Re: We're back.
This is our second cruise so now I'm an expert. Things I've noticed from two different ships:
- After NCL "Freestyle" cruises where you can walk through a buffet line in your swimsuit, I can't put up with assigned mealtimes/seats and formal wear. But it's fun to watch the people who choose to make dressup an event.
- The newer the better. Newer ships tend to optimize for smooth buffet lines, bigger theaters with better views, bigger fitness facilities, and faster/smoother rides. Older ships make compromises that don't please everyone.
- The newer the riskier. A crew on its first year (or its first run in a new area) might make a lot of rookie mistakes. Norwalk virus is no fun.
- The older the cheaper. Some of the older ships (or, in Hawaii, those having to run to Fanning Island) are heavily discounted a couple weeks before sailing.
- Outside staterooms are a waste of money. Portholes & windows don't do anything for me, especially when your stateroom activities usually start with closing the draperies.
- Don't ride the elevators if you can walk the stairs. If you had more than one dessert that day, you probably need to walk the stairs.
- Don't use the ship's Internet access or phone systems unless it's a no-foolin' emergency. OTOH when land rises over the horizon it's fun to watch the digitally addicted flock topside genuflecting waving their personal electronics toward the nearest antennae.
If you've never been to Hawaii before and you might not come again, a cruise is a good way to see most of the islands in a "This is Tuesday so that must be Lahaina" format. If you can come to Hawaii more than once then it's better to spend a week (or longer) on your island of choice and cruise somewhere else. But if you've been to the islands several times then a cruise is a good way to cherry-pick the shore excursions-- or to just not leave the ship at all.
NCL only has one ship, the Wind, still cruising to Fanning Island (the other two have all-American crews and so can stay in the Hawaiian islands). That will probably stop when their THIRD all-American ship arrives in 2007. Fanning Island has been completely overhauled by NCL's presence and it won't be pretty when NCL leaves. The island wasn't even populated until the 1860s so there's no ancient disappearing cultures-- just the tremendous social displacement of a couple hundred people who will have to go back to fishing & coconuts.
Norwalk virus is transmitted by physical contact and poor food sanitation. Most cruise ships aggressively use hand sanitizers and (their crew uses) latex gloves. If they have rules in the buffet line that seem wasteful or just plain silly, it's probably a sanitiation concern. OTOH I don't think there are any widespread outbreaks like 2004.
I'd forgotten how light-polluted Oahu is until we were well over the horizon and still seeing the glow of its Honolulu city lights. The stars are quite a sight when there's not another contact in sight, but on a cruise ship it's pretty hard to find an outside deck that isn't lit up like a stage.
Cruising is a great way to get away from yardwork, chores, errands, interruptions, and anything else that would keep you from truly enjoying a long guilt-free lounge in your recliner. The kid was totally independent. Spouse and I had plenty of quality time to ourselves. I worked out twice a day. I plowed through a half-dozen books that have been in the "Read Me" pile for months. FIL & I thoroughly fixed the stock market; in a couple weeks I'll know how we did. The shows ranged from incredible to corny to stupid but we were there for just about every one of them.
It may not be a good idea to give a 12-year-old permission to charge things to the room account. OTOH we had several fascinating (at least to me) discussions about impulse spending, budgeting, & financial planning.
No matter how mature or tall your 12-year-old kid is, the program director will not include one in the 13-17 age group's activities. In retrospect this was a good thing since the teen activities didn't really get cranked up, so to speak, until after 11 PM. Sometimes the teens were just wrapping up their night as I was starting my morning.
Don't buy art at the ship's art auctions. But do go for the free champagne & raffle tickets.
Don't play bingo unless they're giving away free cards.
Don't buy from the cruise ship's shops.
Cruise ships in Hawaii do not have casinos. (Hawaii doesn't permit gambling and that was one of the compromises NCL made to operate here.)
NCL lets you disembark early if you can carry your own luggage. This means that you get head of the line and first choice of the taxis & other transportation. It may not seem like a big deal but later we were watching people queued up for 30-40 minutes.
Electronic charts are cool. (I'm almost sorry that I left sea duty before they arrived.)
There's a whole group of cruisers who subsidize their travel by performing at sea. One retired couple got their tickets for $50/day each by delivering four one-hour talks on the evolution from ancient Polynesian open-ocean navigation to modern GPS. (They've repeated the same gig six times so far this year alone. They actually use an agent who shops their schtick-- and many others-- around to all the major lines.) A marine biologist gave four talks about her experiences with Hawaiian island aquatic critters. Another couple hosted several hours of dance lessons. Passengers competed in "NCL Idol" talent shows for cruise contracts to the most talented. A group of a couple dozen teens from the New York Conservatory for the Arts scored a huge discount by giving four performances. Elementary school teachers on summer break were leading several of the kid's activity groups. An acrobat (not a dancer) with the dance troup contributed to nightly performances by devoting 60-90 seconds to backflips & somersaults that could be done by any high-school all-around gymnast.
The best way to see Kilauea lava is at night from sea. It had broken through the tunnels in at least six places and it was geysering into the ocean with spectacular fountains of sparks & steam. This spectacle is preferably viewed from at least three miles out on a corrosion-resistant vessel...
Our kid is agitating for a Washington DC trip next year but in 2007 we'll probably be bottom-fishing for another 7-10 day last-minute fare.
but seems to be a side effect of globalisation.
![:-\](https://www.early-retirement.org/sk/forums/images/smilies/undecided.gif "Undecided :-\")
