- My friend and I are planning a trip to Hawaii next summer and we need some help on deciding what island to go to. We're not too picky about what island as long as there are things to do.
- oahu! definatly here!u can go wakiki n visit the beach,go to ala moana aka:the world's biggest outdoor mall
go visit the legendary iolani palace where our king kamehameha's palace lays 2day.
much cheaper than maui.
- What about a cruise? You'd get to see more than 1 island, and all your meals would be included. You'd only have to pay for any excursions you took.
- My family and I went to Oahu 2 summers ago and had a blast! We went in the water (what else do you do in Hawaii?!), we went to the Dole plantation (http://www.dole-plantation.com/… ), we toured Honolulu (http://www.allhawaiitours.com/ ), went to the Polynesian Culural Center (http://www.polynesia.com/ ), went to Pearl Harbor (http://www.nps.gov/usar/ ), and much more!
For a list of great tourist spots on Oahu, go to http://www.thisweek.com/oahu/tour/index…. Good Luck!
- For longer stays, the great deals are airfare/hotel packages….check your newspaper travel section and/or google the internet for "Hawaii Vacations", you'll find lots of websites with really good info and offerings.
For 7-10 days, the absolute best bang for your buck is to Cruise the islands. www.vacationstogo.com offers great discount deals, from Honolulu or west coast ports.
- Living in Hawaii, I personally think that it would be nice if you checked the Big Island. You can visit waterfalls and beaches, and if you go in the right time you could go to Mauna Kea to see snow. How ever if you want a more busy place go to Oahu. You can go to various websites to research your vacation. Good luck!
- I live on O'ahu, but I would definitely not recommend this island. In my opinion, the 2 islands I would recommend to you both would be either Kauai or Maui. There's a lot to do in Kauai, from a beautiful Helicopter Tour to Waimea Canyon to snorkeling up at North Shore, a little shopping, eating out, etc. Kauai & Maui is much less crowded than O'ahu, in Kauai I would recommend most, you get more of the island vibe, it's quiet & not too over crowded with tourist like O'ahu (which is looking more like a city & less like an island everyday) & the food in Kauai is awesome! seafood is fresh. The people are much more friendlier. Maui is also better than O'ahu. Get the book called "KAUAI REVEALED" or "MAUI REVEALED", got some good tips to everything & help save you time & money.
- We'd also like to keep the costs relatively low (if that's possible.)
- Here are my standard suggestions having been there a few times.
#1 See more than one island. Oahu is great but the other islands each have their own personalities. If you are coming from far away (ie not the US west coast) plan a stay of two weeks (or more). You can hit two or three islands in that time. If you like a "resort" vacation feel choose Oahu or Maui (these are more expensive and are more "hotel" focused). If you are looking for more of an activity, exploring, nature and more solitude feel, go with Kauai or the Big Island.
#2 Try to rent a house or condo vs. using a hotel. It can be much cheaper. You get a larger accomodations with a full kitchen (which saves in dining costs) but you dont get maid services or other hotel services. Also try to rent by the week to get a better rate.
#3 Tocut costs try to fly into one island and leave from another. Even if your outbound flight has stopover in oahu it is better than flying into and out for Oahu because you will have to pay for the interisland flight back to Oahu.
#4 Whatever islands you choose buy books from the Hawaii Revealed series. There is one for each island and are the most comprehensive.
#5 Rent a Car. - You need to rent a car to see the islands. Look for companies that allow you to extend weekly rates across islands. Remember where you stay is only your base of operations. The best part of Hawaii is going out exploring.
#6 Try to do your own excursions vs paying an operator. The best part of hawaii is the beaches and the nature activities. Most of these you can do by yourself. Of course you can cant do a helicopter tour or a zodiac ride yourself. But hikes, kayaking, beaches, snorkeling can all be done without guides or operators. Once again use the Hawaii revealled books as your guide.
Now for my personal recommendations. In order of preference (I am taking your Low cost statement into account). Also Hawaii really is not famous for its nightlife. I put a put comment for it on each island.
#1 Kauai - This is truly an island paradise. Cheap condos can be found. I really like the north shore (princeville). There is ton of things to do. Endless beaches. Great hiking. Great water activities and excursions. It is not very crowded. I would recommend a week here. Little night life however you can dig around to find locals partying.
#2 Hawaii (Big Island) - A lot to do and can be very inexpensive. Condos and houses in the south side (near the volcano) can be found cheap. The big attraction is a live active volcano. I recommend 2-3 days in the south around the volcano. There are not many traditional beaches in the south but you can get those on the other islands. They do have interesting hot ponds and great snorkeling right off shore in the south. This island is really empty most of the time and south is great since there are few tourists. Little night life.
#3 Oahu - This is the classic tourist filled island. However there is a lot to do and there is nothing wrong with Tourist stuff. Most of the tourist stuff is centered around Honolulu. You can find cheap hotels here(but you get what you pay for). Most of the better beachs and activities are outside Honolulu so you may want to look for a house or condo in other areas (Kailua is great). Nightlife in Honolulu (its a city).
