Quote:
Originally Posted by tuesday
besides what the ship offers for tours , is there tours that is offered at the dock ... and if so . can some one tell me about them as im trying to save just a little money
thanks in advance these are the ports of call for march 2009
Hilo, Hawaii
Honolulu, Hawaii
Kauai (Nawiliiwili), Hawaii
Maui (Lahaina), Hawaii
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You can pre-book tours by doing research on the Internet. The summer before our Hawaiian cruise, I checked out the websites for each of the ports we were going to. Some have brochures that they will send you (with plenty of ideas for spending your money!). There's also a card you can get (I think it's called the Go card or something like that).
If you see something of interest, but want to book at the pier, at least you'll have their address and can be looking for their sign. I would still contact them ahead of time to make sure that reservations aren't required or that they don't get booked up for that date. Also you can go to the Hawaii area here on CLF and ask if anyone has experience with this company.
One thing to be aware of is that Lahaina is a "tender" port. So don't book any early morning excursions that aren't booked thru the cruiseline. That's because those with ship-sponsored tours and excursions get first priority to tender to the pier. We had an early morning snorkeling cruise. So our tickets said to meet in the Princess Theater by 7:45am. We were escorted to the front of the tender line along with another excursion. The only others who could be up front in line with us would be those with tons of Princess cruises under their belt (Elite) and maybe those in the highest category cabins. Everyone had to wait to get off the ship.
Another thing to know is the contact info for any companies you book with. Ports can be missed (it happened with one of our ports due to high waves). Make sure you won't be charged in that case.
We actually used just Princess-sponsored excursions this time. In Honolulu, we went to Sea Life Park (you can also take the City Bus to get there or other places). In the evening, our girl went off to the kids' program and we took a taxi to a Longs to get souvenirs and more soda.
In Kauai, we took the ABC store shuttle to a nearby beach in the morning. In the afternoon, we took the Hilo Hattie bus, did some shopping, and walked around.
In Lahaina, as I said, we went on a snorkeling excursion. Afterwards, we did stuff around the town before heading back to where you catch the tender back.
In Hilo, we went on a Windward Waterfalls tour, which we enjoyed. Took much of the day. I'm not sure if there's companies at the pier to book a tour with, as we didn't look around before returning to the ship. It's a very industrial area there.
Kona was the missed port. Sigh.
Hope this helps a little.
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