2 pm, had the folks from the North Shore been on time, it would have been around 1. For the price of $36 pp, I thought some may consider it as an alternative to a ship's tour. They will pick up cruise ship passengers at pier 7.

 

Monday nite, we went to the Royal Hawaiian Luau. Very enjoyable although personally we thought Old Lahaina was better. Mai Tais were plentiful although not very strong. We were a little disappointed in the food, but no one starved. Saw very few folks go back for seconds. Entertainment just average, the hula they did was mostly auana or modern. Anyone considering this luau should definitely check on-line for reservations. We printed out a coupon for a 20% discount which they honored. Our price with tax was just over $130 for two, without the coupon, it would have been $160 plus tax.

 

Looking for something new to do that we hadn't done before, we went to the Zoo. I wasn't aware the zoo was that large and there was quite a representation of exotic animals.

 

Also after visiting Punch Bowl, we took the Tantalus drive. Some great views of Honolulu. I've always maintained that one can't get lost driving around Honolulu/Oahu, but I certainly managed to get pretty confused. Still we made it back to the hotel with only a few u-turns.

 

Once again we watched the Xmas parade on Friday nite 11/26. Enjoyed this parade last year and again this year as there were quite a few bands, including several from the mainland. Also several military units which received a great round of applause as well as several Purple Heart recipients and survivors of the attack on Pearl harbor.

 

Quite a bit of wind the week we were on Oahu as well as some heavy rains when we tried to go to Lanakai Beach on Saturday.

Returned via the Pali Highway and never saw so many waterfalls suddenly appear on the mountain sides, an awesome sight.

[Sherinlad]

Hi Spritzy, We are in Vancouver area and going from here on the Serenade of the seas next Sept. found the price was about the same as just the cruise around the islands for 7-11 days. Thought it would be better to leave from home with no jet lag and have 5 days to relax, before doing the sights in Hawaii. of course I must say Vancouver is a beautiful place to visit, as well, if you have a couple of extra days.

[bdoster]

Lando,

 

Congrad on your upcoming marriage...There is a roll call started for the Van to Hawaii cruise Sept 25 Serenade here....

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=2772425#post2772425

 

DH & I will also be on that sailing. Look forward to this sailing.

[Chips401]

We set sail for a 11-day cruise on board the Infinity. We flew to San Diego. Celebrity had everything well planned and laid out. Easy to find the representative, plenty of people at the airport to assist and direct you to the bus, where we handed in our tranfers. From San Diego, we had a bus ride to Esenada Mexico, to meet the ship. Here is our biggest complaint about the whole trip. The bus ride was a hour and forty minutes. When we arrived in Esenada, the bus took us to a hotel for check in. We had to wait another forty minutes on a bus to unload and go inside the hotel. The check in process was quick but we had to again load on the bus and then drive out to the ship. Then pass through security to get on the ship. The whole process was about 3 hours. Celebrity really needs to clean up this part of embarkation, especially because most of us were still on Eastern time and had a long flight to get there.

 

The ship was great. A plain ship, not glamorous or ritzy looking but suited us fine. We had an outside cabin on the lower deck. Spacious enough for two people, with a nice size window. Shelving and a small vanity in the bathroom. Space under the bed for our suitcases and plenty of drawers and closets.

 

The food on the ship was good. Better than the Royal Caribbean we previously sailed on. The desserts were excellent. The buffet at breakfast and lunch was always hot with many choices. Our biggest complaint was the number of nights you had to dress up for dinner. They need to rethink their alternate dining option. If you did not want to dress up for dinner, you could go to the Oceanview Grill for dinner but you had to make reservations and they seated you and served dinner via a menu like the formal dining room. If you wanted just a quick bite or an opportunity to wear shorts, there was no place to do this. One night we just ordered room service because we were just tired of hurrying back to the ship and dressing up.

 

Our compliments on the service. We always were greeted by anyone who worked for the cruise line. They often stopped and took the time to talk to you about your day or where you were from. They always seemed interested in what you had to say. They were quick and efficient on a request or problem. Our cabin steward was super as well as the waiter and his assistant. The ship was clean and well taken care of.

 

The entertainment was nothing fabulous. I think Celebrity could work a little harder here. They even had a couple of repeat performers who performed more than one night. A little more variety would be good.

 

The itinerary was excellent. The 11 day cruise is a great way to get to know Hawaii. We were at sea for four days. No ship board announcements, which was great. Very relaxing, the seas were mostly calm. Great weather, mid 70's while crossing. We arrived on the big island of Hawaii first. We took the ship's planned excursion. Tours on buses is a great way the first time you go but we would definitely rent a car next time. Bus tours mean that you live on someone's else's plan, so you cannot stop for long periods of time on your own. It became rather annoying at times when the bus drove past something you wanted to stop and see. They have their own personal schedule. The islands are very easy to drive around. Consider renting a car. Loved Maui the best, again would rent a car next time. Oahu we did rent a car, the ship arranged this for us, just ask at the desk.

 

Debarkation was smoothly done. We enjoyed a nice breakfast first, we were not called down to the theatre to wait until 9:00. We left the ship by 9:45. Luggage was easy to find and the buses were waiting to take us to the airport. Smooth process, unfortunately there was a long line at the airport, since several buses were leaving from the peer at the same time.

 

In retrospect, we would definitely sail with Celebrity again. We had a marvelous time but would fly out the day before we would board the ship. Or book a different tour to avoid the bus ride to Esenada. Once on the islands, we would definitely arrange our own tours or rent a car to see the islands. The food and service were the best, the entertainment and alternate dining needs changing. We have found a home with Celebrity and look forward to cruising again.

[Umbarger]

I just returned from NCL Wind. I submitted my review a week ago but it still hasnt been posted. Does anyone know why it is taking so long? Linda

[Pilgrim Pete]

wwinfl91 & discolady - Do you remember which nights were the formal ones?

Did you think that there was too much food in Sabatini's or did you manage to pace yourself (at least the second time!).

Was there no entertainment on the ship which was worth the time?

 

Thankyou

[tammie brooke]

how was the weather from vancuver. Is this a good family cruise? What to do on sea days. Would you suggest a balcony, I was looking at iteneraries, while in the islands don't know that you would use balconies enough to make it worth the cost. Would you recomment Vancuver or ensecada. Thanks

[wwinfl91]

There was definitely too much food at Sabatini's. I thought they were going to have to wheel me out of there and back to the room. But it was delicious and well presented. The waiters and other serving staff were excellent and it was well worth the extra charge. One thing I did notice or at least I think I noticed was the wine list seemed to be made up of mostly the higher priced wines. We like sweeter wines and they actually brought us a second wine list where we found a bottle that we liked.

 

One formal night was the second night out, the second one was the first night after the 5 days in Hawaii and then the last one was the second to last night of the cruise.

 

We aren't into the formal entertainment although everyone else seemed to enjoy the shows and talked about how good they were.

 

These may be too late to help you but I just noticed the post.