# Hawaii in a year?



## markel (Jun 14, 2012)

I'm in the beginning stages of planning a trip to Hawaii a year from now. I like to think I have a grasp of many types and areas of travel, but I know nothing about Hawaii !! I wonder if anyone could lend some advice and perhaps point me in the right direction. Trying to decide land based vs. cruise and also would like to island hop. Would be staying between 7-14 days. We would be travelling from the east coast so I know airfare is going to be expensive. When is the best time to buy, early or late?  What advice would you give to a first timer who wishes to see some of the islands and spend some quality time on the beaches?

Thanks, Mark


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## DeniseM (Jun 14, 2012)

First of all - Hawaii is a tough exchange, and requires a strong trader, so you need to put your exchange requests in NOW.

Although the islands are close together, you must fly between them and airfare is about $100 one way.  By the time you pack,  check out of your timeshare, drive to the airport, turn in the car, wait for your flight, and do it all over at the other end, changing islands wastes most of a precious day of vacation, so in 7 days I wouldn't visit more than one island, and only 2 islands in 14 days - especially coming from the East Coast.

For a 2 week trip I'd do Oahu - for all the historic things, and Maui - to get away from Oahu!   

For one week I'd do Maui - it has a wide variety of things to do, and you can make a day trip by boat to the island of Lanai or Molokai if you really want to visit and additional island.

What deposits will you use to exchange, and what exchange company?


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## fillde (Jun 14, 2012)

markel said:


> I'm in the beginning stages of planning a trip to Hawaii a year from now. I like to think I have a grasp of many types and areas of travel, but I know nothing about Hawaii !! I wonder if anyone could lend some advice and perhaps point me in the right direction. Trying to decide land based vs. cruise and also would like to island hop. Would be staying between 7-14 days. We would be travelling from the east coast so I know airfare is going to be expensive. When is the best time to buy, early or late?  What advice would you give to a first timer who wishes to see some of the islands and spend some quality time on the beaches?
> 
> Thanks, Mark



Coming from the east coast and staying 7 days is a tease. The flights back and forth would eat into your visiting time and thats not including the added factor of jet lag. Two weeks in my opinion is minimum. To cut down on time switching planes, there is a direct flight Newark to Oahu.

I agree with Denise, Oahu and Maui are two islands to start with. Pearl Harbor on Oahu is a must see. And Maui is to me, Hawaii.

Cruises are nice but it limits your time on each Island.


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## DeniseM (Jun 14, 2012)

Here is a 7 day trip from the East Coast:

Day 1: fly
Day 2: recover from jet lag, get groceries, rent beach equipment, etc.
Day 3: vacation
Day 4: vacation
Day 5: vacation
Day 6: vacation
Day 7: fly

So essentially you send a lot of time on an airplane and spend a lot of money for a 4 day vacation.  If you change islands in the middle of the week, you lose another day!


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## markel (Jun 14, 2012)

DeniseM said:


> Here is a 7 day trip from the East Coast:
> 
> Day 1: fly
> Day 2: recover from jet lag, get groceries, rent beach equipment, etc.
> ...




OK, sold on two weeks. Now I feel like things are starting to come together!!! Also, like the idea of non stop from Newark. I'm only a few hrs. away from there. Better for me from BWI, IAD, DCA. but Newark is doable.

Thanks so far for the help. I am learning.

Mark


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## artringwald (Jun 14, 2012)

We like cruises (just got back from one), but do not recommend them in Hawaii. You'll miss some of the best experiences if you have to get back to the ship in time to sail to the next port, and you'll have to hang out with thousands of others trying to do the same excursions.

The hardest part of planning a trip is picking which island(s) you want to visit. *Oahu *with Waikiki Beach, Diamond Head, and Pearl Harbor, is by far the most popular and most populated island. *Maui * with so many condos close to nice beaches, this is the second most popular island. *Big Island *is where you’ll have to go if you want to see lava flowing or see snow. *Kauai *is the oldest of the major islands, and offers magnificent scenery, lush vegetation, beautiful waterfalls, the spectacular Waimea Canyon. *Molokai *and *Lanai *are good if all you want to do is relax. They're not very populated, and don't have many hotels, restaurants, or attractions to choose from. 

