weathermom

The wording on the app could be better, but There is a place on the app for cruises ( marine vs by land or air). In that section you can put in the details of where your cruise starts and ends etc...and starting in Canada is one of the options. 

Maybe you have to do the arrivecan as it ties your proof of vaccination to your passport & you need to be vaccinated to get on a cruise ship in Canada?  

Thanks all for the terrific suggestions. Some interesting dishes to try!! Much appreciated.

Aloha!

Everything sounds delicious- even the liver and onions!!

What are Swedish pancakes?

Good to know, I LOVE salmon!!

Heading off on the Westerdam next week. We have cruised quite a bit, but this will be our first time on HAL.We are wondering what foods we might encounter in the MDR that we shouldn’t miss (and which ones we should skip)

I realize that tastes are individual, but with 17 nights on board, we will have lots of opportunities to try new things. Thanks in advance!!

Hi cruisingluv. It depends what you are looking for on your port days. If you are just as happy not doing as much touristy stuff, it can be very reasonable. We like beaches & local food...bus tours...not so much. If you want tours to the volcanoes, snorkeling etc it won’t be cheap. Car rentals are possible in each port for sure, but picking up and dropping off the car eats part of your days.

Honolulu...the city bus (called “The Bus”) goes to Waikiki and you can go all around the island. It’s $5.50 USD for an all day pass.

Lahaina. The tenders from the ship right in the middle of Lahaina. It’s a really cute town to walk around and there are beaches within walking distance. Also, there are usually some local tours offered when you get off (though not cheap)

Kauai. There is a great beach a short walk (or free trolley ride) away. The big hotel at the beach has a beautiful Hawaiian garden behind it to walk through. Also there are free shuttles to Kmart/mall from the port (great for souvenir shopping & has a Costco just behind it...also handy for shopping)

Hilo.. there is a free shuttle to the farmers market where some other tours are offered (they will drop you back at the ship), but there is also a “hoppa on hoppa off” bus at the cruise port that stops at a bunch of cool places around Hilo (rainbow falls, gardens, beaches, town) with narration by 5he driver & is only $20/person.

I think you could do it by city bus, but We did the hoppa on hoppa off bus in Hilo ( you can get tickets and hop on at the cruise terminal). We rode it around the loop, stopped at a few places ( including the farmers market where we bought ourselves a picnic lunch) then took the hoppa bus to Richardson’s beach for the rest of the day before riding it back to the ship. It worked well for us. The beach is a mix of rocks and black sand. We saw turtles & lots of the crew there. Restrooms & showers, but no concession - we were happy to have our picnic there.

We were in this cabin's twin D728 for 21 nights through the Panama Canal in April 2017 & loved it. Great location at the end of the hall. The obstructed view isn't very " obstructed" & the room seemed a wee bit roomier than others. The view when standing at the window allows you to see a bit to the side & a bit to the aft. There is a deck outside the window, but access is for crew only via a ladder from the aft viewing platform on deck below. We only saw crew out there a couple of times when windows were being sprayed. noise wasn't a problem. Very minor vibration when docking/undocking. I nice quiet hum from the engines...very sleep inducing, lol. I have some photos of the cabin if you're interested.

A big Thank You to bluenoser, Florence & the mister. I feel like I've come to the end of a wonderful book by a fellow Canadian author:cool:. I enjoyed your posts from start to finish & it has made me even more excited for our own Island Princess panama experience in a months time. You have a terrific writing style!:D

Yup. The green say " preferred boarding pass" . The regular is blue and just says " boarding pass"

GweninTX.. how was the coffee and vanilla from Columbia?

Thanks

If you Go to the roll call for your cruise & you'll find others on your specific cruise...that would be your best bet.

If I were you I'd do VNP on your cruise day in Hilo. Rent a car ( shuttles at cruise port, usually great prices from Costco or discounthawaiicarrentals dot com). You will gave some extra time to check things out on the way to/from.

If it's rainy & you need something to do under cover, The outdoor market in Hilo is pretty cool & the tsunami museum (close to the market) is really interesting!

