Hawaii Questions

[Jenn]

My husband would really like to do Hawaii in August of 2003 (our 10th anniversary). We don't know where to begin.

Which island? Everyone says Maui is the best and then you can island hop for sightseeing if you choose to - does that make sense?

Which resort? I see several in the Concierge Collection and then others through Interval? What is the difference in booking (I think II has to be a 7 night stay, right?).

We are coming from Massachusetts and are thinking of maybe doing a couple of days in Disneyland either on the way there or on the way back. So, in total we would probably do 10-11 days with a week in Hawaii and 3-4 days between travel and DL.

Also, we would be bringing our daughters who will be 6 and 2 at the time. We would like a resort that is family friendly. I probably wouldn't leave them in a kids program or anything - but I don't want to feel like the kids aren't welcome.

Money - is this going to cost millions of dollars? I have glanced at airfare and it looks pretty steep. How is the air from LA to Hawaii? I was thinking we could fly SW to LA and then arrange our Hawaii air from there.

Need any and all advice... thanks.

 

[babylisa4]

We went last summer and spent 2 days at Oahu mainly because we wanted to do Pearl Harbor. My kids are older but we stayed those two days at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. It was pretty touristy but they had a cool beach and Penquins(yes live ones) and lots of shops. Then we spent another week at Maui at Kapula Bay Hotel(Concierage collection using points). It was very nice and serene- It would be ok for kids too. It's not touristy at all so it gives you a different flavor. This was our homebase and we traveled around doing the snorkling trips, volcano etc. Then for the last 2 days we splurged and stayed at the Grand Wailea. Such a place I've never seen. Had a great water park type pool and was probably the most fun but expensive and you have to use real money for that. When we moved to the Grand Wailea we stayed at the resort and took advantage of all of their things they had to offer. (The good thing about this is we got upgraded to a suite- we think they picked us to upgrade because we were only staying 2 nights.- They were out of the type of room we had reserved.) We used miles for air and flew first class- it was a great trip. Basically there were tons of little kids in every hotel we were at.

 

[marges]

We did Maui for 10 days last year at the Kapalua Bay Hotel. The hotel was very nice and the Island had plenty to do. The beach is wonderful for snorkeling. Haleakala and Hana are must-do's. I was a little disappointed when we first arrived because the terrain looked more like Arizona than Hawaii. The impression from the airport is red dirt. The resort areas and the northern part of the island looked more like I expected.

This past April, we did two nights on Oahu and 7 nights on Kauai. Kauai is absolutely fabulous and I very much preferred it to Maui!!!!!It is very lush and beautiful, much more what I had expected from Hawaii. We stayed at the Marriott in Lihue, which we traded for a Marriott exchange. The beach there is good and safe, but the beach at Poipu was far better. However, the Marriott's pool and resort is absolutely gorgeous. Snorkeling was better, in my opinion, at Kapalua. I think if you were to try to exchange, you might have better luck with smaller units. Marriott is building a new resort at Poipu which is scheduled to open in 2003, and a guide there told us that Marriott deposited some time into the system to try to lure potential buyers to visit. But he did seem to be rather surprised that we were able to exchange in. Marriott Hawaii is very hard to get.

If anybody asks me, I will forever suggest Kauai over Maui, but I wouldn't sneeze at Maui.

 

[Dean]

No one right or wrong answer to this one. If you've never been, I'd personally consider spending a few days on Maui and a few on Oahu. I would never go from the Eastern US for less than 9-10 days, 7 would be reasonable from the West Coast. Answers would in part depend on how many points you have and your available resources. Staying at a CC hotel is a lot of points but the resorts are fabulous. If you use II, you are locked into a full weeks exchange and you may not be able to get your air fare at a good deal when that comes through.

Consider a direct exchange with another member or using an Independent exchange company like SFX in addition to a DVC II search. Also look at packages deals, sometime the savings in air will almost pay for the room and car for a family.

If you pursue an exchange, there are a lot of choices but some are better than others. If you do a search with Hawaii in the word search and my name in the person search, you should be able to find info about many resorts we've discussed before.

