Cruise to Hawaii or fly to islands

My husband and I are starting to plan a cruise either to Hawaii or fly there and do a couple of the islands for our 40th anniversary next year. We would appreciate any comments to help us choose which is best and best time of year to go to Hawaii. Having done several cruises we know we love to cruise but just not sure if we would get bored for that many days at sea on the cruise over and back. Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks! EECO500

Our last three cruises have been the RT from LA to Hawaii on Princess, so my family must like this itinerary.:)

My hubby and I have been to Hawaii twice before on land vacations -- the first time before we'd met, the second time for our honeymoon. So the first of these cruises was to introduce our daughter (then 8) to the islands.

To us, it was a great experience, especially the last two were after Princess started their great Hawaiian cultural program. The sea days were always filled with many activities to choose from (often a difficult choice for me) with Hawaii the bonus.

Back when we were on our honeymoon in 1995, we saw the ship that was doing the inter-island cruises (American Hawaii???) and thought that might be a nice way to get around. But that after being on some ships with a great sea-day program and finding that sometimes I enjoy the sea days as much (or even more than) as some ports, I now see the ship as the destination more often than not. If we want to spend more time in Hawaii, we can fly (even though I hate flying) there, spend a few days in one area, fly to another island and spend a few more days, just as we did on our honeymoon. And I think I would like that better than going on the Pride ship.

Taking a cruise trans pacific for one leg takes up a lot of the vacation time you could otherwise be spending on one of the islands. I'd rather fly roundtrip and spend those days in Hawaii.

We have done the quick flights between Oahu and Maui and Kauai on a land vacation, but those 3 flights also take up time. We are booked on the POA ( NCl's Pride of America, the only American flagged cruise ship ) Honolulu to Honolulu this August . We'll fly into Oahu a day early, cruise the islands, two days each in Maui, Kauai, and Hawaii, a volcano sail by and a sail by of the Napali Coast. To me, that is much more relaxing than flying back and forth island to island and we'll see much more than we would ever have managed on a land vacation. After the cruise, we will spend several days on Oahu before flying home, as we've never seen anything there except the Waikiki area.

I don't think there is a bad time to go. Temperatures are pretty stable year round. High season is probably December, Jan.,Feb. and March as the whales are there in the latter three months. Low season, probably the Fall.

It depends on the type of experience you want. The POA really has no typical sea days. The final Kauai afternoon is spent on the Napali sail by, and other wise you are in port somewhere. While I enjoy sea days on Caribbean cruises, and often cruise just for the big new ships with exciting features, I'll save those for other itineraries. For Hawaii, I want to see Hawaii.

+1 on Pride of America. We have booked 3 days pre-cruise on Oahu and 7 days on POA seeing Maui, Hawaii, Kauai. I compared the cost of sailing from Vancouver to Hawaii, a 10 day land based on three islands and flying into Oahu, getting a hotel for a couple of days and getting on the ship. They all were within a couple of hundred dollars of each other depending on the state room, but the latter offered the most time to see Hawaii and eliminated several re-locations and dealing the luggage.(one of my least favorite things):eek: I am sure that as port intensive as this trip will be the ship will be come more of a moving hotel with a restaurant for breakfast and dinner. I did go with an aft balcony for better views and more time to photograph the highlights of the trip.

We like cruising too, but when we did our first trip to Hawaii in 2008, we did it as a land trip, and have done 4 more land trips since then. We like being there so much, that we have no interest in cruising for 4 or 5 days each way there and back and only having 4 or 5 days on the islands.

However, there really isn't a 'best way' since some people are happier doing a cruise and others prefer land trips. You could do a combination with the NCL Pride of America if you wanted both experiences.

October and May would be my top picks for sunny, dry weather and lower accommodation and car rental costs. January to March is 'high tourist season' (and the highest priced, other than the Christmas season) since people are escaping the cold elsewhere. Whales are a big attraction in those months too - but there is usually a compromise on weather as air and ocean temperatures are slightly cooler, and usually there's more rain.

Last year we went from late March to late April and that was pretty much ideal as the weather was really nice, some whales were still around and there was hardly any rain (but that can vary & I think this year was much rainier in April.)

Good luck with your plans ... you've picked a beautiful place to celebrate your anniversary!

