Trip to Hawaii - where do we go and what do we do?

Question

My boyfriend and I are planning a trip to Hawaii over our Easter vacation. We haven't decided between Honolulu or Maui and are trying to cost efficient. We are looking for a week long package sort of deal or at least suggestions on where to do and what to do while we are there. For us it's kind of a trip of a lifetime and we are open to any suggestions and ideas ..... we're excited about planning this trip and look forward to your responses! Thanks :)

Answer 1

I have been to Hawaii 5 times and each time I have gone we have planned our trip to include two islands. So you do not have to pick between Oahu and Maui, do both. It will add maybe $100 per person to the cost of your trip. I suggest 3 nights Oahu and 3/4 nights Maui.

When I have gone I fly from the East coast US to Oahu on American Airlines, we had a flight to Maui on Aloha Airlines and then flew back from Maui. Aloha is a partner with AA so you can get all of your flight options at one time. The flight between islands run about every 30 minutes so you can go most any time of day. When I have flown from the east coast the fare has been in the range of $700 to $750 per person; you get the best fares by booking months early.

WHAT TO DO:

The top things to do in Hawaii are:

1. Oahu Island: Go to Pearl Harbor to see history at the US Arizona Memorial. You can drive or take the bus there; no need to book a tour. But you need to go early because the site is popular and the wait for your free tour can be about an hour. In Waikiki you can browse around the International Market across from Waikiki Beach, go on a sunset dinner cruise on Waikiki bay, try an outrigger canoe ride on Waikiki, go for a sail on a catamaran on Waikiki Bay, or visit Diamond Head park. If you like to snorkel go to Hanauma Bay which has perfect flap water for snorkeling on a reef.

2. Oahu Island: If you are on the island of Oahu go to the other side of the island to see the great deserted beaches (get a rental car for a day or two). Take highway 99 north toward Waimea and stop at the Dole pineapple plantation for a tour.

3. Oahu Island: The Polynesian Cultural Center is a great place to learn about authentic Hawaiian life. But understand that its run by the Morman church and there are NO alcoholic beverages served there, not even beer. You can buy tickets to tour the place, and another type ticket that allows you to stay for the evening luau.

4. Maui Island: If you go to Maui, you gotta do the downhill bike ride. I don't recommend the sunrise one because you have to get up at 3:00 AM to get started up the mountain and its cold up there that early. If you are a romantic do it, but otherwise no. There are different bike companies and some don't take you all the way to the top, and some don't guide you back down. You can come down by yourself, there's only one road with just a little traffic, but if you are squeamish about riding in the street, a company that accompanies you down will help watch the traffic for you. I have been twice and prefer Maui Downhill to the others. These companies have web sites They will pick you up at your hotel, take you to their shop to pick out a wet-suit (for the cold and mist/rain shower maybe) and gloves and helmet; then take you up the mountain; then follow your group down so they can block traffic for your ride; then afterwards take you back to your hotel. Expect this activity to take 75-80% or more of the day.

5. Maui Island: The Road to Hana is a great drive (you need a rental car). It’s a 45 mile winding road that takes 4 hours to drive. Its like driving through the jungle; has a bunch of one lane bridges. Then drive past Hana to the Seven-Pools attraction and go for a swim.

6. Big Island of Hawaii: go to the Volcano National Park. Also go see Akaka Falls. If you like horseback riding, go to the Parker Ranch and go for a guided ride. Drive to the south end of the island and see a black sand beach. For information about tours and things to do, click on the link below for Roberts Hawaii. They do tours on all of the islands.

WHERE TO STAY:

Hotel rooms in Hawaii are very expensive, in the range of $250 to $300 a day for the beach front hotels. BUT, you can get less expensive rooms if you stay at hotels a few blocks from the beach. You can still go to the main beaches like Waikiki Beach on Oahu from the hotels that are just a few blocks from the beach. Same for Maui, stay in the town of LaHaina where there are garden style hotels and then just drive to the big name baches.

Parking in Hawaii is very expensive and the hotels, even the big resort ones, charge about $15 a day for parking. So do not rent a car for any more than the time or day that you will need it. So, for example on Oahu you may want to get a car to see all of the island, but do that on one or two consecutive days and then turn the car back to the rental company.

Below are some web sites for the islands and hotels. You can also use hotels.com, Travelocity, and/or Expedia to look for hotels taht are not so high a price.

Answer 2

If you are looking to get away from crowded beaches and mass tourism Maui is a better choice (between the two). If you really want to get away though, Kauai is just incredible! I've been living on Maui though for the last month and love it! I've spent quite a bit of time in Oahu and you really have to drive to the North side of the island to get away from the big city and the terrible traffic! Honolulu is like every other big city exept it has tropical beachfront. Waikiki is overated! But, like all the islands, Oahu is very pretty. The North shore beaches are really nice and less crowded.

