We decided to go on this cruise for the destinations which included 4 different islands in Hawaii. It was the chance to experience 2 islands that we had never visited with the ship in port everyday of the cruise. When we embarked on our Hawaiian cruise, we had already read some of the disappointing reviews. We knew the ship was an older ship with an older crowd so we expected that the entertainment and ship was not going to be the same great experience as some of our best caribbean cruises. However, we didn't expect that we would be so disappointed in the cabin and food on this cruise.
Upon entering our cabin, we encountered a stench that smelled like crap. We have never had this problem on any of our previous cruises. We immediately contacted someone to come in and take care of the problem. They came in to freshen the room and take care of the smell. However, the crap smell appeared throughout the cruise. We mentioned it again to the manager of the cabin steward and she said that other passengers had mentioned the smell and it was a "technical problem". She offered to have the steward "freshen the cabin" and sprinkle something on the carpet. I don't think that ever happened as we had to sleep with the balcony door open in order to get some fresh air.
Our food was another disappointment and we didn't have too many great choices in the restaurants. I had a noodle dish one night with mushy, overcooked noodles and ended up eating only half my meal. The potato soup and broccoli cheese soup were pureed (maybe for the old people). It was nasty and I couldn't finish it. One night we decided to eat in the complimentary "East Meets West" restaurant but we didn't enjoy the flavor of the food. It was just OK. For my 50th birthday, we ate in Cagneys which is always very good. Another night we couldn't find anything that we liked on the complimentary restaurant menus so we decided to eat in the french restaurant which was good. While in port, we tried to eat on the islands to avoid the generic food on the ship. The best meal of the week was the Beef Stroganoff. Also, most of the meals were not hot, including breakfast. We don't like to eat at buffets but I had a better omelet at the buffet because it was made to order and hot.
Upon entering our cabin, we encountered a stench that smelled like crap. We have never had this problem on any of our previous cruises. We immediately contacted someone to come in and take care of the problem. They came in to freshen the room and take care of the smell. However, the crap smell appeared throughout the cruise. We mentioned it again to the manager of the cabin steward and she said that other passengers had mentioned the smell and it was a "technical problem". She offered to have the steward "freshen the cabin" and sprinkle something on the carpet. I don't think that ever happened as we had to sleep with the balcony door open in order to get some fresh air.
The cabin is also very small and seems to be one of the smallest cabins we've ever stayed in. It was reminiscent of a cabin on our first cruise in the mid 90s. Severely in need of an update.
We stayed in Honolulu for 2 days before and 2 days after our cruise. We stayed in Aulani Resort (Disney's resort) which we love. Having already spent a week in Aulani a couple of years ago, we were familiar with activities on Oahu and drove around to experience the island as we had previously done. Lots of traffic and absolutely hate Waikiki because there are just too many people. Ko'olina, on the other hand is quiet and pretty and we love Aulani Resort and it's lazy river, multiple pools, and private beach.
About 5 years ago we stayed on Maui for 2 weeks. We know our way around this island very well so we rented a car. We drove Hana road and stopped first in Paia to buy a picnic lunch. We had a great day on the road and then drove to Lahaina to eat dinner and walk in the shops and galleries. We ended up so exhausted from our busy day that we abandoned our plans for driving to Haleakala the next morning and instead drove to Lahaina for breakfast and more shopping the next day before returning the car. Car rental and return was easy and Maui is really easy to get around. There are lots of activities to do on Maui and you can't go wrong with any of your choices. Maui is my favorite island.