Hawaii For The First Time

[dairyou]

We are considering Hawaii for the first time. We usually go on cruises or WDW with the boys and this would be the first time vacationing without them. Even though they are 16 and soon to be 18 I am hoping this time we can have fun without them. The last time we tried vacationing without them they were 1 and 3. We were miserable.

DH likes to zipline and snorkle. I'm content to sit on the beach with a book to read.

We have no idea what island to go to but would like beautiful water to snorkle in.

Any suggestions?

 

[CruiserMom]

We are considering Hawaii for the first time. We usually go on cruises or WDW with the boys and this would be the first time vacationing without them. Even though they are 16 and soon to be 18 I am hoping this time we can have fun without them. The last time we tried vacationing without them they were 1 and 3. We were miserable.

DH likes to zipline and snorkle. I'm content to sit on the beach with a book to read.

We have no idea what island to go to but would like beautiful water to snorkle in.

Any suggestions?

We are here now on vacation! We spent 4 nights on Oahu, 6 nights on Maui, and have just arrived on the Big Island, for 2 nights. If I could only go to one island, I'd pick Maui. It has a zipline, great beaches with fantastic snorkeling, and wonderful weather. We snorkeled at Black Rock at Kaanapali Beach, at Kapalua Bay, and some family members snorkeled at Turtle Town, which is in south central Maui. We saw tons of fish, eels, turtles, baby squid, etc. Plus, from Maui, you can take a boat to Molokini to snorkel there.

If you go to Oahu, snorkel at Hamauna Bay, it was great too.

 

[dairyou]

Oh what great timing! Thank you so much for sharing your experiences. We will look into specifically Maui now

Deb

 

[amyup]

We prefer Kauai as our island of choice. We're actually heading there in 2 months on a kid-free vacation. There is plenty of snorkeling and hiking to keep you busy. I like to hike in the morning and then lay out on the beach in the afternoon. I prefer doing nothing and my hubby is a lot more active so that is my compromise.

We made the "mistake" of going to Kauai on our honeymoon and have found no island to match its beauty.

 

[Deb in IA]

We were on Oahu just last week, and had a great time! We took our kids for our summer vacation, but we've also done Oahu, Maui and Kauai without kids in the past.

If you can squeeze in a couple of days in Oahu, I would do it, if nothing else, to see the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. It is very moving, and not to be missed. Climbing Diamond Head is also worth the time and effort.

On Kauai, I would recommend the hike to see Waimea Canyon. It is spectacular, and Mark Twain once called it the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.

And on Maui, definitely do the Drive to Hana. You will see some beautifully incredible terrain which transitions from lush tropics to volcanic ash formations.

Let me know if you have more questions!

 

[rparmfamily]

I'm on O'ahu as well and can answer any questions you might have.

 

[dairyou]

I have no idea about anything that had to do with Hawaii. I don't know the islands and definitely don't know what feature each island offers. I know we don't want to go to Waikii, I think thats it because it is to city like.

I'll have to investigate more but I knew the Dis'er was give me a good head start!

Deb

 

[WriteDisney]

We're planning a trip to Oahu for next May.. is there any place in Oahu you can get a Dole Whip besides the Dole Plantation.. not sure we want to make the special trip out there but it would be very cool to get a Dole Whip while were there..

 

[mom2travel]

We went to Hawaii last summer and spent 5 nights on Oahu, 5 on Kauai and 5 on Maui. We had our kids (13 and 8 1/2 at the time) with us, but I'm sure one day we'll go back on an adults vacation. We LOVED it!! Kauai is our favorite, but we hit some great beaches on Oahu and Maui too. Tripadvisor Hawaii forums have tons of great info and trip reports.

A mini-snapshot... We hit the beaches on all three islands. On Oahu, we also hiked Diamond Head, did a circle island drive and visited Pearl Harbor. On Kauai, we drove up/hiked around Waimea Canyon, did a sunset Na Pali Coast cruise, did a kayak/hike/zipline tour, and an ATV tour, and a luau. On Maui, horseback riding and a trip up Haleakala, and a snorkeling tour (swam with the turtles - wow!!).

If this link works, here is a quiz to help you decide which island:
http://gohawaii.about.com/od/hawaiivacationplanner/a/island_scores.htm

I don't think you could go wrong, no matter which island you choose!
Have fun planning!!

 

[mom2travel]

I have no idea about anything that had to do with Hawaii. I don't know the islands and definitely don't know what feature each island offers. I know we don't want to go to Waikii, I think thats it because it is to city like.

I won't disagree about the city-like aspects, but I really didn't notice the tall buildings when we were on Waikiki beach looking out over the Pacific or at Diamond Head; you do have to drive on busy roads to get elsewhere though. If we go back to Oahu one day, we would likely stay on the North Shore, but for our first trip, Waikiki was a really good base from which to work - a great beach right there, close to Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor, Hanauma Bay, etc. as well as easy access to the roads to get us anywhere we wished to go. Now, if you are opposed to a higher-rise hotel, then definitely don't stay in Waikiki.

