# The things we'll do to get to Hawaii



## dougp26364 (Mar 28, 2013)

First there was all the FF miles we had to accumulate to upgrade to first class seats on 4 of the 6 flights to get there. Of course, there's the 2 changes of planes both going and coming home. Then there's the 6 hour layover in Chicago. There's the 15 hours of travel time plus a huge time swing that goes along with traveling that far. There's booking an extra night so that we'll remain comfortable while waiting for our 8:30 PM flight home. Finally there's the late night arrival of 10:30 PM, which translates to 1:30 AM back home. All this just to spend 7 nights in paradise.


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## hypnotiq (Mar 28, 2013)

After reading all that, I'm glad Maui is a short 4.5hr flight for us. 

enjoy the trip!


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## DaveNV (Mar 28, 2013)

It's nowhere near that difficult for me, but even so, I won't go to Hawaii for less than two weeks at a time. If I'm spending airfare dollars (or FF miles) I want to make sure I have enough time on the ground to justify the expense.

I admire your fortitude. 

Dave


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## MOXJO7282 (Mar 28, 2013)

It used to be so easy to get FF to Hawaii and we've been very lucky and made 5 trips from the east coast 1st class for the 4 of us. 

I remember getting 70k FF seats the first 2 trips in the 763s with the flat sleepers and we were in heaven. Gradually they made it harder and harder to get 4 in the good planes.

Now they make it next to impossible to those seats without bankrupting my miles account. All they release now are 757 1st class that are barely better than coach.


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## artringwald (Mar 28, 2013)

Northwest used to have non-stops from Minneapolis to Honolulu. Those flights ended not too long after Delta bought them out. We got a good deal on Alaska Airlines this year, but we had a 15 hour layover on the way there, and a 5 hour layover on the way back. We also like to book an extra day so we're not homeless from 11 AM to 11:00 PM. This year we were fortunate that the condo rental agency let us book an extra 1/2 day in advance. 

Even with all the hassles, would you give up that one week?


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## mjm1 (Mar 28, 2013)

That is a heck of a long trip. We only have to from San Jose but we decided a couple of years ago that even having one extra day in Hawaii made us feel so much better and relaxed. We stayed two weeks last year, which was great. I don't know if we will ever go for less than 8 nights in the future.

Enjoy your trip


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## talkamotta (Mar 28, 2013)

It used to be 2 weeks was the minimum amount of time for Hawaii (to justify the airfare).  Now that we are retired Jeff wont get on a plane unless its 3 weeks (hates planes loves trips).   Ok, Im good with that 

Leaving next Friday for 3 weeks.  Now that we are retired it doesn't take 2 days to sloooow   doooown to Hawaii time.   We are pretty much always there.


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## Tamaradarann (Mar 29, 2013)

*Same hours of travel and same cost of travel*



talkamotta said:


> It used to be 2 weeks was the minimum amount of time for Hawaii (to justify the airfare).  Now that we are retired Jeff wont get on a plane unless its 3 weeks (hates planes loves trips).   Ok, Im good with that
> 
> Leaving next Friday for 3 weeks.  Now that we are retired it doesn't take 2 days to sloooow   doooown to Hawaii time.   We are pretty much always there.



I went to Hawaii for 2 weeks in 2007 when we were still working.  The flight was long from NY (It has ranged from 13 hours to 19 hours depending on the number of stops and the availability using miles) and the dollars great, so I swore I wouldn't go back for less than a month.  We retired in 2009 and have gone for 9 weeks, 10 weeks, 11 weeks, 15 weeks, and 15 weeks the last 5 winters.  It is the same number of hours of travel and the same cost of travel for 1 week or 15 weeks, since we are retired we may as well stay for 15 weeks and wait for the warm weather back home.


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## taffy19 (Mar 29, 2013)

dougp26364 said:


> First there was all the FF miles we had to accumulate to upgrade to first class seats on 4 of the 6 flights to get there. Of course, there's the 2 changes of planes both going and coming home. Then there's the 6 hour layover in Chicago. There's the 15 hours of travel time plus a huge time swing that goes along with traveling that far. There's booking an extra night so that we'll remain comfortable while waiting for our 8:30 PM flight home. Finally there's the late night arrival of 10:30 PM, which translates to 1:30 AM back home. All this just to spend 7 nights in paradise.


What a pity that you cannot stay longer.  A week is not enough for such a long flight but the scenery is beautiful.  

Our first trip to Hawaii was a week long and we "did" three Islands.  Still, we saw a lot but the flight to and from HI wasn't that long.


