Bummed about HI weather/Aulani rain forecast

[heybets30]

So, we arrive in Honolulu Friday morning. Forecast - cloudy & rain showers. We head to the Big Island Saturday - Rain showers predicted at ~80%, our plan is to go to Volcanoes National Park Sunday - rain predicted 100%, 100% humidity, Fairmont Orchid through Tuesday - cloudy and rain showers, Aulani Tuesday through Saturday predicted Rain showers >50% each day, cloudy.

Anyone else traveling these upcoming 10 or so days where there is NO SUN predicted at all? I've checked weather.com, underground weather, iphone apps, many others, hoping just ONE of them would give a glimpse of sun.

I know, at least we'll be in Hawaii, but was REALLY hoping our vacation would have more sun than this... basically same weather we had all June here in Chicagoland - hot & rain every day.

Still excited to go, just bummed that the forecast is so GLOOMY!!!!

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I think rain is predicted for most days in Hawaii? At least that's the way it seems whenever we go! In early March we had similar but never saw a drop. And keep in mind that it also varies for different areas of the islands. Aulani is on the dry side so that's a plus for less or no rain there. Volcanoes - hmmmm - well, at least it's a warm rain? Forecasts will change to so wishing you a great trip with better weather than you are believing you'll have.

 

[ImDMous]

It's rained every day we've been on vacation in Hawaii. Usually it's just a shower in between the sunshine. There are still some tropical storms heading across them, I think it's hurricane season until November.

That said, I don't think we've ever had a day that just rained all day or was cloudy all day, it's usually pretty spotty and your location on the island can change the weather a lot.

 

[alohamom]

Honestly-dont worry. Volcano side of the Big Island is very wet so you will almost always encounter a bit of rain, especially towards Hilo area. The Kohala Coast, where the Fairmont Orchid is located is very dry and it is rare to have constant rain unless you are experiencing a storm system. It can be pouring down in Kona but sunny and dry up in Waikoloa and further north so I would honestly say the chances of non stop rain while you are there are minimal. Expect rain on the other side but it adds to the experience of the volcano area.
KAT4DISNEY mentioned above that Aulani is on the dry side of Oahu and that is very true so I wouldnt worry about it, just play it by ear. The rain in October is a warm lovely rain anyway, it can make for some fun times in the pool! Below is a precipitation map for Oahu and below it is one for Big Island, you can see the majority of the places you are staying are actually very, very dry and it is reflected in the landscape. Another point is that the weather predictions change quickly in Hawaii-what might be modelling itself as rain right now can change overnight. We experienced the double hurricanes a year ago August and it wasnt until the morning of the predicted landfall did the storm move drastically towards the Big Island away from Oahu. All models showed it probably hitting Oahu but it moved away from it at the last minute.

 

[heybets30]

HAPPY to report that seriously, we encountered very little to NO RAIN!!!! The drive from The Fairmont Orchid across Mauna Kea, at 4,000 ft elevation, into Hilo did get about 15 minutes of good, solid slick-the-roads rain and fog; the return drive on Saddle Road had less rain, but the FOG, my word - the FOG, it was so thick over about a 5 mile distance, I seriously could only see maybe 10 feet in front of me. But, you kind of have to keep on driving - pulling off would be much more dangerous, as you have cars trying to follow the brake lights ahead of them. Not quite white-knuckled driving, but it was bad.

Waikiki was HOT, HOT, HOT the first day. We drove to the Byodo-In temple, and it was very overcast, but that just added to the charm! The Pali Lookout was also pretty overcast - then we got some sun and it just illuminated all the land below. Beautiful vistas.
Kona/Waikoloa/Fairmont area - mostly sunny, quite a bit of cloud cover - which proved nice not to be in full sun while in the pools The volcano was dry & hot; Hawaii Tropical Botanic Gardens had morning rain before we arrived, so roads were very slick - TONS of rock falls on the side, winding roads leading up to it, and as the morning progressed, got eventually muggier and sunnier.
Aulani - same - mostly sunny, quite a bit of cloud cover during parts of the first few days, very sunny Friday. Dole Plantation on Thursday - we started the maze at 11am in full sun, by 1/2pm it was mostly cloudy - we felt maybe 10 raindrops.

The only downside?? Most of our pictures don't have the sunny, Hawaii sparkle that full-sun would bring, pictures reflect slightly cloudier days - though absolutely not how it felt!!!

 

[bobbiwoz]

I am glad you had a great time in spite of the forecast!