? about 7 day Hawaii Cruises

I did search back a few pages.. and searched for "7 day" on this thread.. but didn't really find the answers I was looking for..

We are pretty loyal Celebrity Cruisers..and like RCCL.. but have friends who want don't want to do more than a 7 day cruise in Hawaii. Neither Celebrity or RCCL offers that.

From what I have seen.. it looks like our only option is Pride of America? We have done a lot of cruises, but have never been on Norwegian. For those who love Celebrity and have done POA.. what is your opinion? Are the balcony staterooms about the same? How is the food? Entertainment?

Are there any other 7 days major cruise lines that do Hawaii? We have both been to Hawaii before ... staying a week on Maui.

I personally would like the 10 day Celebrity, but our friends have not cruised much..( only 2 4 day cruises 20 years ago!) and they don't like the idea of the 5 sea days.. so trying to find something they are comfortable with too..

I did search back a few pages.. and searched for "7 day" on this thread.. but didn't really find the answers I was looking for..

 

We are pretty loyal Celebrity Cruisers..and like RCCL.. but have friends who want don't want to do more than a 7 day cruise in Hawaii. Neither Celebrity or RCCL offers that.

 

From what I have seen.. it looks like our only option is Pride of America? We have done a lot of cruises, but have never been on Norwegian. For those who love Celebrity and have done POA.. what is your opinion? Are the balcony staterooms about the same? How is the food? Entertainment?

 

Are there any other 7 days major cruise lines that do Hawaii? We have both been to Hawaii before ... staying a week on Maui.

 

I personally would like the 10 day Celebrity, but our friends have not cruised much..( only 2 4 day cruises 20 years ago!) and they don't like the idea of the 5 sea days.. so trying to find something they are comfortable with too..

None of the other mass market lines do only a 7-day cruise in Hawaii -- there are certain regulations that must be met in line with the PVSA. There are some one-way cruises to or from Hawaii on some of the lines, but I think these would have to be at least ten days as it takes some days to sail from the west coast (and it would have to start or end in Vancouver or Ensenada).

Here's another idea: just fly to Hawaii and make it strictly a land trip. Else you're just using the POA as a floating hotel. I think for the money, the land trip is a better value.

Our last three cruises were the RTs and it does involve sea days, but my family loves them and are never bored. Princess has a full slate of activities on sea days, including many that are part of their Hawaiian cultural program.

For a cruise not registered in the US to cruise Hawaii it must stop in a non us port. That is why few lines do 7 days Hawaii cruises. We did the Jade when it was the Pride of Hawaii. Have done it as the Jade too. In US waters had to abide by US regs. Staff was mostly American. Steward was a nice kid but the concept of work was foreign to him. No towels in our room first day. Asked for some. None ever arrived but he did phone our cabin late, woke us up and asked if we still wanted some. So service standards are likely not what you are used to.

Cruising Hawaii is still kind of cool though. View of volcano at night from sea was special. Only time balcony was of any value though. Ports are kind of industrial so not much of a view and you tend to spend all daylight hours ashore.

As mentioned none of the other lines do a seven day cruise of Hawaii as they are not registered in the USA.

For information about the ship itself I would post on the NCL Cruise Line Board.

Keith

We love NCL and have done the Hawaii cruise on the POA in 2014. We have sailed on Celebrity, but not for many years, as well as all the other cruise lines, more than once. NCL won us over with their top notch entertainment, and their relaxed and friendly atmosphere.

Since you have been in Hawaii before for a land vacation, you probably know how expensive it is for food and hotels. And a short land vacation lets you see probably one or only two islands at most, and then you essentially lose a day with check out, check in and an inter island flight. And how do you choose between Kauai, Maui and Hawaii? They are all so different. And the POA cruise starts in Oahu, so you get to see that island as well. We think the best option is the POA. You unpack once. You overnight in Maui, so you have two very full days to explore, easy with rental cars which meet you at the port. Overnight again in Kauai. The big island of Hawaii has a port on each side of the island. If you want to see all of what the islands have to offer, this is your best bet.

The POA will undergo a major renovation of all public room and cabins in Feb/March of this year. A previous reno of suites was in 2013. We are sailing her back to Hawaii on the first cruise out of dry dock on March 15. I think your friends would be happy with this cruise. No sea days, you are in port every single day. The perfect itinerary to see Hawaii.

