Cruising Hawaii Guide

$37.00

Is the Cruising Hawaii Guide Right for You?

✔ Perfect for: Cruise passengers who want to rent a car and explore on their own
✔ Designed For: Port days on Maui, Big Island, and Kauai
✔ Travel Style: Self-guided shore days with planned routes and Google Maps links
✔ Best For: Travelers who want more freedom (and better value) than ship excursions

Includes transportation FAQs for every port so you know exactly what to expect before you dock.

Your Hawaii Cruise — Planned Beyond the Ship Excursions

Booking the cruise was the easy part.

Now comes the stressful part:

Should you book the ship’s excursions?
Is there Uber at the port?
Where do you pick up a rental car?
How far can you safely explore without risking missing the ship?

Cruise port days are short.
One wrong decision can waste half of it.

This isn’t a generic list of shore excursions.

It’s a strategically planned, self-guided cruise itinerary for Maui, Big Island (Hilo and Kona), and Kauai — built specifically for cruise passengers who want to rent a car and explore confidently.

Cruising Hawaii Guide was designed for NCL Pride of America passengers. Other cruise ships can also use it as the ports are the same.

We show you exactly how to maximize your limited time in port — without stress, confusion, or guesswork.

Download it before your cruise.
Step off the ship with a plan.

On the Fence?

Don’t guess.

Download the free sample – Lanai Wayfinder Itinerary – to see the exact layout, organization, and detail you’ll get in the full Cruising Hawaii Guide.

If it saves you time and makes planning easier, the full itinerary will do that five times over. Is a Hawaii Itinerary Worth the Money?

Bundle and Save!

Add the Oahu Wayfinder Itinerary to your cart with coupon code CRUISE to save $7. Suppose you’re arriving early, staying after your cruise, or your cruise has Honolulu as a port of call. In that case, the seven self-guided excursion days in the Oahu Wayfinder Itinerary (Honolulu) are a must!

Description

What’s Included

Everything you need to confidently explore each island on your own.

Self-Guided Excursion Days (Choose What Fits Your Port Time)

We provide curated excursion day options for each island. We provide extra days so you can choose the can’t-miss activities on your bucket list.
Maui (3 excursion days)
Big Island (2 days Hilo and Volcanoes, and 2 days in Kona)
Kauai (3 days across the island)

Each excursion day includes:
Stops mapped in logical order
Drive time awareness
Reservations to make and when
Built-in buffer time to return to the ship
Google Maps links for easy navigation
Beaches, scenic stops, food suggestions, and highlights

Designed specifically around cruise port schedules.

Transportation FAQs for Every Port

One of the biggest cruise pain points is simply:

How do we get around? We answer questions like:

Where do I pick up a rental car near the port?
Are Ubers available?
How far is ___ from the cruise terminal?
What time should we head back to the ship?
Is this doable within our port hours?

No scrambling for answers the morning you dock.

90+ Shore Excursion Recommendations

Prefer to book a tour instead of driving yourself?

We include curated shore excursion options across each island with local tour operators. These tours are designed for cruise passengers and are direct bookings, so you skip the ship’s fees.

Plus guidance on which ones are actually worth your limited port time.

Bonus: Oahu Itinerary Discount Code

Since most cruises begin or end in Honolulu, we include the discount code CRUISE for our full Oahu itinerary — perfect if you’re extending your trip pre- or post-cruise.

Why Cruise Passengers Love This Guide

Avoid overpriced ship excursions
Explore beyond crowded tour buses
Know exactly how transportation works at each port
Maximize limited time ashore
Return to the ship with confidence

The result?

You don’t step off the ship wondering what to do.

You step off with a plan — and get back on with incredible memories.

Constantly Updated

The guide is updated as we learn of changes. Plus, twice a year, we complete a thorough check to make updates, add restaurants, update things to do, etc. We will email you updates, and your download link always reflects the latest-and-greatest version.

How It Works

Download

After you complete your purchase, the cruise guide will be sent via email with a download link. You can download it on any device!

Plan

Read our island guide introductions, decide on your self-guided excursion days, , book your shore excursions (tours), and make your reservations. (We point these out!)

