April 29, 2012 ~ Aloha! ~ Wonder to Hawaii- who is with me? pt2

[castoff]

LOL! That list is available right on the disboards! No computing/counting was required.

Shhh Linda doesn't need to know that.

Last time we were on Maui, we took a whale-watching cruise. The Pacific Whale Foundation (whose tour boat we rode), guarantees whale sightings thru May 15. Here's their link: http://www.pacificwhale.org/

The ride is a couple of hours on speedy, large tourboats, and the narration is live by a whale naturalist. This is a non-profit group, so 100% of profits go to whale related work. I'd suggest a morning cruise because the waters are calmer before breezes pick up -- and the straits are somewhat sheltered from sea swells by Lanai Island. The ship will dock on the "wrong" side of Maui to see whales from the ship. Or at least it's not likely we'll see them from Wonder.

Bob

I was just looking at Pacific Whale Foundation the other day ! I am really interested in this. Do you know how far it is from port ? I wouldn't rent a car and was wondering how much for a taxi ?

Another fun thing we have done on Kauai is Tubing the Ditch. You actually tube with hard hats and miner lights down an old sugar cane plantation in the ditch. It is probably 2-3 miles long and lots of fun. The water is a little cool, but we got used to it pretty fast. The time we did it we arranged for the tour company to pick us up and the ship at the dock (we were on NCL at the time with friends) and we arranged it privately, not through the cruise line.

I would recommend.

Do you remember the name of company ? Thanks for the info. sounds like fun !

Do you think whales would still be in the area by the time we go?

I was also thinking about this. The tour company has a guarantee of seeing Whales through May 15th. We will be in Maui on May 5th. When trying to find a tour for this ALL the others only go through April. Pacific was the only one that goes in May. May not be PEAK season for it but we should still see some.

 

[castoff]

[I have thought about this, and the thing I am worried about is DCL monopolizing all of the companies like they do in Nassau. I hope to have options outside of DCL as they always have those large tour busses my husband has difficulty getting into. If worse comes to worse we could hire a private driver, but am really hoping not to have to add that expense. If the companies let us book outside of DCL and adjust their schedule to match the port time, that would be amazing!

MY daughter and I are both disabled...me 50 yrs of arthritis in all joints and she because of multiple health issues. We found Disney to be incredibly easy to work with and had more choices of ADA tours in Alaska than the last cruise we did there...huge difference Princess had in available in each port Disney offered at least SIX in each port. Yes we had a bus on one of 3, but they added another step so first one wasn't the usual killer one and we had multiple Disney crew helping..one at top to kind of lift us up if needed and two to catch us if we started to fall LOL. One tour was just down the street to another boat so everyone was walked down, but my daughter uses a wheelchair on cruises and I use a cane- so they had a small van there to drive us the block and the tour boat crew met the boat and 3 men took over the wheelchair and got my daughter down steep ramp and into boat...I had two available to help me on steep ramp...they even offered a wheelchair just to ride down instead of walking, but I walked ok.
Every obstacle we encountered on any tour they were ready for. I can't get that kind of help if we do private.[/QUOTE]



That's one of the things that makes Disney so nice ! I am glad you & your DD are able to enjoy the tours without the stress.

Thanks for the support, I always get the feeling on these boards people do not like the DCL tours. Granted they are more money, but the money spent to me is called peice of mind. Kinda like the DCL transfers, which this may sound strange since I live in Los Angeles, I may use. Hey my car my break down on the way to the Port, but I live only 1.5 miles from LAX were I park my car anyway.

I can only speak for myself but I like to do both. I agree about the peace of mind. I used to ALWAYS do just DCL. If I could find a tour ( private ) that offers more then DCL and saves me money then I probaly would do it. I wouldn't do a tour that wouldn't give me ample time to get back to the ship on time.

 

[castoff]

It is still theer 15 min later. I am shocked. I am more shocked that I liiked at the Itenerary again and noticed that our departure time in Honolulu has changed to 10:30 P.M.

That is AWESOME ! Hope they keep it that way.

What time was it before, I don't remember? I just checked availability and there is nothing there. We have our agent constantly checking because we need a handicap room and couldn't get one, but hoping one opens up and we can switch. I try to check myself, not that I know if I can do anything myself

Good luck in getting the cabin.

 

[granmaz]

Is the port we are leaving later from now the one that sailing from would take us past the spectacular volcano? I know people were hoping for a night sailing past it. I'm not well up on the islands yet as I haven't started the planning.

 

[gydell]

DCL has a 10b there now.

 

[Robin"D"]

Just wanted to wish the state of Hawaii a very

Happy 52!!! and as Mickey used to say, "See you real Soon!!!"

Robin & Angel "D"

 

[tig82174]

Hey all,

Happy Sunday----life has been crazy here so I have been lurking at best for the past few weeks. Work is crazy for both of us. Cheerleading tryouts start tomorrow for 2 of my 3 teams so it's been a mad dash to get girls ready and prepped for tryouts. We're neck deep in wedding planning now (which is exciting and fun....but also stressful...AND EXPENSIVE!!!). We even JUST started trying to work on fundraising for the AIDS Walk here in Rochester that we do every year and it's less than a month away----yikes we procrastinated! AND we're prepping for our WDW/DCL trip a week from Thursday.....we're calling it our "honeymoon dress rehearsal"

Anyhow...Jason is downstairs making me breakfast (today is my 37th birthday!) so I have a few moments of quiet time.

