Veteran Hawaii Cruise Fanatics - HELP ME!

Hey guys,

I'm not new to the cruise world, we have been on 15 total cruises and we love to cruise. That being said I have had NO TIME to research Hawaii and we go for our cruise in 3 weeks (yah go ahead, kick me)!

Anyway, below is our itinerary and I wanted to see what you guys suggest we do on each island.

We can go with the cruise tours or rent a car and do it on our own. We actually like doing things on our own better so suggest that first please.

Anyway, PLEASE look at each place we plan to visit and tell us the things WE MUST do! Anything that makes you go "WOW" or "DAMN" or "HOLY CRAP" is what we enjoy. So please help us ASAP!

Day Port Arrive Depart Booked

Sat Honolulu ---- 7:00 pm 0

Sun Maui (Kahului) 8:00 am ---- 0

Mon Maui (Kahului) ---- 6:00 pm 0

Tue Hilo 8:00 am 6:00 pm 0

Wed Kona 7:00 am 5:30 pm 0

Thu Kauai 8:00 am ---- 0

Fri Kauai ---- 2:00 pm 0

Sat Honolulu 7:00 am ---- 0

Sailed your itinerary on the POA in July.

Bad news: best small group tour operators are already booked. Good news: others on this forum (not me, I hate to drive on vacation) will be able to recommend rental cars.

Maui: Haleakala is a "Holy Crap" site. (if you can find sunrise bike tour, folks who do it, enjoy it). We went on big bus during day and was still plenty impressed. Would not want to drive the 7,000 miles uphill on windy roads all by my lonesome, but YMMV.

Iao Valley: close to ship, gorgeous rain forest, hard to believe same island as Haleakala, but not a "Holy Crap" site. (although I really liked it).

VNP from Hilo, also in the "Holy Crap" category. Easily driveable, we went with private tour.

Kona: less in the "Wow", but still our favorite port. Snorkeling at Two Step bay was spectacular. Coffee farm tours, always and sampling afterwards, fun but not a huge "wow" factor.

Kauai: if you can swing a helicopter tour, go. "holy Crap", "Wow" and "Damn" all in one.

and one of the best "Wow" sites, you don't need to go anywhere: rainbow from NaPali cliffs sailby (hopefully attachment is attached).

happy cruising,

el henry

as the previous poster said the small group tours will probably be all booked by now so that may reduce the WOW Holy Crap experiences but I am quite sure that you will still be able to have MANY of those moments

Day Port Arrive Depart Booked

Sat Honolulu ---- 7:00 pm 0 in Honolulu we swam with the sharks-that was truly amazing! North Shore Shark Adventures

Sun Maui (Kahului) 8:00 am ---- 0 We did the road to Hana and that had many WOW moments-we used Valley Isle-they may still have openings?

Mon Maui (Kahului) ---- 6:00 pm 0

Tue Hilo 8:00 am 6:00 pm 0 VNP we used Mary Lou's tours-you could drive there yourself or find another tour operator

Wed Kona 7:00 am 5:30 pm 0 LOVED Kona-one of my favorite excursions MANY WOWS-just loved these guys Captain Zodiac Raft, Snorkel & Dolphin Adventure

Thu Kauai 8:00 am ---- 0 Gorgeous took a helicopter ride-BEAUTIFUL!!!!

Fri Kauai ---- 2:00 pm 0

Sat Honolulu 7:00 am ---- 0 If your plane leaves late enough take a circle island tour-we did a turtle circle island tour with Turtle Tours and enjoyed it alot-but we did ours before the cruise

Have fun~~whatever you chose to do

Thanks!

So far we have the Haleakala tour setup, going at 3:15am (woot)!

Then we have a helicopter tour setup at Kauai

We rented a car for checking out VNP on our own!

Thanks!

 

So far we have the Haleakala tour setup, going at 3:15am (woot)!