Go!

Save the cruise guide to your phone. You can take it with you on the go to reference any time during your trip!

Your Cruise adventures await!

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, we cover all Hawaiian cruise ship ports so this is a wonderful resource for you if you’re on Princess, Disney, Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Celebrity, or another cruise line.

We recommend purchasing the Oahu Wayfinder Itinerary (coupon code CRUISE) if your port of call is Honolulu or you are arriving early for your Norwegian cruise. The Cruising Hawaii Guide does NOT include Oahu Self-Guided Excursion Days. The Oahu Wayfinder Itinerary includes 7 Self-Guided Excursion Days.

For those cruises that depart from Honolulu, we recommend arriving two or more days before the start of your cruise. This is so you can explore Oahu, get over jet lag, and make time for any unplanned travel delays. Our Oahu Wayfinder Itinerary is everything you need to plan your time on the island.

The Cruising Hawaii Guide includes Self-Guided Excursion days for Maui, Island of Hawai’i (Big Island), and Kauai. Purchase the Oahu Wayfinder Itinerary (code: CRUISE) if your cruise ship has Honolulu as a port of call or if you’re arriving early or staying late after your Norwegian cruise.

Some of the itinerary days can be done via walking, some will require a few taxi rides, and some are best with a rental car. We tell you which mode of transportation is best.

When you’re planning your day(s) on the island, you can use this guide in three ways:

Pick one of our self-guided excursion days to explore the island with or without a rental car. These perfectly planned itineraries take you to the best parts of the island, either near the dock or off to a beautiful island area.
Select a guided tour or activity from our Favorite Shore Excursions. Choose from our list of preferred tour operators to have them do the driving, talk story, and show you the island. Booking directly with these local companies that have tours for cruise passengers’ schedules is a great option.
Customize your own day on the island using our Quick Hits section. Here you’ll find our favorite beaches, snorkel spots (including safety tips), and restaurants by island. The maps will help you determine how much you can do before you have to return to the ship.

Honestly, now. Unlike a guidebook, we publish regular updates. With so many things changing, we want to give you the most up-to-date information to have a great trip. These itineraries are reviewed and updated two times per year, plus we make updates as we learn of changes. Once you purchase an itinerary, you’ll have access to the itinerary and all updates for the next 11 months.

This is a digital product. Minutes after purchasing, a link to download the cruise guide will be sent to your email. You can print it, but we suggest downloading it to your computer and your phone. There are a number of hyperlinks in the itinerary to link you to directions, restaurant websites, and activity operators. So it’s much easier to use it digitally!

You will receive one downloadable file (link) to your email address to save to your computer or mobile device. We include instructions on how to save them to your Android or Apple iPhone. The instructions arrive in a thank you email sent separately. Email us if you don’t receive them!

Erica and I do not offer custom trip planning but we welcome emails from customers who have questions or want more suggestions!

We are proud of our itineraries, and thousands of happy customers will agree! The Wayfinder Itineraries are better than a custom itinerary because we provide alternative options on excursion days. You can pick family-friendly or adventure activities. You can also refer to the Quick Hits section to customize where to eat, find a different beach, or go to a snorkel spot.

You can always email us with questions and for suggestions, too!

The Cruising Hawaii Guide is designed for cruise ship passengers. The shore excursions and Self-Guided Excursion Days are built for cruise passengers and their ports of call. If you are planning a land vacation (arriving by plane), then we recommend purchasing our Wayfinder Itineraries

If you’re visiting multiple islands, purchase 3 itineraries and get the 4th one free with coupon code VOYAGE at checkout.

“Buy the guides!! I read and reread the guides Oahu & Maui! It made our first trip so much better! We knew where to stay, eat and the tours we wanted to do even gave us ideas about where to park! It was the perfect vacation! Thank you for making our first trip a blast!! We will be back!”
~@annette3488 (YouTube comment)
“I was hesitant to purchase this because I lived in Hawaii and we go back all the time. However, you have an outstanding guide. I am glad I purchased it.”
~Anthony G.

Cruising Hawaii Guide

Is the Cruising Hawaii Guide Right for You?