I am a big fan of cruising and went with my family for the 7/1/2017 cruise. We found a decent deal, seemed a bit cheaper perhaps because the cruise covered the 4th of July holiday. I am 31 and single people my age don't usually have an interest in cruising not liking the structure and being "stuck on a ship". , I went with my brother who is 25, and our parents are in their late 50's/early 60's for our family reunion/tradition. This was our 7th cruise - we had previously been on Royal Caribbean (Serenade, Liberty, both great), Princess (Dawn, Golden, Grand which were all decent) and NCL Pride of Hawaii (which was bad!). Having previously not had good service with the American staff on that ship I was a bit wary but it turned out to be fine.

- We enjoyed the entertainment. "Oh what a night" blew us away! They received a standing ovation and it was well deserved. I was tempted to watch the second showing, they were so good. Comedian Michael was enjoyable too. Also they had the best staff talent show we've seen so far.

- Excursions were good. We stuck to the NCL excursions, even though we know its pricier than going with outside vendors. Our highlight was the Sun Fun Beach Snorkel in Kuaui. Shout out to Cullen/Ekolu/Miguel with Aloha Kuaui Adventures. They were so helpful - my parents could not swim and they were very attentive, supportive and helped them the entire time. They made it really fun too for the rest of us, holding a sea cucumber to attract the fish to us and finding lobsters. Wish I had more cash that day in tips to give them. We also did the Volcanos National Park in Hilo which was nice. Walked through the lava tube. We had tried to also book the Captain Zodiac snorkel in Kona, ended up wait listed but never got off the waitlist. Book early! Read more