Having done both I can tell you that you have to decide. Do you want to take a vacation that focuses on a cruise with the opportunity to see a little of the islands or do you want to fly over and take a vacation where the focus is Hawaii and see a lot more of the islands.

Another way to look at it is with a cruise you can count your time exploring in hours, a land trip in days.

I'm not saying a cruise to Hawaii is not good, we are doing another one this September. It actually is a good way to get a taste of multiple islands which can be helpful if you decide to head back on a land trip later.

So I would say if you want to take a cruise, take a cruise. If you want to take a vacation in Hawaii, fly. :)

We did the Pride of America last November (landed in Honolulu October 31st which was awesomely fun!). We spent two nights pre-cruise in Waikiki and saw Pearl Harbor, went to a luau and hiked up Diamond Head. We didn't want to spend 3 weeks of vacation time doing all the sea days so the POA seemed like the most efficient way to get a taste of each island. We had a great time. The ship was nice (we weren't on it all that much), food was good, entertainment was okay, but we were exhausted from all our excursions every day so we didn't stay up late for that. It was definitely the trip of a lifetime and I'm glad we got to see so much of this beautiful state.

Thank you for all the responses and suggestions so far. Please keep them coming. Hopefully this will be a trip of a lifetime for us. EECO500

Having done both I can tell you that you have to decide. Do you want to take a vacation that focuses on a cruise with the opportunity to see a little of the islands or do you want to fly over and take a vacation where the focus is Hawaii and see a lot more of the islands.

 

Another way to look at it is with a cruise you can count your time exploring in hours, a land trip in days.

 

I'm not saying a cruise to Hawaii is not good, we are doing another one this September. It actually is a good way to get a taste of multiple islands which can be helpful if you decide to head back on a land trip later.

 

So I would say if you want to take a cruise, take a cruise. If you want to take a vacation in Hawaii, fly. :)

Well, it's a real trade off as you said. You can do a land vacation and get much more "land time", but only, IMO, if you stick to one island. Otherwise, you are spending time and energy puddle jumping from one island to another, and most people don't have the time or energy for that in a typical vacation.

We only did 2 islands, Maui and Kauai, just arriving and departing from Oahu. For a typical 7 day vacation, that's 4 days and 3 days, and part of that time is going to be spent packing and unpacking and catching flights to and from.

Comparing that to the POA, I see 3 islands instead of two, and pretty much two full days on each island. You say that you can count your shore time in hours on a cruise. This is true for a typical cruise where you may spend 6 to 8 hours in a port. But, on the POA, you overnight on Maui and Kauai ( and essentially Hawaii as well, although you are sailing from Hilo to Kona overnight ). In Maui for instance, based on what our plans are for day 1 and 2, I estimate we'll be ashore for about 24 hours. That is the equivalent of about 3 typical cruise port stops.

Yes, you can have more shore time on a land vacation, but you won't see nearly as much of the Hawaiian islands.

Thank you for all the responses and suggestions so far. Please keep them coming. Hopefully this will be a trip of a lifetime for us. EECO500

Do you have a length of time in mind for the trip? That information will help with recommendations. Do you enjoy land trips to other destinations?

After doing both, we personally enjoy land trips in Hawaii more than cruising. Land trips are more laid back and relaxing even with site seeing. We find the limited time in ports with cruise ships to be hectic trying to get much in and getting back to the ship on time. Kauai requires at least two days to see it, even then you still haven’t really seen it until you sit on the beach to watch the sun set. There are no deadlines with land trips. The only advantage cruise ships have over land trips in Hawaii are the meals. You pay a lot to get the same quality of meals on land.

Burt

Susan-M, as we are both retired we are pretty flexible in the time of year we travel and amount of days. Since I have no idea about flights in between the islands I don't know how much time that would involve. Thought maybe we would spend a few days in Oahu, do the Pride of America cruise and get a feel for the other islands. Or we would be open to spending a few days on Oahu then maybe flying to Maui to spend several days. As I said we are just starting to plan and not sure which is more bang for our buck!

Flights between the islands are short...that's the good part. However, due to TSA, you need to allow 90 minutes pre-flight at the airport. Then with checking out of accommodations on one island and into new ones on the other island, dealing with car rentals and driving to/from the airport, you can count on it eating up half a day to move from one island to another. If you are going to 2 islands on a land trip, I would plan at least 10 days ... two weeks would be better.

