YadaYadaJodi

Where do you get the milkshakes? What kind of "spiking" have you done? :p

Hello! Tell me about the Honest Tea available through the Cheers Program. Does it come in bottles only? Do they give you the whole unopened bottle? What flavors are available? Is there a hot tea version?

We will be traveling on the Carnival Breeze. TIA

After thinking about it and seeing how quickly some of the ports are coming back, I think it is an IT thing also. It is really far in advance to be changing the itinerary. I think all the ports will do everything possible to be open as quickly as they can. The cruises are a huge source of income for the ports and they certainly need the income desperately. As far as the service, it surely has nothing to do with propulsion as the Liberty would have to travel at near full speed to get to Nassau in one sailing day.

It's really 2 days - the Liberty doesn't arrive until 9pm Tues after leaving Galveston at 4pm Sunday.

I was looking at this cruise or possibly the Carnival Breeze for that week. I don't mind booking the Breeze but I wonder if their prices are going up for that week? :confused: I better make my mind up soon or the Breeze might get booked up.

Cruise Crazy: Couple Sets Record With 200th Carnival Sailing

I thought this old thread deserved bumping. I did a search of this couple's last name to see if anyone had posted about their latest achievement (see link above) - they've reached 200 cruises with Carnival now! Now that is brand loyalty!! :D

As CruiserBruce recommended, Ka'anapali Beach is only 4 miles from Lahaina Harbor & about a $15 one-way cab ride. I think that's a better optIon than the hourly bus that goes to Whalers Village in the middle of Ka'anapali Beach & is about a 10-15 walk to snorkeling. Car rental agencies are near Ka'anapali Beach & with their limited inventory will generally be more expensive than in Kahului which is 45 minutes away.

 

On the north end of Ka'anapali Beach by the Sheraton hotel is the closest good snorkeling at Black Rock. It's a lava point that can provide good snorkeling when the conditions are good. However heed the warning flags & if red or red/yellow wouldn't recommend going into the water. The current can be very strong in bad conditions but on good days it's the best snorkeling near Lahaina.

Hello! We will be in a rental car on Maui. Can you snorkel from the beach here when the conditions are good? If so, is there a place there or nearby to rent snorkeling gear? Thanks!

We did the drive to Haleakala in February and saw an absolutely spectacular sunrise! I am so glad we got up early to see this (we drove from Lahaina). The roads are well marked and there are reflective cat's eyes most of the way. One thing to be aware of though, since Feb. 1 there is a new reservation system if you are taking a rental/personal vehicle. The cost is minimal, but without a reservation you won't be allowed into the park until after 7am. See this thread http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2427272

 

If you have the time, I would recommend doing this in a rental car instead of a group tour. After the sunrise there are a lot of interesting things to see on the crater (short walks, hikes) and a few restaurants on the way down. We really enjoyed taking our time to explore a bit.

 

 

Something else to be aware of if you plan to explore Iao Valley State Park - the park is temporarily closed due to heavy flooding - http://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dsp/parks/maui/iao-valley-state-monument/

Hope this helps!

Thanks, so much for the encouragement! Yes, I did know about the need for the reservation - thanks to this wonderful website called Cruise Critic! ;)<3 I have my calendar marked to request a spot as soon as the reservations for that day become available.

For anyone else traveling by car - the park entrance fee is separate, there is an after hours self-service machine to pay the entrance fee. But for us I found out on their website that persons 62+ qualify for a lifetime "Senior Pass" to National Parks. You are not able to purchase this pass at the self-service machine. But, fortunately my DH qualifies and so I plan to have him purchase a lifetime pass in advance. Since Haleakala National Park has a per-vehicle entrance fee, I believe this pass will allow us both in. It allows the holder + 3 additional passengers in the same vehicle. If I'm reading everything right I think this pass will also work at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. If you're a Senior, Military, or traveling with a 4th-grader I recommend checking out: America the Beautiful Passes (not just for Hawaii either).

Back to our Maui plans, we have made a tentative reservation in Lahaina and will probably be staying there overnight. I feel weird paying for a hotel when we are also paying for a cabin on the POA but I feel justified since we will be saving so much money by touring on our own vs. with a company for the 2 days on Maui. :p

We aren't offering any opinions here except to say you pretty much get what you pay for. The inns are at those prices for a reason. Also, driving from Lahaina to Haleakala in the middle of the night is not something we would personally want to do as part of a vacation unless you like driving in the dark in an area unknown to you.