To help you decide which island, you can try this scorecard: http://gohawaii.about.com/od/hawaiivacationplanner/a/island_scores.htm

You can download free planners for each island from: http://www.gohawaii.com/


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## Kauai Kid (Jun 14, 2012)

Hawaiian Air has a new non stop from New York to Honolulu.
I'd spend several days to see the sites especially including Pearl Harbor, Big Mo, take a Roberts of Hawaii Big Bus tour of Oahu, and then fly to Maui if you want some action or Kauai if you really need to recover from work.

10 days absolute minimum and you will regret it when you leave.
14 days better and you will regret it when you leave.

Don't worry, you will be back, guaranteed.  No one comes to Hawaii once.

About the cruises around the island.  The port on Kauai is NaWilili harbor and I saw tourists standing at the bottom of the gangplank waiting for a bus to take them shopping to K Mart and to Hilo Hatties.

When it is noon in NYC it is 6 am on the islands.

Sterling


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## Tamaradarann (Jun 14, 2012)

*Even two weeks is too short*



Kauai Kid said:


> Hawaiian Air has a new non stop from New York to Honolulu.
> I'd spend several days to see the sites especially including Pearl Harbor, Big Mo, take a Roberts of Hawaii Big Bus tour of Oahu, and then fly to Maui if you want some action or Kauai if you really need to recover from work.
> 
> 10 days absolute minimum and you will regret it when you leave.
> ...



We stayed in Hawaii for 2 weeks the first time and I swore we wouldn't go back for less than a month.  When my boss told me he didn't want me to take more than two weeks vacation I told him that this would be my last year and I retired at the end of 2008.  Went there 9 weeks in the winter of 2009 and regretted leaving, 10 weeks in the winter of 2010, 12 weeks in the winter of 2011, 14 weeks in winter and early spring of 2012 and still regretted leaving, and now plan on 15 weeks in the winter and spring of 2013.  You can never get enough.


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## Kauai Kid (Jun 14, 2012)

I bought the book moving to Hawaii and from the title thought it was the Hawaiian Islands.  Instead, it was only the Big Island.  I would only consider the north shore of Kauai for a permanent move.

Sterling


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## slip (Jun 14, 2012)

Don't rule out two weeks on one island, gives you a reason to go back to see
Another island. My next trip is my first two island trip and that's only because
I can't go a year without Kauai.


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## slip (Jun 14, 2012)

I have that same book. It was a let down being mostly about the Big Island.
I really think I wouldn't have a problem living anywhere on Kauai but DW likes
To be walking distance to a small town.


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## Tamaradarann (Jun 15, 2012)

*We mainly Stay on Oahu without a car*



Tamaradarann said:


> We stayed in Hawaii for 2 weeks the first time and I swore we wouldn't go back for less than a month.  When my boss told me he didn't want me to take more than two weeks vacation I told him that this would be my last year and I retired at the end of 2008.  Went there 9 weeks in the winter of 2009 and regretted leaving, 10 weeks in the winter of 2010, 12 weeks in the winter of 2011, 14 weeks in winter and early spring of 2012 and still regretted leaving, and now plan on 15 weeks in the winter and spring of 2013.  You can never get enough.



We mainly stay on Oahu without a car to save money on renting cars, parking, gas, and stress.  It also enables us to party without worrying about drinking and driving.  All the inlands are beautiful and you can't go wrong with staying on any one of them, however, for a long stay Oahu is our choice to save money as well as a wide range of activities many which are free.


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## ouaifer (Jun 15, 2012)

Kauai Kid said:


> When it is noon in NYC it is 6 am on the islands.
> 
> Sterling



_Ah...not exactly.  Because HI does not adjust their "clock" for different times of the year, HI is 6 hours earlier (on the East coast) during DST (daylight savings time); 5 hours earlier during EST._


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## winger (Jun 23, 2012)

slip said:


> Don't rule out two weeks on one island, gives you a reason to go back to see
> Another island.  ...



