What Hawaii-related activities do they have on Royal Princess cruises to Hawaii?

[Boiler Cruiser]

My DW and I are on the Royal Princess, going on the 15-day cruise to Hawaii out of San Francisco next month.

 

What Hawaii-themed activities do they have on the Royal on this itinerary?  What are your favorites?  Do any encourage wearing Aloha shirts or other island apparel?

 

We are looking forward to this cruise and ticking off one more item from our bucket list!

[cr8tiv1]

You will have a lovely time on your Hawaii cruise.  There are many threads that list all the activities.  Do a quick search.

 

I will add that Aloha apparel is a nice touch....as long as it isn't gaudy and over the top.  There are so many misconceptions of what "Hawaii" looks like.  

 

From my understanding, the Royal has a different itinerary than the smaller Grand Class ships.  She "seems" to be too big to port in Hilo (Hawaii Island) or Nawiliwili (Kauai).  

 

Enjoy your time in the islands.  There should be plenty to do (and not enough time) on the way over and back.  I hope Princess will have Hawaiian Cultural Ambassadors on your sailing.  

[Musky Ike]

1 hour ago, Boiler Cruiser said:

My DW and I are on the Royal Princess, going on the 15-day cruise to Hawaii out of San Francisco next month.

 

What Hawaii-themed activities do they have on the Royal on this itinerary?  What are your favorites?  Do any encourage wearing Aloha shirts or other island apparel?

 

We are looking forward to this cruise and ticking off one more item from our bucket list!

Don't know about this cruise in particular, but on our previous (pre-pandemic) Hawaii cruises they had ukulele and hula lessons along with enrichment lectures. DW  purchased a ukulele to take up some closet space at home 😁. Plus Hawaii themed entertainment and food onboard. At one port they brought a local children's dance group onboard. It was fun.

[Astro Flyer]

Here’s info about their Aloha Spirit Program:

 

Aloha Spirit Program benefits

By opting for the Aloha Spirit Program, you can taste the local flavor and step back in history to see Hawaii as it was decades ago. Those who sign up will be able to enjoy an Aloha sail away deck party, engage in a hula session and view classic Hawaiian movies.

The Aloha Spirit Program also gives you an opportunity to learn the native language through a series of lessons, which may helpful while you're on dry land, exploring the sites.

If you want a taste of the local cuisine, the Aloha Spirit Program has you covered as well. Some Hawaiian-inspired dishes you may be able to try while on board include the grilled Ono steak with lime butter, grilled tiger shrimp kebabs, mango lime relish, seared yellowfin tuna on cucumber-fennel slaw and Kalua duck with plum wine sauce. Whether you have a big appetite or you simply want to immerse yourself in Hawaiian culture, the Aloha Spirit Program is the perfect way to do so.

 

https://www.princess.com/learn/cruise-destinations/hawaii-cruises/hawaii-cruise-tips/cruise-preparation-and-tips/hawaii-cruise-lines-and-programs.html
 

[cr8tiv1]

@Astro Flyer-

The Aloha Spirit Program also gives you an opportunity to learn the native language through a series of lessons, which may helpful while you're on dry land, exploring the sites.

 

Hawaiian Language Lessons?  Sign me up.

[cruisequeen4ever]

We did the Hawaii cruise on the Royal over Christmas and New Years, and it was fantastic! They did not offer any of those Hawaiian dishes someone mentioned above, but maybe that was because of the holidays or supply chain issues. They did have a make-your-own poke bowl station one day on the way back to SF. It wasn’t really true poke, though. 
 

We did have wonderful Hawaiian activities, though…lei making, hula lessons, and ukulele lessons. In Honolulu, a group came aboard to perform hula in the theater. There was some Hawaiian music, too. 
 

Have fun! 

[Teeara]

On 2/4/2023 at 1:42 PM, Musky Ike said:

Don't know about this cruise in particular, but on our previous (pre-pandemic) Hawaii cruises they had ukulele and hula lessons along with enrichment lectures. DW  purchased a ukulele to take up some closet space at home 😁. Plus Hawaii themed entertainment and food onboard. At one port they brought a local children's dance group onboard. It was fun.

How much did the ukulele cost?  My roommate who isn't sailing with me has expressed interest in one so I might need to get one for her.

[Teeara]

On 2/4/2023 at 1:43 PM, Astro Flyer said:

Here’s info about their Aloha Spirit Program:

 

Aloha Spirit Program benefits

By opting for the Aloha Spirit Program, you can taste the local flavor and step back in history to see Hawaii as it was decades ago. Those who sign up will be able to enjoy an Aloha sail away deck party, engage in a hula session and view classic Hawaiian movies.

The Aloha Spirit Program also gives you an opportunity to learn the native language through a series of lessons, which may helpful while you're on dry land, exploring the sites.

If you want a taste of the local cuisine, the Aloha Spirit Program has you covered as well. Some Hawaiian-inspired dishes you may be able to try while on board include the grilled Ono steak with lime butter, grilled tiger shrimp kebabs, mango lime relish, seared yellowfin tuna on cucumber-fennel slaw and Kalua duck with plum wine sauce. Whether you have a big appetite or you simply want to immerse yourself in Hawaiian culture, the Aloha Spirit Program is the perfect way to do so.

