Tell me 'bout Hawaii

[gregintenn]

My family wants to go this year, and although I've never been, I'm always the one relied upon to make all the plans and reservations.

 

I would appreciate any suggestions as to places to stay, good restaurants, as well as things to do and see while there.

[dlm37015]

go to flordia you will have more fun

[MacGyver]

I like the Big Island.  It's far better than the urban train wreck that is Honolulu.  Pearl Harbor is terribly sobering, but the rest of Honolulu just isn't worth it to me. 

 

My wife and I stayed in the Hilton Waikoloa Village a couple of years ago, and I'd definitely recommend it.  I've stayed all over Waikiki Beach.  When I'm there, I like the Moana Surfrider.

[MacGyver]

All in all, though - while it's probably neat to go to Hawaii once, it's just not worth it to me.

 

I'd take the Caribbean any day of the week.  It's more cost effective, about 6.5 hours closer via plane, and there are a lot fewer people.

 

St. John takes the cake in my book.

[dlm37015]

yes the 12 hour plane ride is not fun
downtown Honolulu looks like Memphis or Detroit
I stayed at the Hilton Waikiki village it was nice
but a beach front room is 385.00 plus a 20.00 resort fee
and 30.00 to park give me the redneck Riviera any time
the beaches are small and mostly manmade you can watch them put sand on them every night
crime is very high at least where I went

[NRA]

wow this is a real kill joy post for visiting Hawaii

[wewoapsiak]

We pulled into Pearl a couple times, and I visited Maui once. Maui is really nice and laid back, if you were taking your family that included younger children I'd go there. If you a car and plan visiting the sites on Hana hwy, get insurance your rental; it gets tight.

If you're wanting to do the Honolulu thing, rent a car or learn the bus routes because they rape you in cab fare. Waikiki is full of tourists and squids, it's not horrible but can be annoying I'd imagine if you're a family man. I'd stay on the north shore of Honolulu if that island is your choice, it's quieter and not a bad drive back to Waikiki. Hiking up diamond head is pretty.

I really enjoyed the Atlantis submarine tours, taking an all-in-one hiking / biking / snorkeling tour, hiking some of the parks, and skydiving. If you've ever wanted to, skydiving over Hawaii is amazing and I'd recommend it even though it can be pricey. And go to a luau, they're touristy but pretty entertaining. The main tourist areas were safe, the back alley bars got a little dicey.


Sent from the blue lagoon. Edited May 13, 2014 by wewoapsiak

[gregintenn]

go to flordia you will have more fun

Well, the kids were wanting to go to Disney World, but somehow that changed into Hawaii. Not sure I'm thrilled about going to Hawaii, but I AM sure I'm thrilled about not going back to Disney.

[RED333]

Dollie Wood and Pidgin Forge closer, same amount of people, them Chatt for the aquarium, South Pitt for the Lodge store.

Dahlonega Ga for the gold mines

http://dahlonega-ga.gov/

A lot of stuff to do this side of the Miss.

[peejman]

I went to Hawaii prolly 25 years ago as part of a school trip. For me, Pearl Harbor is about the only draw now. My wife wants to go but it's horrendously expensive now. To me, the beach is the beach. It doesn't matter where.

[RC3]

Only state trying to allow leo's to have intimate encounters with "working girls".

 

Good beaches, middle of no where, and sharks. Also if you go, you must visit the pearl harbor memorial. The arizona is a must. Or you will be called a pinko commie! ( I hope you take the last part as a joke, but its a good visit non the less).

[Slpeod]

I lived there for 7 years.  I would recommend Maui, Kaui, or the Big Island.  Oahu isn't bad but you have to get away from downtown Waikiki sucks - the north shore is what it's all about but not a lot of restaurants shopping etc - so a car is a must. On a good day it's an hour easy to Turtle Bay driving from downtown the only real resort on the North Shore - most people rent the beach houses.

 

The Big Island and Kaui are my personal favorites, for the price though as others have said many an all inclusive vacations can be had for cheaper. Also, gas prices downtown will be $4.50 a gallon at least.

[gregintenn]

Wow. You guys make it sound like a place I would dearly hate in about 30 minutes. Maybe I'll look elsewhere for a vacation spot. Anything buy Disney. :ugh:

[MacGyver]

If I could get on a plane right now and go to the beach - this is where it would be:  http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1098

 

Fly into St. Thomas.  Take a ferry from the airport to St. John.  2/3 of the island is a national park.  Not a ton of touristy stuff to do, but it's a lot of great exploring, diving, good food and lounging on the beach.

