Disappointing, understaffed cruise

Pride of America Cruise Review to Hawaii

mpdalaska

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 29

Overall rating:

3.6 out of 5

Verified Review

Pride of America

7 Night Hawaii (Honolulu Roundtrip)

Sail date: February 04, 2023

Ship: Pride of America

Cabin type: Oceanview

Cabin number: 7054

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

The price of the cruise was steep to begin with and then it seemed like everything cost extra- drink packages (only include 3 liters of water), basic tip prices elevated after Dec. 31 if not prepaid, movies on the TV, room service ($9.95 charge each time), etc. The ship was full of passengers but severely undermanned, as explained by the captain in a letter. Some of our dining room waiters had little or no training. The best part of the cruise was the ease of embarking and disembarking. The weather was rainy six of the eight days, which was unexpected. Hawaii was gorgeous, from what we could see through the clouds and fog. We were surprised that we were unable to visit Kona. They were the only island without a dock and the captain decided that the seas were too rough for tenders. Who was punished more, the passengers or the Kona businesses?

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Hit or miss on the service. Food was usually good.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

It rained 6 of 8 days so not much pool time.

Entertainment

2 out of 5

Minimal, compared to other cruises we have had.

Service and Staff

3 out of 5

They tried but some had little or no training, especially in the dining room.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

The ship was nice enough but many of the windows were salt-encrusted.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

The cabin was what we expected but the service was minimal- there were no towel animals and we had to request a cleaning.

Ship tip

Wait until they are fully staffed again.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Honolulu, Oahu

4 out of 5

Rented a car and went around the island after disembarking.

Kahului, Maui

4 out of 5

Rented a car and drove around the island.

Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Did not visit port

We were unable to disembark due to moderate seas-no tenders.

Nawiliwili, Kauai

5 out of 5

Went on an excellent excursion to Waimea Canyon.

Cruise Napali Coast, Kauai

3 out of 5

Coast was fogged in-didn't see much.

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

4 Comments

Gwbigdog 1 year ago

Thanks for sharing

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NCLARRY 1 year ago

If you have ever been to Hawaii and done island hopping and hotels. The cruise was a real bargain .

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javawoody 1 year ago

Thanks for the review

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ddme 1 year ago

Thank you for your honest review. We tried to do this cruise 1.5 years ago but the cruise was cancelled (Hawaii covid protocols).

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