Best Pride of America Excursions

Kauai Backroads Adventure

 

Thisexclusive journey takes you by air-conditioned 4x4 van, along seldom-used roadsto areas of incredible beauty. Due to their inaccessibility, these roads havebeen off limits to all but sugarcane workers for years. Meander past reservoirsand fields en route to Kilohana Crater, as your guide tells you about Kauai'shistory and culture. The 360-degree panorama from the summit of the crater isbreathtaking. Then, continue through Old Koloa Town, the birthplace of Hawaii'ssugar industry to pristine Mahaulepu Beach. Here you'll enjoy a light snack andan optional nature walk. On the return, you'll pass through a mountain tunnelto further enhance your backroads look at Kauai.

Another NCL excursion but again one we thoroughly enjoyed

Doesn't seem to be offered on our cruise;)

On Hawaii, we used Island wide family tours for Hilo and Kona.

I saw one review on TripAdvisor for Island Wide that said they almost didn't get back to the ship on time, but it still had 4 stars. Though they were mostly great reviews, there weren't that many of them. The only thing that really panics us about booking outside of NCL is not being able to get back to the ship on time, and this is not an NCL excursion. How were they on time management? Did you have to run back to the ship? Or did you feel you had plenty of time before sail away? We are interested in taking their tour. Thanks so much!

Just off POA and did mostly ship excursions. The one exception was Kona, where we went with Mary Lou, she is fabulous and will definitely make sure you get back to the ship on time. Her son runs Island Wide and we met his group at many of our spots and waved at them while they were snorkeling. He worked with her for years before she encouraged him to start his own business so while he was the tour next door, I would trust him to get me back to the ship. Now to the important stuff-the NCL Tours.

Molokini Crater Snorkel. Awesome. Loved it. My favorite excursion. That said, I am a strong swimmer, a former lifeguard who swims 2 hours every week. I thought the water was rough, my 73 year old mother got in the water and quickly back out...it was cold too. There were lifeguards in the water with us and one lady said she could not swim, but still stayed in the whole 2 hours. Although the water was rough, I felt very safe. Another warning, we did not snorkel molokini, it was too rough, but the spot nearby had sea turtles so I was happy!

Maui Day 2- Whale watch. Same group that ran the snorkel. Another great excursion. Saw many whales even though not fully Whale season yet.

Hilo-unexpected sea day

Kona-Mary Lou

Kauai-Luau Manor House experience. Totally worth the extra money. We were escorted onto the train first, taken to dinner, where we had authentic Hawaiian music and our own hula dancer, dinner was plated and brought to us- and it was good! We were then given time in the gift shops while everyone else ate. We then got front row seats to the Luau show itself. The best part was we got escorted back to the bus and got to leave before everyone else. I looked into doing the luau experience somewhere else, but this was truly the easiest way to do it.

Kauai. Director’s Cut tour. I wanted to like this, but I got very annoyed very quickly. Our bus driver would drive us to beautiful spots. Where he would then show us about 10 min worth of clips filmed in that spot and give us 10 min for pictures. I did not understand why the clips could not be shown before we reached the spots so we could have more time for pictures and to soak in the scenery.

Honolulu. North Shore and airport drop off. From the east coast with a flight after 5pm. This tour was to kill time but I really wanted to see the north shore, there is no food stop, so our first stop was Dole Plantation, which is just terrible, total tourist trap. But it has clean bathrooms and you could pick up something to eat for the rest of the tour, The rich people of the North Shore have banned tour buses from stopping so it was neat to see, but all my pics are taken from the bus window. A stop at a macadamia nut outlet and the Byodo In temple rounded out the trip before airport drop off. Ok if you need to kill time. Happy to answer questions and planning to do a full report once I get my pics downloaded.

The tubing adventure is no longer offered through NCL. You would have to book directly through the tubing company and arrange your own travel there and back. We are sailing in March and had been waiting for it to get posted, and finally called today and that is what the shore excursion desk told me.

We did this tubing adventure tour in May 2016 and had the best time. Also consider the sunrise tour to Haleakala and the biking tour down the volcano.