 

[rparmfamily]

How long were you planning on coming for? Luckily you're in CA so the flight isn't too bad.

O'ahu has:
Arizona Memorial/Missouri/Pearl Harbor
Diamond Head (which is in Waikiki) hike
Hanauma Bay (snorkeling)
Dole Pineapple Plantation (tourist trap-ish but cute and has Dole Whips while surrounded by fields of pineapples)
North Shore beaches--Sunset Beach, Bonzai Pineline, Waimea Bay and Waimea Falls, the surf town of Hale'iwa (cute!!) plus snorkeling at Waimea in summer and Shark's Cove as well.
Lost is filmed here, so the "Lost" sights are all on O'ahu
Bishop Museum
Polynesian Cultural Center

Maui has:
Lavender Farm
Sunrise/sunset on Haleakala (volcano-dormant or dead)
Snorkeling--Molokini crater,etc
beaches--Ka'anapali, Wailea,etc
Road to Hana (waterfalls, hiking, beaches including a black sand one)
Iao Needle
Lahaina (cute old whaling town)

Big Island:
Volcano National Park and perhaps view lava
waterfalls like Akaka Falls, Rainbow Falls
Tsunami museum in Hilo
beaches in the Kona and Kailua area, and snorkeling,etc
mac nut farms, coffee farms

Ziplining is the thing to do on Kauai though Maui might have it too.

 

[rparmfamily]

Waikiki taken from the Rainbow Tower of the Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort. Diamond Head in the background

 

[dairyou]

Wow you guys are a wealth of information!

Rparm thank you for breaking it all down by activities! We are only staying 5 or 6 days since this is the first time leaving the boys alone in their teens. I will feel better this time because before we were on a cruise before and paranoia set in. I felt like if something happened to the boys we would be too far out in the ocean to help them. 3 hours by plane is definitely better

Mom2travel Im excited to take the quiz. I'll have DH take also when he gets home from out of town.

This is the first spontaneous vacation we've taken. Usually we are planning a cruise or WDW. They are usually 8 months to a year or more away and this one will be a month or two! I'm so excited.

Deb

 

[rparmfamily]

You're welcome! I'm leaving out LOTS of activities though, I was just trying to go by memory.

Both Maui and Big Island have wineries.

I'd recommend either Maui or Kauai for you guys. I'd really recommend seeing the Arizona Memorial on O'ahu but your time sounds limited.

 

[Tinkerbelle'sMOM]

We loved Maui...much more laid back than Oahu And look into buying an Entertainment book for Hawaii...we saved a lot of money with it doing attractions and dining

 

[Deb in IA]

Here's another thought for you if you don't want to be in Waikiki (we didn't either):

We rented a house on Ewa Beach on Oahu that worked GREAT for us. It was 3 bedrooms, a/c, full kitchen, washer/dryer, off-street carport parking, all for less than a typical hotel room in Waikiki. The location was great - just across the street from a quiet beach, and easy access to most attractions (within 15 - 25 minute drive). We LOVED it!

I used HomeAway.com to find it. If you go there, a lot of nice properties are listed.

 

[Pakey]

We have vacationed on Oahu, Hawaii and Maui and like Maui a lot more than the others (our children are in their 20's).

We enjoyed the north side of Maui much more than the south side. We have stayed in Wailea but didn't care for it as much. The hotel itself was very nice (Grand Wailea) but the area didn't appeal to us. We have also stayed in Kapalua and Lahaina. Although our kids (in their 20s) preferred Lahaina, my husband and I both loved Kapalua. It was only a 10 minute drive to Lahaina, where all of the shops are, but Kapalua (we stayed at the Ritz) is a beautiful area that felt so private.

We did the zipline on Maui and if you do it, make sure to make reservations ahead of time. Even if you don't want to zipline, the drive there is really nice.

 

[mom2travel]

We loved Maui...much more laid back than Oahu And look into buying an Entertainment book for Hawaii...we saved a lot of money with it doing attractions and dining

there are tons of coupons/books at each airport too, so collect some while waiting for your luggage. they are free

 

[dairyou]

I took the little quiz and we scored highest in Oahu and Kauai. By reading the descriptions it seems like Kauai is best for us. I'm going to look more into Kauai for now. I saw the helicopter ride and my husband would love that. I don't want to go because I'm scared of heights but since it will be only the two of this time I think I'll have to go with him:scared1 He'll still want to zip line but I think he knows I won't do that.

Thanks Again Everyone!
Deb

 

[WriteDisney]

Waikiki taken from the Rainbow Tower of the Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort. Diamond Head in the background

Awesome!!! If you don't mind.. I'd like to save that pic!! We booked the Rainbow Tower at the Hilton for next May! And we picked the view of Diamondhead too! I hope we have a fantastic view like that when we go!