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It really depends on what you are planning to do in Manhattan the days you are there. The PATH is extremely convenient to lower Manhattan. It's much less convenient to Midtown and Upper East Side where a lot of tourists want to be for the sights, theater, dining as it only travels as far north as 33rd St-- essentially the far end of Penn Station. From there you are about a 10 block walk to the heart of Times Square and about 26 blocks to Central Park (which for most people will be a cab ride). Tickets are fairly easy-- just kiosks. Buy a MetroCard which can be used on the PATH as well as NYC Subways. They also have an unlimited ride option but might be overkill if its just a commute to and from Manhattan each day. PATH will be busy during the weekdays, especially during the rush hours. It will be relatively sparse midday and on weekends. Worth noting that if you are staying over a weekend, service is limited and not as frequent. Perception of safety depends on comfort level but overall its fairly safe-- just be aware of your surroundings like in any other large city. It can sometimes get rowdy late at night with folks coming out of the bars. Also worth noting that if you were planning on using the Exchange Place stop, where a lot of the Hyatt properties are located near, the only service from there to Manhattan is the World Trade Center stop. To get to Midtown you'll have to double back to Grove St stop which will cost you time. Service into Manhattan from Grove St is limited on weekends.

If you haven't spent much time in Boston than no-- Boston has a ton to offer and you'll spend less time in transit. If you have been to Boston a bunch and the history of Salem interests you then could be worthwhile. For the most part Salem is very touristy and gimmicky-- "witch museums" and the like that have little substance or historical value. There is the excellent Peabody Essex Museum though which is certainly worth a trip.

Haven't stayed here but have certainly been by it a bunch. It's definitely older. You're not directly on the beach-- you're sort of sandwiched between a boat basin and the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Its run by Aston-- we've stayed at a few of their managed properties around the islands before and they can be hit or miss-- not a luxury experience but certainly not a budget one either. Service is well meaning but you get the impression you are staying in a condo building-- not a hotel. Personally my preference would be to be a bit more central on Waikiki Beach but if you need a multi bedroom condo and the price is right you'll most likely still enjoy it. This certainly isn't a substitute for someone who's stayed there but since no one answered I thought I would give a bit about our limited experience with the management company.

True to a point-- most individual neighborhoods in Manhattan are very walkable. But getting between those areas will require some form of transport or a very long, time consuming walk. To folks that haven't been to NYC before-- it needs to be said that Manhattan is vast in comparison with most cities. Most of all of thats been discussed is near Battery Park City and the Financial District which is generally walkable. But if the OP wanted to say jump to Midtown to see the sights there they should plan on using a cab, Uber, or subway.

With the overnight you have the luxury of time. I agree with Scott-- unless the Hana Road is at the top of your list I wouldn't spend an entire day on it (although you have the ability to if you wanted). Far more relaxing things to do. Personally I wouldn't do an organized tour- the area you are in is very easy to handle on your own. You have the option of renting a car if you wanted to explore and head over to Haleakala, or if you really, really wanted to do the road to Hana) but that would be the only reason to rent a car. The beauty of tendering in Lahaina is that you wont really need one unless you are bent on doing one of those two things. You could do something as simple as just taking an Uber up to Kaanapali Beach which is about 10 minutes to the North of where you'll be dropped off. It's a fantastic beach with a ton of resorts and Whaler's Village for shopping. You could also take an Uber further up to Kapalua where you have the option for golf or just take in the sunset/eat/drink at the Montage or Ritz up there. If you are looking to dine off of the ship that night one of my favorite restaurants in the world, not just Hawaii, is Lahaina Grill right in town and walking distance to your tender. Fleetwoods on Front Street (as in Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac) is also a favorite for the rooftop bar.

All the major airport's duty free these days are run by the same major concessionaires- I wouldn't expect much. Louis Armstrong Intl Airport, while much improved from years past, is not a major US airport and does not have the same facilities an amenities you'd find at JFK or Atlanta. The duty free selection, due to lack of major international routes, will be limited.

