Can anyone help us with Hawaii??

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Posted by MrsQ-in2007

Ok, first off - CONGRATS!!!! We loved Hawaii and really would like to go back one day! We've been to five of the Hawaiian islands (the four main ones and also Lanai). Our top absolute hands down favorite was Maui! Lanai we just spent one day on (day trip) and I also highly recommend it if you're going to Maui.

Kauai we got rained out while we were there unfortunately. However, it is known as the more 'pristine' island with much less 'civilization' than the other islands. I would say to go to Kauai first, decompress, relax, have a chill time, and then go to Maui to have a more adventurous (but still relaxing) time. Or you can do the opposite.

How many days total do you want to go for? I would say 3-4 days in Kauai and 4-5 days at least in Maui. If you could, I'd stay up to 7 days in Maui - there's SO much to see and do, or not do!, on Maui.

Airfare from NYC can usually run around $700. We flew with a connection two years ago for $589! We got SUPER lucky with the rate and we went in March. Usually the flights are more from here, actually closer to $800 (and even higher).

I think the rates you got for airfare aren't horrible - you might be able to save money by booking your hotel and airfare at the same time - might not, but it's definitely worth a try!

On Kauai I recommend renting a car because the island isn't too big and there are places you can drive to without having to do a 'tour'.

Same for Maui because there are so many places to see and you can do it at your own pace in Maui. If I could only choose one island to rent a car though, I'd choose Maui. You can drive yourselves to any of the fab restaurants or locations, or up to the mountain (Mount Haleakala) to watch the sunrise, or out to Hana (road to hana) etc.

I'd budget at least $100 per day for food and expenses. It can really add up. But remember that you can have a late breakfast and then just a light lunch and a nice dinner.

Good luck!!!! You're going to have a great time! Make sure to read TripAdvisor reviews for any hotels that you're thinking about to stay at!

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Posted by hayleyandsteve

Thank you so much!

This is all really helpful.

The $700 airfare.... is that per person? Or total?

Since we're budgeting, we probably only will stay one week. We def want to see Kauai and Maui, but Steve would also like to see Kona. Do you think it's worth a night? Or maybe just a day trip??

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Posted by Bride4Mike07

Hi,
DH and I also went to Hawaii for our HM. We wanted to do 3 islands but thought there was so much to do and see that 3 days on each island was not enough. We stayed a total of 12 days but you have to remember 2 of those days are mostly travelling. We also stayed in Maui and Oahu. We probably would've expanded to Kauai and Big Island, it was just too much to do and also too expensive. We really enjoyed Maui the most. There's tons of things to do and see, although Oahu has many activities also...But Maui is more romantic and relaxed. As for places to stay, most hotels/resorts in Hawaii are not moderately priced but I'm sure you can find something at an average cost. I booked us a suite at the Hyatt, two balconies, at the Top floor, oceanview, for $550/nt. In addition, we got free breakfast....
That was definitely 5 star all the way!!! for the price, I thought it was great in comparison to the season and prices the room was actually going for (almost $700)
I found that joining reward programs saves you a lot of money. I don't genuinely use Expedia for my travel because I find deals with other places for much cheaper rates. There are companies that have special package deals like Aloha vacations or something like that.....
BTW, you should NOT be paying $700 from CA to Hawaii..... that is what I paid to get to Maui!! Expect to pay much less.... Have you gone to Aloha airlines? or Hawaiian airlines?
Have you looked into Classicvacations.com
Sorry if I wasn't much help...but if you want more details FM me....

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Posted by Mich0621

We did Hawaii on our HM and did Maui and Kauai. If you want to get a car only on one island, I would do it in Maui, since there is a lot there. It is more built up and you want a car to do things like Haleakala (which is freezing) and to visit all of the nice towns, like Lahaina. I think we used budget for our car. We stayed at the Royal Lahaina, which I loved.

We preferred Kauai, which was lush and tropical. We rented a car there as well, but there is less to see in my opinion there. We stayed at a Marriot time share there.

As per food, totally depends on how fancy you want to get. The prices range depending on what you are going for. I didn't really find much of a price difference there for food than any other state I've been to.

And my advice-I HATE Aloha Airlines...we accidentally missed a flight and they double charged us instead of doing what they were supposed to do which was change our flight and add 20 dollars per ticket.

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Posted by MrsQ-in2007

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Posted by hayleyandsteve

Thank you so much!

This is all really helpful.

The $700 airfare.... is that per person? Or total?

Since we're budgeting, we probably only will stay one week. We def want to see Kauai and Maui, but Steve would also like to see Kona. Do you think it's worth a night? Or maybe just a day trip??

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The airfare I mentioned was per PERSON, so if your quote for airfare is for the BOTH of you, then that is AWESOME! I totally missed that the first time I read your post! So yeah, that's great!

You can do a day trip to Kona - just take the first morning flight out to the main island and then take the last flight back to your hotel.

If you're going for 1 week, I would go 3 days to Kauai and 4 days to Maui. Have FUN!!!

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Posted by hayleyandsteve

(repost from LIF)

Steve and I are looking to go to Hawaii this summer (either July or August).

Keep in mind that we're currently living in San Diego.

I found flights through Expedia...

Airfare for 2 people, roundtrip, nonstop
July = $720
August = $650

We definitely want to go to Maui and Kauai after reading everyone's posts on here about Hawaii, and DH would also like to go to Kona.

We'd like to be as budget-conscious as possible... (but still want to sleep somewhere decent and clean!)

Now, a few questions.

1) The airfare prices are good right?
Our airfare was about 1950 including leaving from Newark (NJ) (direct flight)to Oahu and all interisland flights at the end of May
2) What are our options and the pricing for interisland travel?
3) How many nights would you spend in each place?
4-5 Nights to really get to see each island
4) On which islands do you recommend renting a car?
Oahu is like the city no need for a rental but definately in Maui and Kauai did not go to Kona so I'm not sure
5) How much should we budget for daily expenses? (Food, excursions, etc.)
We stayed at the Hyatt on all three islands so we gor free breakfast, but to me the meals were no more expensive than in NY or California.

Excursions- were an average of 150 highly recommedn the ATV tour there's a 4 hour tour in Kauai well worth it and a helicopter ride.
Also visit the big island to see the Volcano
6) What are our best options/your recommendations for hotels?
I really liked the Hyatt in Maui and Kauai on Oahu it was the typical high rise but Its located right on Wyakiki (sp?) Beach.



I really recommend speaking with a travel agaent especially with the interisland travel they are really helpful.