Anchors Away!
Written: Jul 18 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Beautiful water, flowers and wonderful food.
Cons: Rough water and tours that rush you around.
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| BiloxiRed's Full Review: American Hawaii Independence |
If you don't get sea sick and like smaller, quaint ships with a lot of history of famous passengers, you will love the S.S. Independence. This is her last year to sail though. She is being replaced this fall with a new ship. Hopefully it will have a smoother ride. You have a lot more open (wooden) deck area on this ship than you would on the newer ones. The cabin we had was nice with plenty of room. It was wonderful not having to pack and unpack at each island.
Our first night out to sea started off fairly well. Not sea sick yet...I just might be able to do this. But later that night an elderly lady had a heart attach and the ship had to return to Honolulu. After dropping her off the captain had to make up for lost time...after all we had to dock at Kauai the next day. Well let me tell you...that ship rocked and rolled!!! That next morning it was all I could do to stand upright. After about ten minutes I was back in bed...green as grass! The ship does provide free motion sickness pills that work quite well. We sailed that first day out and reached Kauai that evening.
We had rough water all week long. Keep those motion sickness pills coming please! We did the tourist thing...this was our first time to Hawaii. The bad thing about tours are that you are rushed from one spot to another. We saw some interesting places and sights but never saw the beautiful beaches we seen on TV. We had signed up for the early dinner (6:00 p.m.) so that meant that we never got to see any of the sunsets either. We did take a lot of bus rides though. Next time we will forgo the tours and rent a car.
There were all ages on board. It was Spring Break! So some people brought their kids along. But I would say the cruise was geared more for the elderly. Other than the ship rocking & rolling. It was quite funny watching the seniors trying to navigate the passageways when the ship was moving. Two steps forward...one step to the side. We all looked like we were drunk!
The dress code was not as formal as we were led to believe. You were asked to dress for dinner. No shorts or swim wear were allowed in the formal dining area. The women usually wore slacks/skirt and a blouse/shirt and the men wore slacks and shirt. On the Captain's night you could dress more formal if you would like. We definitely over packed! You do need lots of shorts and comfortable shoes.
You did not have any money exchange hands aboard ship until the last night. You signed for everything you purchased on ship. So you had to watch not to get to carried away with that ink pen. We found things cheaper in price aboard the ship than we did in the shops. And in case you were not aware...it is the state law that you cannot pass a shop without stopping to shop! I really liked that law!
Even though the water was rough, we had a good time. Where else can you go and see the most beautiful blue water that you could ever imagine, eat to your heart's content and see so many green people all in one place? It's all possible on the S.S. Independence! Aloha!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
BiloxiRed
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Reviews written: 4
Trusted by: 2 members
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