Hawaii trip?

[buzz2400]

I won 4 nights at hotel in Oahu but does not include airfare. I checked airfare and it will cost about 1,000 per person. My son really wants to go but I am thinking of turning down prize. Is it really worth going to Hawaii. Any comments would be appreciated.

 

[bcwife76]

I love Hawaii! But it's very expensive and for you the flight is LONG. From Vancouver it's 5+ hours direct, no wonder it's so expensive from CT. Plus 4 nights isn't long enough, esp how far you are travelling from. Personally unless you can afford to add more nights on at that hotel (or a cheaper one) and make the airfare worth it, I wouldn't bother.

 

[Donnainnj]

I would not go to Hawaii for just 4 days, I don't think I would go for less then 10, maybe 14 nights from the East Coast. We are going this summer and plan on 3 weeks. It is a long expensive flight. I also would not only go to Oahu. That was our least favorite island of the 3 we went to on our first trip.
Donna

 

[tina.tina]

In the past, I have priced airfare cheaper by separating the trip- pricing airfare from my home to LA and then separately pricing airfare from LA to Hawaii.

 

[dreaming4disney]

I agree that I wouldn't go if you couldn't stay for at least 7-10 days. If your in CT then check airfare from JFK. Hawaiian Air flys out of there- we paid about $850 pp last year.

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

OP, do you have the option to add more days?

Would you have the opportunity to go to Hawaii another time?

I would be tempted to go. I probably wouldn't want Togo for only four days but if I had the hotel I just might.

If I didn't have another chance I could see to go. I'd rather go somewhere for a little than not go.

But I'm also headed from Orlando to Tokyo for a 5 day trip.

 

[xlxo]

Hmm...

• was this a prize from the office? Or something from a telemarketer? Did you apply for a contest? Is it a timeshare where everyone is a winner and you need to sit through a marketing presentation (eg DVC)
• air fare excluded? makes me wonder how legit the prize is. Are there airport transfers? Or do you need to pay for rental car to get to some remote part of Oahu island? Are there hidden taxes which can be the same as the cost of the hotel itself?
• which hotel is this? Hotel quality and location (beaches? Waikiki?) can provide the real value of the prize? Aulani?
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ajSOj4kntw&list=PLflf8xbnbx66r2Qr2RQVIiIAPWKLD2yzp
• is there limitation on which dates you can go and when does it expire?
• 4 days? I would do Polynesian village day 1, dole plantation day2, pearl harbour day 3.
• if you have to buy your own plane ticket, you have control on when you land and when you leave by staying at different hotel that fits your budget. Here's a budget hotel I stayed at... enter your desired travel dates to get an idea of what it would cost you to stay extra or possibly compare the prize winning...
  http://www.booking.com/hotel/us/waikiki-sand-villa.en-gb.html
• After Oahu, I recommend making a pitstop on the Big Island to see the volcanos. Maui is popular for beaches. Kauai for the beauty.
• The day my 4 day ended, I'm walking over to the Pride of America for an inter island cruise for a week. There's also one-way cruises from Oahu to the mainland.

 

[buzz2400]

It is the embassy suites on Waikiki beach. I won it by entering a contest. It is not a timeshare. I could add days if I want. My son wants to go so bad but I am reluctant because I would have to do the planning and the plane flight is so long. Keel up the comments.

 

[danygirl]

I love Hawaii and Oahu !
The embassy suites has free breakfast and some kind of evening reception and is close enough to the beach in Waikiki.
I would want to stay more than 4 days, in my experience it is not worth it for less than ten days due to jet lag and travel time.

If you can afford the air I would go. Spend t

 

[dpswift]

If you can afford the airfare I would say go for it. Life is so uncertain. Will you get another chance. Now that 4 of my 5 kids are grown I regret not doing more trips with them.

 

[lurkernj]

I guess it depends on your financial situation. I'm from the East coast too, and we've been to the various Hawaii islands on 3 occasions. It is a really long flight, normally pretty expensive(though we've managed to get there with miles so far), and just too much for only 4 nights.