Remember that on average the 10,000 foot summit of Haleakala is about 30 degrees cooler than at sea level. And it can be quite windy so with the windchill it may be in the low 40s to 30s. Also arrive at least 30 minutes prior to official sunrise because the most spectacular part to me was seeing the 1st golden rays of the sun piercing the dark sky like a sunrise in space. I'd also suggest calling in advance in case there are any issues & parking (particularly at the highest point of the summit) is limited & another reason to arrive early. I'd hate to view the sunrise from my car while looking for a parking space. :eek:

Maui- We rented a car from Thrifty using the BlueChip program. We did part of the Road to Hana and found it over-rated. The things that made it worth it for us were the Painted Eucalyptus at mile marker 6 (something I have never seen before) and Keanae Peninsula which was beautiful but took a long time to get to. I don't know if I would call these WOW but definitely worth a ride if you have time. Haleakala was WOW but a very long, windy, tough drive. We almost got hit by a bus coming back down the mountain. It was very cold and windy at the top, so we didn't stay long (we had intended to stay for sunset) and only did one short walk. Iao Valley was ok- it is close to the ship so if you have time it is worth the trip. Depending on the time of year you go (November?) WHALES WHALES WHALES. We went in March and could see whales right from shore with the naked eye. Hookipa Beach was worth a quick stop, and we sat on HP Baldwin Beach for a while (which I recommend). Lahaina was probably not worth the drive.

Hilo- We rented a car from Hertz and drove to Punaluu Black Sand Beach (WOW). Then we drove to Volcanoes National Park and drove the Chain of Craters Road (WOW).

Kona- We took an excursion that went to the Painted Church, Place of Refuge and a coffee plantation. Nothing really WOW but we found it very interesting. Then we walked around Kona, which is a cute little town.

Kauai- This whole island really is WOW. We rented a car from Thrifty again. I don't think you could go wrong with anything you do on Kauai. We loved the North Shore and drove all the way to the end of the road, with a stop at the lighthouse and Hanalei. Then we went to the south shore, which is more crowded but just as beautiful.

Honolulu- Pearl Harbor if you have time (WOW). Or a drive to the North Shore with a stop at Lanikai Beach and the Byodo-in-Temple.

Kauai - MUST DO! Wings Over Kauai. Small airplane, full tour of island (about an hour) at one-third the cost of helicopter. Check out their website.

Maui: Rent a car. Drive to Lahaina. If you want to snorkel and are adventurous I recommend redline rafting co.

Kona: We did the NCL kayak/snorkel. It was actually really fun. You can just walk around here though.

Kuaui: If you are a good hiker rent a car and hike the Kalalau trail (or part of it.) It is stunning!

Thanks!

 

So far we have the Haleakala tour setup, going at 3:15am (woot)!

 

Then we have a helicopter tour setup at Kauai

 

We rented a car for checking out VNP on our own!

The helicopter tour will surely include the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific" Waimea Canyon which prompted us to visit the Grand Canyon.

VNP by car will keep you ahead of the herds. Start early and get in the "Ranger talks" before the throngs show up. VNP was great.

Remember that on average the 10,000 foot summit of Haleakala is about 30 degrees cooler than at sea level. And it can be quite windy so with the windchill it may be in the low 40s to 30s. Also arrive at least 30 minutes prior to official sunrise because the most spectacular part to me was seeing the 1st golden rays of the sun piercing the dark sky like a sunrise in space. I'd also suggest calling in advance in case there are any issues & parking (particularly at the highest point of the summit) is limited & another reason to arrive early. I'd hate to view the sunrise from my car while looking for a parking space. :eek:

YES, dress warm. It can be 80 degrees at the bottom and drop to the 40's at the top. You'll never knew what hit you! Also if anyone in your party gets tired easily, the 10,000ft altitude can be taxing on your lungs. Just going up a flight of stairs can leave you out of breath!

The biggest Wow Excursion of any cruise we have ever taken was Capt. Zodiac on Kona. Hands down ... our very favorite excursion ever.