 

Hawaii is cool.  But Honolulu is really a drag.  It's a long flight and really expensive. Waikiki beach is less than 10 feet wide in a lot of places.  And, it's covered up with people.  If you go to Hawaii - bypass Oahu and go for one of the other islands.  You won't regret it a bit.

[TripleGGG]

Maui was great. Worth experiencing at least once. Big fan of Bermuda or Caribbean. Plus they are both a lot closer. Sent from my Samsung Note 2 using Tapatalk

[Mark A]

Another big thumbs down for Hawaii. I MIGHT consider going back if I could find a way to stay on several of the smallest islands. The larger islands are like a dirtier version of Florida that costs 3 times as much after flying on a hellishly long flight.

Sorry to be a downer...

[MacGyver]

Bermuda is great! 

 

But, they let the passenger drive and tourists are limited to mopeds.

[gregintenn]

Another big thumbs down for Hawaii. I MIGHT consider going back if I could find a way to stay on several of the smallest islands. The larger islands are like a dirtier version of Florida that costs 3 times as much after flying on a hellishly long flight.

Sorry to be a downer...

Thanks. I'd much rather know this now than after spending thousands and flying for more than 12 hours.

[dlm37015]

I had more fun at the wal mart than any place there I could have went every day just to watch the people

the plane fare for me from Nashville was 4300 first class I aint gonna ride coach for 12 hours that was for 2 the beach I like is in Washington state west point or one of the san jaun islands

[cj0e]

I went once, spent a little over 9 days on Moloka'i. Was fantastic. Spent 2 days in Honolulu.... was NOT worth it, though the trip to Pearl Harbor was a very intense experience. The Arizona memorial is incredible, It's hard to comprehend the events from maps and pictures, being where all those men perished and looking out across the bay, my words cannot do it justice.

 

Unlike many others here, I'd like to go back, but I won't go visit the big tourist spots - it'll be back to Moloka'i. Kaunakakai was a fun little town, and the trip into the rainforest and up the mountain was awesome.

 

Visit Halawa valley, east end of the island along a dangerous curvy road. Lots of shore to stop at and swim if you want, beware of jellies, and stay close to shore. The current is VERY strong. Don't swim in the waterfall pool - it's considered sacred to locals and you'll probably get in trouble.

 

The old leper colony (the last US one, iirc) used to be here on the north side of the island. It still had surviving relatives of lepers there, but no more leprosy. Might be open to the public, I dunno. Worth a bit of research though! We saw a supply ship coming in dock when we hiked up the mountain one afternoon.

 

Also check out Papohaku beach - one of the largest white sand beaches in the state. It's a natural beach, and is awesome. There are sea turtles there! Don't try to catch em - you won't... but if you do, you'll have a hell of a swim back to shore. Beware sea urchins. they're abundant.

 

Check out the Kanemitsu Bakery - between 8PM and 2AM - down a sketchy back alley, you'll bring cash to the back door, and buy a loaf of fresh hot bread slathered with cream cheese, jam, sugar, cinnamon, or butter - or some combination. Can't find it? Look for the line wrapping around to the front after about 10pm. It's there. It's called Hot Bread and I ate at least four loaves during my stay.

 

There used to be an old mud road that went up the mountain, likely paved now (11 years later, but who knows!) There was an old woodcutter who lived up there in the forest - he had some awesome stuff you could buy.

 

All in all, you could see most of Moloka'i in a few days. But I'd gladly take a trip back and spend another week, or even a month there.

 

Good luck!

[monkeylizard]

Mrs. 'lizard and I went to Hawaii last summer. Oahu and Maui. I'd been before as a kid, but she hadn't. I wouldn't skip Oahu entirely, but I wouldn't spend much time there either. Plan on a day or two to see Pearl and the Arizona (book your tickets online), Waikiki, and drive up to the north shore and back. We both loved Haleiwa on the north shore. Oahu is busy. It doesn't have to be. Lots of people fly in and get out of Honolulu for places on the east side or the north shore. Lanakai beach is beautiful. Lots of beach house rentals over there. Ko'Olina is on the west side. It's where the Disney reort (Aulani) and a JW Marriott are located. there's not much over there at all, but it's slowly growing. It's a good 45-60 min drive from there into Waikiki w/o traffic.

