Pride of America - July 26, 2014 Sailing

Our family of six people all loved this cruise!  We have 1 teenager and 3 college age kids and NCL did exceptionally well in getting these age groups together to meet other kids and engage in fun activities (challenging in the 18-20 age group).  We have sailed on over 10 cruises, this our first NCL, and we chose this because of the Hawaiian itinerary.  The food was much better than the three other lines we have been on.  We thought the Cadillac Diner which offers a variety of choices for 24 hour dining was a nice option that others didn't have. The Pride of America staff were very friendly and efficient, and two of them went above and beyond and sent champagne and strawberries and wine and strawberries to our stateroom - one because he liked my commitment to the white party and the other because he found out it was our 25th anniversary.  This cruiseline did not "push" the drinks, pictures, and other extras, like we have found other lines to do. It did seem to be a little more quiet than we liked at night and the shops/photo studios/buffet line all seemed to close too early for our liking.  There really was not a central gathering place where you would go if you wanted to be around lots of people.  We appreciated the greetings we received returning to the ship at each of the ports of call, with music and NCL staff handing out water and cold cloths.  The frozen grapes on skewers and popsicles they passed out at the pool added a special touch too!  Cruising on Pride of America is definitely the best way to see the 4 major islands without the hassles of packing and unpacking and dealing with the airport.  We met the captain during the photo shoot and he was exceptionally friendly and seemed to really be interested in "our story".  I did not particulary like the freestyle dining because our kids all wanted to eat at different times.  On other cruises that did not have this option, we always ate dinner at our set time and got to know our waiters and the other cruisers who were seated at tables near us. I do want to try an NCL Caribbean cruise so I can compare to the other lines we have been on since Hawaii is a very unique itinerary being at ports every day.  I would highly recommend this cruise to anyone and everyone visiting Hawaii - you really should experience several islands and this is unquestionably the best way to do that!  We hope to do this again someday!!