Cruises for vacation?

[jmg]

We took an Alaskan cruise with Royal Caribbean last summer and we loved it. The ship got pretty close to the glaciers, food was excellent, and the highlight to me was the dog sledding. We took a helicopter to one of the glaciers, went on a dog sledding tour, then took the heli on an extended glacier tour. The pilot landed us on a nice spot and we explored the glacier on foot for awhile, then hopped back in the heli to take us back to the port.

[vreihen16]

Shore excursions are an important part of cruising, whether you take one of the cruise line's many offerings in each port, just walk around to find your own adventure, or do some pre-cruise research and book a local excursion before you leave home.

One that I booked on the ship and was glad to let them arrange was a trip to a national park in Belize to see partially-excavated Mayan pyramids. The park bordered with Guatemala, and the Belize military were patrolling the western side to ensure that nobody from our American tour group was grabbed for ransom. Getting to the park required crossing a small river on a hand-cranked ferry, and we enjoyed the whole experience.

One that we did plan/book on our own was the ruins of Pearl's Airport in Grenada, where Reagan sent the airborne paratroopers to drive the Soviets out. There were still a few abandoned Soviet and Cuban airplanes decaying on the ramp when we were there. I'm sure that nobody else on the ship had an interest in seeing this for the cruise line to package a shore excursion, so I made the arrangements myself with a reputable local tour guide.....

[jmg]

Originally Posted by vreihen16

I'm sure that nobody else on the ship had an interest in seeing this for the cruise line to package a shore excursion, so I made the arrangements myself with a reputable local tour guide.....

I've done this several times. It never hurts to explore local tour guides who don't have a contract with the cruise ships. Not only might I stumble upon unique experiences, they are sometimes cheaper and they don't book up as fast. So if a desired tour through the cruise line is full, check local!

[diirk]

Sometimes we just walk off ship and do a hop-on hop off bus and tour the city then take it around again to stop at places that are of interest. It's a very low stress low key way to get a feel for the area.

[dscabra]

Excursions are what make the trip memorable in my opinion. I prefer the smaller group excursions over the bus load type. We did one on a previous trip to Hawaii that included a BBQ lunch on a private macadamia nut plantation with a spectacular view of the ocean. We have these planned for our upcoming trip:

Pre-cruise (Vrbo condo in Poipu, Kauai):
Day 1 - Arrival around 4pm
Day 2 - Zodiac raft adventure along the Na Pali Coast - Kauai
Day 3 - Free day (Waimea Canyon and other sights via rental car)
Day 4 - Hop to Oahu to get on the ship

Cruise:
Day 1 - Sail from Oahu at 7pm
Day 2 - Transportation to Lahina and back to the ship (free day in Lahina, Maui)
Day 3 - Catamaran sail to Lanai
Day 4 - Small group tour of the Hamakua region of the big island
Day 5 - Snorkeling near Kona and a visit to the Kona Brewery on our own for a beer or two after the excursion
Day 6 - Ziplining on Kauai
Day 7 - Ocean Kayaking on Kauai
Day 8 - Arrive back on Oahu at 7:30am

Post-Cruise (Hilton Village, Waikiki):
Day 1 - Free Day
Day 2 - Free Day
Day 3 - Dolphin encounter at Sea Life Park - Oahu
Day 4 - Free Day
Day 5 - Free Day - (Departure around 8pm)

[aktif8]

Originally Posted by dscabra

Excursions are what make the trip memorable in my opinion. I prefer the smaller group excursions over the bus load type. We did one on a previous trip to Hawaii that included a BBQ lunch on a private macadamia nut plantation with a spectacular view of the ocean. We have these planned for our upcoming trip:

Pre-cruise (Vrbo condo in Poipu, Kauai):
Day 1 - Arrival around 4pm
Day 2 - Zodiac raft adventure along the Na Pali Coast - Kauai
Day 3 - Free day (Waimea Canyon and other sights via rental car)
Day 4 - Hop to Oahu to get on the ship

Cruise:
Day 1 - Sail from Oahu at 7pm
Day 2 - Transportation to Lahina and back to the ship (free day in Lahina, Maui)
Day 3 - Catamaran sail to Lanai
Day 4 - Small group tour of the Hamakua region of the big island
Day 5 - Snorkeling near Kona and a visit to the Kona Brewery on our own for a beer or two after the excursion
Day 6 - Ziplining on Kauai
Day 7 - Ocean Kayaking on Kauai
Day 8 - Arrive back on Oahu at 7:30am

Post-Cruise (Hilton Village, Waikiki):
Day 1 - Free Day
Day 2 - Free Day
Day 3 - Dolphin encounter at Sea Life Park - Oahu
Day 4 - Free Day
Day 5 - Free Day - (Departure around 8pm)

I've stayed at that Hilton - there are some truly epic restaurants pretty nearby. Our favorite was Morimoto (and a garlic shrimp truck a local recommended,) worth checking out if you have time! Also if you have time - renting a car and driving around the island was an absolute blast.

[dscabra]

Originally Posted by aktif8

I've stayed at that Hilton - there are some truly epic restaurants pretty nearby. Our favorite was Morimoto (and a garlic shrimp truck a local recommended,) worth checking out if you have time! Also if you have time - renting a car and driving around the island was an absolute blast.

We've done the drive around the island on Oahu several times. We always enjoy a stop in Haleiwa and a visit to Matsumoto's Shave Ice. We had made a tradition out of buying a piece of blown glass from Oceans in Glass. Unfortunately, they closed during the pandemic. We've also picked up a couple of pieces from other galleries (the lava and the wave sculptures are not form Oceans in Glass).