And if you're taking in a luau, it's hard to find a better one than the Old Lahaina Luau. We sampled the crafts, had the up-close traditional mat seating and will talk about the chocolate covered passion fruit that was included in the dessert selections.

Oh and Oahu? My DD still talks about going back someday just to get another teriyaki steak dinner at Duke's ... we went for the hula pie, but it's that steak that we still dream about.

Oh and Oahu? My DD still talks about going back someday just to get another teriyaki steak dinner at Duke's ... we went for the hula pie, but it's that steak that we still dream about.

There's a Duke's on Maui (North Ka'anapali) plus other restaurants (Kimo's, Hula Grill & Leilani's) owned by the same company for Hula Pie. :D

The last time I checked there were Duke's also in Malibu & Huntington Beach in the greater LA area.

The closest Dukes to a ship is at Kalapaki Beach on Kauai. Had the Hula Pie there after a morning paddleboarding. Basically a huge ice cream cake, but it sure did taste good after a morning on the water. Although four of us were eating it...

The closest Dukes to a ship is at Kalapaki Beach on Kauai. Had the Hula Pie there after a morning paddleboarding. Basically a huge ice cream cake, but it sure did taste good after a morning on the water. Although four of us were eating it...

I don't know if it's still the same but at Kimo's in Lahaina & Duke's Malibu they gave a free slice of Hula Pie to those celebrating a birthday or anniversary. :D

Here is the link to my review.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1745674

No judging here...we planned our recent B2B cruises only one month before departure and managed to get on some of the small, private tours and rented cars in other places.

Maui...Valley Isle Tours for Road to Hana...great day! On another day, lunch at Mamma's Fish House for the best seafood on the island, but make a reservation! Pricey but worth every penny!!

Wings Over Kauai! Incredible!!!

Kauai...take shuttle to Anchor Cove (or walk)....lunch at Duke's on the beach and then walk the grounds of the Marriott's gardens...gorgeous! Or just hang out on the beach....simply beautiful! You may not use the Marriott's pool but you may rent chairs, umbrella's snorkel gear, etc at a stand next door to Duke's,

Kona...if you decide to just walk around town or use the beach right at the tender pier, have lunch at Splasher's! Best fish tacos, huge shrimp cocktail and best view from their open air second floor!!

And as funny as it sounds, most ports have free shuttles to Walmarts where you will find the very same souvenirs for much less cost...including Kona coffee!! The driver's do appreciate a tip but that's up to you.

Hilo...if you drive yourselves to VNP, make sure you drive to the end of the Chain if Craters (and then work your way back). It's definitely a Wow!

Enjoy!

Elaine

Be aware that the coffee you buy at an amazing price is most likely a blend containing only 10% Kona coffee. Make sure you read the label and buy 100% Kona coffee!

Be aware that the coffee you buy at an amazing price is most likely a blend containing only 10% Kona coffee. Make sure you read the label and buy 100% Kona coffee!

We just returned to Maui & the cheapest sale prices on either 10% or 100% Kona coffee is at Long's Drug Store. They always have one brand or another on sale with Royal Kona being our favorite. :D

We are here!

First day we did "Road to Hana" it was awesome and we spent 6 hours taking pictures, etc.

Day two we left at 2:45am and went to the top of the volcano (forget the name) and saw like 8 shooting stars then the sun rise, WOW what fun!

We are here!

 

First day we did "Road to Hana" it was awesome and we spent 6 hours taking pictures, etc.

 

Day two we left at 2:45am and went to the top of the volcano (forget the name) and saw like 8 shooting stars then the sun rise, WOW what fun!

You must be on the POA which we saw in port on our way to pre-Thanksgiving shopping at Costco. I've experienced sunrise & sunset from Haleakala & to me it's no contest which is best...sunrise. :)

Glad that you had a great time on the Valley Isles even with the mild tradewinds which is our natural a/c.