The first port of call was Hilo. we opted to do this port on our own. We walked into the old town and found it charming and I bought a Hawaii long dress for 5.00. it started to really rain while in Hilo. We went to the tourism office and found that there was a bus we could take and it was free to seniors. We rode the bus to the mall to look for a Hawaiian Christmas tie. We the walked over to Hilo Hatties which is a shop linked to the ship somehow and they have a free shuttle to the port. I found their prices to be much higher than in old town Hilo. We ended up taking the public bus back to the port.
The next day we were in port at Maui. We took a ship excursion to two snorkel sites. We used the ship tour because Maui was a tender port and we knew if necessary the ship would wait for us. The excursion was ok but the ship was a mess. The crew were nice but when we got to the crater to snorkel you could see our boat was not as nice as the other boats. I noticed a few companies I had tried to book with but the ship schedule did not work. They cost less and had fewer people and really nice boats. Princess should find and new excursion company.
The next port was Kauai and we ended up renting a car at the last minute from the port for a great price. We drove to the canyon and then to the beach and it was a great day.
On Honolulu , we had reservations for Pearl harbor. If you go, get reservations and your life will be a lot easier. We took the public bus and it was fine but took a good hour. The cabs were not that much and so much quicker. Lots to see and do.
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