 

[Werner Weiss]

Originally posted by Jenn
Which resort? I see several in the Concierge Collection and then others through Interval? What is the difference in booking (I think II has to be a 7 night stay, right?).

Consider these analogies:

• Using DVC points to stay at a Concierge Collection hotel is similar to using DVC points to stay at a deluxe Disney resort such as the Grand Floridian. You get less space but full service and lots of luxury. The points per night are high, but you can stay any number nights. If you book early, you should have good availability because, unlike II, the Concierge Collection doesn't involving waiting for a timeshare owner to deposit a week.
• Using DVC points to exchange into a timeshare resort through II is similar to using DVC points to spend a full week at a DVC condo. DVC limits you to some of the best timeshares in the world, but even many of these don't really compare to DVC. The value can be very good if MS is able to use a Dream Season week (or even a Choice Season week) at HH or OKW (even if you don't own at HH or OKW).

 

[chris1gill]

I just wanted to chime in here... We went to Maui in February, I used Starwood points, so we stayed at the Sheraton, but regarding airfare... you might want to sign up for www.bestfares.com closer to your trip, they routinely have Boston to Hawaii for about 550.00, which isn't too bad. We flew from Hartford to St. Louis & then St. Louis to Maui.... I REALLY REALLY liked this route... It was just a quick three hours to St. Louis & then just 8 more on the same plane... once you get settled in, you're good to go. We had our 4 & 6 year olds with us & this schedule really worked well for them too. This was the schedule on American Airlines out of Hartford, Boston & Providence. From now on we'll use AA to do this route....

Kapalua Bay looked nice, but it wasn't too centrally located, it was on the Northern most tip of Maui, whereas the Volcano & helicopter rides were more toward the dead middle of the island, we found ourselves going over in that area several times... It was a long way from the Sheraton & would be longer yet for Kapalua Bay....

As a first timer to Hawaii I was glad we stayed in Maui... we got a great feel for what all of Hawaii used to be.... I've also read that Kauai is very beautiful & worth a couple of days to visit, I've heard it is quiet though, so I'm not sure how long you might want to stay... Personally, I'd like to go to the Big Island... it looks to have a lot of interesting history....

We were worried our kids would be bored with us, but believe me they weren't, they had a blast with us! Our son went to the hotels kid camp for a couple of days, he'd have stayed there every day if we let him LOL... Our daughter went on the helicopter ride with us (you'll never catch me doing that again)... Overall it was an exceptional trip!! Oh, I did forget to mention we only stayed for six nights... We didn't find that it was too much travel in too short a time. Basically, it's 14 hours of travel from Hartford/Boston... That would be like driving to Ohio for a week, it's not that bad at all....

Good luck & have a blast!

 

[mickey1010]

We went to Hawaii last October. Maui for 6 days, Kauai for 4 days and Oahu for 1 day. Personally, I liked Maui better, but Kauai was a close second.

We didn't use points to stay and we arranged our package through AAA. The flight portion of the package was approximately $720. This included RT airfare between Detroit & Honolulu and three island hops.
Honolulu->Kahului, Maui->Lihue, Kauai->Honolulu

Maui
We stayed at the Fairmont Kea Lani in Wailea. BEAUTIFUL resort! Wailea is in the southern part of the island and is about a 40 minute drive from Lahaina. We drove to Lahaina twice and once for a Luau and another evening to see Ulalena (a stage show, awesome!!). If you are going to spend a lot of time in Lahaina or Kaanapali, I would recommend staying on that side of the island. However, if you want a more secluded feeling that still has plenty of restaurants and activities, I my vote is for Wailea.

If you're up for it, drive to the top of Haleakala to watch the sunrise. It takes about a little over an hour to get to the top from the base of the mountain. We left Wailea around 3:00AM. It was possibly the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, very surreal to watch the sun rise above the clouds. It actually brough a tear to my eye. You can even see the volcanoes on the big island, Mauna Kea & Mauna Loa. Bring warm clothes though!!! It's extremely windy 30-40MPH and the temperature before the sun comes up is in the 30s and 40s. A little tip- grab the blankets off the beds in your hotel and use socks for gloves! Trust me, nobody cares what you look like!