First off, I want to thank Judy, Pixiegran for all her help with the administrative side of our Hawaiian shirt ordering.

The count of shirts ordered is as follows:

Adult Shirts - 63 - Children 8 - material 26 yards

The breakdown is as follows:

small - 7
medium - 8
large - 17
XL - 14
XXl -10
XXXL - 7

Please refer to page 1, posting #3 for a detailed listing of orders and check that I have your order correct. On this posting you will also find information on ordering and the links to the form and size charts.

I have our order form filled out and scanned. I'll email it as a PDF later today...but we'll be ordering two Medium shirts.

The excusion thing for me is simple. If it is not by DCL I am not doing it. Lesson learned in Cabo on the Panama cruise. If my wife's tour was private and not DCL she would have been left behind. She said the tour guide kept saying no problem on time, we won't be late. Um wrong on that one. So I don't care what a tour company says or what others say, if it ain't put on by DCL I am not going.

We generally agree. I know DCL excursions are more pricey....but I really don't like to have to do the research and planning associated with figuring out how to do off-ship adventures in a strange city or country....and I like the security of konwing you can't be left behind...so we always do DCL excursions, too! The only exception we've ever had to that was in San Fran on the recent repo from LA to Vancouver. We were there overnight so we planned our own day (with the help of some local friends) knowing that if we got terribly lost and couldn't get back we at least had the whole night....and then we did our friend Michael's personal tour that he had planned for the 2nd day in San Fran which was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!! For the Hawaii trip I think we'll be doing all DCL trips (unless Michael organizes another one).

 

[tig82174]

Just wanted to wish the state of Hawaii a very

Happy 52!!! and as Mickey used to say, "See you real Soon!!!"

Robin & Angel "D"

Oh yeah...I forgot about that...how ironic! I used have an eccentric aunt who always sent us birthday cards with random facts about our birthdays like if significant historical events happened or celebrities or politicians were born that day.....and I remember when i was younger one of her cards telling me that Hawaii and I had the same "birthday" (and Kenny Rogers, too, if I'm remembering correctly! )

 

[Robin"D"]

Oh yeah...I forgot about that...how ironic! I used have an eccentric aunt who always sent us birthday cards with random facts about our birthdays like if significant historical events happened or celebrities or politicians were born that day.....and I remember when i was younger one of her cards telling me that Hawaii and I had the same "birthday" (and Kenny Rogers, too, if I'm remembering correctly! )

Jason!!!


Robin & Angel "D"

 

[valbob89]

Is the port we are leaving later from now the one that sailing from would take us past the spectacular volcano? I know people were hoping for a night sailing past it. I'm not well up on the islands yet as I haven't started the planning.

No, the island of Hawaii that has active volcano. Honolulu is where Waikiki beach is. A 10:30 departure might give you time to hit a luau on Waikiki but it would be cutting it close.

 

[granmaz]

Happy birthday Erik. I hope you enjoyed your special breakfast!!!!

 

[granmaz]

No, the island of Hawaii that has active volcano. Honolulu is where Waikiki beach is. A 10:30 departure might give you time to hit a luau on Waikiki but it would be cutting it close.

Thank you Val. Although I bought a couple of guide books I thought I would wait until I know definitely we are going before starting to red up and plan. It all looks very complicated with so much to see and do and so little time to do it.

 

[tig82174]

Jason!!!


Robin & Angel "D"

Actually it's Erik's birthday (whenever you see posting here it's Erik....Jason is the non-DISer husband! )....but thanks...and thanks for the birthday wishes from others, too!

 

[valbob89]

There is a 10B available now -

 

[MousseauMob]

No, the island of Hawaii that has active volcano. Honolulu is where Waikiki beach is. A 10:30 departure might give you time to hit a luau on Waikiki but it would be cutting it close.

hmmm, Aulani is on Oahu - I wonder if they are thinking of doing an early luau we could attend.

 

[Happy Goofy]

We usually do DCL tours but in the Mediterranean we did some private van tours with a group from the ship, My husband has some difficulty walking long distances and I had two knee replacements so the vans were great for us. Hopefully some one will get some van tours started for Hawaii . We would like to join them.

 

[Mickey&JoshNut]

Happy Birthday Erik....I hope you enjoy your special day!!!!!!

 

[DisneyCruiser83]

Maui, Oahu and Hawaii have plenty of tour companies and there is so much to do, I doubt Disney could monopolize it over there. There are too many other tour operators.

Yes, you are right. I just get a little cruise paranoid sometimes. I am sure there will be many good experiences to choose from. Thanks for the reassurance!

