Hawaii for a family : land package or cruise?
 

I posted a similar question on the cruise forum but they don't seem to be as active over there as this forum. In the old days the Hawaii cruises used to be on dreary old ships but now there are some new ships coming onto the scene. My husband and I have travelled a lot(all over the world) and taken a number of cruises (before we had a kid).My husband does not like touristy places and is not really thrilled about going back to Hawaii but our 10 year old daughter wants "to go while she is still a kid!" We like to be active and not just sit on the beach so I am intrigued by the <BR>new 7 day itineraries on the Norwegian Star. Also since we just have one kid she could then make some friends on the ship. Does anyone have any pro or con ideas. I have not done a price comparison of a cruise vs a land package. Hawaii hotels and food are so expensive. If we did do a land package we would go to the Big Island as we have never been there. We hope to go during next spring break and can't spend a huge fortune.

Ann, <BR>I have used this local Hawaiian travel agent. They are great and have good deals on Hawaii travel. <BR> <BR>http://www.Travel-Hawaii.com <BR> <BR>An alternative to budget travel would be to rent a privately owned condo on the Big Island from www.vrbo.com. Shop over the internet to get best air travel prices and car rental. One of the ways we save money on a budget with our kids to Hawaii is we purchase air only to Oahu from from www.2hawaii.com, than purchase the travel vouchers through www.travel-hawaii.com for inter-island travel and than rent a privately owned condo and eat one meal out a day in a restaurant, the other meals of the day we eat at the condo or pack a picnic lunch. www.alamo.com has the best car rental prices on the island. I always go for the compact and when you get to hawaii hold out for the best deal with the manager of Alamo if you want to upgrade your car choice. It has always worked for me. <BR> <BR>http://www.vrbo.com <BR>http://www.10vacationrentals.com

Since you like cruising and have been to Hawaii before, I think the NCL cruise would be perfect. Don't know the price, but might be similiar when you factor in the food expensive of a land trip. I think these will be popular when word gets around!

I've never been on a cruise, but recently spent some time on the Big Island. There were plenty of things to do - exploring the island by air, hiking/viewing the Volcano National Park , snorkelling, waterfalls, riding a bike down a volcano, golf and of course the beach & ocean.

I know that lots of people enjoy staying in condos and some of the luxury resorts, and certainly those spots have a lot to offer kids, but we really loved staying at a B&B on a coffee plantation on the Big Island. It was about 20 minutes out of Kailua in Kona and to us at least, a lot more interesting than the more touristy places. The place we stayed at is also an animal sanctuary - they've rescued lots of cats over the years, and they have goats and a donkey. If you want more information, post a message here, but really there are lots of places like that on the BI. Your daughter might really enjoy something like that, and it's certainly a change of pace from the classic touristy Hawaiian atmosphere.