Hawaii cruise itinerary change

[shipsealand]

Got email from Princess yesterday that:

"ITINERARY CHANGE Please be advised that due to operational considerations, Grand Princess will no longer call to Maui (Lahaina), Hawaii on Sunday, January 9, 2022, and will instead call to Kahului on Wednesday, January 12 from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM. To accommodate this change, the call to Hilo will now take place on Sunday, January 9 from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Updated shore excursion information will be available in the Cruise Personalizer within the next two weeks"

 

At first disappointed but when looked at best things to do in Lahaina vs Kahului, was OK with the change.  If you haven't been to Lahaina, then not a good change.  Having been there already and especially already did the Road to Hana, am good with change.  I get to do the West Maui Circle Drive which some reviews say is well worth it.

 

BTW, what is the real reason for the port change? Cost savings?

[suekel]

25 minutes ago, shipsealand said:

Got email from Princess yesterday that:

"ITINERARY CHANGE Please be advised that due to operational considerations, Grand Princess will no longer call to Maui (Lahaina), Hawaii on Sunday, January 9, 2022, and will instead call to Kahului on Wednesday, January 12 from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM. To accommodate this change, the call to Hilo will now take place on Sunday, January 9 from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Updated shore excursion information will be available in the Cruise Personalizer within the next two weeks"

 

At first disappointed but when looked at best things to do in Lahaina vs Kahului, was OK with the change.  If you haven't been to Lahaina, then not a good change.  Having been there already and especially already did the Road to Hana, am good with change.  I get to do the West Maui Circle Drive which some reviews say is well worth it.

 

BTW, what is the real reason for the port change? Cost savings?

I read on our Roll Call for 12/7, Lahaina is doing a major port overhaul  

[waltd]

Has also been discussed here.

 

[cr8tiv1]

12 minutes ago, suekel said:

I read on our Roll Call for 12/7, Lahaina is doing a major port overhaul  

 

https://mauinow.com/2021/03/24/18m-ferry-pier-improvement-at-lahaina-small-boat-harbor-to-start-april-5/

 

When cruise ships return to Lahaina, construction will be halted during all cruise ship days and ferry/commercial operations will be able to continue uninterrupted.

 

We may never really know why Princess will call on Kahului instead of Lahaina.  Could be a state requirement.  Could be Princess Operations.  

[Bgwest]

Lahaina is, in my opinion, highly overrated. Waaaay too high on the tacky touristy scale. 

 

Besides, Kahului is far closer to Tasty Crust in Wailuku.  

[srpilo]

7 hours ago, shipsealand said:

 Now  I get to do the West Maui Circle Drive which some reviews say is well worth it

 

From what I understand, in some parts that's a pretty scary one lane drive 

[FritzG]

We taken 5 Hawaii cruises with Princess, and we think this is a big improvement.  You'll be getting more quality time in Maui by docking instead of tendering.  Tendering from the ship is ok, but returning to the ship in the afternoon is usually a nightmare.  Unless you go back early in the afternoon you could be standing in line in the sun for one or two hours with nowhere to sit.  We've never sailed on time because the tendering takes so long.  In addition the sea tends to get rougher in the afternoon, and we've had some very rough rides back to the ship including one where we had to sit bouncing against the ship for 25 minutes because the seas were too rough to safely get off.  

 

This will also be much easier for people with mobility issues.  

[caribill]

4 hours ago, srpilo said:

 

From what I understand, in some parts that's a pretty scary one lane drive 

 

When we made the drive it was two lanes all the way.

 

Speed limit as I remember it was around 25 MPH. At that time we lived in West Virginia and were expert at driving very curvy and winding roads. We wanted to go at 35 MPH and the tourists in front of us wanted to go at 15 MPH.

 

And it can be a dangerous road. We read in the local paper a day or so later where a resident had driven off a cliff along the road and died.

[Bgwest]

3 minutes ago, caribill said:

 

When we made the drive it was two lanes all the way.

 

Speed limit as I remember it was around 25 MPH. At that time we lived in West Virginia and were expert at driving very curvy and winding roads. We wanted to go at 35 MPH and the tourists in front of us wanted to go at 15 MPH.

 

And it can be a dangerous road. We read in the local paper a day or so later where a resident had driven off a cliff along the road and died.

 

Rental car contracts should be checked prior to setting off on this journey.