As far as food, we don't care much for MDR food on any line. We prefer the specialties or the buffet. NCL does have dining packages, 3 to 7 nights which roughly work out to about $20 or less per meal that allow you to dine in 5 or 6 different venues. They also have 2 MDRs, a 24 hour restaurant, the buffet and I believe a couple other places that serve food. The fact that you don't have to worry about set dining times makes it nice not to have to worry about whether you get back to the ship at 4:00 or 9:00 on the overnights. Dress is very casual, because it's NCl, and because it's Hawaii.

Thanks all for the explanation, now it makes sense! I was also wondering why all the lines from the west coast only left from Vancouver and not LA or SF.. I had been looking at options and thought I had to be missing something- I never gave a thought to the registry!

Looking at pricing, the 10 day Celebrity was just a few hundred more than the NCL 7 day, and they always have the 1-2-3 perks.. If they still don't want to do a 10 day.. I think we might give it a try in the future.. I love sea days! .. but one more question.. we have never done that many in mid ocean.. how are the seas? I know it can vary.. but generally.

Our first trip to Hawaii was the 7 day cruise on the Pride of Hawaii (now re-named and moved). We thought it was a great way to "sample" many ports.

We were rather disappointed with the actual cruise portion of it - but the variety we experienced from the different ports more than made up for that. I personally wouldn't exchange the additional ports for "at sea" days (to get a better "cruise" experience) - but many would.

We've been back to Hawaii a dozen times since that cruise - and we've actually considered taking it again (although we haven't!).

Thanks all for the explanation, now it makes sense! I was also wondering why all the lines from the west coast only left from Vancouver and not LA or SF.. I had been looking at options and thought I had to be missing something- I never gave a thought to the registry!

 

Looking at pricing, the 10 day Celebrity was just a few hundred more than the NCL 7 day, and they always have the 1-2-3 perks.. If they still don't want to do a 10 day.. I think we might give it a try in the future.. I love sea days! .. but one more question.. we have never done that many in mid ocean.. how are the seas? I know it can vary.. but generally.

Actually you'll thinking of the one-ways (and those will start or finish in Vancouver or Ensenada, as I mentioned in my earlier post). There are cruises that you can take to Hawaii from LA, SF, or San Diego, but those need to stop in Ensenada or Vancouver for a port stop to satisfy the PVSA. I treat that last day in Ensenada as a stationary day at sea.

Leaving from the west coast, you will be crossing a current that tends to make the seas rough. But not always. We've actually had differences among our three Hawaiian cruises, including a very calm return to the west coast on the first of those.

Jay treaty is old agreement between Canada and US the modern significance is mostly the Natives are allowed free access into the US but not the other way round.

I used to know all this stuff folks..honest

Thanks all for the explanation, now it makes sense! I was also wondering why all the lines from the west coast only left from Vancouver and not LA or SF.. I had been looking at options and thought I had to be missing something- I never gave a thought to the registry!

 

Looking at pricing, the 10 day Celebrity was just a few hundred more than the NCL 7 day, and they always have the 1-2-3 perks.. If they still don't want to do a 10 day.. I think we might give it a try in the future.. I love sea days! .. but one more question.. we have never done that many in mid ocean.. how are the seas? I know it can vary.. but generally.

Because the Pride of America is a US flagged ship, it costs more than other NCL cruises because it has to follow US labor laws and is under the US tax system.

We did the PoA in January, and we really enjoyed it. It is great to have so much time in port. I will say, however, that about halfway through the cruise, we were wishing for a sea day. It's nice to have those relaxing days mixed in with the port days.

We were on an excursion in Hilo with a couple from Brazil. They normally sail Celebrity, and they didn't like NCL as much. She said they would go back to Celebrity in the future. However, she liked the NCL itinerary best for Hawaii and was not sorry they had chosen it. We have only sailed Disney, and I do like their ships better than the PoA, but again, we chose this cruise for the itinerary and were happy that we did.

Jay treaty is old agreement between Canada and US the modern significance is mostly the Natives are allowed free access into the US but not the other way round.