Kauai-
We stayed at the Kauai Marriott in Lihue. It's about a mile from the airport. Great central location for driving to the North Shore or the South Shore. The resort is beautiful and has an incredible pool. On Kauai, we rented snorkel gear for our entire stay ($20/week) and just drove aound the island stopping at all the beaches and diving in. The island is very laid back. I would also recommend taking a Helicopter ride here. The Na Pali coast, Waimea Canyon and Wai'ale'ale crater are unbelievable. I stopped counting after about the 85th waterfall I saw.

Oahu-
Stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. It was cool to see Diamondhead and walk on Waikiki but the beach is very crowded. I didn't have time to go to the Pearl Harbor memorial so I will most likely go back to Oahu for a couple days, but that would be it.

Have a great time!!

 

[dianeschlicht]

Everyone here has given you great advice so far. I would reccommend AT LEAST 12 days and a part of the trip in Oahu for the Pearl Harbor things. We like to start our Hawaii trips there for a day or two to acclimate to the time change. We like all the islands, but our favorites to go back to often are Maui and the Big Island of Hawaii with Kauai a close third.

Lots to do on Maui and the Big Island, but Kauai is more laid back and more old Hawaiian. Maui is getting pretty touristy now too, as is the Kona area of the Big Island.

We did a II exchange of DVC points and spent a week at the Kona Coast II resort. Had a GREAT time there. We also spent a week at a timeshare on Kauai in Princeville. Loved that too, but less than a week would have been better there.

The long flight will kill you!!! Consider going 1st class for the comfort. Time difference is 5 hours from Eastern Standard time and 6 hours from Eastern Daylight time. Hawaii does NOT go on Daylight time. No need when you are close to the equator!!

 

[SusanU]

I have been looking long range at Hawaii also. We are going to use frequent flyer miles for some of us and then those with less miles are going to get to LA and go w/Pleasant Hawaiian Holidays from there for around $325. That is much less than I have found otherwise from the midwest. We took a package from them several yrs ago and were pleased with the combination prices also. The 2 kids were especially cheap to add on. Stayed at Hilton Hawaiian Village in Oahu and a Hilton in Kona on the Big Island. Also some airlines have had recently Miles Plus $ airfare to Honolulu. Keep checking prices and specials for several months.

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by SusanU
I have been looking long range at Hawaii also. We are going to use frequent flyer miles for some of us and then those with less miles are going to get to LA and go w/Pleasant Hawaiian Holidays from there for around $325.

Better figure out what the first day is you can make reservations and stay up until midnight and make them day one. You'll need to make the first leg on the first day for that timeframe then do the same for the return trip in a week or 2.

 

[stlrod]

I can't say what is best for you, but can tell you what we are doing. We're going for 8 nights in July. We're flying non-stop from St. Louis to Maui and then returning from Kauai with a change of planes in LA. We used American FF miles and the seats were very easy to obtain. For 2 of the tickets, no money is required. For the other 2, I pay a total of $550. For the hotel, I did not like the Concierge choices and did not want to use the high points required. I made reservations at the BCV for 7/1-7/5 and 7/7-7/12 (a total of 126 points) which I sold on ebay for about $1500. Using Hotwire, I booked the first 4 nights at the Hyatt Maui for $976 (which includes tax) and the last two nights at the Hyatt Kauai for $574 (which also includes tax.) (This is risky--you must know how to use Hotwire to get a good idea of what hotel you will probably receive and be prepared to put the kids on a rollaway--not a problem at the Hyatt Maui because all rooms sleep 4, just in Kauai.) For the middle two nights, I am undecided. Almost all Frequent Flyer programs have excellent deals for inter-island flights. In our case, 20,000 miles gets us 4 2-island segments. So, currently, we have a reservation for 2 nights at the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Oahu (I really want to see Pearl Harbor). But, I'm considering flying from Maui to HNL in the a.m. and then from HNL to Kauai in the evening and renting a car so that we can see the Pearl Harbor sights in one day and change hotels only once. Good luck with your plans. Whatever you decide, I''m sure it will be great.

