Mid Winter Hawaii Cruise

    We are headed out for an unusual Mid Winter cruise. This time we are leaving and returning from Florida. Usually we like to cruise in the “off Florida” time but we won't be able to cruise this spring. We have looked at going to Hawaii the last few years – we were there in 1991 – but just didn't want the hassle of flying, renting cars, etc. When we saw this cruise it was a good compromise. It has 10 sea days 4 going to Hawaii from Los Angeles; 4 stops (islands) in Hawaii and 5 days returning with a final stop in Mexico. We are sailing on the Emerald Princess, an older ship. We were on the Emerald 10 years ago on a crossing of the Atlantic to Fort Lauderdale.

Itinery

We did receive a very nice upgrade to a Mid Ship Balcony on Baja Deck10. Originally we were suppose to be in the front of the ship about 4 decks up. The itinerary is a bit unusual but the Hawaiian Islands are in the mid Pacific!

      Leaving from Tampa will be a bit different. A short ride to the airport followed by a 5 hr 30 minute flight and we are in L.A.. That “short” flight will be different from some of the other trans Atlantic or Pacific flights of other cruises.

We seem to be packing better.  As you can see we only needed 1 large suitcase and one carry on for this trip!  That is a change!

       4 islands and 4 days are the Hawaii stops. We have booked an all day tour on Kauai to the Waimea Canyon. On Hilo we will be hiking to the volcano. Maui and Honolulu are still open and we may just explore. Having stayed on these islands in the past nothing was of immediate interest. We did not see anything of interest for the Mexico stop yet.

      After this trip we will have 362 days on Princess (still stuck in a rut?) but now that we attained Elite status we can hardly pass up the perks – from upgrades, free laundry, mini bar and wine tasting ! Anyone that has cruised will appreciate what a luxury it is to have free laundry! It means that you do not need to pack as many clothes. However we still will not be even close to have enough days to be invited to the private Captain's Party held for the most traveled passengers.