When to Plan Things on POA

[pdcsgirl]

Posted this on the Hawaii board but thought I should check here as well.

 

I've booked flight and accommodations for next July, but we won't tell our kids (12 and 9) until Christmas Day.

 

Can I wait until January to plan things on the POA cruise (excursions, restaurants), or do things book this early? Anything I must book now?

 

Thanks in advance!

[Molokai-Chuck]

You can book many of the shore excursions now..... and I would if you know for sure what you want.

As to the dining... that usually opens up 90 to 120 days out from sail date. And if you are looking for early seating...I would book that ASAP.

 

Chuck

[pdcsgirl]

You can book many of the shore excursions now..... and I would if you know for sure what you want.

As to the dining... that usually opens up 90 to 120 days out from sail date. And if you are looking for early seating...I would book that ASAP.

 

Chuck

 

I thought Norwegian was Freestyle dining?

[johnrich]

We will be on the POA in 56 days. I started looking at excursions back in May and June (6-7 month before) and although all NCL ones were available, a few with smaller, independent tour operators found here on CC were full. However there are still plenty available thru NCL with less than two months left.

 

Also, POA is freestyle so no need to worry about booking the main dining rooms but if you want any specialty restaurants, you may want to book them when they open up to get the time of your choice.

 

 

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[dexddd]

Are you booking excursions through NCL, on your own, or both? I'd say do all your own.

 

Our kids have done the submarine excursion on our own by renting car and getting tickets at their shop. Always been fun.

 

Also, you'll want to do a luau - you'll have a few options but Smith's is pretty decent. You can either rent car for day and end up there or they also offer bus options. You can buy tickets online in advance.

[BirdTravels]

I thought Norwegian was Freestyle dining?

They are talking about booking specialty (extra fee) restaurants. Those reservations open 120 days prior to cruise (130 if you are In a suite).

 

For the Main Dining Room, just show up when you want and you will be shown to a table for your family (only).

 

Enjoy Hawaii! It is magical. Try to eat off the ship as much as you can at “local” restaurants.

[jesonthego]

We rented a car on each island and did our own thing except for Kona. We went on a private tour there. Went to a few coffee farms. A Japanese one with infinity pool overlooking ocean was our favorite. It isn’t hard to do your own thing. Do your homework with some planning.

 

 

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[Linda the Book Lover]

We booked all of our excursions ourselves and it was well worth it both for the shared and private times. My DD and I usually do not book through the ship when we sail alone. We booked the semi and private excursions in January and told my DG at Christmas. My DGD was 9 turning 10 in 3 months post cruise when we went and she loved her first cruise and all the islands. She and DD snorkeled and we really packed in our days. The kids club was not full and she liked it so much the first evening she asked if she could go again and stay longer. An added extra we stayed in Honolulu from Wednesday until Saturday pre-cruise and did excursions those days as well as enjoyed the beach at the hotel.

[VideoTech]

If you're planning on renting a car at any of the ports, book it sooner rather than later.

 

Frankly, we didn't book any excursions at all on our POA cruise. We simply rented a car in each port and did our own thing. Beaches, touring, dining...it's all easy to do and there plenty of options. However, I can understand that you might want some organized activities with two kids along. You can book almost any excursion directly with the excursion company - you don't have to go through the ship. Just search online. The two overnight stays make this even easier as you're not under any pressure to get back to the ship on those overnights.