Emerald Princess - Hawaiian Islands Voyage

Where this cruise calls, day by day

8 ports and 8 sea days over 16 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Los Angeles, CA

   United StatesDepart

   Ships berth at the World Cruise Center in San Pedro, under the green span of the Vincent Thomas Bridge and ringed by container cranes. This is a working port rather than a waterfront to stroll, and it is overwhelmingly a turnaround terminal for Mexican Riviera and Hawaii runs. Los Angeles proper starts about 25 miles inland, so most passengers meet a freeway before they meet a beach.

   • Tour the battleship USS Iowa, moored a short walk up the channel from the terminal
   • Point Fermin Lighthouse and the collapsed bluffs of Sunken City on the San Pedro headland
   • Cabrillo Marine Aquarium and the tide pools below it
   • Griffith Observatory or the Santa Monica Pier if you are willing to spend the day in traffic

   Getting ashore

   Docks at the World Cruise Center in San Pedro; there is no walkable city here, and downtown, Hollywood or Santa Monica each mean 45-75 minutes by road.

   Best months

   Year-round (Sep-Nov clearest; May-Jun often overcast on the coast)

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3 · At sea

4. Day 4 · At sea

5. Day 5 · At sea

6. Day 6

   Maui (Kahului)

   United StatesPort

   Kahului is Maui's cargo harbour, and it looks it - fuel tanks, a container yard and no reason to linger at the pier. It is a purely functional gateway to an island where the good things are an hour away in opposite directions. Lahaina, once the standard shore excursion, was destroyed by fire in August 2023 and is still rebuilding; treat it as a community in recovery rather than a sightseeing stop.

   • Haleakala National Park summit at 10,023 feet, above the cloud layer
   • The Road to Hana, which realistically consumes an entire port day
   • Iao Valley State Monument and its needle-shaped peak, close to the harbour
   • Maui Ocean Center aquarium and the Maalaea coast

   Getting ashore

   Docks at the commercial harbour in Kahului with nothing walkable nearby; a tour, taxi or rental car is essential.

   Best months

   Year-round (Apr-Oct driest; Dec-Apr for humpbacks in the Auau Channel)

7. Day 7

   Maui (Kahului)

   United StatesPort

   Kahului is Maui's cargo harbour, and it looks it - fuel tanks, a container yard and no reason to linger at the pier. It is a purely functional gateway to an island where the good things are an hour away in opposite directions. Lahaina, once the standard shore excursion, was destroyed by fire in August 2023 and is still rebuilding; treat it as a community in recovery rather than a sightseeing stop.

   • Haleakala National Park summit at 10,023 feet, above the cloud layer
   • The Road to Hana, which realistically consumes an entire port day
   • Iao Valley State Monument and its needle-shaped peak, close to the harbour
   • Maui Ocean Center aquarium and the Maalaea coast

   Getting ashore

   Docks at the commercial harbour in Kahului with nothing walkable nearby; a tour, taxi or rental car is essential.

   Best months

   Year-round (Apr-Oct driest; Dec-Apr for humpbacks in the Auau Channel)

8. Day 8

   Honolulu

   United StatesPort

   Ships dock at Pier 2 beside the Aloha Tower, which for decades was the tallest building in Hawaii and still marks the edge of downtown Honolulu. You step off into a real working capital city of office towers and Chinatown lunch counters, not a resort strip - Waikiki is a separate place three or four miles east. Most Hawaii itineraries either start here or stay overnight.

   • Pearl Harbor: the USS Arizona Memorial, the Battleship Missouri and the Bowfin submarine
   • Diamond Head crater hike, which requires an advance reservation for out-of-state visitors
   • Iolani Palace, the only royal palace on American soil, with the room where Queen Liliuokalani was imprisoned
   • Waikiki Beach and the Honolulu Museum of Art

   Getting ashore

   Docks downtown at Pier 2 by the Aloha Tower; Chinatown and the palace are walkable, Waikiki and Pearl Harbor are not.