Thanks, Silver Sweethearts for your thoughts. We appreciate the 'you get what you pay for' reminder on the cheaper hotels. We still may go that route since it may just involve a shower and a nap (either before or after the luau (or both)).

Unfortunately, we will be making the drive from Lahaina toward Kahului at night no matter what we do - whether it's right after the luau or at 2 in the morning. I considered turning in the rental car that first night and booking a tour for the Haleakala sunrise to avoid the early driving but I like the flexibility too much of doing it on our own. Right off the bat, we can decide to go later if we're too tired to get up. If we do get up and go for the sunrise, 1. I'm sure there will be other cars/buses on the road to follow and 2. We can play our day by ear depending on our energy level vs. being committed to a tour.

I do appreciate all thoughts from you and others! Sometimes you need that voice of reason. ;)

It looks like the spa at the Westin on Kaanapali Beach offers a day pass but the website does not say how much. The Montage in Kapalua offers a pass for $55 that includes access to their spa pool. Westin which would be much closer to OLL. Kaanapali Beach does have a paved beach path for most of the way, so you could walk the beach path, see the hotels, have lunch and a drink, etc. without getting too sandy. There are no facilities though, other than the bathrooms at the resorts. Kapalua Bay in Kapalua does have the outdoor showers and restrooms, but I wouldn't want to get totally ready there.

 

If you didn't want to get too beachy and sandy, you could walk the beach path in Kaanapali, then drive to Lahaina and walk along Front St., see the Banyan Tree and courthouse, get some shave ice, etc. You could also drive to Kapalua Bay, walk the coastal trail (paved), drive to the Nakalele blowhole and hike down (just don't get too close), drive back through west Maui to Lahaina and sightsee before OLL. So there is definitely other stuff to do besides beaches that could fill your day. The drive along the west Maui coast is lovely with overlooks you could stop at.

 

I plugged in your dates to hotels.com and the Lahaina Inn came up at $119 and the Kaanapali Ocean Inn at $135 for Sunday 9/3. Both charge $15 for parking. These would be places to clean up and get some sleep and not much else but they wouldn't cost much more than day passes and both are close to OLL (just don't have too many mai tais!) :). So for not much more than a day pass for two, you would have a place to clean up for OLL, park for the night and then not have to worry about transferring in order to get to Haleakala for sunrise.

 

On a clear day, Haleakala is beautiful any time of day. If you don't make sunrise, it's still worth seeing and there are lots of places to explore upcountry on the way back to the ship.

 

Hopefully someone else can help you structure your day.

Beachiekeen -

Thank you so very much for such a detailed answer! Definitely helped us with some options!! Much much appreciated! :D You have given me some great ideas to help figure everything out! Mahalo!!

Pride of America, Kahului, Maui

Arriving Sunday, 9/3/2017, at 8am

Departing Monday, 9/4/2017, at 6pm (we will want to get onboard by 4pm)

Main plans:

2 day car rental

Sunday, Old Lahaina Lu’au

Monday, Haleakala at Sunrise (already know we need to book reservations)

Sunday – rent car, explore western Maui using “Gypsy” App, attend luau

Monday – get up early to drive to Haleakala for sunrise, explore area between there and ship (using “Gypsy”App) before returning rental car prior to boarding

I’m looking for help with the following issues specifically:

Sunday – we would like to explore various beaches & sites – the problem is trying to avoid driving all the way back to the ship to get cleaned up for the luau.

Do any public beaches or other facilities offer any real (able to use soap/shampoo/hair dryer) shower facilities?

If not, are there any other options that you can think of? Spa facilities at local hotels? Hotel that offers day facilities? Renting a “cheap” hotel room? Other?

Would the cost of a hotel room be somewhat offset by price for parking overnight at airport and taxi(Uber?) from airport to ship that night and back to airport in the morning if we decided to go the cheapest hotel room and actually stay the night and not just use it during the day? Any help on what those costs might actually be?

Our only other option seems to be to avoid the water and tread lightly on the beaches to try not to get too sweaty/dirty. We’re not interested in shopping at all. We would prefer to see the various beaches and other sites.

Monday – if we wind up back on the ship Sunday night, is airport parking the best (only?) option for parking our rental car overnight? Is there any problem past at certain time to get a taxi from airport to ship? I’m thinking we would be needed one about 9:30/10:00pm. I’m assuming this would be too late for any complimentary rental company shuttles, correct?

How early do we need to leave ship to get taxi (Uber?) to where we parked car and get to Haleakala in plenty of time for sunrise? Are taxis readily available at that hour? Again, I’m assuming the rental carcompanies don’t offer free shuttles this early, correct?