Took at look and the nights leading up to the 29th you can actually book the Ritz-Carlton for $381 US and frankly its wonderful. Far more character than the newer Four Seasons down the block and rooms at the Ritz are typically $600-800 a night during the summer. Just got back from a stay there a few weeks ago and they did a massive renovation and it really shows.

Not to strip away the romanticism here but the Mauna Loa brand chocolate covered macadamias can easily be bought online direct from them. Several different varieties. https://www.maunaloa.com/collections/chocolate-covered-macadamias-1 If you are flying Hawaiian Airlines at any point during your trip they are also sometimes served aboard in small packet format. While cacao is grown in Hawaii (Dole has the largest farm and its located on Oahu's North Shore), and there are several very good artisan chocolate makers on the islands (mainly on Oahu and sold in Honolulu-- try Manoa while you're there), in all likelihood the chocolate used here is mass produced somewhere else given the quantities needed. The macadamias are local through which is really the point. I could be (and hope) I'm wrong in this case, but even for chocolatiers that produce on the islands the local supply of cacao isn't enough and typically needs to be supplemented with cacao brought in from South America and the DR. My wife made me sit through a presentation at Manoa one time which is the reason I'm even conversational in the minutiae on this.

So the good news is that essentially any major downtown hotel will be an easy transfer to the pier and some are even walkable. Montreal's cruise pier is on of the most centrally located and convenient out there. The bad news is that Hilton has a very mediocre portfolio of hotels in Montreal with the Vogue, part of their Curio collection, being the nicest (it previously was the Loews and underwent a bit of a renovation). You also have a Doubletree as a full service but aside from that its Hampton Inns, Homewood Suites, Hilton Garden Inns etc. What is your budget? From a major brand standpoint Marriott Bonvoy tends to dominate with the most selection. Personal favorites are the Ritz Carlton if a budget isn't a big concern or the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth-- newly renovated, great central location, and can be more moderately priced.

What they said and what they did may not have ever really matched then. If you look at the truly top suites on QM2 they are either forward below the bridge or the duplexes aft. Only the "standard" QG rooms are rally midships above the lifeboats. Even on the old QE2 the wonderful Q3s were midships and a lower Deck One (no balconies but huge oval portholes) but the top suites were high on the ship behind the bridge and subject to movement and rolling was very noticeable in them in heavy seas. The forward suites will potentially have more up and down motion if you hit bad weather. The aft suites will have less of that but potentially there will be some vibration from the pods below you. Doesn't bother everyone but you will notice it. Personally I'd prefer the aft as the lesser of the two evils.

I guess the other question would be what are you trying to accomplish? There's also a large Safeway/pharmacy in Lahaina that we use for most things. We only go out to Costco when we need things in large format.

The overnight call in Lahaina with 2 full days would be a real highlight for me on this one-- it's a shame more cruise lines don't do it. You can accomplish a lot given you are going to be tendering in much better located Lahaina vs Kahului and you have the flexibility of doing things you cant on a standard day port call like having dinner on Maui the first night.

The dress at House Without a Key is always resort casual-- doesn't matter the time of day. They have no specific dress code. Folks there will run the spectrum from casual to a bit more dressed up if they are going to other restaurants at Halekulani that have more formal requirements like Orchids or Lewers Lounge.

Was going to say-- you are not making a reservation by hitting the button. You are calling the car in real time and UberX does not have a generous waiting period. I've seen folks there a few times confused as to why their driver cancelled on them any why they needed to request another car-- they hit it way too soon. Also worth mentioning that you can avoid LAX-it completely by using UberBlack-- it will cost more (sometimes its not a huge difference during busier times but during slower times it can be a big difference) but they will pick you up curbside and you won't have to use the shuttle. Some folks find the premium to be worth it, especially with lots of luggage, mobility issues, or if you are tight on time.

You might want to consider preserving the points for San Francisco if the price for the Pan Pacific is within budget. San Francisco hotels can be breathtakingly expensive during some parts of the year.