MY daughter and I are both disabled...me 50 yrs of arthritis in all joints and she because of multiple health issues. We found Disney to be incredibly easy to work with and had more choices of ADA tours in Alaska than the last cruise we did there...huge difference Princess had in available in each port Disney offered at least SIX in each port. Yes we had a bus on one of 3, but they added another step so first one wasn't the usual killer one and we had multiple Disney crew helping..one at top to kind of lift us up if needed and two to catch us if we started to fall LOL. One tour was just down the street to another boat so everyone was walked down, but my daughter uses a wheelchair on cruises and I use a cane- so they had a small van there to drive us the block and the tour boat crew met the boat and 3 men took over the wheelchair and got my daughter down steep ramp and into boat...I had two available to help me on steep ramp...they even offered a wheelchair just to ride down instead of walking, but I walked ok.
Every obstacle we encountered on any tour they were ready for. I can't get that kind of help if we do private.

Yes, Alaska (and Hawaii) have more opportunities for ADA choices Disney can offer guests. On most of our cruises there have been one or if we are lucky two excursions Disney offers to guests with mobility issues. In the Med, most excursions said you would not even have the option to try the excursion, the tour operator will not let you on if you are in a wheelchair. I know that Disney is limited to what is available by the tour operators, and for the most part it worked out for DH and I. But, there were places where we had to hire a private driver at our own expense on top of the price of the DCL excursion because DH could not board the bus. I am sure Hawaii will have more options, I can already tell they do by the research I have done. Helicopter tours with lifts, vans with lifts, almost everything I have looked at has a little blue icon on the website. I know our excursion stress level will be greatly reduced this trip!

Also, I really hope you get the HA stateroom you need. I know what it is like to have two weeks without one, so you will definitely be in my thoughts!

Thanks for the support, I always get the feeling on these boards people do not like the DCL tours. Granted they are more money, but the money spent to me is called peice of mind.

Oh, don't get me wrong, DH and I have done many DCL sponsored excursions and like you said, you are paying for peace of mind. But, I feel confident in these ports to mostly do them on our own. I am of course going to look at what Disney offers once they come out, but I like to at least know what our options are and maybe mix DCL excursion with tours we do on our own.

No, the island of Hawaii that has active volcano. Honolulu is where Waikiki beach is. A 10:30 departure might give you time to hit a luau on Waikiki but it would be cutting it close.

Since we are now staying later, I already looked at some of the luaus available near Honolulu (not having a luau was DH's chief complaint about this trip). There is one that ends around 9 and you can pay for an upgraded package that will provide transport back to Waikiki by 9:30. That should (read: should) get us back to the ship on time. We will have to do more research and thinking, but so far it looks like it may be possible.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ERIK!!!

 

[seaulater]

Thanks for the support, I always get the feeling on these boards people do not like the DCL tours. Granted they are more money, but the money spent to me is called peice of mind. Kinda like the DCL transfers, which this may sound strange since I live in Los Angeles, I may use. Hey my car my break down on the way to the Port, but I live only 1.5 miles from LAX were I park my car anyway.

I usually take the DCL tours also, especially in unknown ports. However, for me, I have been to Hawaii so many times, I feel extremely comfortable doing things on my own if the excursions they have don't fit with what we want to do.

And if something miserable happened like missing the ship, I know I could catch one of the island hoppers that fly between islands 10 times a day and it is a 20 minute flight. No big deal.

 

[dolphingirl47]

Hello All!

We just got back from the Alaska cruise and I sent an email to my DU rep asking for her to be on the look-out for a Hawaii ressie and she emailed today - wahoo!!

We got a cat 10C although I was hoping for a cat 9, but with the price bump since release, it is probably a blessing.

Now I just need to fully convince my hubby this is BETTER than just flying to Hawaii for a visit.

Welcome on board

You know it was weird on the ebta too....we went to several DVC sales pitches & events, and they would never even talk about Hawaii! When we asked they said, Oh come to see us & we can talk about it, but you really should buy Bay lake Towers! the whole push was for BLT & they didn't even talk about Hawaii....said there was a DVD "somewhere around here" & they see if they could find it later.... We just thought that was the weirdest thing. Then we stayed on for the first Med cruise & again, the big sell was for BLT....different sales group with the new itinerary too. Oh well - looks like other errors were made too - thanks for sharing the link!

On the WBTA last year and on the Panama Canal cruise this year, Aulani was featured very strongly. I wonder what happened there. They have years of experience so they should not have got it that wrong, but I can understand that they have stopped selling Aulani until they can get this mess straightened out.

Anyhow...Jason is downstairs making me breakfast (today is my 37th birthday!) so I have a few moments of quiet time.

Happy birthday.

As to excursions, I don't mind paying a bit extra for added convenience or peace of mind of doing excursions directly through DCL. However, in most ports, there are no excursions that interest us. The big surprise was the Mexican Riviera cruise where there are two or three excursions in every port that we really would love to do. So we are doing all of our excursions through DCL this time.

We have done a total of 6 excursions with DCL over the course of 6 cruises and all but one got back later than advertised. The one that did not, we had taxi vouchers for our transportation and were therefore in charge of when to return to the ship. We also did six independent excursions and all of them arrived back on time or even slightly ahead of schedule.

Corinna