Hawaiian Airlines is the best airline to use for inter-island flights ... we book directly on their website.

If we are going to two islands, we book our flights to the first island and home from the second one, so that we don't have to backtrack to the first island to head home.

The Hawaii Tripadvisor forum is also a good site for help with planning a land trip or port days on a cruise.

For us we choose to do the RT from CA on Carnival, they have 5 ports compared to Princesses 4, plus their port fees are less than Princess~ and my husband doesn't fly, so we have to cruise to Hawaii~ lol

I have a friend (traveled with her husband and college aged son) who opted to fly to/from Oahu and do the NCL Pride of America. She has sailed Princess in the past, but didn't want to spend 10 days at sea (5 each way) versus her week long cruise plus 2 pre-days in Oahu.

Unfortunately I haven't had the chance to personally quiz her about the trip, but based on her posted pics, it would appears that they had a great time visiting the islands!

We cruised last month to see all the major islands hoping we could make a decision about possibly doing a land tour later. Because Pearl Harbor itself can take an entire day to experience, and cruise passengers may miss part of their tour due to travel and volume issues, we suggest having an overnight in Oahu at the least if cruising. All the islands have multiple areas to explore, so if you can afford island hopping via plane, that would be the best way to see most of Hawaii. Renting cars would soften the expense load once you reach each airport. The only place you might not want to drive is Honolulu due to heavy congestion.

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We just came back from the LA to Hawaii on Star Princess. We had a grand time! We liked all the cultural programs Princess had to offer, plus all the stuff going on a cruise anyway. We did NOT get bored on sea days. We booked a mini-suite. We can't wait to try it again. Hopefully, soon.

For your first visit to Hawaii it might be best to take a cruise out of Honolulu. Fly to Hawaii for at least 3 days prior to you cruise. This will allow you to visit Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor, and other attractions. We were one of the first people off and last people on the ship while visiting the islands. The cruise allows you to get an overview of each island. This is really good if you are active and like to see places.

We have done a one way from Honolulu to Vancouver, many land trips and we've done Pride of America. We have not done a westcoast return and likely never will... when vacationing to Hawaii, I'd actually like to spend the majority of my time there. Pride of America was fantastic but a different cruising experience from what you're perhaps used to. We did the one way on Solstice last week and I cannot recommend her highly enough, stunning ship but after spending 5 days at sea coming home, I know doing 10 days is an absolute no for us. We would not have enjoyed that small amount of time in Hawaii. In order of our preference, I'd put land trip at the top.

After booking a cruise from Hawaii to Vancouver on Celebrity in spring 2016, I am rethinking the decision. A couple people told me it can be very cold sailing back from Hawaii. I don't know if I want to waste the time or money on a cruise if I could be sailing back for 5 days in the 50's. I feel that's a waste of 5 days sitting on the balcony in cold weather clothing. Can anyone tell me their experiences that have sailed the spring cruises Hawaii to Vancouver? :confused:

I have heard so many bad reviews about Pride of America with the food, service etc....don't know if I would even consider NCL to Hawaii even though the itinerary is wonderful.

After booking a cruise from Hawaii to Vancouver on Celebrity in spring 2016, I am rethinking the decision. A couple people told me it can be very cold sailing back from Hawaii. I don't know if I want to waste the time or money on a cruise if I could be sailing back for 5 days in the 50's. I feel that's a waste of 5 days sitting on the balcony in cold weather clothing. Can anyone tell me their experiences that have sailed the spring cruises Hawaii to Vancouver? :confused:

 

I have heard so many bad reviews about Pride of America with the food, service etc....don't know if I would even consider NCL to Hawaii even though the itinerary is wonderful.

We disembarked Solstice last Thursday. The sea conditions were wonderful all five days. Biggest waves we saw all trip were in Maui. First three days were warm. Fourth was so so, you could still sit outside. Fifth was ok if you were in the sun but up top was windy and cold. We still sat outside with no coats on the fifth day to eat lunch at the back of Oceanview Cafe. Out of the sun I'd say that days four and five would have been iffy but Solstice has a great Solarium if you still want to sit by a pool.

