* Sailed with 2 adults, one teen, and 4 bags. *Arrive in Honolulu a few days early to adjust to time change. *Embassy Suites in Waikiki is great. Rooms, Breakfast, and evening Drinks were just super. Just know that Waikiki Beach is merely a ribbon of sand. All the beach reconstruction of a few years ago has eroded away. Taxi to ship was $20. *Check-in was quick! However, it took over 4 hours to get bags delivered to room. Strongly suggest you tote your bags onboard yourselves. *Interior room and bathroom were smaller than most other ships. Room did have a refrigerator. *If you smoke, you can only do so in rooms, one side of an upper deck, and one bar on the upper back deck. *Did not eat at any of the specialty restaurants onboard due to the $15-25 per person cover charges. The dining room, buffet, and Cadillac Diner were all no extra charge and just fine. We enjoyed the Freestyle concept of going to eat at our convenience. *The Freestyle concept also meant casual for most. A nice collared shirt and jeans was perfectly acceptable for dinners. A few folks dressed up in coats, but not many. *Debarkation is actually picking a bag tag color corresponding with a time. Although that gives some flexibility in time frame, the ship really wants you off by 930am. Taxi to airport was $25. *Ship tries to push its program of checking bag and getting boarding passes the night before, for $25 per person. Might be worth it for those with late flights. For mid-afternoon flights, just tote your own bags and apply this money to some Excursions.

*About 36 hours in Maui. Rent a car through Shore Excursions for a reasonable price and just drive to the attractions you want to see. A lot cheaper than a Coach excursion. The rental car companies pick up and drop at pier-side. *The Lava Viewing Tour in Hilo did not see any orange lava. Part of the Volcanoes National Park is closed for safety purposes. This tour did go to an area where the lava is entering the ocean. Could see the steam and explosions, but no orange. *Ship cruised by the lava after dark leaving Hilo, and the lava explosions were better than any fireworks show. Lots of orange explosions. Starboard side cabins got the best view...port (left) side cabins had to come on deck. *Spend the money ($415 per person)for the 2 hour Helicopter Tour in Kona. Worth every penny! Took my teen for a once in a lifetime adventure to see the orange from above. Mrs went to the Spa and loved it ($325 for a 100 minutes of indulgence and massage). *About 32 hours in Kauai. Again, rent a car! The Grand Canyon of the Pacific was worth the drive. The River cruise was disappointing...the Fern Grotto is HOT! No air moving at all. *Ship leaves early and cruises slowly by the Na Pali coast...both sides of ship get a great view. Plan dinner for this time and arrive early to get a window table. Great dinner view.

*Shows were typical cruise entertainment...song and dance routines, a singer, and a magician, who was quite good. A very clever act. *Teenage son enjoyed the teen program. Teens can come and go as they wish, and can hang out all day. Special dinner for teens last night. *For once, the photographers were not intrusive or pushy. *Drinks typical cruise ship overpriced. Get a soda card for about $50 for an adult,just bring on some flasks of your favorite liquor, and get the sodas as set-ups. I brought on some caffeine free diet Pepsi, and my son brought on some Mountain Dew, with no problems. *Our room stewardess was awful, but the dining room waiter was excellent. *The $10 per person, per night, Service Charge for staff is a poor idea. It all goes into a pool and divided among the staff. No way to allocate more or less of this Service Charge to any particular staff. We would have liked to tip the waiter more and stewardess less, but no way to do so without paying even more. *This ship did seem to move around more than others, even in fairly calm water. Those hypersensitive to motion sickness might need something. Most cruising is at nights though. Remember...interior, lowest possible deck, midship, has the least movement on a ship. *All in all, a great way to see all the islands and gain some weight.