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Lisa's Hawaii Cruise aboard the
Pride of Hawaii
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  Here
are excerpts from Lisa's observations aboard Norwegian Cruise Line's Pride of Hawaii.
It is the newest US flagged ship offering 7-day inter-island Hawaiian cruises.
It is new ship, first setting sail in June 2006, carries over 2800 passengers in
a wide array of cabins and suites. Read
her entire account.
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Freestyle Dining is what sets Norwegian Cruise Line apart from the other cruise
lines. Lunch and breakfast is open seating. For dinner, there are 12 options:
Room Service, 2 Main Dining Rooms, or the buffet; which doesn't require
reservations. There are 8 specialty restaurants, six that charge a minimal
cover. Reservations for the specialty restaurants can be made within 24
hours. There are restaurant availability monitors throughout the ship
indicating the length of wait time at each of the restaurants. Also turn
on the cabin TV to check the many restaurant availability
boards, indicating dining times and menus with the click of a button.
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Entertainment onboard included nightly productions in the Stardust Theatre:
Broadway Shows, musical revues, comedians, illusionists, a crew talent show and
even a production of Tony and Tina’s Wedding for which there was an additional
charge. All the rest of the shows were included. There was always live
entertainment daily throughout the ship. You could take part in a
shuffleboard competition or learn how to hula. There are 2 main pools, 4
hot tubs, a water slide and a separate children’s pool and play area. There is
also a top of the line fitness center and spa, outdoor basketball court, golf
simulator and jogging track. There are also several shopping venues onboard.
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The first port of call was Hilo, Hawaii - the gateway to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park;
one of America’s most popular National Parks. You will see The Kilauea Volcano
that has erupted every day since 1983. There are several shore excursions available to the Volcano National
Park, including biking tours, hiking tours or for the more adventurous, a helicopter tour. That night on our way to Maui,
the Captain sailed the ship past the Kilauea Volcano. The view from our balcony was breathtaking.
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The second port of call was Kahului, Maui, where we spent our first overnight. Maui is the most visited island in
Hawaii and is absolutely beautiful. There is also something for everyone to do on
Maui, a great golf course and helicopter tours and many beautiful beaches. We opted for a Beach
Day, booking a 5-hour excursion through NCL resulting in 4 hours on one of the 10 most beautiful beaches in the world.
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The third port of call was back to Hawaii; this time stopping in Kona where we had to tender to the pier.
Some of the many things to see in Kona are a tour of a coffee mill, or take part in a glass bottom boat ride. Kona is also a great place for shopping. There are so many shops located right off the pier. You can find anything from T-shirts to pearl earrings.
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The final port of call was our second overnight in Nawiliwili, Kaua’i. While we were in Nawiliwili,
we went to NCL’s own Luau Kalamaku. The luau was a wonderful feast filled with local delicacies. The performers depicted the story of a family’s journey across the vast blue waters of the Pacific with spirit of the ocean as the guide. The narrator recounted the epic
tale through old Hawaiian chants and songs while the dancers, in their beautiful costumes, kept beat with the drums. The finale was a sea of flaming poi balls and dancers.
Departing Nawiliwili, we sailed past the Na Pali coast, the backdrop of many movies, such as The Thorn Birds and South
Pacific.
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Returning to Honolulu, we disembarked the ship and met our motor coach taking us
on the Pearl Harbor and Honolulu City Tour. A visit to Pearl Harbor
& the Arizona Memorial was the most unique part of this day. A military band
and WWII veterans sharing their stories of that fateful day greeted us. It was a
rather sobering end to our 7 days in paradise. Lisa recommends this Hawaii
Cruise to almost everyone; families, honeymooners, those celebrating special
anniversaries and more. To create your dream Hawaii cruise, email Lisa,
or call 701.492.5000; 800.999.3688. Stop by the office for more photos of the
cruise ship and ports of call. Read
her entire account.
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