Hawaii

[magicmouse2]

I am planning a future trip to Hawaii, and would like to stay mostly on Maui. I am interested in seeing Oahu but after watching 'Dog the Bounty Hunter' and seeing all the drug addicts I am a a bit frightened to go there!

 

[barb45]

magicmouse2 - my sentiments exactly. I would like to hear from more people who have stayed (or better yet lived) in Oahu. We loved Maui but were not thrilled with the Sands of Kahana. From my research since our visit, I have learned it is a mixed bag depending on the unit you get. A good place to check reviews is tripadvisor.com

 

[rocketriter]

Remember that Oahu is much larger than Honolulu. Honolulu, like any large city, has both wonderful and scuzzy areas. But around the rest of the island there is much to see and do that has nothing to do with druggies or other urban ills. Dean's suggestion that you include Oahu in your first trip is very good; you'll see and touch the history of the islands and how they went from kingdom to statehood. After that, you can go to Maui for tropical parties or the Big Island for adventure on II trades. With a bit of finagling you can also go to Molokai for breathtaking views and tropical solitude. Every island is different and none is worth skipping.

 

[magicmouse2]

How do you travel from island to island and how much does it cost ?

 

[dianeschlicht]

How do you travel from island to island and how much does it cost ?

We always make air reservations for interisland travel at the same time we book our other airfare. Interisland airfare is resonable, and the planes are more like buses. I believe Aloha is the name of the airline.

 

[magicmouse2]

Thanks I am planning on going sometime in 2007

 

[jekjones1558]

Inter-island flights are on Aloha or Hawaiian Airlines. They are short (25 minutes or so) and tickets are about $100 (unless you can find a special deal). The cost can add up if multiple people are doing multiple islands. Last March we booked our outbound flight from home to Maui and our homebound flight from the Big Island to home. That way we only had to pay for 1 inter-island flight.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Inter-island flights are on Aloha or Hawaiian Airlines. They are short (25 minutes or so) and tickets are about $100 (unless you can find a special deal). The cost can add up if multiple people are doing multiple islands. Last March we booked our outbound flight from home to Maui and our homebound flight from the Big Island to home. That way we only had to pay for 1 inter-island flight.

That's a tactic we have used too. Last time though, we started and ended on Oahu because we had a package deal from NWA that included a few nights of hotel to get the better airfare.

 

[barb45]

If you were to just spend a few nights on Oahu where would you stay? Can you suggest an area and hotel? I'm starting to get the impression that all the resorts are in Waikiki....

 

[TnRobin]

I am planning a future trip to Hawaii, and would like to stay mostly on Maui. I am interested in seeing Oahu but after watching 'Dog the Bounty Hunter' and seeing all the drug addicts I am a a bit frightened to go there!

Keep in mind there is that type of thing going on in all states everywhere. Yes, even Orlando.

We spent a week in Oahu and stayed on Waikiki Beach. We did not see anything like you see on Dog. I was more worried about the resident beaches where people set up camp and live on the beach. These were on the North Shore area (miles West of where they surf). I felt completely safe on the East end of North Shore.

I agree that Wakiki/Honolulu is only a very small portion of the island. The North Shore and Leeward side of the island are beautiful. Waimea Valley is absolutely stunning. Many of your lush Hollywood movies are filmed on the Leeward side. I seem to remember being shown where the scences from the helicopter in Jurassic Park were film.

Waimea Falls, North Shore, Oahu

Byodo-in Temple, Oahu

 

[abamick]

This information is great. Thanks to all of you! After reading all the posts, I 'm thinking that not trading DVC points for this trip would be the way to go. Maybe I should try to rent them and pay cash? I went online last night and I could get air/hotel packages fairly reasonable.....for Hawaii, that is.

 

[dianeschlicht]

This information is great. Thanks to all of you! After reading all the posts, I 'm thinking that not trading DVC points for this trip would be the way to go. Maybe I should try to rent them and pay cash? I went online last night and I could get air/hotel packages fairly reasonable.....for Hawaii, that is.

If you have a very specific time you need to go, then I think that is the best tactic. When we have traded through DVC, we have been VERY open in our request and didn't make flight plans until after the exchange was made. You might also think of joining TUG (Timeshare Users Group) and getting access to a direct trade with someone who owns where you want to stay.

 

[abamick]

Yes, our timing is very tight. A two week time frame the end of June and beginning of July '06. Our sons' sports keep us home the rest of the time. As soon as one son finishes baseball, the other one starts football.

 

[jekjones1558]

We loved the private condos we rented (hard to stay in hotel rooms after being spoiled by DVC!) We used this site:
http://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals/usa/hawaii
and got great units on Maui and Big Island. (If you are interested in renting 1 bedrooms, e-mail me and I will reply with specifics.) Just another option you may want to consider.