Again, any help on estimated cost of overnight parking at airport and a taxi to/from?

I actually can’t believe I’ve gotten my DH to agree (consider?) the late night followed by the early morning. We’re talking maybe 3 hours of sleep in between? I’m thinking that this will be a once in a lifetime trip though so I don’t want to pass either up. We’ll see if we actually get up in time for the sunrise or blow it off and go later.

At no point did we have to carry our luggage. You may have to wait a bit for an elevator on the ship, but once off, no problem.

Thanks! I figured that would be the case but I wanted to be sure. I'm not known for being a light packer. :p

So... is there any disadvantage to doing the self-disembark? We're not necessarily in a hurry. I'm planning on booking a late flight so we have the day on Oahu. But I would like to maximize the day.

Just curious - if we do the self-disembark off the POA will we have to "carry" our luggage at any point or will it be all elevators and ramps where we can "roll" it? ;)

Thanks!

Hello bankergirl06!! I had posted the same question on the Hawaii board. We are taking the same cruise on the same date and celebrating the same anniversary - 30 years!! :D Too funny!

We are flying out of Houston and are looking at about the same price as you. I was hoping someone would be willing to share what they had paid from Houston so I would know a good price when I see it.

I did get a hint to try a tracker like Carolina Girl suggested and I have downloaded an app called "Hopper". It is watching the fares from Houston for me and advising me to "wait" right now which is driving me crazy. I want to get everything booked since I know we're going. I sure want to save the money, but I also am worried about not getting the flights that we want. Decisions, decisions. :confused:

In the meantime, I did start a Roll Call Thread if you would care to join us over there.

POA - September 2, 2017 - Labor Day

This is sure an old thread that got revived but I have the same issue. We're hoping to get flights out late on debarkation day. Has anyone found a place to take a shower that afternoon? I thought about trying to find a cheaper hotel and see if we can get an early check-in (since we'd be checking out that evening).

Also, we would like to get a rental car and tour on our own that day. Any thoughts on how secure our luggage would be in the trunk (if we don't open it all day ;)) if the hotel thing didn't work out? DH is worried about the security and the heat of leaving our luggage in the trunk. I've found some luggage storage places at the airport. Would that be a better option? I'm thinking we could get a rental car shuttle from the port in Honolulu to the airport, rent a car, then drop off our luggage at a storage place at the airport before heading out for the day. Does anyone have a particular airport luggage storage company to recommend? TIA

Hello! I am looking at a tour with Discover Hawaii to Pearl Harbor for Embarkation Day. The tour is from 6:25am - 1:30pm with hotel pickup/dropoff. I assume we would need to checkout of our room before we leave at 6:25 in the morning. Does anyone have any thoughts on how cooperative hotels in the Waikiki area are with holding our luggage until 1:30pm? Thoughts on how safe our luggage would be? We sure don't want any problems pre-cruise!!! :eek:

Any middle-priced hotels that are known to be cooperative (or non-cooperative!)? Would requesting a late check out of 2pm (kind of a tight schedule) be an option? Any other suggestions on what to do about our luggage? DH is worried by safety!

Thanks in advance for any help!

I haven't been yet - I'm planning a September trip on the POA - but one HUGE hint I've read for the Pride of America is that the Muster Drill on embarkation day is around 4:30. If you miss it, you will have to make it up while in port in Maui. I don't want to mess up my Maui day since we are there overnight so I plan to definitely make the Muster Drill on the 1st day.

I'm interested in doing a 2 day car rental in Maui. If I want to get back late from Lahaina (10/11) then leaving super early in the morning to catch the sunrise at Haleakala.

1. Is the airport the best (only?) place to park?

2. I assume they won't be running car rental shuttles at either of these times, correct?

3. Will a cab/Uber be the only way? Will I be able to get one at both these times?

Thanks!

Thanks for the advice so far! Keep it coming!

I am hoping some will be willing to share what they paid from Houston to Honolulu so I will know a good price when I see it. ;)

Thank you so very very much for posting this! :)

Info like this is what makes Cruise Critic so wonderful! I don't know how anyone does without it.

Hello! We are planning to take NCL POA cruise 9/2/2017. I am wondering if anyone knew what would be a good airfare from Houston to Honolulu to look out for. Also if you have any thoughts on when to book flights for the best price.

I'm a planner and it's driving me crazy to not just go ahead and book since we are sure we want to go! BUT, I'm also frugal and don't want to pay more than I have to. :p

Any help?! :)

So much good information on this thread! Too much to reply to each individual but I just want to say thanks and I am subscribing to make sure I don't miss any new information (and I can find this thread as our cruise gets closer - it's quite a while yet).

