b00kbug

If I buy beer in port, I can't have them hold it until end of cruise? We are stopping at several breweries and I want to take some home.

Just heard about this - now I need alternative Maui plans before the luau. :(

Not sure if you are looking for sit down eats or to include take and go?

We are headed there in November and I've been looking at places alot - here is what I have that would be considered cheap for the Waikiki area.

Me Bar-B-Que

Marukame Udon

Musubi Cafe Iyasume

Nabeya Maido

Ono Seafood

About how early are there shuttles available to be taken to your rental car? I would like to get an early start (7am?) but not sure if shuttles will be available then or if I will have to take a cab. Thanks.

I used AirBnB to find a condo to rent. We are going in December, but I'm looking forward to it rather than a hotel. It was less $ and it has a washer and dryer in the room so I can do laundry before getting on the cruise.

Wow! You must have a strong back and a tolerant toddler! ;-)

 

Not too many comments on your itinerary, but you could consider going to the Zoo in Honolulu. It is really a pretty zoo and when we were there there were many moms and toddlers having a great time running and playing.

 

Make time for some shave ice too. The best we found was in Lahaina.

Thanks for the zoo tip! My husband is in charge of carrying her around haha - and shes used to taking naps in the carrier. Shes a trooper.

I've added on a shaved ice stop! :)

When we were on POA a few years ago they actually had a sandwich bar set up during breakfast where you could pack a picnic lunch to take ashore. Don't know though if they still do this.

That would be convenient! Hope that's still an option.

The OP was asking about places to stop at to pick up to-go food, NOT taking from the ship. :roll eyes:

 

Honestly, the KTA stores are pretty darn good for goodies for the road. Sandwiches made to order, a poke counter (my fave), deli section with different salads, a good drink selection, and the chip section with taro chips and Maui Kettle chips... There is one at the intersection of Puainako and Mamalahoa Hwy (route 11), which is the road to HVNP...

Man, I would LOVE to take poke with me, but I doubt that will hold up well until lunch time. :( I am dying to have it often on our Hawaii trip though. I'll need to sneak it in as much as I can since my husband is not a fish person - and for sure not a raw fish person! Loser. :p

Thanks all!

I would really prefer to grab something on the island rather than resort to snagging something from the ship - I prefer to eat like a local when I am traveling. Especially since I am not likely to find alot of these food back home!

I will definitely check out the KTA store!

We are planning to hike all day and I wanted to grab something to bring with us rather than worrying about leaving the park, eating, then going back.

Hey all,

Is there a place on the way to the park that we can grab a backpack-able lunch to eat while we hike? If not - suggestions on things we can snag from the cruise ship before we disembark?

Thanks!

Hey all!

Take a look at our cruise plans - let me know if there is something I just shouldn't miss out on, or if there is something you think we should skip - have at it!

About us:: Active vacationers - we can't sit still for too long. First vacation with our daughter - she will be a few weeks shy of 2. First time in Hawaii. We are traveling from end of Nov into Dec for this trip.

Saturday - Oahu: Bogart's Cafe for breakfast, hike Diamond Head, pick up some Poke to go at Ono Seafood Products, drop off car, get on board!

Sunday - Kahului, Maui: pick up car, hike Iao Valley State Park, relax at Kaanapali Beach, Old Lahaina Luau, drop car off, back to the ship.

Monday - Kahului, Maui: pick up car, see Haleakala Crater from the summit, relax at Ulua Beach, drop off car, back on board.

Tuesday - Hilo, Hawaii: pick up car, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park (hike Kīlauea Iki Trail & Pu‘u Loa Petroglyphs Trail), drop off car, back on board.

Wednesday - Kona, Hawaii: Big Island Snorkel NCL excursion. dinner on board.

Thursday - Nawiliwili, Kauai: pick up car, Waimea Canyon Lookout, get trail maps at Kokee Natural History Museum, hike cliff canyon and black pipe trail, MCS Grill for dinner.

Friday - Nawiliwili, Kauai: pick up car, Salt Sand Beach, Kauai Island Brewery & Grill, drop off car, back on board.

Saturday - head to airport after ship and take the long trip home!

Living in South Maui, I would recommend going to beaches other than those in Kihei where the three Kamaole beaches are located.

 

I think that beaches in the Wailea & Makena areas are much better options...are you seeking relaxation or to snorkel & explore tide pools? If you let me know, I could make some suggestions for you to consider.

