This may surprise many of you who have read my postings over the last few months but ... I enjoyed this vacation. Why would I say that after mostly nothing but negative things to say about Pride of Aloha? It's because my wife and I traveled with friends - new and old - that we love dearly. Plus we have traveled with this charter group before and thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment and other activities planned exclusively by the travel agency. So we endured the problems on POA, made the most of a bad situation and adjusted when we had to in order to save this vacation. This cruise also showed me that the American spirit is alive, well, and living in our young people. This crew is NOT made up of the lazy Americans that I heard about so frequently on these boards, just a group of people who have been given an impossible task. You could see the fatigue in the eyes of the staff, but they continue to give it their all against the odds created by a company that is abusing them. There HAS to be labor law violations on this ship, and they will come to light in time. I would never do another Hawaiian cruise, on Norwegian Cruise Line, in particular, or on a cruise ship, in general. Hawaii was not made for cruising. There is simply too much to see in port to be restricted to the usual 10-11 hours you spend there. A Hawaiian cruise is best suited for those who have never been to the islands and want to get a taste of each port. I want more than that. For those of you who are diehard NCL fans let me get to the point and save you from reading the rest of this very lengthy review. I don't like NCL, I didn't like Pride of Aloha and I feel like NCL ripped me off with a second rate cruise. I suggest that if you are booked on this ship and haven't reached the penalty period then cancel out. If you haven't booked yet ... then take your business elsewhere. If you're stuck with this cruise ... well ... you can make the most of it if you lower your expectations and realize this will not be like any cruise you've ever been on.

THE BEGINNING Our group of 8 people included a family of four from Chicago, a couple from Phoenix, and us, from Connecticut. The adults are all in their 50s, the "kids" are 21 and 19. This was our third trip to Hawaii, so we were well aware of the impact of that six-hour time difference coming from the east coast. We came in three days early to avoid jetlag, and I suggest that others cruising on POA do the same because that time difference can be murder. The couple with the family came in a week before we did (without the kids) to do a little golfing on Oahu, Maui and the Big Island. Many on this particular cruise flew in the same day - including some from Boston - and paid for it. My wife and I flew into Honolulu on August 5, and a short inter-island flight later we were on Kauai and driving to Marriott's Waiohai Beach Club on Kauai. What a way to start a vacation ... three days ... in paradise ... on the island of paradise. This is one of Marriott's newest (and most breathtaking) timeshare properties. Don't belong to the Marriott timeshare family? You can rent a two-bedroom unit for about $330 a night (including tax and fees), We had two two-bedroom units, each overlooking a beautifully landscaped garden area that included a couple of picturesque ponds, palm trees, golf course putting green-like grass, and twin waterfalls. Instead of the "superpool" you see at most big hotels, there were three individual pools, and three relatively secluded hot tubs. And of course, right beyond the biggest pool is a gorgeous beach. Wow! And best of all, Internet access was free so that I would stay in contact with my message board buddies. Over the next three days, we drove as far north as possible (including a stop at the Princeville Hotel), lunched at Zelo's Beach House in Hanalei, and took in the grandeur of the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, Waimea Canyon. NOTE: Wherever you go in Hawaii, take your camera. Photo opts are just around the corner. On Sunday, we headed back to the airport in Lihue for the flight back to Honolulu .... ready for the challenges ahead.

THE SHIP Four of us took a cab to the ship for a total of $36 including tip. As we closed in on the pier I finally got my first glimpse of the Pride of Aloha. My first thought? This ship sure is small, especially after sailing on the 142,000-ton Adventure of the Seas in mid-july. But this isn't a bad ship, just not what we expected when we signed on for the brand spanking new Pride of America. And with exceptional service people probably wouldn't be so upset that POA is an older, smaller ship. Unfortunately, the lack of service only makes the ship shortcomings more obvious. Except for the dining rooms, the new furnishings look rather cheesy. The carpet is already beginning to bead up in high traffic areas, and the burlap strings along the edge of the carpet on Deck 6 outside of the jewelry store are already coming up. I never really got use to the bright furnishings, especially the blue carpeting. Particularly garish is the Blue Hawaii Lounge, with more colors than the rainbow, none of them matching. The ship is easy to negotiate. I did hear complaints about having to walk up the stairs from the Crossings dining room on Deck 5 up to Deck 6, and then back down to Deck 5 to get to the Palace dining room. But there are maps of the ship posted at every elevator and in other areas, so you should never get lost. Then again, the ship is so small ... Every day I found toilets in pubic areas that were not working. Either the bathroom floors were covered wall to wall with water (at least I think it was water) ... or else the suction wasn't working and the toilets were overflowing with urine and the other stuff. Totally disgusting. If you don't want to take a chance, just go back to your room each time you need to go .... But I'm told that some of those toilets didn't always work either. The cabins ... they were just as small as everyone had said. Fortunately I was prepared and it really didn't bother me much. We always bring a few extra hangers so we were able to put most of our clothes in the closet, including my shorts. We left nothing in the suitcases except for things we would not use on this cruise. Everything else found a place either in the three drawers, two shelves and the closet. Our four suitcases fit nicely under the bed, as did my laptop computer case. But if my wife was sitting at the vanity getting gorgeous, it was tough to get by her and into the bathroom. I would always have to tell her to move the chair closer to the desk. How four adults could stay in a room this size for an entire week is beyond me. By the way, balcony cabins and suites get a coffee maker ... we did not. Fortunately, the Arizona couple had a balcony, did not drink coffee and loaned us their coffee maker for our nightly tea. Read more