 

I used to know all this stuff folks..honest

It took me a minute to figure out why you were referencing the Jay Treaty... I rarely look at the "title" of a post.

There are numerous cruises that sail from the west coast to Hawaii, they all are over 7 days. :) I think, NCL is a winner, itinerary. :) I never go on this cruise, for the "cruise ship", always for the superb, itinerary what I do off the ship. It's meals, lodging and transportation. :) IF someone wants more from a cruise ship, then this may not be a good choice. The rates are way up there, and the demand, obviously supports it. I now, only book when they have those late booking price dumps. :)

retired now..hoping this error is not the first sign of my hiking my pants to my armpits and yelling at kids to get off my lawn...

I bet if you do a search the total $$ for a 7day on NCL with RT AI from Midwest will be higher than the one way cruise on Celebrity. I have done the Solstice from Vancouver. Great cruise on great ship. NCL a marginal ship situation with that American staff. Consult reviews/photos of both ships here.

Looks like either Spring or Fall 10N on Solstice is from $1299 plus $100 tax on W. Coast discount agency. Pride looks like $1500 average.Add one way air or 2 way air.

I bet if you do a search the total $$ for a 7day on NCL with RT AI from Midwest will be higher than the one way cruise on Celebrity. I have done the Solstice from Vancouver. Great cruise on great ship. NCL a marginal ship situation with that American staff. Consult reviews/photos of both ships here.

Looks like either Spring or Fall 10N on Solstice is from $1299 plus $100 tax on W. Coast discount agency. Pride looks like $1500 average.Add one way air or 2 way air.

POA requires R/t flight from HNL. Celebrity requires flight to embark city, Vancouver, and return flight from HNL, or reverse, so probably little difference here.

The POA is the only US flagged ship and sails under US regs. Where is Celebrity flagged, the Bahamas? Whose regs would you rather sail under?;)

Our service was great in 2014 on the POA. The ship was in great shape then, and it is undergoing a pretty much total refurb in Feb 2016. Since you are off the ship seeing Hawaii for virtually all day, every single day, the bells and whistles the ship may or may not have matters little. At the end of the day, I would rather have the extra time in Hawaii than to say I sat in a solarium or something.

The Celebrity cruise gets you 5 nights IN Hawaii. The POA gets you 7. If someone is not doing a Hawaii cruise for the primary reason of seeing the most possible of Hawai, then they just as well book a cruise of their choice to the Carribbean and save themselves some $$. Doing a Hawaii cruise for the ship is not the way to approach this.

We are going to do our 2nd Hawaiian cruise on the Celebrity Solstice, a beautiful ship doing a wonderful cruise! We had a couple days precruise in Honolulu then lots of touring on the islands, it was simply wonderful sailing into each island. The sea days after was very relaxing and we could enjoy all the ship had to offer. Seas were quite calm for the most part, one surprise was how chilly the last 2 sea days so we will be better prepared this next cruise and have jeans and a light jacket. We love sea days! Have fun planning your trip!

Bev

POA requires R/t flight from HNL. Celebrity requires flight to embark city, Vancouver, and return flight from HNL, or reverse, so probably little difference here.

 

The POA is the only US flagged ship and sails under US regs. Where is Celebrity flagged, the Bahamas? Whose regs would you rather sail under?;)

 

Our service was great in 2014 on the POA. The ship was in great shape then, and it is undergoing a pretty much total refurb in Feb 2016. Since you are off the ship seeing Hawaii for virtually all day, every single day, the bells and whistles the ship may or may not have matters little. At the end of the day, I would rather have the extra time in Hawaii than to say I sat in a solarium or something.

 

The Celebrity cruise gets you 5 nights IN Hawaii. The POA gets you 7. If someone is not doing a Hawaii cruise for the primary reason of seeing the most possible of Hawai, then they just as well book a cruise of their choice to the Carribbean and save themselves some $$. Doing a Hawaii cruise for the ship is not the way to approach this.

+1. Nicely put and so true.

I did search back a few pages.. and searched for "7 day" on this thread.. but didn't really find the answers I was looking for..

 

We are pretty loyal Celebrity Cruisers..and like RCCL.. but have friends who want don't want to do more than a 7 day cruise in Hawaii. Neither Celebrity or RCCL offers that.