Are the bad reviews of Pride recent? they used to have a lot of problems but seem to have turned it around, I'd definitely book that cruise again, the itinerary can't be beat.

After booking a cruise from Hawaii to Vancouver on Celebrity in spring 2016, I am rethinking the decision. A couple people told me it can be very cold sailing back from Hawaii. I don't know if I want to waste the time or money on a cruise if I could be sailing back for 5 days in the 50's. I feel that's a waste of 5 days sitting on the balcony in cold weather clothing. Can anyone tell me their experiences that have sailed the spring cruises Hawaii to Vancouver? :confused:

 

I have heard so many bad reviews about Pride of America with the food, service etc....don't know if I would even consider NCL to Hawaii even though the itinerary is wonderful.

This is exactly why we did not keep our balcony. Long story, but we originally had a balcony. We ultimately stayed in an obstructed view room that had doors so we could get fresh air, and yes it was very chilly air in April, especial in the mornings and evenings and the closer to Vancouver we sailed. We do enjoy "living" on the ship, however, so it was not a sacrifice giving up heat. It was different than any cruise we have done being at sea for five full days...even though we experienced an early arrival into Vancouver where we enjoyed gorgeous views and even a rainbow. Another poster in a Hawaii review noted that the ports are very industrial, so a balcony room is only nice arriving and departing to a minimal extent, even if you are on the docking side. The amount you save downgrading from a balcony is substantial and will make excursion costs less intimidating as they are VERY high in general.

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This is exactly why we did not keep our balcony. Long story, but we originally had a balcony. We ultimately stayed in an obstructed view room that had doors so we could get fresh air, and yes it was very chilly air in April, especial in the mornings and evenings and the closer to Vancouver we sailed. We do enjoy "living" on the ship, however, so it was not a sacrifice giving up heat. It was different than any cruise we have done being at sea for five full days...even though we experienced an early arrival into Vancouver where we enjoyed gorgeous views and even a rainbow. Another poster in a Hawaii review noted that the ports are very industrial, so a balcony room is only nice arriving and departing to a minimal extent, even if you are on the docking side. The amount you save downgrading from a balcony is substantial and will make excursion costs less intimidating as they are VERY high in general.

 

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Only Hilo is an industrial port

Thanks for the fast replies. I am going to review more information about NCL before I make a decision. I booked the Solstice because that was my favorite ship out of all our cruises but in the end it may or may not be the best choice for us for Hawaii. We can always do another option for Hawaii, then maybe the Solstice class for our next Europe cruise. :D

I realize this is a CRUISE forum, but I much prefer land vacations to Hawaii. I've been to Hawaii 5 times and always ended up choosing a land vacation.

My last trip in 2011 I did check out the POA. There were 4 of us going (my husband and myself, my husband's sister and a male friend). To do POA we would have had two cabins. One for me and my sister-in-law and one for my husband and his friend. At a cost of around $2000 pp. for a 7 night cruise. I quickly gave that idea up, as that didn't include airfare or any pre-post time in Hawaii.

Instead we flew directly to the Big Island, had a rental car and rented an absolutely stunning 3 bedroom home for 5 nights. Then flew to Oahu with another rental car and a 3 bedroom home for 5 nights. The total cost for the 10 nights was $1100 pp. Yes, we did do a lot of cooking our own meals, but it was so nice to be on our own timetable, to come and go as we pleased. And no car parking problems in Honolulu/Waikiki.

If budget is a consideration, check out VRBO for homes available, there are some absolute beauties, depending on your budget. Rental cars are cheap and it's easy to drive everywhere (EXCEPT WAIKIKI).

I'd also recommend Kaanapali Beach Hotel on Maui. Did 7 night stay there with my daughter and granddaughter. It's an older hotel (only 3 stories high) set on the best beach location. It is more like a family run hotel (catering to families) with lots of Hawaiian folklore planned and a free Hawaiian show each night.

If I were going to Hawaii, I'd do VRBO for one island and the Kaanapali Beach Hotel on Maui for 5 nights each. Each island is really different, so saying you have been to Oahu isn't the same as traveling to the outer islands.

But only OP can determine what is best for them. Some prefer the "Pink Palace" in Waikiki on Oahu, others like the solitude of their own "home" on Hawaii. Everyone has to make that decision for themselves. Have a great trip, whatever you decide to do.