POA 11 day cruisetour

[Lorey2007]

On the last day we left our luggage in our room, it was picked up while we were on tour, and delivered to the ship. We had priority boarding when we got to the ship, and boarded very quickly - maybe about 10 minutes.

 

Was your luggage delivered directly to your stateroom from the bus or did you have to retrieve it and take it through security yourselves?

[earlbird]

Was your luggage delivered directly to your stateroom from the bus or did you have to retrieve it and take it through security yourselves?

 

 

Luggage was delivered directly to our room.

This was certainly a nice perk, not having to handle our luggage at all.

[Lorey2007]

Luggage was delivered directly to our room.

This was certainly a nice perk, not having to handle our luggage at all.

 

That is good to hear as I read there are no porters and you have to take your bags through the scanner yourself.

 

What are your thoughts on the Marriott? Did you have a city view or ocean view room? We'll be coming a day before the cruisetour begins and would like to stay there although the rooms are very pricey. I need to make sure we would get a room and not have to move once we begin the cruisetour. I have been reading some reviews on Tripadvisor they haven't been the best but I know how that goes. Mostly they comment that the hotel is dated and the pool area is not the greatest. Is it very convenient to get to the beach across the street not that I'm sure we would use it.

[earlbird]

That is good to hear as I read there are no porters and you have to take your bags through the scanner yourself.

 

What are your thoughts on the Marriott? Did you have a city view or ocean view room? We'll be coming a day before the cruisetour begins and would like to stay there although the rooms are very pricey. I need to make sure we would get a room and not have to move once we begin the cruisetour. I have been reading some reviews on Tripadvisor they haven't been the best but I know how that goes. Mostly they comment that the hotel is dated and the pool area is not the greatest. Is it very convenient to get to the beach across the street not that I'm sure we would use it.

 

The Marriott was fine. It was not super fancy, but is was clean. All we did was sleep there, as we were always on the go. We did have an ocean view room. Actually, we never saw the pool. Beach is right across the street - nice area.

[davejohn]

We just got back from our 11 day cruise-tour in Hawaii. Overall it was an excellent trip. The Marriott was very nice. We had an ocean view room on a corner with a great view of both the beach and Diamond Head. The room was clean, roomy and well maintained. The one time we walked around and checked out the pools they seemed nice, but hardly anyone was there. The convenience factor was great. It was a bit confusing finding the NCL rep at the Honolulu airport, but once we found her they handled all our luggage from the airport to hotel and hotel to stateroom. We were able to pre-check in for the cruise at the hotel, plus make dinner reservations for the specialty restaurants. Once at the pier we went through the priority check-in line very quickly.

 

Overall the land tours were pretty good, although somewhat hectic. Some of the stops were too short to really see everything. For example, the stop at the Dole Plantation was about 30 minutes, not enough time to see everything. This was followed by a stop at a strip mall for shopping for 45 minutes! Most of the people I talked to on the bus would have preferred more time at the plantation. Our driver Cody did an excellent job. Part of the problem is the Honolulu traffic. Getting in and out of the city during rush hour (or any hour according to Cody) is slow going.

 

Overall, the cruise tour is a great way to see Hawaii the first time. You get the highlights, and a good basis for planning a return trip.

[Notion_of_the_Ocean]

The one thing I don't like about the cruise tour is that your fourth day of your tour is embarkation day.... meaning you give up your first (and probably your only day to relax and enjoy the ship on this cruise). My take on this is fly in ahead of time independently of NCL and do your own touring... but this is just imo.

[Lorey2007]

We just got back from our 11 day cruise-tour in Hawaii. Overall it was an excellent trip. The Marriott was very nice. We had an ocean view room on a corner with a great view of both the beach and Diamond Head. The room was clean, roomy and well maintained. The one time we walked around and checked out the pools they seemed nice, but hardly anyone was there. The convenience factor was great. It was a bit confusing finding the NCL rep at the Honolulu airport, but

 

once we found her they handled all our luggage from the airport to hotel and hotel to stateroom. We were able to pre-check in for the cruise at the hotel, plus make dinner reservations for the specialty restaurants. Once at the pier we went through the priority check-in line very quickly.