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## taffy19 (Mar 29, 2013)

Tamaradarann said:


> I went to Hawaii for 2 weeks in 2007 when we were still working. The flight was long from NY (It has ranged from 13 hours to 19 hours depending on the number of stops and the availability using miles) and the dollars great, so I swore I wouldn't go back for less than a month. We retired in 2009 and have gone for 9 weeks, 10 weeks, 11 weeks, 15 weeks, and 15 weeks the last 5 winters. It is the same number of hours of travel and the same cost of travel for 1 week or 15 weeks, since we are retired we may as well stay for 15 weeks and wait for the warm weather back home.


When we go to HI, we stay a month in different timeshares.  Do you stay in a condo? Where can you stay that long in a timeshare without moving every week?


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## jehb2 (Mar 29, 2013)

MOXJO7282 said:


> I remember getting 70k FF seats the first 2 trips in the 763s with the flat sleepers and we were in heaven.



For years, on the overnight trip back home, we would move to the back of the plane where there were plenty of empty seats in the middle row.  We would take a row each, stretch out and go to sleep.  That was great.

Now AA makes sure that all flights to and from Hawaii are fully booked.  Or is it because I can only travel during peak season.


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## dougp26364 (Mar 29, 2013)

jehb2 said:


> For years, on the overnight trip back home, we would move to the back of the plane where there were plenty of empty seats in the middle row.  We would take a row each, stretch out and go to sleep.  That was great.
> 
> Now AA makes sure that all flights to and from Hawaii are fully booked.  Or is it because I can only travel during peak season.



I don't believe season has anything to do with it so much as economics. Airlines have kept prices relatively flat when taking inflation into consideration. They've cut back available seats so more flights are flying full these days. I believe I read somewhere that a flight must be at least 80% full in order to be profitable. 

Even on the traditionally "slow" days flights have been full. I've noticed that flights that show plenty of seats available 30 to 60 days before departure often fill up in the last few weeks. I've assumed that's due to flights being consolidated and passengers being moved from one flight time to another. I know that we haven't booked a flight in the last few years where there hasn't been at least one major time change (greater than 1 hour) made before departure. Currently our connecting flight between ORD and LAX is running maybe 60% full. This is worrisome in that we could get bumped off this flight due to consolidation and stuck on a flight that's relatively full, leaving us with poor seat selection at this late date. I watch daily to see what UAL might be doing to us. So far, the filghts have stayed the same and we just a little over a week away from travel. It would be GREAT if our row remains with us as the only two in it but I'm not holding my breath.


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## talkamotta (Mar 29, 2013)

tamaradarann said:


> i went to hawaii for 2 weeks in 2007 when we were still working.  The flight was long from ny (it has ranged from 13 hours to 19 hours depending on the number of stops and the availability using miles) and the dollars great, so i swore i wouldn't go back for less than a month.  We retired in 2009 and have gone for 9 weeks, 10 weeks, 11 weeks, 15 weeks, and 15 weeks the last 5 winters.  It is the same number of hours of travel and the same cost of travel for 1 week or 15 weeks, since we are retired we may as well stay for 15 weeks and wait for the warm weather back home.



you are my hero....


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## WinniWoman (Mar 29, 2013)

Tamaradarann said:


> I went to Hawaii for 2 weeks in 2007 when we were still working.  The flight was long from NY (It has ranged from 13 hours to 19 hours depending on the number of stops and the availability using miles) and the dollars great, so I swore I wouldn't go back for less than a month.  We retired in 2009 and have gone for 9 weeks, 10 weeks, 11 weeks, 15 weeks, and 15 weeks the last 5 winters.  It is the same number of hours of travel and the same cost of travel for 1 week or 15 weeks, since we are retired we may as well stay for 15 weeks and wait for the warm weather back home.



You are so very lucky! We are from NY and that Hawaii flight is a killer. We stayed there once for a week and another time for 2 weeks. I can't imaging ever being able to afford to stay anywhere for more than 2 weeks..Sounds great! Good for you guys!


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## DeniseM (Mar 29, 2013)

We won't go to Hawaii for less than 2 weeks - you waste too much precious vacation time traveling for a one week trip.  I actually cancelled a trip that was reduced from two weeks to one week.  When you look at the cost of the airfare, and time involved, a one week trip just isn't worth it to us.  YMMV


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## DavidnRobin (Mar 29, 2013)

I felt the same way traveling from SFO to STT (USVI) to get to Westin St John (~15hr) - so we bought an adjacent week as 7 days is way to short.  WKORV/WPORV have become such easy travels from SFO (due to familarity)- 1 week is okay, but of course 2 weeks is better.

