Aulani/Hawaiian cruise

[cleophus12]

I thought I had done a trip report, but when I went to Cruise Critic, I couldn't find it. I would, however, be happy to answer any questions you have. We mostly used Thrifty rental cars and I highly recommend joining their BlueChip loyalty program. Makes pick up super simple.

 

[fitnessmouse]

We also did the NCL POA cruise followed by 6 nights at Aulani. Last year in May. For us, family of 4, the cruise came out way cheaper than island hopping as we booked a kids sail free special. Plus we didn't want ro pack and unpack multiple times. DH and I island hopped on our honeymoon, and thought there was too much wasted time travelling. We rented cars at each stop and downloaded gps apps for travel, so we had a touring guide in our car. (Gypsy guide) We have a trip report but its in dutch.

 

[rochmom4]

We went on the POA cruise followed by a week at Aulani. Yes, we were impacted by TS Darby. We were impressed with how NCL and the captain kept us informed of itinerary changes and kept us safe during the storm. There were many added activities which kept us busy for our unexpected sea day. We have sailed on DCL's Magic, Wonder and Fantasy in the past and were a bit apprehensive about sailing the POA after reading the many reviews online. However, we were pleasantly surprised. We had good service in the Skyline dining room each evening. We made reservations and never had to wait. We never felt we needed to try the specialty restaurants. We booked the POA far in advance and had several price drops. We got a great rate on the 3rd and 4th person in the cabins so our children's fare were minimal. The shows can not compare with DCL's but we had full days of excursions on the islands so we were usually exhausted by the evening. Our room steward was wonderful and attentive.

 

[ski_mom]

This summer we did 2 nights at the Hyatt Regency on Waikiki beach, the 7 night NCL cruise and finished with 4 nights at Aulani.

We were with our family of 5, my sister's family of 3 and my mom, so with 9 of us total, we decided it would be much easier not to have to pack and unpack for each island. We were very happy with our decision. We have never done a DCL cruise, buy have done many other lines on much nicer ships, but had no problems with the POA. It is a smaller boat, but you really aren't on the boat for extended periods of time like you are on other ships.

Like a previous poster, we also rented a car at each port and had awesome days on every island. When I go back, I'll honestly have a hard time deciding which islands to visit because I loved them all for different reasons!

I see you are planning on going in June next year and if it's similar to June this year, the ocean was very calm. We didn't have an issue at all with delays.