 

Overall the land tours were pretty good, although somewhat hectic. Some of the stops were too short to really see everything. For example, the stop at the Dole Plantation was about 30 minutes, not enough time to see everything. This was followed by a stop at a strip mall for shopping for 45 minutes! Most of the people I talked to on the bus would have preferred more time at the plantation. Our driver Cody did an excellent job. Part of the problem is the Honolulu traffic. Getting in and out of the city during rush hour (or any hour according to Cody) is slow going.

 

Overall, the cruise tour is a great way to see Hawaii the first time. You get the highlights, and a good basis for planning a return trip.

 

Thank you for reporting on the 11 day cruisetour. About how long were your daily tours? Was it a full bus or more than one bus? Do you think it would help if at the beginning of the tour we requested more time at the plantation and less for shopping? Do you think you could have done these tours on your own or with a independent tour company it would be more worthwhile. On embarkation day what time did you get to the ship? Were there a lot of souvenier shops around and within walking distance of the Marriott?

This will most likely be our one and only trip to Hawaii do you think the having NCL arrange everything was worth it as opposed to doing it yourself? Especially the handling of the luggage and arranging all the tours?

Thanks again

Edited October 7, 2014 by Lorey2007

[Gaelic-123]

I am also interested on all the details about the 3 days in Waikiki. What time does the first tour start and end. We won't get there until 10:30 if we are lucky in the evening which is really about 5 in the morning our time. Hoping it is not too early. Do you get a good breakfast at the Marriott. Breakfast is suppose to be included. How long are you at the Polynesian Centre? I didn't know we were going so I booked it when we arrive back on Saturday. We are spending Saturday night at the Hilton so we will be able to see Breath of life. Did you find you had any time to enjoy the beach. What time did you reach the ship? Thank you for replying.

[davejohn]

Thank you for reporting on the 11 day cruisetour. About how long were your daily tours? Was it a full bus or more than one bus? Do you think it would help if at the beginning of the tour we requested more time at the plantation and less for shopping? Do you think you could have done these tours on your own or with a independent tour company it would be more worthwhile. On embarkation day what time did you get to the ship? Were there a lot of souvenier shops around and within walking distance of the Marriott?

 

This will most likely be our one and only trip to Hawaii do you think the having NCL arrange everything was worth it as opposed to doing it yourself? Especially the handling of the luggage and arranging all the tours?

 

Thanks again

 

Hi Lorey,

 

The daily tours were a full day, except for the last day which ended with the bus dropping us off at the cruise terminal around 3:30pm. We met in the lobby for the tours around 8 am each day.

 

Our group at the hotel had 2 pretty full buses. The first day they assigned everyone to a bus (keeping friends/family together) and the buses did the same routes each day. You could try asking for more time at the plantation and less shopping, but you'd have to get everyone to agree. There IS shopping at the plantation too.

 

You definitely could have done the land portion on your own, making your own hotel reservations and booking tours. Tours may be more expensive if it's just a small group or just you. To me the convenience factor was a big plus. And, we got to meet some nice people from around the world that we made friends with and joined for dinner on the cruise.

 

There is lots of shopping around the Marriott, and lots of nice restaurants. You'll see lots of ABC stores that sell everything from souvenirs to booze.

 

For me, having NCL arrange and handle everything was worth it. For a second visit to Hawaii, I'd probably skip the cruise and make arrangements myself now that I'm somewhat familiar with the islands.

[davejohn]

I am also interested on all the details about the 3 days in Waikiki. What time does the first tour start and end. We won't get there until 10:30 if we are lucky in the evening which is really about 5 in the morning our time. Hoping it is not too early. Do you get a good breakfast at the Marriott. Breakfast is suppose to be included. How long are you at the Polynesian Centre? I didn't know we were going so I booked it when we arrive back on Saturday. We are spending Saturday night at the Hilton so we will be able to see Breath of life. Did you find you had any time to enjoy the beach. What time did you reach the ship? Thank you for replying.

 

If you book the land portion through NCL breakfasts are not included. We either hit the Seattle Coffee shop in the lobby for coffee and a muffin, or went to Burger King across the street for a breakfast sandwich. The first tour started at 8:00am, but you arrive the day before. We got to the hotel around 2:30pm, checked in and walked around the area. After dinner we watched some TV, and were asleep by 8:00pm, and wide awake at 3 am! It took a couple of days to adjust.

