Hawaii Pride of America Port ideas with Teenage Boys

[Shelljo]

Hi,

Just wondering if anyone has some ideas of what the best plan would be for our family of 5 with teenage boys aged 18,15 and 12 once we are in all the hawaii ports? The tours look quite expensive for 5 people, so maybe only do only one or two of those eg I like the idea in Maui of biking riding down from the volcano or a snorkel trip??I think they would be happiest just going to beach, hiring kayaks, swimming, but, apart from Kona looks like we would have to travel to a beach in each port anyway? We would like to experience the island but I dont want them being bored. The kids are all quite active so would prefer action over sitting in a bus looking at views but then would probably like a couple of easy days as well.

Any help would be very much appreciated.

Thanks

[jmf123]

Welcome to Cruise Critic, Shelljo! While I've been to Hawaii quite a few times on land vacations, never with teenagers. Kauai is my favorite! I'd recommend checking out the Hawaii Ports of Call forum here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=62. Enjoy your cruise! :)

[dorisis]

It is easy to rent a car on any of the islands. Do your research and with a car you can see and do whatever suits you. Cheaper than paying for 5 on an excursion. You can find lots of information on Hawaii at your local library.

[Mt Lassen]

Surfing lessons are great fun and not too expensive compared to the cost of ship excursions. I had never surfed and did one last year. Just do a search for surf schools for any island you choose and you will get a complete list with locations and cost.

[SMerritt]

We usually just take cabs to beaches etc. (pricey in Hawaii)

 

This time our butler suggested renting cars - he rented us cars from discounthawaiicarrental.com (5 star on Yelp). The car rentals were SUPER CHEAP.

 

Having the car allowed us to see and do more. All cars have GPS which made touring and sightseeing fun, easy, and affordatle.

 

The car rental agencies pick you up and bring you back to the ports.

 

Now......IF you can budget a helicopter tour, ALL of you will love it. If I could only choose one activity, I would do a helicopter tour in Hawaii again! We booked the Maui and Kauai flights through NCL, The pilots, scenery, and whole flight was totally complete and amazing. Your boys will remember it forever and like our neighbors boys on the ship, talk about it non-stop, we all flew on the Big Island, then HAD to see Kauai by air.

 

The CC Hawaii board is also full of information

 

Have a Great Family vacation!

[cb at sea]

First, get yourself a guidebook on Hawaii....libraries have them! Then, you and the kids read it, and decide what things you'd like to do...THEN you can decide HOW to do them! Rental cars are the best way to do things on your own timetable...but you really need to know something about where you're going, so you don't miss something you would have like, simply because you didn't know about it! Get the book!

[Kartgv]

On the Hawaii board, there's a great thread called "Hawaii Cheat Sheet...." that has been going on for ages and has over 57,000 views! Many contributions by many people, so you should find lots of ideas. Here's he link:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=559081

 

Also, not all rental car agencies do port pickups in every port, nor do all cars have GPS, so read the fine print before booking. The DiscountHawaiiCarRental site already mentioned is a good one to use.