Hawaii Cruisers be prepared for change!

[dforeigner]

Nobody is questioning why NCL is losing customers in Hawaii. Could it be they offer a substandard product w/poor service, no casino and combine that with making a very long flight from the mainland? True only 4-5 hrs from California but there is the rest of the country....

 

This is the reason we chose to do the 14 night RT from LA and were very happy to have a midnight stop in Ensenada and not have to get off the ship in that armpit of a port.

 

Someone who backed NCL's banking is getting nervous and pushing buttons to their buddies in Congress to save their investment. Since Carnival is a U.S.-based corporation, let's hope that Micky Arinston has a little more pull and can get this ridiculous idea squashed.

 

To be fair, the lack of Casino was not NCL's idea. The State of Hawaii mandated that the ship did not have a casino if it were to operate within their State's waters.

[Drew B]

I'm not really sure why it's such a big problem to offer disembarkation for a few hours in Ensenada. They're not going to FORCE people to disembark, are they? It's a cute town with decent restaurants, bars and shopping. If you don't want to get off, then stay aboard! The only thing you could possibly stand to lose is a couple of hours in a port in Hawaii, which is a shame, but with the right itinerary should not be crippling.

[NorCalCruiseGuy]

It's not a matter of national security that they are stopping in Ensenada. Only US documented vessels are able to carry passengers from one US port to another. All non-US documented vessels most go to at least one other country before beginning passengers back into the states. That's the law and it was signed as an act many years ago.

 

That is the reason, but margarita's sound good whatever the reason.

 

Remi

 

I guess there is no "fair trade" agreement when it comes to cruise lines.

[muffin]

As a Canadian I can do nothing, but as a cruiser I hope you will act for us all. Call your Congressman, or whatever legislative person is appropriate, and let them know you do not want NCL bailed out of a poor business decision on the backs of thousands of legitimate cruisers. NCL can't stay afloat as it is now...perhpas they should just start round trips from the west coast too. I think the cost of air fare is just too high for a one week cruise.... they can do a round trip of two weeks for less, and then compete on a fair playing field...bet THEY would not want to make theri customers get off for a day in Mexico if the tables were turned!!l

 

okay to whine here on the board, but the power lies with your lawmakers... get in touch with them!! Make your vote count!

[Brad1185]

The US Customs Service is a pathetic outdated farce. They should rename the agency the US Cruise Harrassment Service.

[florisdekort]

I noted that over the weekend, Celebrity updated the itineraries of *all* future Hawaii circle cruises (including the ones on Mercury), which now all include a 5 hour stop in Ensenada (disembarkation allowed) as opposed to the 1 hour technical stop... This can't be a coincidence! For some cruises, the drawback is that the time spend on the last island has been cut short, resulting in weird things like calling at Honolulu from 7 am to 2 pm... I am sure a lot of people will not be happy!

 

Floris