Which Cruiseline for Hawaii?

[misty57]

We have sailed almost exclusively on RCI. Looking at the Hawaii itinerary

the ships are not the class that DH likes. I do not see us flying to Hawaii, so am looking at Celebrity and Princess for the departure ports of San Diego or San Francisco. The reviews of Century and Grand Princess are not the best, and I wonder if we would be bored for 10 days at sea on such small ships. For those who have sailed on Voyager,Freedom or Oasis class on Royal and either Celebrity or Princess, which would you choose for such a long trip? DH particularly likes the promenade and solariums on Royal. :)

[marco]

I'm not sure what "class" it is, but we've sailed on "EOS" 3 times. It was enjoyable, but prefer Princess and Celebrity over RCI. What time of year are you considering this? Sailing to Hawaii from the west coast in the winter months isn't exactly "topical", and that in itself might make the journey on any ship less appealing.

[misty57]

I'm not sure what "class" it is, but we've sailed on "EOS" 3 times. It was enjoyable, but prefer Princess and Celebrity over RCI. What time of year are you considering this? Sailing to Hawaii from the west coast in the winter months isn't exactly "topical", and that in itself might make the journey on any ship less appealing.

 

If you mean Explorer of the seas, that would be in the Voyager class which DH does like. We have not sailed on Enchantment. We would be most likely going in February so yeah, it might not be the best time to do that :p. This might be a retirement trip so we could travel in a better season. Thanks for the information.

[Cruisin' Chick]

In December, we did our third Hawaiian cruise on Princess. We love sea days plus there are so many activities (including many Hawaiian ones) that I can't see anyone being bored.

 

Here's a link to my report on this one last one:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1763342

 

The Golden Princess will be switching to the South American itinerary next year and the Star Princess will be inheriting this itinerary as well as Elua (a musical duo who are well-touted on CC for good reasons). The Sapphire will also be doing this cruise part of the season, also out of LA. The Grand will be sailing out of San Francisco.

[flamomo]

The Grand Princess is not a small ship!!!

The only true small ships in the Princess fleet are the Ocean and the Pacific, and they hold about 700 passengers each.

The rest of Princess ships hold 1900 or more.

 

I have done the r/t LA or SFO - HI cruises 5 times on Princess so far. Boredom is never an issue, as there are plenty of activities scheduled, some of which are Hawaiian themed. One can be as busy or as laid back as one chooses.

[bonsai3s]

We have sailed almost exclusively on RCI. Looking at the Hawaii itinerary

the ships are not the class that DH likes. I do not see us flying to Hawaii, so am looking at Celebrity and Princess for the departure ports of San Diego or San Francisco. The reviews of Century and Grand Princess are not the best, and I wonder if we would be bored for 10 days at sea on such small ships. For those who have sailed on Voyager,Freedom or Oasis class on Royal and either Celebrity or Princess, which would you choose for such a long trip? DH particularly likes the promenade and solariums on Royal. :)

 

...Grand Princess out of SF.

 

Yes, we've sailed on the Century, and the Grand, and sailed to Hawaii from both LA and SF...most recently two months ago on the Star Princess out of SF and sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge. We've sailed on the Voyager, Liberty, and Allure (twice). Your DH will definitely miss the promenade, but the Grand has a solarium. No, you won't be bored. Sea days are full of activities...there are plenty of things to do. (It would only be normal to compare..no rock climbing wall, no flowrider, no zipline, no ice-skating rink, no full court basketball, not so nice putting greens, smaller gym, etc.) We must truly be addicted to cruising because even without these things...we still truly enjoy cruising with Princess. We have met a number of wonderful people.

One special note: Our best cruise to Hawaii was the one with the husband and wife team called Elua on the Golden Princess. Dave teaches ukelele and Liliuokalani teaches hula and lei making. In addtion, they have a presentation on Hawaii life...not to mention that they sing too. Liliuokalani's voice is simply heavenly. We are not sure what ship they'll be sailing...but if we had our choice, we would make sure to sail with them. Aloha and happy sailing! :)

[misty57]

Thank you! I was leaning toward the Grand and SF:D. Now I need to talk DH into such a long cruise!

[Cruisin' Chick]

..

 

One special note: Our best cruise to Hawaii was the one with the husband and wife team called Elua on the Golden Princess. Dave teaches ukelele and Liliuokalani teaches hula and lei making. In addtion, they have a presentation on Hawaii life...not to mention that they sing too. Liliuokalani's voice is simply heavenly. We are not sure what ship they'll be sailing...but if we had our choice, we would make sure to sail with them. Aloha and happy sailing! :)

 

Currently Leialoha and Dave of Elua are on the Golden Princess. Next year, they are scheduled to be on the Star.