Loved cruising around Hawaii, but too many sea days for me
Crown Princess Cruise Review to Hawaii
Contributor Level:
First Mate
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 16
Helpful Votes: 566
16 Night Hawaiian Islands (San Francisco Roundtrip)
Sail date: January 07, 2024
Ship: Crown Princess
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: D403
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 1 month ago
Review summary
Overall I loved the Hawaiian Islands and wished that there had been more stops. What I didn't like was the lousy weather from San Francisco to Hawaii--it was rainy and windy and the outside of the ship was pretty much unusable for 5 days. On the Crown Princess there are like 5 outside pools--many of the activities planned are based on being outside--there is no solarium or really any space for sitting outside and watching the ocean go by--well except for Skywalkers lounge (closed during our trip due to the sound system being broken) and except for the LIDO--which you hate to use during meal times because people were already having trouble finding seats. I think that had we been leaving from Los Angeles or San Diego--the weather likely would have been warmer and then I would have enjoyed lounging outside in the sun. I just don't think that Princess plans enough indoor activities to keep many people busy. Of course the casino is available, which we love, but it was pretty busy--getting a spot on a table was impossible many days. The other interesting thing about this cruise was how grumpy the other passengers were. I wasn't enthralled by the food--but I kept my opinion to myself. Others were walking around opening complaining for everyone to hear--using language that a sailor would have been embarrassed by. Since this was a January cruise right after New Years--I believe that the cruise was heavily discounted--maybe this attracted a clientele that don't often cruise that were very disappointed. I'm really not sure. One other odd thing happened on the cruise. After we departed from Kona about 1 1/2 hours had passed and all of a sudden we see the lights of Kona again. We could tell on the Cruisemapper app that the ship had turned around and was approaching Kona. There was no announcement from the Captain. Was there an emergency on board? Usually when the ship changes course for a medical emergency there is an announcement. Pretty soon the ship stopped and a tender was lowered and the tender motored towards the city. 20 minutes later the tender returned and docked with the ship. Out came about 8 people that we presumed were police dressed in fatigues and uniforms holding firearms and batons. 10 minutes later they reboarded the tender with a gentleman that was handcuffed. The next morning the captain said in his announcement that someone had to urgently leave the ship. Personally I think an announcement should have been made--it wasn't so late (9PM) that it would have bothered anyone and it would have dispelled the wild rumors being circulated on the ship. The trip from Hawaii to Ensenada was warmer than the outgoing trip--which was much appreciated--I just didn't think that there was enough being offered to keep passengers busy.Embarkation
There was a pretty significant wait if you didn't have your medallion--we ended up snaking around for nearly an hour. This is unusual for Princess--or maybe it's that lots of people don't want to pay extra to have their medallion mailed to their home.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
We generally eat at the LIDO and we found ourselves wandering around the LIDO thinking: Am I missing something? There just wasn't much of a selection as compared to other Princess cruises we have been on. There were several different buffet sections opened at different times and the sections at the aft of the ship were smaller than the forward sections with even less to choose from.
Onboard Activities
Since we were sailing to Hawaii--I was under the mistaken impression that the weather would be great. However--the weather was lousy the first 4 days of travel with rain and pretty cold weather, rendering the pools unusable. The fitness center was nice.
Entertainment
Only fair--no great shows or acts.
Children's Programs
no children in our party.
Service and Staff
Room stewards and waiters were excellent, as always.
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
We upgraded via the princess upgrade program to an extended balcony. I didn't think it was worth the upgrade--I prefer a room that has a couch so there's somewhere to sit besides the desk chair. Overall, Princess rooms are pretty small.
Ports of call
We stayed at a hotel within a short taxi ride to the port. San Francisco port is generally very busy and surrounded by traffic jams during embarkation hours. I don't think there are hotels within walking distance so a taxi is generally needed. We usually enjoy staying around Fisherman's Wharf--seemed a bit seedier this time round.
Thumbs Up
1
We had wanted to revisit Volcanoes national park in a small tour group--so went on a private tour outside the cruise ship. It was wonderful--I recommend a smaller group tour to see this location--you will make more stops and it will be a more intimate visit that's less expensive than the ship's tours.
We absolutely love Honolulu. The ship docks adjacent to the Aloha Tower. Since it was an NFL playoff day--we walked to a local brewery and watched the game. There are so many interesting things to do in Honolulu--would have also been very happy sitting on Waikiki beach with a Mai-Tai. You can get Taxis right at the port or join one of the many interesting excursions on Oahu.
Kauai is tropical heaven. We went on a ship tour that took us to multiple areas on the island where famous movies had been shot. What made it so interesting is that we saw short clips of the movies on the small bus before arriving at the sites. This was an expensive tour--but well worth it. Also had a fantastic lunch at a local burger place.
This stop was a last minute add on due to the unfortunate fire at our original stop. Therefore, most shore excursions were sold out quickly and we missed out on a tour. We ended up walking around the port area--there is a small beach right off the ship as well as incredible tourist shopping and so many wonderful restaurants. Loved this stop and hope to do it again!
Ensenada is somewhere that I wouldn't wander around without a tour. Nothing else seemed interesting, so we signed up for a ship tour to a winery. We enjoyed ourselves and glad to see that some locals are producing decent wine and creating quality jobs for the area.
Disembarkation
Fast and efficient.