 

[dianeschlicht]

After re-reading this and several other posts on other DIS boards, I am wondering why so many travel to Hawaii in the summer? We always think it is the BEST winter destination. Of course, it is cooler and less humid then some mainland spots in the summer. I just think there is more joy in getting warm in the winter and watching the whales etc.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by dianeschlicht
After re-reading this and several other posts on other DIS boards, I am wondering why so many travel to Hawaii in the summer?

With children in school, the only time we can get a long enough vacation is in the summer. During the school year, we get one week off in late March and two weeks off around Christmas. That's it. And we spend Christmas with family. So that leaves the summer.

I agree that if your schedule allows it, there are better times to go to Hawaii than in the summer.

 

[Jenn]

Same here - given the length of a Hawaii trip (often 2 weeks) we just can't pull our daughter out of school that long and I don't want to leave them for that long with someone else - so it will have to be a summer trip.

 

[chris1gill]

What we do to extend our vacations, is to plan our vacation around a school vacation... so we take the week of school vacation & then the week ahead of it or the week after it... that way we get a two week vacation & our son only misses 5 days...

 

[zoey452]

On two different trips we took a boat/snorkling tour with the Pacific Whale Foundation out of Lahaina. It was the highlight of the trip! The dolphin trip is fantastic! We saw schools of spinner dolphins swimming beside the boat, leaping into the air. Wonderful! The snorkling is fantastic too.
On a different trip we went to snorkle at Molokini and at Turtle Arches.

If you love boating and snorkling don't miss this!

 

[danicaw]

We spent a week on the Big Island last May and loved it.
We decided early on that we would some how put up with having to take multiple trips to Hawaii so that each trip we could experience a different island. And we decided to start with the Big Islands.
We stayed at the Kona Coast Resort, we were in Phase I and were happy with the quality and the view from our temporary home.
I would HIGHLY recommend a series of books...
by Andrew Doughty and Harriet Friedman
the one we picked up was
Hawaii The Big Island Revealed; The Ultimate Guidebook
They have books for Maui and Kauai.
We loved the writing style and used it throughout the trip as a map, resturaunt guide and tour guide. Awesome! (Tip: read it before you go, so you have an idea what you want to see and what you don't mind missing)

If you want to read our trip report and see pics shout.
I will send you the link...it seems to be down right now, but I can post it later if you are curious.

 

[LuvBluSkys]

We have been to Hawaii several times and have been to the Islands of Oahu, Maui, Kauai, & Hawaii (the big island). I like each Island in a different way, but by FAR Maui is my favorite.

Oahu...if you stay in Honolulu...its great for visiting the Arizona Memorial, but its crowded. Its a big city on the water...

Maui...my favorite area is on the northwest side from Lahaina north is great...particularly Kaanapali Beach area. Lahaina is an old fishing village and has cute shops, restaurants, and a marina. I DO NOT like Wailea which is in the SW...although its beautiful and there are some POSH hotels and the best golf courses, but there are not that many selections of restaurants. They are building a shopping area by the Wailea Beach Resort and it has new restaurants/shopping there so that helps some. If you go to Maui and do the drive to Hana (it might be kind of long for small kids) stop at Mama's Fish House on the way back. You would need reservations for dinner. It's a great authenic Hawaiian restaurant!

Kauai...beautiful island, slow pace and if you stay at the Marriott Lihue, it has the largest pool in Hawaii. Nice hotel... Kauai has the most rainfall of any island but around Lihue or Popui should be sunny anyway.

Hawaii (the big island)...we stayed at the Hilton Waikiloa Village. This is my recommendation for taking your kids to Hawaii. Although the Island is not nearly as beautiful as Maui or Kauai, the resort would be great for a family. The have great programs for kids, including a "swim with the dolphins" program. The island does not have beaches (its mostly black lava rock) like the other islands, but the hotel has built there own sandy beach area and it is nice because there are no large waves to knock down kids, etc. Also, the hotel is interesting because you take a boat or tram to the building your room is in.

Hope this helps...