As to FF miles for HI - we have been using UA Super Saver miles to fly from SFO to LIH/OGG for our last few trips - at 40Kpp RT - quite a bargain.  It helps to have UA status of course since you can reserved Exit rows.  UA seats for FF miles open 330 days in advance - and I book our 1-way flight at 330 days, then the same for our return flight later based on our return date.  Works out great.

I think the last couple of times it was ~7 hours door-to-door (home/resort).


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## dougp26364 (Mar 29, 2013)

I'd love to go for longer than 2 weeks but time constraints won't allow for it. Thus, if we go we go for a week. I'd say perhaps in retirement we could go longer but we've learned from experience it's best not to leave the dogs at home longer than a week.


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## DeniseM (Mar 29, 2013)

dougp26364 said:


> we've learned from experience it's best not to leave the dogs at home longer than a week.



That's why going into retirement we will have no pets, no grass, and 100% automatic drip systems.  

Our neighbors are great people, in good health, and have the $$$ to travel, but they hardly ever go anywhere, because their little dog doesn't like to travel or be boarded.

(We did not "get rid" of our pets, but as they aged and passed away, we did not replace them, knowing that we want to travel in retirement.)


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## dougp26364 (Mar 29, 2013)

That's when we trade in our timeshares for RV travel.


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## SmithOp (Mar 29, 2013)

DeniseM said:


> We won't go to Hawaii for less than 2 weeks - you waste too much precious vacation time traveling for a one week trip.  I actually cancelled a trip that was reduced from two weeks to one week.  When you look at the cost of the airfare, and time involved, a one week trip just isn't worth it to us.  YMMV



I would have bought a tent at Walmart and slept on the beach . Nothing keeps me away. YMMV


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## DeniseM (Mar 29, 2013)

SmithOp said:


> I would have bought a tent at Walmart and slept on the beach . Nothing keeps me away. YMMV



We had accommodations, etc., we just don't want to go for only one week.


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## DeniseM (Mar 29, 2013)

dougp26364 said:


> That's when we trade in our timeshares for RV travel.



They have a travel trailer - their pet does not like to travel - so they stay home.


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## dougp26364 (Mar 29, 2013)

DeniseM said:


> They have a travel trailer - their pet does not like to travel - so they stay home.



I'm afraid our dogs would have to learn to love to travel. We really love our dogs but, we also love to travel. Something would have to give. Of course, that's their choice and, if they're happy, then it's a good choice.


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## taffy19 (Mar 29, 2013)

dougp26364 said:


> That's when we trade in our timeshares for RV travel.


RV travel is a good solution for a dog and no packing and unpacking either.  Cats are different as they prefer to stay home.  When our last cat died, we decided no more pets until we stop traveling completely but then we may be too old.

We really love cats and found a solution.  We have fostered 14 cats and kittens since Taffy died and stay in touch with some of the people who have adopted them. It is through an organization plus we feed feral cats in our marina but there is a little group of us so they are being fed when we are gone and taken care of when they are sick. We love them all but they are not ours but we still worry about them.


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## TAG (Mar 30, 2013)

*FF miles training?*

Sounds like I need some training in FF miles.  We never seem to have enough to do anything.  9k here, 4k there.  Where should I go for training?  TIA!


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## fillde (Mar 30, 2013)

TAG said:


> Sounds like I need some training in FF miles.  We never seem to have enough to do anything.  9k here, 4k there.  Where should I go for training?  TIA!



The best way to accumulate points is by opening credit cards. Flyer Talk will give you many insighful ways to "churn" those credit card openings into mileage points.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/milesbuzz-370/


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## Tamaradarann (Mar 30, 2013)

*Staying in Hawaii*



iconnections said:


> When we go to HI, we stay a month in different timeshares.  Do you stay in a condo? Where can you stay that long in a timeshare without moving every week?



We don't stay in the same timeshare for the entire time.  Sometimes due to availability, sometimes due to the desire to see all the islands.  We have been to all 6 islands that you can visit.  The Hilton system is very flexible for long stays and stays where you need to match a reservation with what you have using RCI for Maui and Kauai where Hilton has no presence.  We own alot of Hilton Timeshares.  We also use HHonors points to fill a night or two at times.