Personally, if you have the means to do so, I would suggest flying into Oahu, spending the free nights there, taking an interisland flight to another island(maui is our favorite, though Big Island and Kauai have a lot to offer), renting a condo for a week, then flying from that island back to the east coast (no need to go back to Oahu unless you want to).

 

[bear_mom]

I'm not sure I would go for 4 nights. The first day is eaten up by travel, so you can't count that day.

If you can afford the flights and you can add on days, then I would go. Hawaii was a totally different type of vacation for us, very relaxing and was a great recharge.

 

[davedmaine]

I won 4 nights at hotel in Oahu but does not include airfare. I checked airfare and it will cost about 1,000 per person. My son really wants to go but I am thinking of turning down prize. Is it really worth going to Hawaii. Any comments would be appreciated.

Sounds like you won the privilege to sit through a timeshare presentation?

 

[crisi]

Don't forget you'll pay taxes on the prize - in the end you may be out more money than if you booked a trip.

If you want to go - consider flying to Seattle or San Francisco and spending two days there, then flying to Hawaii. You can often get wonderful deals out of West Coast airports - and a four hour flight is doable. Repeat coming back.

 

[buzz2400]

I am really considering turning down the prize. I would be able to add more days but it just seems after I pay for the air flight, additional hotels, luggage fees, taxes on the prize, etc., this "vacation" will be very expensive. Thanks for the replies.

 

[soccerchick]

Hawaii is expensive. You need airfare, room and car. After that, you can eat frugally, or not. You can buy souvenirs, or not, and you can do free things (beaches, hikes) or expensive activities (boat trips, zip line, luaus). If Hawaii is something that you've wanted to do, price out a trip with the prize and price it out going on your own. The best airfare we ever got was $700 round trip. Some people have good luck with Alaskan airlines, but they didn't have flights that worked for us. We usually fly American into Lihue.

Depending on how long the prize is good for, you might be able to save money and do the four days on Oahu combined with a week or so on another island (Kauai, Maui or Big Island). For me, four days on Oahu would be more than enough.

There are condos, VRBO and lots of other options. We did Priceline for Waikiki and got a good deal.

You will really need a car on any island. Too much beauty to miss. If you want a resort-only vacation where you don't need a car, go to an island in the Caribbean where safety might be an issue off the resort. Those are pretty cheap.

I've been to Hawaii many times. The shortest trip was one week and I vowed never again for that short of a trip (I'm also east coast). As a pp stated, day one is eaten with travel. With time change from east coast, you'll be getting up early and struggling to stay awake the first few days.

Check out TripAdvisor for lots of good info.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[AquaDame]

Yes, Hawaii is worth it, but airfare and food are the expensive portions of the trip - the hotel is, barring a 5 star resort choice, the easy part. I would decline but go when you want to instead and can stay longer.

 

[aclov]

I've been to Hawaii 3xs, Oahu twice and would go back in a heartbeat but as others have stated you need more than 4 nights and airfare is expensive and long flight.

 

[xlxo]

It is the embassy suites on Waikiki beach. I won it by entering a contest. It is not a timeshare. I could add days if I want. My son wants to go so bad but I am reluctant because I would have to do the planning and the plane flight is so long. Keel up the comments.

Nice looking hotel...
http://www.booking.com/hotel/us/embassy-suites-waikiki-beach-walk.en-gb.html#tab-reviews

Good reviews.... Looks like the prize is worth about $1000 for a 4 night stay. If you go... I would extend the stay with a cruise or inter-island activities.

 

[Patience]

If you want to go - consider flying to Seattle or San Francisco and spending two days there, then flying to Hawaii. You can often get wonderful deals out of West Coast airports - and a four hour flight is doable. Repeat coming back.

We are planning a trip to Hawaii in May, 2016 when our oldest child graduates from college. We live on the east coast and are considering doing this to break up the trip and it looks like it may save us some money on airfare.