This was early our thought when we made a goal about 5 yrs ago of hitting the three islands of Oahu, Maui, and Kauai (in this order). We are finishing up this ' journey' this coming Thanksgiving!  Two weeks on each island, AND we still missed ALOT!  So, we have already made plans to exchange back to the Islands in 2014 (request already placed!).  On that trip, we may consider two islands since by then we have 1st hand experience to make a better decision.  But, a two week stay on one island (even for us with direct flights from the West coast) is what we recommend, especially if you are taking young children along (ours were pre-K and K when we made our first visit).


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## BevL (Jun 23, 2012)

Another vote for one island and not moving.  We did the mid-trip move but it's not like in other areas where you simply pack up the car with your groceries and stuff and drive to another resort.  It's a full day of cleaning out your timeshare, including chucking most of your groceries, then on a plane, then another day getting settled in with grocery shopping, etc.  We did it once and won't do it again.

And I can't even imagine going to Hawaii for only a week and we live on the west coast.  We feel the same about going to Florida, a week with the time change and flight length, usually with a connection, is not long enough.


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## Neesie (Jun 24, 2012)

Kauai Kid said:


> About the cruises around the island.  The port on Kauai is NaWilili harbor and I saw tourists standing at the bottom of the gangplank waiting for a bus to take them shopping to K Mart and to Hilo Hatties.
> 
> 
> Sterling



I did a lot of reading before booking; I chose to stay two weeks in Kauai (the Garden Isle) because night clubs and shopping are never part of our vacation plans.  And we didn't go to K Mart or Hilo Hatties even once!


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## csalter2 (Jun 24, 2012)

I am escorting three friends of mine to Hawaii next summer.  They have never been before and are excited to go.  When I asked them what they wanted to do or see, I realized that if you have no frame of reference it's really hard to know since you don't know what there is to know.  Thus, I am going to do the horrible task of planning their trip. 

They are coming from New York City and Atlanta. The first thing I told them was that they need to plan a minimum of two weeks. We placed a travel day on each end of the trip so they will really have two full weeks.  Once that was out the way, I decided for them to see 3 islands because chances are they will never come back again because of distance and other places they need to get off their bucket list. 

The three islands I thought would be good for them to visit are the Big Island, Maui and Oahu. We will do 3/4 days on Maur and Big Island and then end with a week on Oahu.  I believe they should be able to have a great time.  I certainly plan on having a lot of fun.


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## csalter2 (Jun 24, 2012)

*Looking for excuses*



Tamaradarann said:


> We stayed in Hawaii for 2 weeks the first time and I swore we wouldn't go back for less than a month.  When my boss told me he didn't want me to take more than two weeks vacation I told him that this would be my last year and I retired at the end of 2008.  Went there 9 weeks in the winter of 2009 and regretted leaving, 10 weeks in the winter of 2010, 12 weeks in the winter of 2011, 14 weeks in winter and early spring of 2012 and still regretted leaving, and now plan on 15 weeks in the winter and spring of 2013.  You can never get enough.



You were just looking for excuses to avoid New York winters with all of those weeks.


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## daventrina (Jun 24, 2012)

Kauai Kid said:


> 10 days absolute minimum and you will regret it when you leave.
> 14 days better and you will regret it when you leave.
> Sterling


21 days still better and you will still regret it when you leave.  
We've been fortunate enough to do that three times. Always with two islands. 
We saved weeks and vacation.  The first time was two weeks on  Maui and a week on Kauai. Twice with a week on the Big Island and two weeks on Maui.
I think we are addicted.

To add to what Denise said...
We tend to now like to book a hotel for the night before with parking.
That way when we get to the hotel the night before the flight to the Islands, we are already sort of on vacation. All of the getting ready to go stuff is now complete and all that is left is to get to the airport and get on the plane. We can now decompress and be ready to hit the Island ready to enjoy.

