Hawaii trip - April 2012

Our family took a vacation for spring break in April 2012 to Hawaiian Islands. We took Norwegian Cruise lines (Pride of America) that cruises to all the 4 big islands (Oahu, Maui, Big Island and Kauai). I am writing this blog after the cruise sitting in Honolulu airport in a garden of tropical plants under trees with sun shining down. Oh oh …. It started to drizzle now .. I am continuing to write, hoping the drizzle will fade away..


This is our first trip to Hawaii and it was a great way to see all the islands. We flew into Honolulu one day earlier than cruise start date. The day we landed we visited Pearl Harbor & USS Arizona memorial. If you are interested in USS Bowfin and USS Missouri, it takes minimum of 3 hrs. If you are visiting only USS Arizona memorial, allow for an hour to hour and half . Reserve the tickets ahead during holidays and weekend. Then we drove to Waikiki and checked into hotel. We walked around the beach in Waikiki and rested for the night. Next morning, we woke up early and drove to Hanauma Bay. Reached there by 8.00 AM. Plenty of parking .Rented snorkel gear and went snorkeling in the bay. It is a marine life preserve and you can see lots and lots of fish. It is my first time snorkeling. Great experience. I recommend going to this place for its beauty even though you are not into snorkeling. If you like to snorkel , don’t miss this place. We went back to the hotel, showered and drove back to airport to return the car and then checked in at the Cruise ship terminal to on board “Pride of America” . First day at Hawaii was awesome. I love the climate here. It drizzles and then sunshine and then drizzles. I am getting the hang of the weather here.

Once we are onboard the ship, we were so hungry, we had a bite to eat and then went to explore the cruise ship. We saw welcome on-board show where they described all the shore excursions and little bit of each island we will be visiting. Went back to the room and rested. Next day we got off the island of Maui( Valley Isle) . We rented a car here and drove around to a beach and saw the oldest banyan tress in Lahani . Beautiful place with beaches and restaurants. Jay did not want to go whale watching, so we went to see tropical plantations. On our way to tropical plantations, we stopped on the way to get some sugar cane juice and taste some local fruits. The tropical plantations were wonderful. On the ride, they show how to husk a coconut and you get to eat the great fruit which is very fresh. Jay ( my son) got to see most of these tropical plants for the first time and it amazed him on how many mangoes grow on one tree. After the plantation ride we went to Iao Valley where you can hike a little bit to see Iao Needle. This place was used as lookout for warriors when they were fighting. It is the highest point where they can see the bay and the valley . That ended our first day on Maui. We went back to the cruise ship and watched a show and had dinner and went to bed early as we have an early start next day.

The next day we went on Haleakala sunrise and biking down the volcano tour. We left the ship at 3.00 AM in the morning and the Mountain Riders tour bus picked us up and drove the top of Haleakala crater to see the sunrise. It is the most beautiful sunrise I have ever seen. It was pretty quick/short show. Bright red sun rising from the ocean, above the mountains. What a show the sun has put up that day. We were lucky to see the sunrise as there were no clouds. It was very windy and cold up there. Bundle up if you go there for sunrise any season you go. After the sun rise, the tour company took us past the visitor center to start the bike ride down the volcanic crater. It was 28 mile ride down the crater- all downhill and all the way to the beach. In between the ride we stopped for some pictures and breakfast . The guide narrated the history of the crater and Maui’s sugar plantation history. While we were biking down we saw a sugar plantation being burned to harvest the sugar cane. When we saw that, we thought that a Volcano was erupting. Guide told us not to worry , it is only a sugar plantation. The ride took us down the Haleakala mountain , into the town and past some horse ranches , sugar plantations and to the beach. Dress in layers for this trip as you pass through 4 seasons ( windy, freezing on the top, rain on the way, little cold like spring time and then hot as in summer as you get to the beach). This is the most expensive tour I have done on this vacation. Mountain riders are the only tour company that has 28 mile bike ride , other companies have 17 miles or so …. After the ride, we relaxed at the beach for some time and then headed back to the cruise ship. Had lunch and took rest for the rest of the afternoon. In the evening, we had dinner and saw a show on the cruise ship and played some games ( checkers, ping-pong ) and rested for the night.

Next day our stop was Hilo on the Big Island. We rented a car and visited Volcanoes National Park to see Kilauea volcano. It was a long drive. Once we are at the lookout, we can see the fire pit as well as Mauna Loa mountain which is the tallest mountain in the world. After that we hiked the crater rim trail to get to the lava tube and walked through the lava tube.