 

The Wailea resort area has paved free parking lots, outdoor showers and indoor toilets; the Makena area has fewer developed beach areas & most have dirt parking lots, porta-potties and no showers. One exception is at Maluaka beach which has paved parking, showers & toilets like in Wailea. On the southern end of the beach is one of the areas that boat snorkeling trips promote as "Turtle Town" but I always see turtles whenever snorkeling from the beach.

 

These beaches are about 10 minutes further away than the Kihei beaches but to me it's well worth the extra drive which is what we do when going to the beach. :)

Thanks so much! I am really looking for a relatively calm beach - we will be there early December if that makes a difference. My 2 year old will be traveling with us, so a place where she can approach the water without me being worried about severe rip tides.

For 2nd day on Maui - docked overnight until 6pm - I want to check out the Haleakala summit but since it seems hiking is not the easiest thing to manage there due to the lack of loop trails, I want to do something after the summit.

Would I have time to hit Kamaole Beach for a bit before we have to return the rental car?

Thanks!

b00kbug -

 

We'd be curious to read what you have in store while on Maui.

I'm working on fine-tuning our cruise itinerary but I'll be posting that when I get it done so I can get some feedback on it :)

I just booked my reservations for the Arizona today for October. The booking dates become available 60 days ahead. Each day the new date for booking is on recreation.gov early in the day but you can not actually book the resevation until 7:00 AM Hawaii time (currently 1:00 PM EDT). If you look at the site they list tour times from 7:30 AM in 15 minute intervals. However the only ones available (until sold out) are on the hour from 8:00 AM until the afternoon. I suppose that has to do with what they are holding for same day tickets or those being released the day before. Just one word of caution if the weather becomes windy the Navy (the Navy not the National Park Service runs the boats to the Arizona) may cancel the boats due to rough seas. That seems to happen more often later in the day. Remember the U.S.S. Arizona is still part of the Navy and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam so when the Navy says no shuttle boats there will not be any shuttle boats.

It sounds as though you are trying to do a very large number of things each day. Everything that I have read says that PCC is more than a quick stop. And personally I feel that the Pearl Harbor World War 2 Valor in the Pacific National Monument (the name of the name of the entire NPS site including access to the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial) also is not a quick stop. When you go you will first be seeing a 23 minute documentary film about the attack on Pearl Harbor then take the boat to the Arizona. Without the narrated tour or visiting the other exhibits the NPS site states that the tour takes 1 hour and 15 minutes. FYI: Strollers are allowed in the visitors center but not in the theaters or the shuttle boats to the U.S.S Arizona. I don't know about a backpack carrier for your daughter.

Because security is You are not permitted to carry any bags of any kind into the visitors center but there are small lockers available for rent. They also ask that you arrive 1 hour before your scheduled tour in order to check in etc.

Yes I know I read 'everything' ;). I am the person who picks up every brochure, booklet or map when I am on vacation because I don't want to miss anything! ;)

Hope this helps

Thank you very much! I read EVERYTHING too haha - I'm an overplanner - as if that wasn't obvious by my massive list of things to do. :rolleyes:

 

During our last visit we booked what was then called the Super Ambassador package. This package included our own dedicated guide and a order off a menu dinner. Even then we missed the parade and IMAX movie.

 

By buying a package, you will get to see all that the clock allows. I don't know why they do not open earlier.

 

I think that it will be difficult to see Pearl Harbor and still get to the PCC on time. Hopefully, some local folks will jump in with some comments.

Thanks so much for the input - sorry to hear you missed the parade, that is definitely one of the things I don't want to miss!

Do you think its more manageable to go to the Arizona before getting on the cruise ship?

I will let other more recent visitors comment about getting to the Park in time for the first boat out trip. I have visited there twice and we had the best luck going later in the PM to be able to quickly visit the Memorial only. You are correct in that the visit to the actual Arizona Memorial is time limited, however there are several other things to do there. You can burn a couple hours minimum IMO, or all day if desired.

 

Remember to plan on the drive to/from the PCC to be 90 - 120 minutes depending on traffic and where you are going from/to.

 

You may be able to do both places the same day, but it will be a long hard day IMO. The PCC is a big wild card since depending on your interest in history, you can easily spend an entire day there. The last time we visited the PCC it did not even open until noon (but it was January not sure about other months), so we had to limit what we did that day.

PCC doesnt open until noon - which is why I thought we could hit both places. We are planning on buying tickets that include a guide in PCC so we are sure to hit all the shows/demonstrations.

Looks like you are going to be very busy; have a great time!