Tubing Adventure

Port: Nawiliwili, Kauai

Witness Kauai's lush flora as you float down a tropical waterway made up of a series of ditches and channels, all of which were engineered and dug by hand in the 1870’s to bring water to the sugar cane fields. Enjoy a relaxing two mile ride in and out of many tunnels that open up to beautiful views. At the end of your adventure, munch on snacks beside a pristine swimming hole.

 

Note: Participants must be at least 5 years of age, weigh no more than 300 lbs. and be at least 43 inches in height. Not recommended for guests who are claustrophobic, pregnant or those with back problems. Wear a swimsuit and bring a towel. less

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The only one we did through NCL was the Atlantis Submarine and we both really enjoyed it. We just got back from our cruise last week.

Did you by any chance do a "whale watching" excursion in Maui? We are interested in renting a car for day, driving to Lahaina for sightseeing and using Pacific Whale Foundation for a whale excursion. Any insight would be appreciated.

Did you by any chance do a "whale watching" excursion in Maui? We are interested in renting a car for day, driving to Lahaina for sightseeing and using Pacific Whale Foundation for a whale excursion. Any insight would be appreciated.

We did whale watching with the foundation and it was very inexpensive when booking in advance. Go to their website and track the current sightings.

We rented a car in each port and DIY. The Hawaii tri park pass was a bargain and it included volcano national park, Haleakalā, and the surprising heritage park in Kona.

https://www.nps.gov/havo/learn/news/tripark15.htm

We used Ultimate Whale Watch out of Lahaina in December for our whale watching excursion. Nice small boat, and they get VERY close to the whales.

Also, in Kona, we took the "Secret Waterfalls" tour through NCL. We went by van to the tour company office where we switched to a 6 wheel ATV for a drive off road back into an old sugar cane plantation on the north shore of Hawaii. We then hiked (easy) for about an hour and saw several beautiful waterfalls. We took a swim in pool beneath the last one. Then the tour provided a nice picnic lunch at a spot with a breathtaking view of the shoreline and the Pacific Ocean. I am 69 and my wife is 62, but we found the hike and swim easy and fun. This was one of the highlights of our vacation.

On Maui, we used Roberts for Haleakala and Road to Hana.

Did you find that the Roberts tour stopped frequently enough to enjoy photo ops/waterfalls/etc on Road to Hana? Did they pick you up at the cruise port or did you have to get to the airport? Did you to the Haleakala sunrise tour or a different one? Concerned about timing of doing a non-NCL tour on the departure day (don't want to miss sailaway). ;-)

Did you find that the Roberts tour stopped frequently enough to enjoy photo ops/waterfalls/etc on Road to Hana? Did they pick you up at the cruise port or did you have to get to the airport? Did you to the Haleakala sunrise tour or a different one? Concerned about timing of doing a non-NCL tour on the departure day (don't want to miss sailaway). ;-)

Yes' date=' we made many stops on the road to Hana. So much beautiful scenery. There’s not much in Hana, so it’s all about the stops along the way :) we did not do the Haleakala sunrise tour because my husband didn’t want to wake up at 2am, but it was still impressive in the afternoon. I highly recommend the Roberts tours in Maui. We were picked up at the cruise port and had excellent drivers.

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Best best advice, really, is to avoid the overpriced excursions and explore each island on your own. Rental car agencies pick up/drop off at the piers. Research each island and decide what interests you. Then use Mapquest or you phone maps to set your route. You get to see/do what YOU want at your own pace without 45+ people on a bus that might waste time at some places you don't want to go.

A person who tries to drive the Road to Hana is nuts.

Hi we are leaving May 2018 for our very first cruise!

We have a 3 and 5 year old and wondering what excursions would be suitable for us. We definitely want to attend a Luau (sp?), surfing, volcanic black sand beach.

Recommendations???