We like to take a light weight cooler bag and grab enough stuff from Costco, Walmart, or Kmart to get by for a couple of days so we don't have to worry about that. Yes it is kind of a pain to make that stop, but we try to arrive on the Islands before or around noon and we generally can't check in till 3-4 so we can effectively use that time to get stuff out of the way so we don't have to do it later.

We try to arrange for our scuba equipment that we will need before we leave home so that all we have to do when we get there is give them a credit card and a copy of our "C" card and grab our tanks. Sometimes we'll stop and do this on the way to the resort, otherwise we'll do it after a leisurely breakfast the next morning. We generally never dive the day after traveling. The body really need to recover from the jet lag to reduce the chance of getting bent. We always plan an easy dive for the first dive just to ease in to the underwater world as it has usually been a while sense our last dive.

We can now spend the next day recovering from jet lag more effectively. Don't have to get food, 

Thanks to some things we learned at Auntie Aloha's luau breakfast, study our guide books and the net and we make a list of things we'd like to do with our time on the Islands in advance. We sketch them onto a calendar. Many times they get moved around, but at least we have a starting point. We put a date or two on the calendar to hang at the beach or the resort. There are two things that we don't spend a lot of time doing anymore.
Asking "What do you want to do today? I don't know, what do you want to do?"  or later asking "Why are we doing this, I don't know, I thought that you wanted to do it..." 

With the new weight limits on the airlines, a day or two before we leave we ship home our books, dive weights and Hawaiian Sun along with other heavy things to give us more weight to pack our coffee, salt, rum, mac nuts etc in our checked bags.

Our time on the Islands is expense and precious, and we've found that this helps us get the most of our vacation time.

To help ease the long flight from the east coast, you might consider getting Mark Twain's Letters From Hawaii (in book from or on tape).


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## Tamaradarann (Jun 25, 2012)

*Hawaii in the Winter*



csalter2 said:


> You were just looking for excuses to avoid New York winters with all of those weeks.



There is no question that spending the winter in Hawaii beats spending a winter in NY.  However, we live on Long Island where we need a car to exist.  We have a 2 hour trip to NYC and a major expense in traveling there by train or car.  We can live in timeshares in Honolulu without a car expense and burden.  We can walk to most things and take a bus for $2.50 to anything else we want to do.  It is about a 1/2 hour by bus to downtown Honolulu to see shows and activities.  We can drink and party at home or when we are out without worrying about driving, parking, and the expense of a car.  

We would move to Honolulu in a minute if we could afford a 2 BR apartment in Waikiki with what we could get for our house.


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## csalter2 (Jun 25, 2012)

Tamaradarann said:


> There is no question that spending the winter in Hawaii beats spending a winter in NY.  However, we live on Long Island where we need a car to exist.  We have a 2 hour trip to NYC and a major expense in traveling there by train or car.  We can live in timeshares in Honolulu without a car expense and burden.  We can walk to most things and take a bus for $2.50 to anything else we want to do.  It is about a 1/2 hour by bus to downtown Honolulu to see shows and activities.  We can drink and party at home or when we are out without worrying about driving, parking, and the expense of a car.
> 
> We would move to Honolulu in a minute if we could afford a 2 BR apartment in Waikiki with what we could get for our house.



Oh, I understand. I grew up in the Bronx and went to high school in Manhattan. The conveniences of living in the city are great. My son actually goes to Stony Brook on Long Island. He thought it would be easy to get to NYC. That's about a 2 hour train ride into the city. 

So I know that you are loving those months in Honolulu. Enjoy that time you're there. Do you think you would like it as much if you were there permanently? I don't think it would be the same. Right now it's an escape to paradise. You might feel as if you have become trapped in paradise.


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## MichaelColey (Jun 25, 2012)

Others have addressed some of your other questions, but I'd like to give some advice on this one:





markel said:


> We would be travelling from the east coast so I know airfare is going to be expensive. When is the best time to buy, early or late?