You'll be exploring the Hilo side on your 2nd visit as you drive over....id do the beaches then if I were you ( but I agree with the other poster....they're a " quick look" kind of places.

We have done Hawaii with royal, carnival, & princess. Loved all 3 cruises, but princess did an amazing job and really made it feel aloha themed. Great speakers, music, activities, food all with a Hawaiian theme.

Haven't tried Hal yet.

We're on Radiance in April and I see chops grill in the cruise planner for $42 cdn. We will eat there at least once on the 11 night cruise. Do you think it's worth it to book ahead for that price? Your advice is appreciated! :confused:

Thanks

We have brought our own gps several times to Hawaii ...it worked great on all the islands & we didn't need to worry about cell coverage which can be spotty at times elspecially near the various mountains.

In my experience the free drop in stretch class and abs classes don't always make it onto the daily patter though they are offered every day ( or almost every day) for the early birds. They usually want a minimum number to show up for each class to be a go, but usually meet the minimum.

The fitness centre has copies of its class schedule that you can pick up (and sign up sheets for some kinds of classes)

Sunset is at about 9pm in early august and 8pm by the end of august. Desk lingers awhile though. Dusk and early evening is a beautiful time to see the garden/lights.

We were on pacific princess in July. On the evening we were late in port (Juneau) the dinner menu had a lot of Alaskan seafood items - even king crab in the shell. It was fabulous & the dining room was not busy at all that night. ( they had open seating for that one night instead of 2 sittings as so many people stayed ashore late).

You can also get an invitation to the bridge as part of an anniversary package

http://www.princess.com/learn/onboard/gifts_services/celebrations/honeymoons/index.jsp

Deluxe Honeymoon / Anniversary

This package includes:

All the benefits of the above Honeymoon/Anniversary Package plus these fabulous upgrades:

Champagne breakfast in bed - a half bottle of French champagne delivered with breakfast to your stateroom the morning of your choice

Two Princess Cruises waffle robes - gifts for you to take home

A visit to the Lotus Spa® - one 25-minute therapeutic massage or facial per person

Canapés or petit fours delivered to your stateroom on a selected evening

A personalized invitation from the Captain to visit the bridge while in port

Deluxe Honeymoon Experience Item #1107 - $444.99 per couple

Deluxe Anniversary Experience Item #1102 - $444.99 per couple

I think they take the more direct route because it's much faster ( than navigating all those many turns in the true inside passage).....so they get up to the goal of Alaska more quickly. It also means they can offload the BC marine pilot at the north end of vancouver island instead of keeping the pilot on board ($).

For the true inside passage north of vancouver island...there's the BC Ferries....:rolleyes:

fluffy terry: I'd go for the riverrock and the night market that is closest to it (a very short walk). what nights of the week will you be in town?

Hi Georgi

Commercial drive is sort of off the beaten track - I wouldn't expect any tour operators to make their way that far east of the main core - especially with the traffice this summer.

I would expect that any tour operator that would pick you up would need to charge a fair amount extra. If you want to save a few dollars your best bet is to rent a car for a couple of days - then you won't have the hassles of trying to get a taxi & take yourselves over to the island (the ferry is ~$40 one way for the car & ~$11 per passenger (one way) Butchart Gardens is $25 per person

I agree with leftcoast.

the marriott is a much newer hotel, if that makes a difference to you. great beds & everything quite new - also is much closer to the water. (a fabulous cafe "artagiano" in the same block... the best latte's in the city (much better than a continental breakfast imho)

milestone's has great seafood too. & a fabulous spinach/artichoke dip for appitizers. yum.

for seafood - very close to the marriott is a seafood bistro called the spotted prawn... it has a great view, a great patio if the weather is good, is reasonable, not fancy & the seafood is great! ..go on the early side for the best service

here's a link to a review http://www.wineries.ca/sipping_chef_prawn.html

I hope that you & your mom have a lovely time in our city!

gg... for sure it stops in front of the Pan Pacific (across the road from your hotel) and there is a pedestrian crosswalk right there. (I park at canada place /Pan Pacific for work each day & see the bus there on my way home) ...you can grab your starbucks frappucino & be on your way LOL

have fun!!