Booked a two night pre cruise stay and a seven night cruise with airfare on Pride of America our first NCL cruise for Sept. 17-24. We flew direct from Houston, TX to Honolulu on Continental and were met by the NCL rep at the gate. After getting our baggage we were taken by van to our hotel, The Radisson Prince Kuhio on Waikiki Beach. We did have a great view of the beach, since our room had been upgraded to an oceanview. The only negative with the hotel was the fact that several of the elevators were being worked on which made the other elevators very slow. Tip- Use the garage elevator for faster service. We rented a car and took in Pearl Harbor, USS Missouri, Punchbowl Cemetery, Diamond Head, North Shore, Hanauma Bay and several other sites. Beware traffic is equal to Houston or any other big city.

The day of our cruise we were picked up at 1 pm and taken to the ship. The line was long for check-in but moved pretty fast and soon we were onboard. I immediately booked reservations for Little Italy for the first night and Friday night (NaPali Coast sailing) for 6pm-this was a tip I received on Cruise Critic. Our balcony cabin (8690) was ready and we dropped off our carry-on luggage before heading to the Aloha Cafe for lunch. Great boiled shrimp on the buffet. Unpacked after lunch, our bags were waiting for us. Dinner and service at Little Italy was very good! Attended the show, juggler was good!

Arrived in Hilo at 8am and had booked a tour- (Hilo Volcano Tour and Akaka Falls) independent of the ship. We used Tony Patao with Green Travel and Tours (www.greentours.com), he did a fantastic job. He picked us up at the dock in a small van and we enjoyed the whole day with another couple. He is a wealth of knowledge and took us to many off the beaten tourist path places. I highly recommend Tony and Green Tours. That evening we sailed by Mt. Kilauea and saw the lava flowing into the ocean, a memorable site. Read more