First time to Hawaii...Which Island?

[JDY]

I'm thinking of taking my DW to Hawaii. It'll be our first visit, so we are not sure which island to go to. We like nature, history, shopping, and local culture. Not into nightclubs but we do enjoy eating out.

Would love to see lava

Any suggestions? I found some great information here...
Go Hawaii

Mahalo

 

[DVC~OKW~96]

Aloha,
Was in Hawaii this summer. If you want to see lava, you'll want to visit the Big Island of Hawaii.

If you want super touristy, neat city of Honolulu, Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor, Waikiki, etc. you'll want Oahu.

Half touristy half not? Maui.

Pretty little island with nothing but peace and quiet and feral roosters? Kauai.

Pick one and fly to the others for day trips could be an option.

Have fun!

 

[catsrule]

We are going to Hawaii for the first time in May. After much, much thought, I decided on the main island of Oahu for 8 days for a first time trip. We are renting a car so we can explore the island and go to the quieter beaches and areas. I like to go, go, go, I'm not one who likes to lay around on a beach. I really want to see the Polynesian culture center, and all the touristy stuff. My second choice, and if we go back again, is the Big Island. There is lotsa to do there also, but it is alot of driving. It really depends on what you like to do.

 

[JDY]

I found something really cool. For $351 you get unlimited travel for 7 days on Aloha Airlines. So, I could stay on Oahu and visit all the others. up to 4 flights per day. And since one rt flight is about $150, I could visit three islands and come out ahead.

Much Thinking to do.



Mahalo

 

[maci]

We went to Kauai on our honeymoon, and just LOVED it!!!
We are not much into the nightlife scene either, this island is just beautiful! Tons of trails to hike on, beautiful beaches! We took the zodiac raft tour around to the other side of the island, and snorkeled, it was so great, the people were SO nice!! We took a helicopter ride, and saw the wettest place on earth!
We cant wait to go back for our 10th anniversary hopefully!!

Now, I have never been to the other islands so I cant compare, but Kauai is very romantic!!

Have fun! I dont think you could really go wrong on any of the islands!

 

[Tinks]

We went to Hawaii for our Honeymoon also. We split our 10 days into 6 on Maui and 4 on the big island of Hawaii. Maui is lush and beautiful with just the right amount of culture/peace and quiet/nightlife if you want it. The active volcano is on the big island. This island is not as lush and pretty. We also noticed many more locals on this island and the locals are very poor...it makes you feel bad for having so much.
I voted for Maui...take a side trip to the big island to see the volcano if you wish. I also highly recommend flying out late on the day you are leaving Hawaii, but get to Oahu early and tour Pearl Harbor before you head to the airport. We did this also and it was very memorable. Have fun!

 

[GIGGLES266]

We are going to Hawaii on January 9th! We will be staying three days on Oahu and 6 days on Maui, so that would be my vote.

 

[DawnCt]

You didn't say how long you plan on being in Hawaii. Our first trip to Hawaii was for 17 days. Our first five days were spent on Maui in the Ka'anapali Beach area. We then went to the Big Island for 7 days, 1 night on the Hilo side and Volcano National Park and 6 nights on the Kohala Coast. Our last three days we spent in Honolulu. Our second trip to Hawaii took us back to Maui, in Wailea, 5 days on the north shore of Kauai which we loved and back to the Big Island which we also loved. Next summer we are returning to Oahu for three days, Maui for a week and the Big Island again. I would avoid island hoping if you only have a week. You will spend about 4 hours waiting in airports, flying, renting a car and reclaiming luggage. I wouldn't have a problem with 3 nights on Oahu and 5 somewhere else if your time is limited. All of the islands have their wonderful, unique qualities. When you pick your island then you will have to pick which side of the island. That makes a difference too.

 

[Misty89]

we are playing with the idea of going to the big island for our 10 yr wedding aniversary in 2009. - i have llokeda t some stuff, but not alot....so i plan on watching this thread to see whom likes what better.....we also have never been there. as of right now LOL 6 years before hand, the only thing that is making us think somewhere else like Bahamas ETC is because the flight info i got on Hawaii the flight from WI is 11- 15 HOURS with 2 stops-
and i have found flghts to florida non stop



who knows LOL we might win the lottery before 2009 and might be able to take that dream trip to WDW

 

[mus muris asinus]

Maui, for the nice combination of nature + stuff to do, with maybe a day or two on Oahu for Pearl Harbor and things like that.