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## talkamotta (Apr 1, 2013)

DeniseM said:


> That's why going into retirement we will have no pets, no grass, and 100% automatic drip systems.
> 
> Our neighbors are great people, in good health, and have the $$$ to travel, but they hardly ever go anywhere, because their little dog doesn't like to travel or be boarded.
> 
> (We did not "get rid" of our pets, but as they aged and passed away, we did not replace them, knowing that we want to travel in retirement.)



Some people have pets they cant leave.  My in laws had a yard they couldnt leave.  Others have bought so many toys they cant afford to travel or use thier toys.  My x-husband would rather watch tv in his lounge chair than travel and he has a huge motorhome.  Choices.....   Im glad not everyone likes to travel like I do because it would be very crowded.


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## sjsharkie (Apr 1, 2013)

dougp26364 said:


> First there was all the FF miles we had to accumulate to upgrade to first class seats on 4 of the 6 flights to get there. Of course, there's the 2 changes of planes both going and coming home. Then there's the 6 hour layover in Chicago. There's the 15 hours of travel time plus a huge time swing that goes along with traveling that far. There's booking an extra night so that we'll remain comfortable while waiting for our 8:30 PM flight home. Finally there's the late night arrival of 10:30 PM, which translates to 1:30 AM back home. All this just to spend 7 nights in paradise.



I feel for you but totally understand given the limited flights -- I had a project in Wichita for 6 months where I was flying SFO - ORD/DFW - ICT every week.  Absolutely miserable options if you don't live in a hub (or mini-hub) city of some sort.  (By the way, that Thursday AA early afternoon flight back to DFW was packed almost every week.)

I'd chuckle everytime I see the "Air Capital of the World" sign when I enter the terminal.  For building planes, yes.  For commercial flights, no.

-ryan


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## akp (Apr 2, 2013)

*Timely thread!*

This is a timely thread as I spent several hours tonight searching for flights for next February to Maui.

I can find lots of good availability into HNL, or into OGG if I'm willing to make two stops.  I really don't want to make more than one stop because it is such a long trip from Kansas City already.

Now I'm reading this thread and wondering if my husband and I should pick a Caribbean location since we are limited to just one week.  Hmmm.  (off to check FF availability to caribbean destinations...)

Anita


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## JudyS (Apr 2, 2013)

iconnections said:


> RV travel is a good solution for a dog and no packing and unpacking either.  Cats are different as they prefer to stay home.  When our last cat died, we decided no more pets until we stop traveling completely but then we may be too old.
> 
> We really love cats and found a solution.  We have fostered 14 cats and kittens since Taffy died and stay in touch with some of the people who have adopted them. ....


I'm considering fostering cats once my two elderly cats are gone. However, I'm afraid I'd be just too unwilling to part with the fosters! The way I ended up with my current cats was that I adopted a visibly pregnant stray cat. I was planning to keep just her and one kitten, but I couldn't bear to part with any of them, so I kept the mother and the whole litter. Eighteen years later and I still have two of her "kittens"!


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## taffy19 (Apr 2, 2013)

Judy, I will send you an email with some helpful information after our return from Maui.


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## dougp26364 (Apr 2, 2013)

akp said:


> This is a timely thread as I spent several hours tonight searching for flights for next February to Maui.
> 
> I can find lots of good availability into HNL, or into OGG if I'm willing to make two stops.  I really don't want to make more than one stop because it is such a long trip from Kansas City already.
> 
> ...



I actually prefer two stops. It gives me a chance to stretch my legs and use a REAL bathroom and if the layover's long enough, a chance to grab something other than airline food. 

I can't say that we've had any more issues with luggage when we've had two layovers vs just one. It seems they can mishandle our luggage just as well with one layover and have proven that point to us countless times over the years. 

My biggest issue with our current flights going out is the 6+ hour layover in Chicago. I don't mind 90 minute to 2 hours but it's hard to sit in a terminal for that long of time.


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## akp (Apr 2, 2013)

dougp26364 said:


> I actually prefer two stops. It gives me a chance to stretch my legs and use a REAL bathroom and if the layover's long enough, a chance to grab something other than airline food.
> 
> I can't say that we've had any more issues with luggage when we've had two layovers vs just one. It seems they can mishandle our luggage just as well with one layover and have proven that point to us countless times over the years.
> 
> My biggest issue with our current flights going out is the 6+ hour layover in Chicago. I don't mind 90 minute to 2 hours but it's hard to sit in a terminal for that long of time.



Interesting, I'll have to look at it from your perspective! I'm not worried about luggage at all; we don't check any usually.  I just worry about missed connections.