Later we drove on chain or craters road to see the sea arch. We drove almost to the sea level. When we were 2 miles away, Jay’s ear started to hurt because of drop of elevation, so we drove back up. We went to the Halemaumau Carter trail and hiked down to the crater and walked on the crater. You can see some cinder cones on the crater floor. The hike up is little hard. Go only if you have enough time. The trail loop is 4 miles and it takes 2-3 hrs. It is good hike and got a different perspective on how big the crater is when you go down there. Then we drove back to the ship as we had to onboard by 5:30 PM .

Next day our stop was Kona on Big Island. Kona is beautiful. We had to use tender boats to get to the pier as the water is shallow near the shore. Shallow waters means snorkeling….. Yaah ! Once on the pier , there is a small town on the pier and some beaches in walk able distance. We went parasailing with UFO parasailing tour company. On our ride to the sea for parasailing, we saw a pod of dolphins swimming next to our boat. Then Jay and myself went on 1000 ft high parasail with a free fall. It was an amazing experience, high up on the ocean and you can see all of Kona coast line. After that, we took a shuttle to turtle beach (20 mins drive ) and spend the rest of the afternoon at the beach snorkeling and looking for green sea turtles. The tide was very high by the time we went. Jay and Lakshman(my husband) saw a few . I did not see. We saw a lot of fish. As this is not a preserve, locals were catching fish .I felt very sorry for the fish. They were so beautiful with bright colors. They should preserve this location for turtles and fish and make it a tourist attraction. It is a great location with picnic tables, grass, sand and shallow waters to snorkel or go into high waves for surfing. After that we came back to the pier and went to local farmer’s market to taste some local fruit and buy some gifts. Great location. Had some Hawaiian shave ice and ate the best banana ever – locally grown apple banana . It is so sweet . Some papaya and mango. After that we headed back to the ship . Once on the ship learned how to make Kukui nut lei and went for a hula dance class . Then relaxed for some time and went to see a show and had dinner.

The next day we stopped on the Kauai, the garden Isle. We planned to do zip line here, but did not have enough time to do it. We drove to the north shore of the island to Kee Bay the north most point on the island where you can drive. On the way we stopped to see Wailua and Opaeka’a waterfalls . We hiked to the waterfalls down a beaten path. Beautiful locations and so serene. The way to Kee beach is so beautiful with trees all around and one lane bridges to cross. At this beach you can snorkel, but we decided to go to the beach which is accessible only through a 2 mile hike ( this trail if continued will lead to Na Pali coast -11 miles ) . We hiked almost a mile and then we returned as we did not have enough water. It is a treacherous hike the first 1 mile over the rocks, then it is little bit even. The trail maps show that it is the same terrain throughout the trail all the way to waterfalls (4 miles hike). Next time I am in Kauai, I want to do this hike. Then on our way back we stopped at Queens bath in Princeville. This setting must have been in many movies. Great secluded location with multiple waterfalls falling in into small ponds one below the other. Then the path led to the beach where the high tides, formed some big tide pools and the water is so clear , you can see all the fish without snorkeling , just standing there. We also saw 3-4 green sea turtles swimming in the ocean along with the tides. Spend some time watching few locals diving from the cliffs of the rocks there and drove back. On our way back we stopped at Po’ipu beach to see sprouting horn where the tides push the water through a hole and it sounds like a horn( like the blow hole in Ensenada) . We went back to the ship. Once on ship, learned ribbon lei making and saw a hula dance show . Had dinner and went o bed.

Final day on the garden Isle , we started off early in the morning and drove to Waimea Canyon ( Grand Canyon of the Pacific ). Very windy road. Great views of the canyon. Then on our way back we stopped at black sand beach . We had only few hours on the island that day , so needed to return the car and head back to the ship. As the ship sailed from Kauai, we passed by the Na Pali ( means Cliffs in Hawaiian) coast. One of the beautiful sights I have ever seen . So remote and pristine and jaw dropping.

You might have seen this setting in movies like King Kong , Perfect holiday… The Cruise director narrated the history of Na Pali coast. The trail to this coast is very rough (11 miles) and you need to carry water and food.

That was the final day on the cruise. Next day we headed back to Honolulu and headed back home. I felt the cruise is worth it if you want to see all the islands. Next time if I go to Hawaii islands, I will go to Kauai.