 

We spent the entire afternoon at the Polynesian cultural center. I would have liked a bit more time there. You have the option of following the tour guide around, or just go out on your own and see the things you want. Looking back, the latter may have been better and less hectic.

 

There really wasn't much time to enjoy the beach at Waikiki. The evenings maybe. But we did several beaches on the cruise itself. Since you're spending an extra day there afterwards, you could spend the whole day at the beach then.

[carmzav]

Thanks for the information Davejohn. Hopefully you can answer these questions for me!

 

1. Was there enough time to go into the pineapple maze at the Dole plantation? What did you have time to do while you were there?

 

2. On the downtown Honolulu day, the intinerary says "you'll see the state capitol building, the governor's mansion, Iolani Palace (the only royal palace in the United States) and the imposing King Kamehameha statue." Does this mean you just see these things through the bus window as you drive by?

 

3. How much time is spent at Kualoa Ranch, and what kinds of things did you do there?

 

4. Am I correct in assuming that lunch is not included in any of the land tour days? What did you do for lunch on those days? How much time was allotted? (I'm dreading the idea of hours and hours of time provided for shopping and eating!)

 

5. Was a luau included anywhere in this trip? I know there's one at the Polynesian Center, but it doesn't sound like it is included in this particular tour.

[Lorey2007]

If you book the land portion through NCL breakfasts are not included. We either hit the Seattle Coffee shop in the lobby for coffee and a muffin, or went to Burger King across the street for a breakfast sandwich. The first tour started at 8:00am, but you arrive the day before. We got to the hotel around 2:30pm, checked in and walked around the area. After dinner we watched some TV, and were asleep by 8:00pm, and wide awake at 3 am! It took a couple of days to adjust.

 

We spent the entire afternoon at the Polynesian cultural center. I would have liked a bit more time there. You have the option of following the tour guide around, or just go out on your own and see the things you want. Looking back, the latter may have been better and less hectic.

 

There really wasn't much time to enjoy the beach at Waikiki. The evenings maybe. But we did several beaches on the cruise itself. Since you're spending an extra day there afterwards, you could spend the whole day at the beach then.

 

Thanks so much for all the information. The more info I get about the cruisetour the better I feel about it. Please tell me all you can about the Pearl Harbor tour. I'm sure I could do this all on my own but the convenience of NCL doing it all and transferring the luggage etc just sounds too good. I'm sure we'll be fine with it. Good to know about the Burger King DH loves his breakfast sandwich and I don't like paying $25 pp for a breakfast buffet!

 

I see you are from Sun City Center, my Dad & Stepmom lived there for 17 years and for all of those years we would spend a week with them at Thanksgiving. They really loved it there such a great city I really miss going there. This past March while we were in Florida we were in the area and had to drive by all the familiar places.

Edited October 12, 2014 by Lorey2007

[davejohn]

Thanks for the information Davejohn. Hopefully you can answer these questions for me!

 

1. Was there enough time to go into the pineapple maze at the Dole plantation? What did you have time to do while you were there?

 

No, there was not enough time to go through the maze. There was enough time to hit a bathroom break, walk around the building and gardens, do a little shopping. The maze is also extra cost.

 

2. On the downtown Honolulu day, the intinerary says "you'll see the state capitol building, the governor's mansion, Iolani Palace (the only royal palace in the United States) and the imposing King Kamehameha statue." Does this mean you just see these things through the bus window as you drive by?

 

Except for the Palace, they were mainly drive-bys. Cody would stop the bus so you could take pics through the windows. At the Palace we stopped and got off the bus for about 20 minutes to walk around and take pics. Lots of buses stopping there.

 

3. How much time is spent at Kualoa Ranch, and what kinds of things did you do there?

 

The ranch was pretty much all afternoon. There was a nice talk about the ranch and their cattle farming, fish pond and taro raising. They also passed out samples of Poi (yuk!). There was also time to wander around and take pics. We then took a boat across the fish pond to a beach for lunch (a nice box lunch was included in the tour, sandwich, chips, cookies and drinks). You could swim at the beach if you wanted. We then took at catamaran ride to see turtles. Hint---don't stand in the front of the boat. The Capt. will ask your fellow passengers if they want to see you get soaked. Lesson learned the hard way. :o

 

4. Am I correct in assuming that lunch is not included in any of the land tour days? What did you do for lunch on those days? How much time was allotted? (I'm dreading the idea of hours and hours of time provided for shopping and eating!)

