After nearly 2 years, Hawaii sees return of large cruise ships
Big-ship cruising is finally -- finally! -- restarting in Hawaii.
After a 22-month period without a single voyage around the Hawaiian islands by a vessel that carried more than a few dozen people, Princess Cruises' Grand Princess on Sunday arrived in Honolulu on the first leg of a 15-night sailing from Los Angeles.
The 2,590-passenger ship is the first from any major cruise line to visit Hawaii since the cruise industry shut down operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. Hawaii is one of the last major cruise destinations around the world to reopen to large cruise ships.
"We are delighted to call again on Hawaii, and our guests are very excited about visiting the Aloha state, and doing so safely," a spokesperson for the cruise line said on Monday.
Carrying 1,188 passengers and 915 crew, Grand Princess will visit the Hawaiian islands of Kauai, Hawaii and Maui before heading back to Los Angeles. The ship also will make a short stop in Ensenada, Mexico, toward the end of the trip.
Other cruise ships scheduled to restart calls in Hawaii in the coming weeks include Carnival Cruise Line's Carnival Miracle, Oceania Cruises' Insignia and Princess' Ruby Princess.
Just one small cruise brand, UnCruise Adventures, already had restarted Hawaii cruises. The small-ship cruise specialist operates a 36-passenger, yacht-like vessel in the Hawaiian islands on a seasonal basis.
Usually synonymous with Hawaiian Island sailings, Norwegian Cruise Line's Pride of America has had to postpone cruises through Feb. 26, 2022, as part of a larger group of cancellations on which TPG reported last week.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Hawaii has had notoriously strict protocols for both inter-island travel and for travelers entering the state from elsewhere.
Last year, Hawaii also issued pleas for outsiders to stop visiting the islands, which were dealing with overtourism despite virus spikes in 2021.
In what some may see as an about face, the state is now reopening to cruise vessels even as some other destinations become more restrictive about ship visits due to the spike in COVID-19 cases worldwide being caused by the omicron variant of the illness.
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The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
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- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
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- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month