 

My surfing instructor at Waikiki said Maui is where people on Oahu go to get away from the crowds and Kauai is where people on Maui go to get away from the "crowds". There's not much at all on Lanai or Molokai, so if you really want to get away from people, go there. Very few amenities though. We stayed in west Maui in north Kaanapali. We liked it because it was away from the "crowd" in south Kaanapali and in Lahaina. Maui was great. If I could afford it, and if they would let me keep my guns, I think I could live there.

 

We stayed in a condo on Oahu and on Maui. We'll be going back and skipping Oahu for more Maui and we'll try Kauai or Big Island depending on if the lava flows are visible or not. We were at Banyan in Oahu. It's an older building. Our unit had been remodeled, but I'd probably try for some other building next time. We stayed at Honua Kai in Maui and loved it. Booked all our stuff on flipkey.com, which is TripAdvisor's version of VRBO.com. A condo or beach house can save you a lot. Many include a parking space, there's no resort fee, and with a kitchen you can save a bunch by making breakfast there and packing a cooler lunch for the beach. Most condos also come with lots of beach gear like coolers, chairs, umbrellas, towels, etc. If not, buy cheap stuff at WalMart/Costco and drop it off at a thrift store when you're done. Cheaper than renting that stuff.

 

You can get by w/o a car on Oahu if you stay entirely in Waikiki. That kind of sucks, so plan on a car. You need a car on the other islands. Book one as soon as you book your flight. They can and do run out of cars. It's not like they can just drive some over form a nearby airport.

Edited May 14, 2014 by monkeylizard

[Hershmeister]

I absolutely love hawaii, and would take it over the carribean any day of the week. I've Been to maui, big island, Kauai and lanai For a first time trip i would recommend maui- lots to do from beach, whale watching (during the season), haleakala volcano, road to hana experience, snorkeling, watersports, fishing, great amazing restaurants and the best seafood you'll ever have. I like staying in the Wailea area. You'll need a car in maui to get around - highly recommend the following restaurants: pacifico's, mamas fish house, milagros in paiea - awesome ono fish tacos and the best pina coladas on the island! Lanai is amazing - two four season resorts - great restaurants and magnificent service. Don't let l the negative nattering nabobs steer you away from hawaii - its a special place. To break the trip up take a flight to LA then overnight at a hotel and grab dinner in LA at a nice restaurant.

[Patton]

I lived in Hawaii for 5 years, I miss it so much and plan to return to vacation before to long. While visiting Hawaii and not seeing Pearl Harbor should be a sin, I would encourage you to visit the Big Island or Maui. Oahu really is a large island on a tiny island. I miss the weather, the laid back mentality, the beaches, the surfing and mountain biking, and especially the food.

If you have any questions specifically please pm me, I really enjoy talking about Hawaii.

[monkeylizard]

The cons for Hawaii really are the cost and the travel time. If you can resolve yourself to stick out the flight time, and save enough to be able to weather the high costs, there's no reason for it not to be amazing.

 

The best ways that we found to cut costs were condos with kitchens, shopping at the local grocery store and using their weekly sales ad (just like we do at home)*, breakfast in the condo every day, and lunch/dinner in the condo when the schedule allowed. If you're a Costco member, there's one on Maui and one on Oahu. Cheap way to stock up for a week or two, and some of the cheapest alcohol on the islands.

 

I love snorkeling. I rented snorkel gear from Snorkel Bob's on both Oahu and Maui. Maui was much better for snorkeling. The exception would be Hanauma Bay on Oahu if you have small kids. It's a very protected cove with calm water and lots of corals and fish close to shore. It also has lots of people. It's closed on Tuesdays to give the fish a day off.

 

If you want to try surfing, you can do that on most of the islands. One of the things that makes Waikiki Beach famous is that the waves break a looooooong way out from the shore and roll for a long time. This is great for beginner surfing. I didn't see anywhere on Maui that had similar conditions.

 

If you want to get excited about Hawaii, start reading the forums on TripAdvisor. You'll see a lot of repeats, but it will answer a lot of your questions about each island.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g29220-i86-Maui_Hawaii.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g29222-i37-Oahu_Hawaii.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g29218-i304-Kauai_Hawaii.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g29217-i268-Island_of_Hawaii_Hawaii.html

 

 

 

*We signed up for Safeway's VIP card during uor first shopping trip. It's free. Works like a Kroger Plus card.

[Spiffy]

Obama and Dog the Bounty Hunter.........I wouldn't go!