   Best months

   Year-round (Apr-Oct driest; Dec-Apr for humpback whales offshore)

9. Day 9

   Honolulu

   United StatesPort

   Ships dock at Pier 2 beside the Aloha Tower, which for decades was the tallest building in Hawaii and still marks the edge of downtown Honolulu. You step off into a real working capital city of office towers and Chinatown lunch counters, not a resort strip - Waikiki is a separate place three or four miles east. Most Hawaii itineraries either start here or stay overnight.

   • Pearl Harbor: the USS Arizona Memorial, the Battleship Missouri and the Bowfin submarine
   • Diamond Head crater hike, which requires an advance reservation for out-of-state visitors
   • Iolani Palace, the only royal palace on American soil, with the room where Queen Liliuokalani was imprisoned
   • Waikiki Beach and the Honolulu Museum of Art

   Getting ashore

   Docks downtown at Pier 2 by the Aloha Tower; Chinatown and the palace are walkable, Waikiki and Pearl Harbor are not.

   Best months

   Year-round (Apr-Oct driest; Dec-Apr for humpback whales offshore)

10. Day 10

    Kauai (Nawiliwili)

    United StatesPort

    Ships dock at Nawiliwili, a commercial harbour just below Lihue on Kauai's southeast corner. There is little at the pier itself beyond a beach and a hotel, but the island is small enough that a single day reaches either Waimea Canyon or the north shore - not both. Many itineraries give Kauai an overnight or a long call, which is what makes the far corners worth attempting.

    • Waimea Canyon and the Kalalau Lookout over the Na Pali cliffs
    • Wailua River boat trip to the Fern Grotto
    • Poipu Beach and the Spouting Horn blowhole on the south shore
    • Hanalei Bay and the Kilauea Point lighthouse and seabird refuge to the north

    Getting ashore

    Docks at Nawiliwili Harbor about two miles from Lihue; there is no walkable town, so a tour or rental car is effectively required.

    Best months

    Year-round (Apr-Oct drier; Kauai is the wettest main island, and winter closes north-shore roads after floods)

11. Day 11 · At sea

12. Day 12 · At sea

13. Day 13 · At sea

14. Day 14 · At sea

15. Day 15

    Ensenada

    MexicoPort

    Ensenada is on most California itineraries because US law requires a foreign stop, and the town knows it. The port is a working commercial harbour with a short shuttle or walk to Avenida López Mateos, a strip of cantinas, curio shops and pharmacies. It is far better than that sounds if you leave the strip - the Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico's serious wine region, starts about an hour inland.

    • La Bufadora, the sea geyser 45 minutes south
    • Valle de Guadalupe wineries
    • Hussong's Cantina, open since 1892
    • Fish tacos at the Mercado Negro

    Getting ashore

    Ships dock; the main tourist street is a 15-20 minute walk, or a short shuttle from the terminal gate.

    Best months

    Apr-Oct is warm and dry; winter here is cool, grey and windy - this is Baja's Mediterranean end, not the tropics

16. Day 16

    Los Angeles, CA

    United StatesArrive

    Ships berth at the World Cruise Center in San Pedro, under the green span of the Vincent Thomas Bridge and ringed by container cranes. This is a working port rather than a waterfront to stroll, and it is overwhelmingly a turnaround terminal for Mexican Riviera and Hawaii runs. Los Angeles proper starts about 25 miles inland, so most passengers meet a freeway before they meet a beach.

    • Tour the battleship USS Iowa, moored a short walk up the channel from the terminal
    • Point Fermin Lighthouse and the collapsed bluffs of Sunken City on the San Pedro headland
    • Cabrillo Marine Aquarium and the tide pools below it
    • Griffith Observatory or the Santa Monica Pier if you are willing to spend the day in traffic

    Getting ashore

    Docks at the World Cruise Center in San Pedro; there is no walkable city here, and downtown, Hollywood or Santa Monica each mean 45-75 minutes by road.

    Best months

    Year-round (Sep-Nov clearest; May-Jun often overcast on the coast)