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by dscabra

Excursions are what make the trip memorable in my opinion. I prefer the smaller group excursions over the bus load type. We did one on a previous trip to Hawaii that included a BBQ lunch on a private macadamia nut plantation with a spectacular view of the ocean. We have these planned for our upcoming trip:

Pre-cruise (Vrbo condo in Poipu, Kauai):
Day 1 - Arrival around 4pm
Day 2 - Zodiac raft adventure along the Na Pali Coast - Kauai
Day 3 - Free day (Waimea Canyon and other sights via rental car)
Day 4 - Hop to Oahu to get on the ship

Cruise:
Day 1 - Sail from Oahu at 7pm
Day 2 - Transportation to Lahina and back to the ship (free day in Lahina, Maui)
Day 3 - Catamaran sail to Lanai
Day 4 - Small group tour of the Hamakua region of the big island
Day 5 - Snorkeling near Kona and a visit to the Kona Brewery on our own for a beer or two after the excursion
Day 6 - Ziplining on Kauai
Day 7 - Ocean Kayaking on Kauai
Day 8 - Arrive back on Oahu at 7:30am

Post-Cruise (Hilton Village, Waikiki):
Day 1 - Free Day
Day 2 - Free Day
Day 3 - Dolphin encounter at Sea Life Park - Oahu
Day 4 - Free Day
Day 5 - Free Day - (Departure around 8pm)

My wife and I love cruising. What we don't like is just cruising and then heading home immediately. Now that we are retired and have time, we always add days before and/or after a cruise. Looking at your itinerary, you are doing both! That's amazing. You say you've been to Oahu before. The Hilton Hawaiian is awesome. Good for you. Have you been to Kauai before?

[dscabra]

Originally Posted by sygazelle

My wife and I love cruising. What we don't like is just cruising and then heading home immediately. Now that we are retired and have time, we always add days before and/or after a cruise. Looking at your itinerary, you are doing both! That's amazing. You say you've been to Oahu before. The Hilton Hawaiian is awesome. Good for you. Have you been to Kauai before?

Yes, we've done this particular cruise four times before. We typically add a day before and 4-5 days after the cruise. We wanted more time on Kauai this time to be able to do the Na Pali coast Zodiac adventure. Because of logistics, this specific adventure couldn't be done during the cruise so we added time pre-cruise to allow us to get it in.

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by dscabra

Yes, we've done this particular cruise four times before. We typically add a day before and 4-5 days after the cruise. We wanted more time on Kauai this time to be able to do the Na Pali coast Zodiac adventure. Because of logistics, this specific adventure couldn't be done during the cruise so we added time pre-cruise to allow us to get it in.

I think Na Pali coast is one of the most beautiful places on the planet. Years ago I did a 50-mile backpacking hike on Kauai with my son's scout troop. We hiked much of Waimea Canyon and then the 22-miles round trip hike on the Na Pali coast to Kalalau Beach.

Have a great trip. Share photos from your zodiac trip.

[dscabra]

Here's a video of what this adventure is like:

[WingZeroX5]

Originally Posted by purpl3ish

cruises are one of my favorite methods of travel!! i'm a royal caribbean diamond member but also gamble a bit in the casino so they do comp most of my cruises.

I haven't done norwegian/carnival/MSC and some of the others in recent years, I just feel like Royal Caribbean is the best mix of crowd + the ships are amazing. Would love to do some of the transatlantic itineraries or ones that aren't the typical caribbean/mexico destinations.

I think you'd LOVE royal

Always wondered about this...how much do you have to gamble for them to comp? And what do they comp exactly, like is it up to balcony or something?

[Llarry]

Maybe it's just COVIDphobia, but I think of cruise ships as petri dishes these days. I have done a couple, but I'm nervous these days; not necessarily even COVID per se but there's been those cases of the whole ship coming down with the runs, etc.

[diirk]

We're on one right now. Never had any issues with weird sicknesses

[omnimous]

We've got a Baltic Sea one planned in August with Princess.

[dscabra]

Na Pali Coast from the Pride of America:

[diirk]

Just pulled into San Francisco...

[purpl3ish]

Originally Posted by WingZeroX5

Always wondered about this...how much do you have to gamble for them to comp? And what do they comp exactly, like is it up to balcony or something?

it's hard to say there's never really an exact number. when you earn a certain number of "tier points" per trip; they'll give you a certificate on board immediately, for either a discounted cruise or comped cruise + freeplay sometimes, the more tier you earn, the higher the offer.

So for example it'll start at $100 off and no freeplay, and as you go up and earn more tier points, you can get interior + freeplay, balcony + freeplay , etc. I've found though that once you establish yourself as a player, they'll just start emailing you and sending you offers in the mail.

[dscabra]

Sailing away from Oahu...

[diirk]

Porsche Club of America is doing another PCA/Princess cruise in December. Western Caribbean this time. They're offering some pretty good comps for the PCA folks booking. I've already booked since being in the Caribbean instead of in the snow is a great way to spend December. I wish I could spend more time there.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by diirk

Just pulled into San Francisco...

Yup, that's the City, all right. Hope you had fun!

We used to live just below that thing sticking up in the upper right-hand corner of the photo. That was one of the very best places I've ever lived ('77-'89): insane view, walk to work downtown, tons of top-line restaurants 5-10 minutes away, had the only garage in the building, yada-yada.

[diirk]

Originally Posted by dradernh

Yup, that's the City, all right. Hope you had fun!

We used to live just below that thing sticking up in the upper right-hand corner of the photo. That was one of the very best places I've ever lived ('77-'89): insane view, walk to work downtown, tons of top-line restaurants 5-10 minutes away, had the only garage in the building, yada-yada.

That would be a really cool spot. It was a nicer visit then the last time we were there. Still not a place I'd want to live, but fun to visit. We did a HoHo bus for transpo and walked back from Union Square