Having been to Hawaii more than 20 times during our working life, we thought seeing it from a ship would be an interesting way to go. We flew to Honolulu the Thursday before departure and stayed at the Best Western Plus Coconut Waikiki Hotel, small and convenient to the Waikiki area,

We left the hotel at noon for embarkation on the Pride of America. The process went very smoothly as the space is much larger than seen at other ports. Documents and ID are checked, luggage is then dropped off on conveyor belts, person and hand luggage security takes place, then the welcome photo is taken prior to check-in (a good idea in my opinion). Check-in begins at noon, so there are a lot of people in line but the line moved very quickly. The ship's comedian was there talking to the people as they waited which kept everyone happy and not cranky...

After check in, boarding was immediate onto Deck 5 which is quite expansive. We were directed to the Aloha Cafe on Deck 11 for lunch. We first found a seat in the Gold Rush Saloon which is next to the Aloha Cafe. We found it to be much quieter and always tried to sit there when we went to the Aloha Cafe for breakfast and lunch. We found the food in the Aloha Cafe to be quite good and we liked the multiple station set up they have. Read more