 

The one thing that jumped out at me is your plans for Tuesday. The PCC is an all day adventure unless you are just going for the evening show (then you will be missing a lot IMO, and do not go there "just for dinner"). Pearl Harbor can also be very time consuming depending on how much you want to see and the number of other people at the Park. Doing both of these in one day would not be a good idea IMO, even if it was just two adults; not sure how a two year old will be able to handle it.

Well the plan was to try and get tickets for an early tour of the Arizona - 7/8am ish. We did want to spend a good portion of the day at PCC - if we do get an early ticket for the memorial, is it till best to split these two activities up? I didn't know how long the memorial took to visit. My impression was it was a timed event.

Curious as to where your airBnB is located. If it is outside of the Waikiki area, you will be doing a fair amount of commuting during rush hours according to your schedule. Have you factored this in?

It actually is in Waikiki. We wanted it there since it was closer to most of the things we wanted to do - pretty darn happy with our call to do airBnB with the savings compared to the hotels nearby!

Not to say one way or the other and meant only as fact, the hikes are really for people who can manage on their own, and your daughter is rather young to be trying them. If you carry her, consider how long either of you will feel comfortable doing so while maneuvering the trails.

We have been hiking many times with her already - we have a hiking carrier for her, a framed pack with a sun shade for her, we have a rain cover for it too in case of bad weather. She'll be a spoiled hiker haha

Hey all!

Take a look at our plans before we get on the cruise ship - let me know if there is something I just shouldn't miss out on, or if there is something you think we should skip - have at it!

About us:: Active vacationers - we can't sit still for too long. First vacation with our daughter - she will be a few weeks shy of 2. First time in Hawaii. We are traveling from end of Nov into Dec for this trip. We are renting a car for our time pre-cruise.

Monday:: Arrive on Oahu. Check in with our AirBnB host. Hit Target for some baby supplies. Honolulu Burger Co for dinner.

Tuesday:: Marukame Udon for breakfast. USS Arizona Memorial. Polynesian Cultural Center - eat dinner there.

Wednesday:: Eggs'n Things for breakfast. Hike Kaena Point Trail.Duke's Waikiki for lunch. Afternoon/Evening on Waikiki beach. Dinner at Shore Bird Restaurant & Beach Bar.

Thursday:: Cinnamon's at the 'Ilikai for breakfast. Hike at Keaiwa Heiau State Park. Hike Lanikai Pillboxes Trail. Hike Makapu‘u Point Lighthouse Trail. Visit Halona Blowhole Lookout. Beer tasting at Kona Brewing Company. Beer tasting at Waikiki Brewing Company. Beer tasting at Honolulu Beer Works. Dinner at La Mariana Sailing Club.

Friday:: Boots & Kimo's Homestyle Kitchen for breakfast. Visit The Byodo-In Temple. Hike Manoa Falls. 678 Hawaii for dinner.

Saturday:: Bogart's Cafe for breakfast. Hike Diamond Head State Monument. Get on POA! :D :D :D

Wow...what a nice accolade....I am honored...I would love to write travelogues...I am pretty good at it, but there is not much of a market for it...I will try to polish up my skills with the next few reviews...and will be thankful for any tips....

 

Kev:cool:

 

Anthony Bourdrain never waivers when asked to try local drinks or customs....dat be me....LOL:D

Yes, but you seem to have him beat in the sound effect department :p

Thank's,

 

Right now I am nothing. I considered journalism as well as teaching English. When I began Grad school the job offerings in teaching and an english masters degree were limited. My love for rare books, and manuscripts, libraries and archives put me on a new path recently. The study of Archives and historical archives which became a new masters program at UMB recently. Every organization and corporation as well as most governments have archives.There has been very few dedicated masters level education programs dedicated to this field until recently, and most organizations were forced to use record keepers and to train on the job. So I am hedging my bets and staying within a field I admire.

 

That said, I would love to be a travel writer. One that is tongue in cheek with some off stylings that make a traveler and reader feel closer to the subject.

Writing these kinds of reviews polishes my style and who knows, maybe someone out there will appreciate my style and discuss options with me.

 

But right now, I write for me and I write for your enjoyment, so I hope you all keep reading along and get a few laughs as well. I also intend to cover as much information about the experience as I can remember and even if I get some names wrong, I hope you all get my intent.

 

Kev:cool:

I can certainly see you as a travel writer! You remind me of Anthony Bourdain on the travel channel.

This is great! Will be doing this for sure for our honeymoon new years eve cruise on the Gem! <3 Beer for the hubby waiting for him will be a nice surprise I'm sure!

We'll be enoying the Gem for our honeymoon - does anyone know if there are hot tubs to enjoy that are NOT pool side? Seems to me that they are always swarmed by little kids.