HAL 15 day to Hawaii info

[fireba11]

We are looking into taking this cruise in DEC09 and was wondering if anyone has taken it rt out of San Diego. Can you tell us about the ship, itinerary, your perception of the cruise as a whole?

tnx
Tim

[DeeDee]

What ship?

If it's the Statendam, read the STICKY Let's go to Hawaii and the South Pacific on the Statendam! by KYROS.

Even if it's not the Statendam, reading her report will give you a good idea of the Hawaiin ports, etc. once they get there.

We did this cruise a couple of times many years ago from LA and LOVED it, but then we also love sea days.

[sassyredhat]

We've taken the cruise from San Diego twice, and plan another for 2010.

Last April we were on the Zaandam and we loved the ship. We had cabin 6208, a balcony on the verandah deck. It was slightly aft, 1 deck up from Explorations, and 3-4 ?? decks up to Lido.

Loved the ship, loved, loved, loved the cabin location, and loved the itinerary.

HAL has you doing a nighttime sailing in Kona, past the volcano. The first time we got great pictures of the lava, but in April, there was too much vog (volcano fog) to see much.

Pat

[kryos]

I've never done this specific itinerary on HAL, but did the identical thing on Princess. I've also done two Hawaii/South Pacific voyages on HAL.

It's a great itinerary IF you like sea days. If you don't, then don't bother.

You will have a full four days at sea heading to the islands. You will then have five days in the islands. You will visit Kona and Hilo on the big island, one day each. You will also visit Maui, usually for a full day lasting well into the night (like 11:00 p.m.). Then you've have a day on Oahu. You will then either day a day on Kauai, or a second day on Oahu. Finally, you will have five more days at sea, including a "service call" stop at Ensenada to satisfy the requirements of the Passenger Services Act.

As you can see, you will have more days at sea than anything else.

Now, in my case, I LOVE days at sea in which to enjoy the amenities of the ship. But some people have a problem with them, and they tend to get bored (though I can't imagine how).

So, evaluate your desires for a trip to Hawaii, and if you decide that you like extended days at sea, then I can't imagine a better cruise line to take this cruise with, because their ships and service are a cut above what you generally find on most of the other cruise lines.

Blue skies ...

--rita

[hombre]

kryos says it best. i've done the voyage on HAL twice, once on statendam and last november on the zaandam. fabulous, but it is mostly an 'at sea' experience. i, too, love sea days; they force me to do next to nothing, which i need in my life. but,, some souls on board were going crazy by the time we got back to san diego. if you love sea days, it is just heaven, and on HAL if it is chilly outside and you want to swim or do the hot tubs, there's that great covered lido pool. enjoy. padre hombre

ps. at the final sail-away, the tossing of the leis ceremony will forever make you want to come back.

[fireba11]

Thank you everyone for the great reports. I like sea days and I believe that my DW and I will enjoy this cruise very much.

Happy Sailings
Tim