#4 Maui - Kind of a mix between Oahu and Kauai which would is great but it is expensive. Lodging is mostly hotels and they are expensive. This island is great but I put I last because of cost. Some nightlife.
Lastly I have a travel log where you can see a little about activities we did on my last trip last summer.
http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-ent…
- go to oahu. it's the most connected in terms of transportation. it's just the right size, not too big, not too small. the malls and restos are great. also, it has the most events and parties and nightlife. and lots of hot people
you can't get bored here.
- If I were you, I would go to the island of Oahu. thats where Honolulu is and there is alot to do there.
As for things to do on oahu..well heres the list of stuff that we did and things that I wish we had of had more time to do.
- Pearl Harbor & U.S.S Missouri Ship - this is a must see! I didnt think I would be impressed at all, but this was one of my favorite parts to our trip. it is very interesting and you actually get to tour the missouri battleship. then pearl harbor is just interesting because its something that you always have learned about in history class, but then you are experiencing it first hand. its amazing.
- Sea Life Park - it was something to see, but it wasnt that great. they did have wonderful dolphin and sea lion shows, but it wasnt what I thought I was going to be. its actually rather small and you can see it all in a matter of an hour tops. but if you are going to swim with the dolphins or walk underwater then it would have been cool but I didnt do any of those things. Also, we did the Sea Life Park luau and I dont reccommend it! I honestly HATED the food there and the entertainment was very amatured too. Gerrmaines is suppose to have a good luau, so you may check it out.
- Haunama Bay (snorkeling) - I loved this! it was just a day to go out and see all the fish in the coral reef, as well as relax on the beach. it was wonderful and cheap too! it only cost us our transporation out there…rental equipment to snorkle and then $5 to enter the park. which isnt bad at all.
- Dole Plantation and North Shore Tour - we did this all in one day and the dole plantation was another thing that I wasnt that impressed with, but if you do go there, you have to get some pineapple chilli and pineapple whip ice cream..both are simply delicious!
- Swap Meet - Aloha stadium - its a HUGE flee market. it costs about $3 to get in and you can stay there all day and get awesome bargains! I got a really cute binkini for $13 dollars.
- International Marketplace - Great shopping as well! its something that you have to see - they have everything and anything!
- Waikiki Beach - awesome place to just relax and watch the people. also if you want to be relaxed and have fun at the same time…go to an ABC store (they're all over waikiki) and get a floatie and float around in the ocean…its wonderful! I thought I was going to fall asleep once.
thats all the places that we visited. we also wanted to visit the zoo and the aquarium because we actually heard that the zoo was suppose to be better than Sea Life Park. I dont know how true that is, but it might be worth it just to go see what all it has. also, I wanted to go parasailing, but I never got around to doing that either.
We stayed at the Pacific Beach Hotel and if you dont know yet where you are going to stay then you should check that place out. its really nice and has a great location. its right across the road from waikiki beach and within walking distance of the international marketplace as well as great places to eat. the hotel also has a restraunt in it that on certain nights has an all you can eat buffet of crab legs and prime rib, plus alot of other stuff too! it was great and actually not that unreasonably priced!
hope you have fun in hawaii and I hope that I have helped you out and answered your questions!! ALOHA!
- Go to Oahu! I have been six times! There is a decent restaurant in Waikiki that always have specials going on. The Seaside Bar and Grill on the corners of Seaside and Kuhio.
Hike Diamond Head, swim in the ocean, rent bikes.
Buy a four day Discovery TheBus bus pass at any ABC store. This is good for four consecutive days and it is only $20.00 instead of paying $2.00 every time you get on the bus.
- It depends on what you're looking for.
If you're looking for nature, I would suggest you go to the island of Kauai.
If you're looking for a more laid back lifestyle, I would suggest you to the Island of Hawaii (where you'll get a mix of old style charm in Hilo and tourist actiivites in Kona).
If you're looking for a more metropolian feel without rush, go to Maui. Maui is the 2nd most populated island so you'll get the feel of old style charm with more night life.
Finally, if you're looking for the city with THE night life scene, you'll have to come to Oahu (where the capital city of Honolulu is). Oahu is the most populated island and people from the neighbor islands come here to shop and go clubbing often.
There are other islands such as Molokai and Lanai but I have a feeling that you won't have fun on those islands as they essentially have NO night life after the sun goes down.
Good luck and happy travels!
- Thanks for any suggestions!
- Definitely come to Oahu- da main island where theres plenty to do– sightsee, shop, eat, & da best nightlife of all the islands. You'd wanna check out Kauai as well– beautiful sceneries & beaches!!!
- Maui No Ka Oi
means Maui is the best.
You will want to go back again and again. Not crowded like Oahu/Honolulu. But busy enough to keep your menu full. Even 7 days will not be enough, but it will wet your whistle enough for a return trip.
Snorkling, Haleakela, Road to Hana, Food, Luaus, Nice hotels, beautiful beaches….Maui No Ka Oi!