NEITHER.  Once you know your dates (or if you're flexible), set up an alert (like on FareCompare.com) and watch for a fare sale.  Be ready to make the decision quick, because the best fares typically only last a matter of days or even hours.  A few years ago, we were able to get $273 round trips from DFW to HNL.

As for the other advice, I mostly agree with the consensus:

* Cruise?  No.

* Length? The longer the better.  If you can do 2 weeks, do it.  If you can do more, you won't regret it.

* Island Hopping?  I wouldn't spend less than a week on any island.  You lose a day and incur $100+ per person in flight expenses for each hop.  I wouldn't be opposed to two islands in two weeks, though.  Every island is unique.

* Ongoing Searchs?  Definitely start searching now.  Depending on which exchange company and which island you're going to, some exchanges can be hard.  RCI has great inventory on Kauai and the Big Island.  If you're doing two (or more) weeks, try for a difficult exchange first (especially if your dates are flexibile) then aim for an easier exchange for the second week.  I'm not as familiar with II inventory yet, but Starwood or Marriott preference would help tremendously there.


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## KevJan (Jun 25, 2012)

Be sure to get your "Revealed" books and study _beforeyou go so you won't waste precious time figuring out where to go. You may want to try the public library and do some homework before you decide which islands._


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## cissy (Jun 25, 2012)

*Just back from Hawaii*

I just returned from a 12 day trip.  First week at Ko'Olina on Oahu, and 4 days on Kauai.  I agree that I really needed two full weeks.  I've been to the islands many, many times, so knew what I wanted to do, or not.  My friend had never been, so she did more of the touristy things.  The one thing you might want to reconsider is the non-stop flight from Newark.  I flew from Boston to DFW, then on to Honolulu.  Interisland flights between Honolulu and Kauai.  Even though I flew first class, I found the DFW/HNL leg to be very long.  I once flew nonstop between Chicago and Maui, and would never do that again.  It may just be that I'm older now, but I prefer flying to the west coast, then on to Hawaii.  Most people feel that Maui is the best, but I actually prefer all of the other islands.  It all depends on what your interests are.  All islands are great.
The only suggestion I would offer is that you don't try to do too much.  Part of the joy of Hawaii is the laid back atmosphere.  Just enjoy being there and soaking up the beauty.  Have fun!


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## MichaelColey (Jun 25, 2012)

cissy said:


> Most people feel that Maui is the best, but I actually prefer all of the other islands. It all depends on what your interests are. All islands are great.


It's amazing that everyone's favorite island varies so much. We had a thread about it last year, and each island has quite a few people who classify it as their favorite.  In that thread, the overwhelming favorite was Kauai, with Oahu being the least favorite.


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## Fisch (Jun 25, 2012)

cissy said:


> The only suggestion I would offer is that you don't try to do too much.  Part of the joy of Hawaii is the laid back atmosphere.  Just enjoy being there and soaking up the beauty.  Have fun!



I second that point...
if you do too much it will like the Griswold's visiting the Grand Canyon.


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## lprstn (Jun 25, 2012)

If you have teenagers, my teens loved Maui the best since there were more teens there age there. We stayed at the Westin and Marriotts. 

Also, if you don't see something you like with timeshare you can always do www.airbnb.com which has some good deals.


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## daventrina (Jun 29, 2012)

lprstn said:


> If you have teenagers, my teens loved Maui...


Our Parents took our Kids to the Big Island for a week when they were teens. They were so happy when the got to Maui. Said the Big Island was boring. While they did we didn't find that to be the case when we made it there a couple of years later. I'd bet they wouldn't find it that way either now that they are older.


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## markel (Jun 29, 2012)

Thanks to everyone with the responses. I've been reading them and taking them all in. Always nice to ask those who have actually travelled there. It's been a big help so far.


