hawaii

[jjratfam]

heading to hawaii in march. I'm just wondering about renting a car for the whole trip or just for part of it? thanks for the help.

 

[lovetoscrap]

Are you staying at Aulani?

 

[mrsmorrow]

We went to Hawaii in May, stayed at Aulani and rented a car. I would say to get one for at least part of your stay. Driving to Honolulu/Waikiki is congested and slow going pretty much all of the time but having the car allows you to plan or to be spontaneous. We loved having the car for going to the North Shore, Waimea Bay, Pearl Harbor and Lanakai Beach.

 

[jjratfam]

yes we are staying at aulani for our trip.

 

[lovetoscrap]

I am going to move this to the DVC board where our Aulani discussions are.

 

[TagsMissy]

If you're at Aulani then yes, have a car the whole time.

 

[krisbars]

It depends on how many nights you are staying. We stayed nine nights, and I'm so happy we had a car. The first three nights you can stay exclusively at Aulani and be fine. For our family of four (two parents, an eleven-year-old, and a four-year-old), having a vehicle was fantastic. We could go off-property for food (Costco and organic grocery). We also are big Disney World visitors, so the slow pace eventually got to us. When we explored the island, we had so many cool, random encounters. It is so nice to have a car, and if you're using DVC, there is no charge for parking.

 

[Dean]

heading to hawaii in march. I'm just wondering about renting a car for the whole trip or just for part of it? thanks for the help.

You can do Waikiki without a car other then maybe a 1-2 day rental. I do not believe it's reasonable to stay out in Ko'Olina without a car unless one is just going to hang out at the resort which defeats the purpose for most people.

 

[owensamo]

Looking at car rentals, we're weighing the options for a end-of-trip 2-night stay added just to make our flights home eligible for miles rewards. I priced out a shuttle to and from the airport vs. a 2 day car rental and it's pretty much a wash - if not a little cheaper to rent the car. We don't want a car for those 2 days - the plan is to just enjoy the resort before heading home after 2 weeks in Hawaii (with 7 nights at Aulani in the first week of the vacation) but with free parking at the resort and saving money (if not hassle - I hate the car rental process!), we'll probably end up with a car.

For a longer trip in a DVC unit with a kitchen (or even in a unit with a fridge/microwave), I can't imagine not wanting a car for at least a few days if only to go grocery shopping! But I also can't imagine going all the way to Hawaii and not seeing more of the state and the island. We tend to be on-the-go vacationers, always finding something to do or something to see so for me the prospect of sitting around the resort for days on end just seems wrong! I'm really looking forward to seeing some of the history and culture of the islands - and it seems like it's so much easier - and less expensive - to do it with a rental car.

 

[WDW_Diane]

heading to hawaii in march. I'm just wondering about renting a car for the whole trip or just for part of it? thanks for the help.

You'll need a car when staying at the KoOlina area. You will likely get a better weekly rate than say, 4-5 days with a car. You can walk a few places from Aulani, but if you want to run over to Target or Costco or eat someplace out of Ko Olina (read: cheaper) you will need a car. Give yourself the freedom!

 

[deedisneydream97]

Stalk the dollar site . I was,able to snag 11 days for $170. It was supposed to be an avenger but they were running out of cars. We were upgraded to a jeep. Warning......the pick up is offsite and you need to grab their shuttle. A free dollar express card is a must...there were 20 people on the regular line....I did not have to wait at all. In the future though I will leave hubby at the airport to wait for luggage and then return to airport to pick him up. That is,what we did on return day. Just make sure you follow the directions on the dollar brochure and do NOT follow signs at the airport for car rental return...those signs only pertain to hertz and maybe a couple others!

 

[Disney Dreams]

If you have a Costco membership, be sure to check their car rental deals.


- Dreams