Thank you!

The ship was just out of dry dock and all the area's that we went thru were looking good. We had good dinners in Cagney's and Teppanyaki, we did not enjoy our dinner at Jefferson's Bistro. We did not eat in the dinning room but eat all of our other meals in the buffet, which was good.https://goo.gl/photos/Z7KjbZ4Ua687XScV7

Oh my goodness, just beautiful!!

For the overnight ports:

 

There are shuttle buses at the pier for each rental line that take you to the pickup location. It's a bit of a wait so go early and bring your patience.

 

In Maui, the parking situation seemed difficult and we had booked the Old Lahaina Luau the first night so decided to just book a hotel in town. We stayed at a historic Inn in Lahaina - The Pioneer Inn. It was about $225. To The hotel was very quaint. Not luxury but very pretty, clean and totally worth it - didn't want to have to worry about the drive back.

 

We spent the day at Kanaapali Beach then headed to our hotel, did a bit of shopping and went to the Luau - FABULOUS.. It was like being at a big old Hawaiian BBQ. Then back to the hotel and off to bed. We did Haleakala at sunrise the next morning so up ridiculously early (2:30 am), then we did part of the Road to Hana. Haleakala was stunning and very moving - an experience we will never forget. Highly, highly recommend it but do your research first. You need to be prepared.

 

RTH we got up to about mile marker 58 - 60 (?). It was beautiful and we saw plenty, I'm glad we did it - had no desire to do the whole thing as it basically takes all day just to get to Hana. Plus, we had read that the roads were washed out somewhere along the way toward the end. It was a very ambitious plan so we were pretty exhausted but felt completely fulfilled - it was just right for us.

 

Definitely not for the faint of heart - the drive to Haleakala is challenging in the dark and RTH can be scary at parts. My husband drove - I kept dozing off and would wake up just at a hair pin turn. Ackk! I would not advise to do both drives in one day with children or the elderly. Again, it was pretty ambitious, Dropped the car off about 4 and back to the ship.

 

In Kauai, we took a shuttle (not very organized, REALLY bring your patience here) to pick up the car. On our way back after our first day we parked at the Anchor Cove Plaza (?) -parking was $20 - and it was very close to the pier. If you miss it you end up at the pier, so just turn around and it's on the right side (Umm yes maybe we did miss it the first time).

 

We did Blue Hawaiian Eco/helicopter tour the first day. Another trip of a lifetime experience. I was so nervous for weeks after I booked this. I am not a huge fan of flying. But once on board felt very safe and comfortable. Words cannot describe how awesome it was. So glad we did it and worth every penny.

 

We took the shuttle back the first night, and walked back in the morning as the shuttle didn't start until about 9 and we were up early to go to Waimea Canyon.

Hello! Thanks for all the good information. We are thinking of doing a lot of the same things. May I ask you a couple of questions?

Re: Haleakala - Could you elaborate on what you mean about doing the research first? I'm a big researcher but I'm just wondering if there is something tricky that I might miss.

Re: Kanaapali Beach - do you (or anyone) recall if there are any kind of public showers here or anywhere else near Lahaina where we could get cleaned up for the luau. We would like to rent a car and spend the day in the area then go to the luau that night without going back to the ship.

Thank you!

That's the plan. From what I've seen, prices drop about 60 days out from the target date. Given our flexibility I think I'm going to roll the dice and have a tentative plan B in place. I know that I'd want to get to the other islands so I'll have to research transportation options.

 

 

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I'm thinking of gambling this way also for a September 2017 cruise. I would love to know what you find out about transportation options between islands if we wind up on a land vacation.

We all knew there is baggage storeage but the question that had differing answers was could you bring a couple of pieces of full size luggage? I went today and had a good conversation with them. The answer is yes and you can even go bigger than the "standard" check in size...The rule is if it fits through the huge opening/window you're fine and many people do it all the time.

This sounds like a great tip but I'm just a little worried about the sizing. Any thoughts on how to find out the exact size they accept? I'd hate to get there only to find out my luggage was too large. Thank you!

I have one additional question: Did you happen to keep (or remember) any documents listing the onboard prices of the various drink packages? TIA!

I'll look tomorrow to see if I have an advertisement. We had pre-purchased the Premium package for $49/day. We weren't ever offered the 20% discount. And I did look to see what the onboard price was and it was the same = $49/day.

Btw my DD wound up cancelling her drink package on Day 2. We were charged the $49/day for the 2 days vs. them going back and charging per drink for those days.