Yes, we made many stops on the road to Hana. So much beautiful scenery. There’s not much in Hana, so it’s all about the stops along the way :) we did not do the Haleakala sunrise tour because my husband didn’t want to wake up at 2am, but it was still impressive in the afternoon. I highly recommend the Roberts tours in Maui. We were picked up at the cruise port and had excellent drivers.

 

 

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We did the sunrise tour and it was so crowded and cold it was hard to see anything. We didn't like being picked up at 3am and then waiting to pick up another group. We also didn't like the trip back down as they made a stop to shop and also a breakfast stop which wasted our time seeing other parts of the island.

A person who tries to drive the Road to Hana is nuts.

Exactly! If you drive it, you really can't enjoy the beauty of it.

We did a helicopter tour in Kauai which was absolutely the best!

Hi we are leaving May 2018 for our very first cruise!

 

We have a 3 and 5 year old and wondering what excursions would be suitable for us. We definitely want to attend a Luau (sp?), surfing, volcanic black sand beach.

 

Recommendations???

Out of curiosity, which cruise are you on?

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We did a helicopter tour in Kauai which was absolutely the best!

So did we! We used Jack Harter helicopters. We did the doors-off flight. We had done it 33 years ago on our honeymoon and had Jack himself as pilot. This time we took our adult kids with us. Jack doesn't fly anymore - just runs the operation. It was absolutely breathtaking.

I was looking at booking the Haleakala Crater at Sunset tour, however now all I see on offer are the sunrise tours. Have they stopped doing the sunset tours, anyone know?

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Hi we are leaving May 2018 for our very first cruise!

We have a 3 and 5 year old and wondering what excursions would be suitable for us. We definitely want to attend a Luau (sp?), surfing, volcanic black sand beach.

Recommendations???

Sort of a backwards answer here. Unless all of you enjoy driving together in a car for hours, it is our opinion to do yourselves a favor and not take a 3 and 5 year old on the Road to Hana or to Haleakala. The idea of a luau and the beach, etc. - someplace where everyone can be enjoying themselves by being active - should make happier campers.

We did the Sunset Whale Watching tour through NCL. It was the first evening in Maui. We rented a car during the day, came back to port and got on the tour. Fantastic!

Vic

Out of curiosity, which cruise are you on?

 

 

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Hey on Pride of America sailing May 26th.

I know you want to do NCL's excursions, but Robert's Hawaii offers the same ones at most ports for quite a bit less. We used them pre-cruise for Pearl Harbor, and then again in Kauai for the Movie Tours excursion (NCL's was about $20+ more pp). The only NCL excursion we did was a bust..Molokini Express I believe it was called, and rather than snorkel around the Molokini Crater (something to do with sea conditions) , we were brought somewhere with hardly any sea life. On the plus side, the BBQ lunch and drinks were good, and our hosts were a great organization, the Pacific Whale Foundation. Just wish we went to Molokini.

Hey on Pride of America sailing May 26th.

Oh so close! We will be on the cruise prior with our 2 year old. Have a great trip!

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Just of the Pride on Saturday. I would highly recommend Mary Lou's tour on the Big Island. We did both days with them and it was the best of all the tours we did

Strongly agree and the price is reasonable.

So me and the wife are sailing on the July 1st sailing of Pride of America. We are currently trying to decide which excursions to go on. We are only looking at NCL excursions, just to not deal with anything. I am interested in what excursions people that have sailed in the last year or two that they liked a lot and the ones that they didn't. Thanks in advance for your help and advice.

I'm sailing on the April 14 POA and we're doing a bunch of NCL excursions. I'll let you know which ones we liked the best when we get back! We are doing mostly active excursions: kayaking, zip lining, rapelling, etc.

Question about the Director's Cut tour on Kauai - where does this stop at and specifically did this stop at Waimea Canyon? We are thinking of doing it the 2nd day so we'd be sure to get back on time. We're renting a car the day before, and didn't want to hit the same places twice if possible!

We're sailing POA Sept 1 and this would actually be our only NCL excursion (so far). Renting a car in Maui for Ka'anapali beach, OLL, part of RTH, Mama's Fish House etc., then Mary Lou both days on the big island 😁