They are primarily done with minibuses. Would not be my first choice in how to do it. Hana really is best done on your own with a rental car-- it's the best balance of cost and flexibility. You'll stop at a few fixed points like Hana Town and some of them go onto the pools. But stops at things like waterfalls will depend on how busy it is when you get there and the availability of parking for a larger vehicle. Private tours are good if its actually private and you're driven in a more comfortable vehicle than the minibuses. Keep in mind that a lot of the "private tours" that are offered are in fact these minibus tours just being marketed to folks staying on the island. Frankly if you don't want to drive yourself I would just find something else to do that day. It's a LONG day crammed into a minibus.

Thats really a shame they didn't arrange for the Manhattan Cruise Terminal for an overnight, especially with a small ship. Uber will be the easiest and fastest door to door. You would have to pretty much take an Uber to other forms of transportation into the city such as trains or ferries, so if time is of the essence just pay a bit extra and take the car all the way into the city. But there are less expensive alternatives such as taking an Uber to Newark Penn Station and taking the PATH train into the World Trade Center area. During the busier time of the morning or afternoon it could take up to 45 minutes from Cape Liberty so I would budget in some time. The ferry boats to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island run near the Battery and within walking distance of the 9/11 Museum. You can also take a ferry from the New Jersey side where you'll be docked-- again it will be a shorter Uber ride from your pier to where they depart.

You are covering a vast section of the Pacific so it's impossible to give a general answer-- it will vary. For the most part you'll expect weather similar to San Francisco for the first day or two so very cool-- in the mid to low 50s, possibly cooler. You'll only start to pick up the Hawaii weather about a day out and it will gradually warm. Fog is very likely as you pass between cool and warm as we experienced. The one time we did a similar cruise we really weren't able to use things like the outdoor pool at all until we were about a day away from Hawaii and even then it was a little brisk.

It's a fair point-- both the Acela and Regional trains would be roll on/roll off (with a small bridge the conductor puts between the platform and train) and there is generous space in both trainsets to park a scooter with easy transfer to a designated seating area for those that are mobility limited. You would just take the elevators down to the platform at 30th St Station and the same thing once you arrive in NYC.

Holiday weekends to/from NYC are very expensive with a ton of people traveling. Acela is $198-254 one way NYC to Philly. Regionals are $150 per person. Even the Keystone which is always less expensive was $150. None last minute-- booked a couple weeks in advance. Look at fares for Dec 23rd from NYC to Philly-- they were the same ones we had today.

Sometimes yes, sometimes it's a wash. For the most part wouldn't do a car service on my own but when you start getting into 2 or more people the math makes more sense. I'm typing this on an Amtrak train from New York to 30th St Station right now which cost, for two people, close to $400 and frankly it's so packed onboard I wish we had used a car service for what wouldn't amount to be much more.

We use an app called Blacklane from Philly to New York sometimes-- they source among nicer limo services and car and driver quality has always been high. You can choose a larger option for 4 people and it usually will end up being a Cadillac Escalade. But also agree with Amtrak suggestion-- 30th St Station to Newark and get an Uber from there to the pier.

An Uber or a car service like Dial7 or Carmel. NYC taxis are not required to take you to New Jersey (where the cruise port is). Alternatively look at flights into Newark Liberty International (EWR) as it is much closer to the cruise port and you don't have to traverse NYC to get there.

Easiest and quickest way is to fly from Quebec City. Several nonstops are offered each day to the New York airports on Delta, Air Canada, American, and United. Tons of options and if booked in advance can be as low as about $150 per person. American runs three a day to Philadelphia nonstop. There aren't any nonstops to BWI but there are 3 a day to Reagan National in DC on Air Canada. Also three a day to Boston Logan also on Air Canada. These airports with more limited options the prices can be higher than NYC airports. I too loved the train when it used to run from Montreal to New York Penn. Taking a bus would be tedious on this long of a distance and even if it was half off what the plane was it wouldn't be worth it (to me a least).

It's in order to comply with US shipping laws. A foreign flagged vessel cannot convey passengers between two US ports without a stop in a distant foreign port.