Norwegian Cruise Line hopes its new Pride of Aloha will be a welcome home to golfers who want to play some of Hawaii's top golf courses. The company is offering unprecedented service for golfers who cruise on Pride of Aloha, including a full-service pro shop and transportation to and from the ship and golf courses.
Pride of Aloha will undergo a major transformation when she enters dry dock in San Francisco in May. David Janikowski, Director of Golf Programs for NCL, said the company has been working on a new design for months since it was first announced that its Norwegian Sky would be reflagged into the U.S. registry and renamed Pride of Aloha to sail inter-island cruises in Hawaii. Sailing the Pride of Aloha under the U.S. flag and with U.S. registry, Janikowski said, allows the ship to remain in Hawaiian waters instead of having to stop at a foreign port as non-U.S. registered cruise ships are required to do.
In addition, Jankowski said the Pride of Aloha's crew will be 100-percent American.
After the dry dock, Pride of Aloha will take over Pride of America's previously published program of seven-day cruises beginning July 4th in Honolulu, and will call on the four main islands featuring an overnight in Kauai, full day calls in Kona and Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii, and an overnight in Maui.
During those stays, golfers will have the opportunity to play such courses on Poipu Bay (site of The PGA Grand Slam of Golf) and Princeville on Kauai, and Wailea on Maui. All told, Janikowski said approximately 30 courses will be available for play.
Janikowski said a small transportation charge will be added to the greens fee charges, which are not included in the price of the cruise.
"Our goal in July is get 30 to 40 golfers per day or 160 per week," Janikowski told PGA.com. "We know it's going to work because Hawaii is a golfer's paradise. And we had great response from people at The PGA Merchandise Show."
Adjacent to the Pride of Aloha's golf pro shop, Janikowski said the ship will debut a first for the cruise industry -- the Bishop Museum Collection at Sea. The Bishop Museum in 1988 was designated the State Museum on (Hawaiian) Natural and Cultural History in 1988.
The Pride of Aloha's redesign also includes the public rooms, staterooms, the deck and pool area and the six restaurants onboard.
"We wanted to give the ship a sense of place, of history, of the diversity that is Hawaii," said interior designer Mary Philpotts said. "When people get off the plane they also want to know two things: ?Where are the beaches and where are the waterfalls?' So we incorporated the beautiful, natural surroundings of Hawaii into the overall design."
And with the ship's golf program, passengers can ask another question: "Where's the first tee?"