 

Lunch is included at the ranch. At the Polynesian Cultural Center you're given time for lunch at either the buffet or the snack bar. We chose the latter. Cost is extra.

 

5. Was a luau included anywhere in this trip? I know there's one at the Polynesian Center, but it doesn't sound like it is included in this particular tour.

 

The only luau offered by NCL is the Luau Kalamaku offered as an excursion on Kauai. We did the train ride and luau and the show is very nice. For such a large crowd they did a good job with the buffet. It was open bar and they could have used another bar, the lines were pretty long prior to dinner and the show.

[davejohn]

Thanks so much for all the information. The more info I get about the cruisetour the better I feel about it. Please tell me all you can about the Pearl Harbor tour. I'm sure I could do this all on my own but the convenience of NCL doing it all and transferring the luggage etc just sounds too good. I'm sure we'll be fine with it. Good to know about the Burger King DH loves his breakfast sandwich and I don't like paying $25 pp for a breakfast buffet!

 

I see you are from Sun City Center, my Dad & Stepmom lived there for 17 years and for all of those years we would spend a week with them at Thanksgiving. They really loved it there such a great city I really miss going there. This past March while we were in Florida we were in the area and had to drive by all the familiar places.

 

You might want to walk one more block and try McDonalds. Order the #6 breakfast sandwich.......egg, cheese and Spam on a biscuit. Hawaiians love their Spam. They seem proud of the fact they consume more Spam than the next 3 states combined. :)

 

The Pearl Harbor tour was very emotional. We first toured the USS Bowfin submarine, the only sub that ever torpedoed a bus! Very interesting. You'll get a ticket with a time for the shuttle to the USS Arizona memorial. Between the Bowfin and the Arizona you'll have some time to wander the grounds and see the memorials or check out the 3 museum buildings. Depending on the time of you shuttle, I'd recommend the museums. You won't have much time after the Arizona to see all 3 museums. On the Arizona memorial you have about 20 minutes to look around, take pics, listen to the National Parks guide, then take the shuttle back.

 

The next stop was the Pacific Aviation Museum. Hint.....as soon as you get there head to the cafeteria for lunch. You'll avoid the long line waiting to get into the museum, and the long line for the cafeteria. Do the museum after lunch. At this spot we had plenty of time to look around after lunch.

 

We then went to the USS Missouri. You can either go on a free tour with a guide, or get the free audio tour and walk around on your own. We did the guide and she did and excellent job. After the tour there was time to wander around on your own, hit the gift shop for a cold drink ( it was HOT that day) or shop for souvenirs. All in all it was a highlight of the 3 days on Oahu. For me anyway.

 

We bought a condo in Kings Point 3 years ago when prices were at rock bottom. We've turned into Snowbirds, I really like getting away from the snow and ice in Western NY each winter.

[jrsrosey]

wow I am so happy to find this topic; everything I wanted to know is there thank you everyone for your useful info, I asked my cruise TA and she was unable to give me any kind of info on the tours, times etc except that the breakfast were not included!

 

If you have other reviews or tips I will check this post regularly until we get there! :):)

[Gaelic-123]

Thank you so much for your response. I thought our breakfast was included at the Marriott when I booked in April. I was 99% sure because I told our friends who are coming with us. I phoned NCL today and they said no meals are included in this deal. Thank you for letting us know because I would have been disappointed if we arrived and found that out then. Now we will just find cheat places to have our breakfast. She said everything else was included, bus, pickup, entrance fees.

Nice to hear that you enjoyed being on the bus and meet a lot of nice people. If there is anything else you can think of about our tour and cruise. Let us know as it is helpful to know ahead of time what to expect so we won't get disappointment or in our case to make plans for getting our breakfast. Where are best places to go for breakfast.

[davejohn]

Neither my wife or I are big breakfast eaters, so we just went to the Burger King next door for a breakfast sandwich or grabbed a coffee and muffin at the Seattle Coffee bar in the Marriott lobby. Your room will have a single cup coffeemaker also.

 

They do have a breakfast buffet at the hotel, but it's about $26. For dinner we had an excellent meal at Tiki's Bar & Grill, one block from the hotel. We also tried Cheeseburger in Paradise. My wife enjoyed her Taco Salad, but my burger was overcooked and dry.