 

[ZachnElli]

I just voted for Maui. Dh and I went in 2002 for our 10 year anniversary and renewed our vows! We did so much there snorkeling, scuba diving, parasailing, drove to Hana, etc. It really is a personal preference, but this is my favorite. I've been to Oahu 2 times before, but that was in '92 and '89 and I've heard it's changed alot since then. Good luck deciding and have fun planning!

 

[legs22]

Definitely skip Oahu and Waikiki. Very touristy and city-like. Not my idea of Hawaii. Went there on my honeymoon in 1986. If you go there you MUST rent a car and get out of the city. See the surfer's North Shore. Hanauma (sp?) Bay is nice also. We then went to Maui- sooooo much better than Oahu. Unfortunately we had less time here. All the packages included time on Oahu and there was more time there than on the nicer islands.
But my vote is for the Big Island of Hawaii. Went there in 1995. So much to see and do. And you can't beat the view of the live volcano and all the lava. And if you are coffee lovers, visit the coffee plantations of Kona for tastings. Deep sea fishing off the coast gives you great views of the island. The Big Island has almost all of the different climates on one island.

 

[Kismet Kitty]

Kauai and the Big Island are our two favorites. We usually split our vacations between the two.

 

[skiwee1]

We did 3 islands on our Hawaii trip. In 14 days we visited Oahu, Maui, and Kauai. Our favorite by far was Maui. Kauai was pretty but really boring! Oahu was touristy but every interesting. Tons of stuff to do but every city like. Lots of culture there though and Pearl Harbor was a site to see! Maui sort of had all of those wrapped into one. The island is gorgeous! The small whaling village is very interesting and makes for a wonderful stroll and a great whale watching boat ride. Lots to do and see and plenty NOT to do. We really liked that we could drive somewhere if we felt like it or just hanging out relaxing on the beach or snorkeling. We chartered a cat to take us out to Molokilini crater and snorkeled. The island is perfect and we plan on retiring there one day!

 

[JDY]

If I do an 8 day trip to any island, do I need to rent a car? We are thinking Maui with a day trip to the Big Island and maybe Kauai or Oahu. If we day trip, how do I get around. Should I rent a car on the other Islands, or can I rely on public transport?

 

[legs22]

You need a car to explore Oahu and the Big Island. I've never been to Kauai so I don't know about that one.

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by JDY
If I do an 8 day trip to any island, do I need to rent a car? We are thinking Maui with a day trip to the Big Island and maybe Kauai or Oahu. If we day trip, how do I get around. Should I rent a car on the other Islands, or can I rely on public transport?

You don't need a car for Oahu. There is a trolley that you can hop on and off all day to visit all the touristy sites. You will need a car for both Kauai and Maui. They are less city like and you will have to travel by car to see most of it. I don't know about the big island as we haven't been there yet. It is on my list for our trip sometime in July. We are staying a few days on Oahu before transferring over to Maui for the rest of our stay, probably another 7 days. We are going to fly over to the big island for a day trip but that is it. I haven't even thought if needing a car on the big island but will definitely get one for Maui.

 

[pirateofthecarolinas]

Your hotel will have a list of all of the day trips that you can take. Tourism is their business and they will take care of you.

We did rent a car on Hawaii and Maui but not Oahu.

We enjoyed a sunrise bike ride down the outside of a volcano and afterwards they took us to a local hawaiian restaurant for a buffet breakfast. That was great fun! It was on Oahu.

 

[soccerchick]

Kauai gets my vote! In fact, my in-laws just built a home there and they have "wintered" there for the past 8 or 9 years now.

Kauai has two pretty distinct sides - the north and south. It rains a lot more in the north and you can find cactus in the south. There is the Princeville Resort in the north where you must do their brunch on the patio overlooking Hanalei Bay. (Also a good place to celebrity watch!) In the south, there are more resorts w/ the big chain names. There's the Waimeia (sp?) Canyon that you can bike down, and lots of other stuff to do. I can't imagine being bored here. Lihue is the "big city" of the island. It is really starting to build up, but still nothing like the other islands.

If you have questions about Kauai, I'll be happy to try and answer for you.

Hawaii is so beautiful and so different you'll have a blast no matter what you chose. Have fun!!

 

[legs22]

Does the trolley go all around the island of Oahu? If not, and you are staying in the Waikiki area, I would get a car to see the other side of the island.