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## danb (Jul 2, 2012)

*Hawaii next year*

We flew in yesterday and it was our first flight on Hawiaan Airlines. Non stop from JFK. Great flight and they fed us twice. Great service great plane and nice trip. Left JFK at 10:00 and arrived in NHL at 2:45. 
Staying in Lanikai this time, waited too long to get time share reservation. On to Maui next week to celebrate our 40th.


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## daventrina (Jul 2, 2012)

danb said:


> On to Maui next week to celebrate our 40th.


Congratulations


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## Tamaradarann (Jul 5, 2012)

*Trapped in Paradise?*



csalter2 said:


> Oh, I understand. I grew up in the Bronx and went to high school in Manhattan. The conveniences of living in the city are great. My son actually goes to Stony Brook on Long Island. He thought it would be easy to get to NYC. That's about a 2 hour train ride into the city.
> 
> So I know that you are loving those months in Honolulu. Enjoy that time you're there. Do you think you would like it as much if you were there permanently? I don't think it would be the same. Right now it's an escape to paradise. You might feel as if you have become trapped in paradise.



Please trap me in Paradise.  I retired from Stony Brook University and live 15 minutes away.  Take away my car, suspend my drivers license, and don't let me have money for an airline ticket back to the mainland.  Just make me walk or take a bus in Paradise.  What did I do wrong to have such penalties put upon me.  I had a good retirement system, saved additional for retirement, retired early and bought timeshares.  Their making me stay there forever.  Poor me.


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## Tamaradarann (Jul 5, 2012)

*Favorite Hawaiian Island*



MichaelColey said:


> It's amazing that everyone's favorite island varies so much. We had a thread about it last year, and each island has quite a few people who classify it as their favorite.  In that thread, the overwhelming favorite was Kauai, with Oahu being the least favorite.



My take on the Hawaiian Islands is that they are all great.  If I was going to rent a car I don't have a favorite island since they all provide a great vacation.  With a car Oahu is fine, but I wouldn't pick a Waikiki location since I feel that having a car there is a disability not an asset.  I believe that the survey indicated that Oahu is the least favorite because many people insist on having a car in Waikiki.  Renting a car for a day to tour the island is enough.  I would concur that staying in Waikiki with a car makes Oahu my least favorite island.  My position on this issue is this.  If you are going to rent a car for your entire stay why would you want to stay in Waikiki where the nightly parking is expensive, the traffic is horrendous, and the parking when you go to various places in Honolulu can also be challenge.  If you must have a car go to a different island.

Waikiki on Oahu without a car is by far our favorite place in the world.


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## csalter2 (Jul 6, 2012)

*Car ia no problem for me.*

My timeshare is at Ko Olina so a car is a necessity. However, I still go to Waikiki because I like the activity. I have never had such a difficult time that I could not find free parking even during peak times of the day and year. 

I like going to other parts of Oahu too like the North Shore. You do need a car just as you do in Maui, Kauai and the Big Island.  You just gotta do what you gotta do.


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## artringwald (Jul 6, 2012)

*Honolulu Traffic*

Who has the worst traffic in the USA? Honolulu. I missed the article when it first came out. We love staying in Waikiki because of the nice beach, wide selection of restaurants, shopping within walking distance and great hotels, but Honolulu is a big city. If we rent a car at all, we only get one for a day. We stay there 3 or 4 nights max, and then we're off to Kauai.


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## Tamaradarann (Jul 6, 2012)

*Ditch the car and stay longer or go to another island*



artringwald said:


> Who has the worst traffic in the USA? Honolulu. I missed the article when it first came out. We love staying in Waikiki because of the nice beach, wide selection of restaurants, shopping within walking distance and great hotels, but Honolulu is a big city. If we rent a car at all, we only get one for a day. We stay there 3 or 4 nights max, and then we're off to Kauai.



I totally agree with your thougths.  You don't need a car in Waikiki and if you "must" have a car you should rent one for a day to tour the island or go to another island or stay in another part of Oahu such as Ko'Olina where you need a car.  A car in an inconvienience and unnecessary expense in Waikiki.