[jrsrosey]

Great advices thank you. Does anyone can tell me about Kona. We need to take the first tender off to get a taxi quickly to be able to go do our excursion with sea quest. How can we make sure we'll be on the first boat if we don't book with NCL excursions?

 

 

Envoyé de mon iPhone à l'aide de Forums

[Lorey2007]

We plan on taking the NCL Historic Kona tour which is about 3 1/2 hrs. We hope they will drop us off downtown so we can do some shopping and walk back to the ship. Does that sound doable and about how far would the walk be?

[davejohn]

jrsrosey, if you've booked a suite on the POA the concierge can see that you get an early tender. If you're Gold or Platinum latitude level you'll get priority tender tickets in your cabin. Platinum members also get concierge service, so try that too.

 

I don't remember them saying you could pick up tender tickets in advance, but they may have and I just missed it as we had booked an NCL excursion. If none of the above applies, your only option then is to get down to deck 4 mid-ship as soon as they drop anchor and wait in line.

[davejohn]

We plan on taking the NCL Historic Kona tour which is about 3 1/2 hrs. We hope they will drop us off downtown so we can do some shopping and walk back to the ship. Does that sound doable and about how far would the walk be?

 

We also took the Historic Kona tour. At the end the driver offered to drop people off at Hilo Hatties (the self-proclaimed "official" souvenir store of Hawaii) or downtown in the shopping district. We got off at Hilo Hatties. It was only about a 10 minute walk from there to downtown and the shops and tenders.

 

We spent about 30 minutes in Hatties, and on the walk back stopped in a restaurant for a late lunch. We hit several of the shops downtown, waited about 10 minutes for a tender, and were back on board by 4pm or so. The tender pier is right there in downtown, so no big walk from the shops to the pier. You'll have plenty of time to spend money. :)

[punkincc]

jrsrosey, if you've booked a suite on the POA the concierge can see that you get an early tender. If you're Gold or Platinum latitude level you'll get priority tender tickets in your cabin. Platinum members also get concierge service, so try that too.

 

I don't remember them saying you could pick up tender tickets in advance, but they may have and I just missed it as we had booked an NCL excursion. If none of the above applies, your only option then is to get down to deck 4 mid-ship as soon as they drop anchor and wait in line.

 

Tender tickets can be picked up at Pinks Champagne Bar beginning at 7:00 am on Kona Day. Your entire party needs to be ready to depart when you pick up the tickets. We had Gold Priority Tickets and they were left in our cabin, so I can't say if the line up at Pinks is bad or not at 7:00. We had an 8:30 checkin at Keauhou Bay, ( 20 min by taxi ) we were worried about missing, so we walked down to the tender area not long after docking as we were afraid of a big line up. There was a long line off to the side, but no one lined up where you scan your card. I figured we were going to the back of the line, but the staff person indicated that they were crew going ashore for the day on the very first tender, and that we could ride with them. She said she would board us first and therefore we would be first on, first off. We were probably the first passengers ashore.

 

For what it's worth, although we had our tender tx in hand, no one ever asked to see them, or told us we had to wait for the next tender, or told us to come back when priority was called. I don't think it had anything to do with Priority status and anyone would have gotten the same treatment. We were impressed. Another reason we love NCL.

[Lorey2007]

I don't remember them saying you could pick up tender tickets in advance, but they may have and I just missed it as we had booked an NCL excursion. If none of the above applies, your only option then is to get down to deck 4 mid-ship as soon as they drop anchor and wait in line.

 

If you're booked on a NCL excursion do you need to worry about the tender tickets?

[davejohn]

If you're booked on a NCL excursion do you need to worry about the tender tickets?

 

Nope. You'll meet as a group in the theater and proceed to the tender when instructed. Your excursion ticket will tell you exactly where and when to meet.

[davejohn]

 

For what it's worth, although we had our tender tx in hand, no one ever asked to see them, or told us we had to wait for the next tender, or told us to come back when priority was called. I don't think it had anything to do with Priority status and anyone would have gotten the same treatment. We were impressed. Another reason we love NCL.

 

I've had the same experience with priority tender tickets on other NCL cruises. When in a suite though, we've had the concierge escort us down crew stairways to avoid lines. You just have to ignore the dirty looks.