On October 22nd 2005 my wife and I took our first cruise aboard the Pride of America. I would like to thank all of the members of Cruise Critic for their previous reviews and comments. This was a great help for two first time cruisers. Our flight to Honolulu landed at 3:00PM and we were in our room by 4:00PM. The boarding process was very smooth. Our room #10000 was incredible. It was a deluxe penthouse suite and it had a balcony that ran along the entire bow of the ship. It had a living room, small dining room, king bedroom, large dressing area, and a bathroom with a jacuzzi and a shower that you could huge shower. Jessica the Butler and Al the concierge were incredible, ask for them if you get a chance. The room was spotless. It was cleaned every day within an hour of when we left. DINNER: Make your reservations as soon as you get on board. I figured I was on vacation and did not want to worry about it during the trip. We ate at all of the specialty restaurants. They were all very good , and worth the upcharge. Service was good, and we never waited at a single restaurant. Al the Concierge arranged for us to have dinner with the Captain on formal night, what a great experience, we had a wonderful time sitting and talking about the ship. We had breakfast in the Aloha Cafe and also in our room no problems and food was hot and decent. Jessica was happy to bring us whatever we needed, food, wine, even plates from the chocolate buffet since we were on a shore excursion at the time. Shore Excursions:This was the one area I was disappointed in. It was great not having to worry about missing the ship (booked through NCL) but I did not think the quality was very good. In Kauai we had the heaven and earth tour which consisted of appx. 10 people getting into a van and heading out for a trip to the heli-pad. A van is not a small tour bus, which is what should have been used. After the ride we spent another 4-5 hours trying to look at the beautiful scenery from the van, it was not a lot of fun. Lunch consisted of a soda and a sandwich from 7-11. Nothing against 7-11, but I expected more. Maui was great rented a car and drove around the North end of the island, it was beautiful. Snorkeled Molakini through Maui Dive, very professional and a great place to snorkel. We had an incredible time and I can't wait to cruise again, you guys have us hooked. I think the upsell to cabin 10000 was worth every penny. E-mail me with any questions you may have and I will do my best to answer them. Again Thank you all very much, your help made a lot of difference.