I think there is much better snorkeling/diving and hiking on Maui. If you decide to come to Maui you should definately go and watch a sunrise from the top of Haleakala (the 10,000' volcano). It is amazing!! This is the same spot where all the bike trips start from. Someone else who answered before me mentioned it. It is really really cold up there though! Dress warmer than you think you need to, and bring a blanket! You'd have to start driving around 3am to get up there in time depending on where you are staying, it's well worth it though!

Being cost efficient will be hard out here. I can't really say where the best place is to stay since I have't been a guest in any of the hotels here. All the resorts are pretty much in either West Maui or Wailea. There are lots of really nice beaches and good snorkeling and diving in Wailea. All the resorts are pretty expensive though. Probably most cost effective would be the hotels in South Kihei which is really close to Wailea.

Where ever you decide to go, there are these extremely thorough guide books you can buy for Oahu, Maui, Kauai, or Hawaii. They tell you EVERYTHING you could possibly want to know about whichever island you choose to visit. They are titled Maui Revealed, Oahu Revealed, etc. only about $10. Definately pick one up it will tell you what's worth doing and what isn't. They even have prices for a lot of the tours and other activities available. Also, their website is www.wizardpub.com which gives a lot of information as well. I've found these books really helpful!

Answer 3

That's a big question, and depends on a lot of things...interests?...budget?...relaxation or excitement, or a mix?...your ages?...is this your first and/or last trip to Hawaii?

That said, here's what our family and friends do before they come to visit on Oahu. We built a web page with the best links we distilled from the literally hundreds of useless sites out there, and also rated and reviewed those sites and the places we've been, many more than once. That way they could look BEFORE they got here and see what they want to do-making a list and narrowing it down from there. The ones we rated 4-stars may be a good place to start for those "don't miss" things. It's at http://home.hawaii.rr.com/gonebananas. But don't believe me...see lots of the linked sites on our page and compare.

Each island has it's pros and cons...you have some work cut out to narrow it down. Some of the guides and forums we link to on our family page address just that very same question, that lots of folks have.

Random notes:
- If you only have a week, allowing for travel and movement around the islands, I'd do no more than two islands...probably Oahu and the Big Island. Alternatively, Oahu and Kauai.
- Some will say Maui, but in my mind that's just a little Oahu in many respects. Not a lot of must-see sights there. Yea, the Road to Hana is impressive, but takes quite a while, and while the scenery enroute is impressive, lots of places on all the islands are impressive. Rather expensive and we feel a tourist trap.
- The lava sites on the BI are unforgettable, but does require long days due to a lot of driving. They don't call it the Big island for nothing. But really not a lot more, except expansive scenery. So I take it back--do Oahu and Kauai.
- Since it's you and your bf, the romantic views of Kauai are stunning. Highly recommend you spring for a helicopter tour. You can't appreciate the beauty from the roads, and don't really have time to hike everywhere. There's not a lot there, so you can probably do Kauai in two days, leaving the rest for the variety of Oahu.
- Oahu. Yes, it can be tacky and touristy, but you must get out of Waikiki! Look at Ko Olina Resort, or Turtle Bay on the North Shore. Ko Olina is close enough that you can get to Honolulu and Waikiki for dinners and such. If you do stay near Waikiki, since that's where most hotels are, just DON'T stay down there!
- Be sure to do some of the historical sites, such as the USS Arizone Memorial, maybe the USS Missouri, again, depending on your interests. Be careful to not get locked into a tour package that includes all the tourist sites with a bunch of old geezers...Polynesian Cultural Center (yuck! and waste of a whole day), the Dole Plantation (yuck!)......that's for the lazy that don't do the research, and you don't seem that type. But do one luau...consider Paradise Cove (plus it's right next to Ko Olina)...see our reviews and those of others.
- Lastly, continue to use the forums here and others, at MSN Travel, Frommer's, Foder's, and others. Wealth of info. See our lists of scrutinized ones.

Again, the page is at http://home.hawaii.rr.com/gonebananas. Could go into a longer answer here, but with all the work we put into that page, well, you'll see...it will answer your questions.

Aloha
Harley Dog
Ewa Beach, HI

Answer 4

I don't know exactly when you're going but starting around the day after Easter, airfare/room prices are lower. Having lived both on Oahu & Maui, my vote goes to Maui.

http://www.zipline.com/

http://gohawaii.about.com/cs/photogalleries/l/blgallery597.htm

http://www.hawaiiweb.com/maui/sites_to_see/OheoGulch.htm


http://www.robertshawaii.com/ Many local residents use this company. Airfare wars right now, try book your tickets now, Hawaiian Air, Aloha Airlines.

Hike Haleakala Crater
http://www.hawaiitrails.org/

http://www.ecouponshawaii.com/

http://www.sailtrilogy.com/ Sailing Trilogy Maui

Kualoa Ranch Oahu ATVS- Horseback ~ http://www.kualoa.com/

Look for eco-tours

Answer 5

OOOOHH!!!! Christmas in Hawaii or the other islands are amazing but book now and set a spending limit because it gets tourist crazy over their! And if you are a big firework fan on forth of July they don't seem to mind where the fireworks came from or where you let them off HAVE FUN!! (also just type into google zip lines and Maui trust me)