I just returned from the December 2, 2006 seven-night Hawaii sailing of NCL's Pride of America, and wanted to offer my commentary on this most enjoyable week. This is my 6th cruise, having gone with NCL in 1989, Renaissance in 2000, Oberoi Nile in 2005, Celebrity in 2005, and Victoria Yangtze in 2006, I've had the pleasure of cruising on a variety of vessels. For Hawaii, I was traveling with my wife and her two sisters. We booked two connecting balcony cabins on deck 9 (9012 and 9004, starboard fwd section of the ship). We made our own travel arrangements from Northern New England and arrived in Honolulu a day prior to the cruise. Arriving at the pier at 3:00pm Saturday, embarkation went smoothly, and we were onboard in less than 20 minutes. Reservations for the specialty restaurants were being taken on deck 6, and we immediately booked ours for the Asian style East-West that Saturday night. The additional charge was reasonable for the Japanese Hot Pot meals we chose. A vegetarian selection would have been nice, but there was an ample amount of fresh vegetables to add to the mix. Oh, did I mention the shrimp, pork, and chicken won-tons? The pile was huge, way too many for a table of four. Having booked the restaurant reservations we proceeded to our cabins to find most of our bags waiting for us. The remainder followed shortly thereafter. Having read numerous reviews lamenting the small size of the cabins I was expecting a closet-size space. This was not the case. In fact, our deck 9 cabins had plenty of space and were set up as we requested. The balconies at this end of the ship are huge, equipped with 2 comfortable chairs and 1 reclining chaise lounge. Inside, the closet is equipped with 20 hangars, two deep drawers, two shelves on the lower left and upper right, and more than enough storage space for two occupants. Additional drawer space is provided in the unit housing the refrigerator, TV, and safe. Suit cases fit comfortably under the beds. Two electrical outlets are provided at the desk to accommodate battery chargers or other 115 volt appliances. The TV has video/audio input jacks to allow review of one's digital photos or video if you remembered to bring the cords. Normally I wouldn't mention this but others already have so I'll add this observation. Our cabin was spotless upon our arrival, a condition which was maintained for the duration of the cruise. My compliments on a job well done to Mr. Franklin Peters, who was our cabin steward for the cruise. His professional approach to the job, and pleasant greetings each and every day of the cruise only added to our enjoyment.
Now, the restaurants and free-style cruising. The Skyline and Liberty restaurants (5th/6th deck) serve dinner from 5:30pm to 9:00 or 10:00pm (I don't remember the exact closing times), but the four of us were promptly seated every night regardless of our arrival time. I was told by a restaurant host that the best time to arrive was at 5:30pm but we arrived between 6:00 and 8:00pm each night and got right in. Both the Skyline and the Liberty serve the same menu so the choice here is mainly the diner's preference of decor. Menu selections varied each night, but always offered a steak, fish, chicken, and vegetarian dish for those whose dietary interests tend towards the less adventurous. My personal highlights were the macadamia nut soup, huli chicken, pan-seared ahi tuna, and the island-style pork chops I had the second night when everybody else was having lobster. In most instances the service in these restaurants was friendly and professional. There was only one occasion (the last night of the cruise), where the service was slightly lacking, and I chalk this one occurrence up to inexperience among those working that particular section of the restaurant. I don't hold it against them. We only had lunch onboard twice, on embarkation day and later on departure from Kauai. Every other day we were out exploring the islands. On the two days we were onboard for lunch, the Aloha Cafe (deck 11 aft) had an ample selection of hot dishes, burgers, pasta selections, pizza, salads, and of course the dessert bar. My favorites here were the grilled wahoo, spicy black beans, spicy pumpkin soup, and heath bar topped cheese cake. There's also ice cream. Oh, we did check out the Cadillac Diner one afternoon. Southern Fried Chicken, Fish-N-Chips, and burgers were good and about what one would expect of diner fare. Breakfast happened early for our group, and we were at the Aloha Cafe for the buffet promptly at 6:30am when they opened. There's something for everybody here. My wife and her sisters favored the fresh fruit bar, pancakes, and pastries. I went more for the corn beef hash, home fries, and omelette made to order. Then I went back for the fresh fruits and juice. Did I mention the coffee? The Aloha has these coffee makers that allow one to select espresso, cappuccino, regular, decaf, or any combination. My personal favorite is a single shot of espresso topped off by cappuccino (it will fit nicely in an NCL cup).
One comment about free-style cruising. I love it! We booked rental cars at each port stop and made our own arrangements with local outfitters prior to departure, so free-style worked well for us. We didn't have to consider ship-board events or the dining schedule when making plans. With free-style all you have to do is show up at the pier in time for the ship's departure. Also, in the spirit of free-style the dress code onboard is that of resort casual, and while it's clearly stated that shorts, beachwear and jeans are prohibited from the main dining rooms this policy is ignored by many passengers and tolerated by the staff. For those so inclined there is one optional formal night but on this sailing I'd say about 20 went with that option.