 

From what I have seen.. it looks like our only option is Pride of America? We have done a lot of cruises, but have never been on Norwegian. For those who love Celebrity and have done POA.. what is your opinion? Are the balcony staterooms about the same? How is the food? Entertainment?

 

Are there any other 7 days major cruise lines that do Hawaii? We have both been to Hawaii before ... staying a week on Maui.

 

I personally would like the 10 day Celebrity, but our friends have not cruised much..( only 2 4 day cruises 20 years ago!) and they don't like the idea of the 5 sea days.. so trying to find something they are comfortable with too..

Aloha,

My name is Shawn and I am from Honolulu, HI! While I cannot personally speak on the other cruise lines, and though I haven't even been on the POA yet (sadly), I hear that it is a great deal. The POA is supposed to have, overall, some of the best crew members in the Norwegian fleet. I would highly recommend taking this option to sample all of the islands to see which island you want to do your next vacation at (though I'm glad to hear y'all have visited Maui already). Between the airfare going from island to island and having to pay for a room, the cruise is a relatively affordable option. Let me know if you have any general questions about Hawaii. Hope you enjoy your vacation with whatever option you choose! :)

Aloha,

 

My name is Shawn and I am from Honolulu, HI! While I cannot personally speak on the other cruise lines, and though I haven't even been on the POA yet (sadly), I hear that it is a great deal. The POA is supposed to have, overall, some of the best crew members in the Norwegian fleet. I would highly recommend taking this option to sample all of the islands to see which island you want to do your next vacation at (though I'm glad to hear y'all have visited Maui already). Between the airfare going from island to island and having to pay for a room, the cruise is a relatively affordable option. Let me know if you have any general questions about Hawaii. Hope you enjoy your vacation with whatever option you choose! :)

Shawn, you might want to read the forum rules. We are not allowed to recommend anything we have not actually experienced.

Shawn, you might want to read the forum rules. We are not allowed to recommend anything we have not actually experienced.

Hello Bruce,

Sorry about that. Thanks for the notice.

Shawn, you might want to read the forum rules. We are not allowed to recommend anything we have not actually experienced.

It certainly happens quite frequently doesn't it? :)

Shawn, you might want to read the forum rules. We are not allowed to recommend anything we have not actually experienced.

Just wondering, is Shawn (a "local" but not a "cruiser" if I understand correctly) allowed to recommend activities he has actually experienced? I understand the intent of rules to avoid commercial exploitation of these Boards. But to be clear, if a local wants to suggest activities they have experienced, in a non-commercial manner, is that allowed? Can I read such opinions here or must I do so on other sites such as Trip Advisor, because only experiences of a cruise passenger are allowed on Cruise Critic? I am posing this question here because the issue has been raised here - but perhaps this might not be the correct forum for this question.

I'm not wanting to hijack the original thread. Sorry!

Just wondering, is Shawn (a "local" but not a "cruiser" if I understand correctly) allowed to recommend activities he has actually experienced? I understand the intent of rules to avoid commercial exploitation of these Boards. But to be clear, if a local wants to suggest activities they have experienced, in a non-commercial manner, is that allowed? Can I read such opinions here or must I do so on other sites such as Trip Advisor, because only experiences of a cruise passenger are allowed on Cruise Critic? I am posing this question here because the issue has been raised here - but perhaps this might not be the correct forum for this question.

I'm not wanting to hijack the original thread. Sorry!

Cruise Critic is open to anyone. All that is required to join is a valid email.

From the CC Guidlines, "Locals living in ports of call are encouraged to contribute, as long as their recommendations are general in nature." No specific recommendation of individual businesses or tour operators allowed. ( Unless personally experienced, I assume, and in response to a question posted by someone ).

IMO, re ssaito1's post, it's a fine line whether or not he broke the guidelines. The comments about the crew are hearsay, true, but as far as his opinion that it is a "good deal" taking into consideration inter island flight fares, hotels and food, who else but a local who is probably well aware of these costs in the islands, is in a better position to give an opinion on this? The POA prices are available for all to see, after all. And he is certainly within his rights to recommend that someone experience all the islands if possible.

Now I get it - makes good sense. Thanks punkincc!