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## Tamaradarann (Jul 6, 2012)

*Ko Olina is beautiful but it is not Waikiki*



csalter2 said:


> My timeshare is at Ko Olina so a car is a necessity. However, I still go to Waikiki because I like the activity. I have never had such a difficult time that I could not find free parking even during peak times of the day and year.
> 
> I like going to other parts of Oahu too like the North Shore. You do need a car just as you do in Maui, Kauai and the Big Island.  You just gotta do what you gotta do.



I have been to Ko Olina and it is beautiful, but it is not Waikiki.  You do need a car and it is a long drive to Waikiki.  That's why we own Hilton to stay at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and not need a car.  No rental car expense, no parking fee, no gas cost( is it $10 a gallon yet), no drinking a driving concerns.


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## MichaelColey (Jul 6, 2012)

Even if we stay in Waikiki, we get out to the rest of the island as much as we can, so a car is fairly essential.  To us, Waikiki/Honolulu isn't what we picture when we think of Hawaii.  Almost everything else on Oahu and all of the other islands is.


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## Tamaradarann (Jul 7, 2012)

*Why stay in Waikiki?*



MichaelColey said:


> Even if we stay in Waikiki, we get out to the rest of the island as much as we can, so a car is fairly essential.  To us, Waikiki/Honolulu isn't what we picture when we think of Hawaii.  Almost everything else on Oahu and all of the other islands is.



I totally respect and understand your feelings about Waikiki not being what you picture when you think of Hawaii.  My thoughts are, if you like the other islands and the other parts of Oahu where you need a car, why stay in Waikiki?   It is more difficult to trade into, more expensive and difficult to park, and it has more traffic to drive in than the other islands.  We have been to 5 islands and love them all.  However, we love Waikiki the best because we don't sacrifice our life style and fun while we don't have the burden of a car.


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## csalter2 (Jul 8, 2012)

*Driving No Problem*



Tamaradarann said:


> I have been to Ko Olina and it is beautiful, but it is not Waikiki.  You do need a car and it is a long drive to Waikiki.  That's why we own Hilton to stay at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and not need a car.  No rental car expense, no parking fee, no gas cost( is it $10 a gallon yet), no drinking a driving concerns.



The 20 or so minutes to Waikiki for me is not a probem. Remember, I live in southern California. 30 minutes is a short hike.


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## Michigan Czar (Jul 8, 2012)

I do not picture Waikiki as Hawaii, I have spent a couple unexpected nights there when we got bumped before New Years on our connection home from Maui. I much prefer Ko Olina along with the cost of a rental car to see the rest of the island vs. Waikiki. To me Waikiki is New York city on a beach.


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## Tamaradarann (Jul 8, 2012)

*Drive to Waikiki from Ko'Olina*



csalter2 said:


> The 20 or so minutes to Waikiki for me is not a probem. Remember, I live in southern California. 30 minutes is a short hike.



I wouldn't want to be driving with you when you make it from Ko'Olina to Waikiki in 20 minutes.  Furthermore, I wouldn't want to be driving with me after drinking in Waikiki and having to drive back to Ko'Olina.  We have seen it take more than 20 minutes to get out of the parking garage on Lewers in Waikiki.


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## Tamaradarann (Jul 8, 2012)

*Cost of Rental car for 100 nights can get expensive*



Michigan Czar said:


> I do not picture Waikiki as Hawaii, I have spent a couple unexpected nights there when we got bumped before New Years on our connection home from Maui. I much prefer Ko Olina along with the cost of a rental car to see the rest of the island vs. Waikiki. To me Waikiki is New York city on a beach.



We stay in Hawaii for about 100 nights a year.  Therefore, the cost of a rental car in considerable.  However, I must agree with your comment "To me 
Waikiki is New York City on a beach".  When I describe what we love about both Waikiki and Miami South Beach to other people I say it is like taking Manhattan and putting it on Fire Island which is a barrier island off Long Island where we live.


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