 

https://www.princess.com/learn/cruise-destinations/hawaii-cruises/hawaii-cruise-tips/cruise-preparation-and-tips/hawaii-cruise-lines-and-programs.html
 

How do you sign up for this?  It sounds like a blast.

[Musky Ike]

1 hour ago, Teeara said:

How much did the ukulele cost?  My roommate who isn't sailing with me has expressed interest in one so I might need to get one for her.

I don't recall. That was years ago.

[mtnesterz]

3 hours ago, Teeara said:

How much did the ukulele cost?  My roommate who isn't sailing with me has expressed interest in one so I might need to get one for her.

Probably more than you want to know, but here you go. If you wish to buy one during the cruise, don't buy in the tourist shops. Take a shuttle to a Walmart at one of the ports and buy there. The cheapest won't stay on tune or be intonated correctly. Exotic woods like Koa and fancy inlays can run the price to hundreds. Sapele is the traditional wood, thus sound, for a ukulele and unadorned was just over one hundred, before Covid. Look for separate covered tuning gears instead of an open row of exposed gears to assess for higher quality. Consider used. Someone is always cleaning out a closet.

[sunviking90]

On 2/4/2023 at 10:43 AM, Astro Flyer said:

Here’s info about their Aloha Spirit Program:

 

Aloha Spirit Program benefits

By opting for the Aloha Spirit Program, you can taste the local flavor and step back in history to see Hawaii as it was decades ago. Those who sign up will be able to enjoy an Aloha sail away deck party, engage in a hula session and view classic Hawaiian movies.

The Aloha Spirit Program also gives you an opportunity to learn the native language through a series of lessons, which may helpful while you're on dry land, exploring the sites.

If you want a taste of the local cuisine, the Aloha Spirit Program has you covered as well. Some Hawaiian-inspired dishes you may be able to try while on board include the grilled Ono steak with lime butter, grilled tiger shrimp kebabs, mango lime relish, seared yellowfin tuna on cucumber-fennel slaw and Kalua duck with plum wine sauce. Whether you have a big appetite or you simply want to immerse yourself in Hawaiian culture, the Aloha Spirit Program is the perfect way to do so.

 

https://www.princess.com/learn/cruise-destinations/hawaii-cruises/hawaii-cruise-tips/cruise-preparation-and-tips/hawaii-cruise-lines-and-programs.html
 

We were on the Royal for Hawaii in January and I was pleasantly surprised at all the Hawaiian content and theming. Hawaiian music was always playing in the background in the MDR. Music in the Piazza, lei making classes, etc. As we got closer to the Islands, more Hawaiian themed clothing came out. I brought a number a few things I usually take on Hawaiian vacations. If you are interested in any of the classes, check the patter for sign up times and go early! Sign ups happened on the first day and then they were assigned class numbers. There were also great lectures on Hawaiian sea life, birds, etc. Once again, go early as they were often in the Princess Live theatre which was not large enough for all who wanted to attend. We watched most on our stateroom TV later.
There wasn’t much Hawaiian themed food that I recall (unless in the buffet which we avoid), but our sailing ran out of a lot food items so was strange in that way.

Edited February 9, 2023 by sunviking90

[QuilterGirl]

@Teeara and @Boiler Cruiser, we've been on several Princess Hawaii/trans-Pacific cruises, all of which featured "Aloha Spirit" programs, and never had to sign up for a deck party, Hawaiian movies, special foods served in the dining rooms, and such.  (I think they are perhaps saying you should "sign up" for these Princess Hawaiian sailings?)  One or two classes, such as lei-making, will have a fee for supplies and for these classes you sign up.  However, the hula classes and the ukulele classes are free.  Ukuleles for these classes are supplied on the ship; but they are very inexpensive ones, all of them the small (soprano) size, and there are a limited number of them.  Some people bring their own aboard.  My hubby bought a concert (next size larger) uke at the Costco next to the Dole factory in Honolulu (other Honolulu Costcos didn't have them); they were also available online from Costco (but not currently, I see).  The ukulele teacher aboard thought they were pretty good ukes for the price. 

 

To answer another question, yes, aloha/Hawaiian shirts are definitely appropriate aboard!  (All the Hawaiian Costcos have a lot of these to choose from, as well as heaps of gift boxes of chocolate-covered macadamia nuts - to take home to those who were not fortunate to accompany you on your cruise!)

[cr8tiv1]

An average to good ukulele will cost about $250.  One made of Koa will run into the thousands.  Please do yourself a favor and do not buy one from Costco or Walmart.

 

If you are just tinkering with the thought, use the ukuleles onboard the first 5 days.  Most of them are Kala brand.  When you get to the islands, go to a reputable store and get yourself a good ukulele that will last you a lifetime.

 

Some good brand names:  Kamaka, Kala, Kanile'a, Martin

 

7 hours ago, mtnesterz said:

Probably more than you want to know, but here you go. If you wish to buy one during the cruise, don't buy in the tourist shops. Take a shuttle to a Walmart at one of the ports and buy there. The cheapest won't stay on tune or be intonated correctly. Exotic woods like Koa and fancy inlays can run the price to hundreds. Sapele is the traditional wood, thus sound, for a ukulele and unadorned was just over one hundred, before Covid. Look for separate covered tuning gears instead of an open row of exposed gears to assess for higher quality. Consider used. Someone is always cleaning out a closet.