The time in the airport is pretty decent with lounge access 

Do you ever do an overnight on the road?  We did that last month for our trip to Costa Rica since the connection at ATL was too tight, so we left home friday night, overnighted at the ATL airport, and then arrived into Costa Rica by about noon.

I keep thinking of doing the same for a Hawaii trip.  I can fly MCI-SEA on a Friday night, spend the night near the airport, then be in Hawaii early the next day.  It sounds nicer than a full day of flying.

Anita


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## akp (Apr 2, 2013)

*When do you go?*

Hey, Doug,

I have a couple of United Club passes that might take the sting off your long layover in Chicago!  

PM me when you leave and your address; if there is time I'll mail them to you.

Anita


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## slip (Apr 2, 2013)

dougp26364 said:


> I actually prefer two stops. It gives me a chance to stretch my legs and use a REAL bathroom and if the layover's long enough, a chance to grab something other than airline food.
> 
> I can't say that we've had any more issues with luggage when we've had two layovers vs just one. It seems they can mishandle our luggage just as well with one layover and have proven that point to us countless times over the years.
> 
> My biggest issue with our current flights going out is the 6+ hour layover in Chicago. I don't mind 90 minute to 2 hours but it's hard to sit in a terminal for that long of time.



This is the same for us. I would much rather get out and stretch. I usually
always have two stops. We get there in good time and by the time we are 
settled in, it's time for bed, 9:00pm. We get up early and have no jet lag.
It works great for us.


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## dougp26364 (Apr 2, 2013)

akp said:


> Hey, Doug,
> 
> I have a couple of United Club passes that might take the sting off your long layover in Chicago!
> 
> ...



Thanks for the offer but I'm afraid it'd be cutting it to close. We leave this weekend. 

The reality is that we've had club passes in the past. While the lounges are nice it's still a long wait. The last time we used club passes to kill some time, the lounge was so full of people it was nearly impossible to find a place to sit. It was actually more of an aggrivation than relaxation. I guess with so many ways to gain access other than status there's to many people using the lounges now.


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## dougp26364 (Apr 2, 2013)

akp said:


> Interesting, I'll have to look at it from your perspective! I'm not worried about luggage at all; we don't check any usually.  I just worry about missed connections.
> 
> The time in the airport is pretty decent with lounge access
> 
> ...



As to overnighting it we have done that but we're at a point we don't care for the 3 hour drive up the KC or down to OKC, then having to make the drive back home again. It's nice to get off the plane, collect our luggage and be in our own home 15 to 20 minutes later. DFW and DEN are far enough away that we really don't consider them.


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## Elli (Apr 2, 2013)

akp said:


> Interesting, I'll have to look at it from your perspective! I'm not worried about luggage at all; we don't check any usually.  I just worry about missed connections.
> 
> The time in the airport is pretty decent with lounge access
> 
> ...


If you arrive early in Hawaii, can you check into your timeshare before 3 or 4 pm?


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## DeniseM (Apr 2, 2013)

Elli said:


> If you arrive early in Hawaii, can you check into your timeshare before 3 or 4 pm?



Usually not - that's the time they house keepers are cleaning the units.  If it's very slow, and you get a unit that no one checked out of that day - maybe.

During that time we go get our groceries (and an ice chest for perishables), rent our fins, and go out for a meal.  If we still can't check-in, we hang out at the pool or pool bar.


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## dougp26364 (Apr 2, 2013)

Elli said:


> If you arrive early in Hawaii, can you check into your timeshare before 3 or 4 pm?



90% of the time it's like Denise says. Sometimes it's even later than 4 PM and because of that rare occasion I'm hesitant to hit the store for anything other than non-parishables. And on about as rare of occasion you are allowed to check in early. 

I've found a lot depends on how a resort assigns rooms. Those that assign them ahead of time and don't budge on your unit assignment seem to stick to the 4 PM (or later) rule. Those that assign units based on what's clean at the time a guest arrives tend to allow early check in more often, although it's FAR from guarenteed. 

A couple of the DRI resorts we've been to lately have assigned units before we arrive but, when we arrived early checked to see if something was clean and would switch our assignments if I wanted in the unit now. Marriott, on the other hand pre-assigns units and only allows us the keys or tells us the unit number once the unit is ready.

We usually go ahead and check in and drop our luggage off at the resort. To date there's always been a back room where they'll hold the luggage. I prefer to leave it at the resort vs in the car where it could temp theives. We tend to rent smaller cars and all of our luggage won't always fit in the trunk plus, sometimes there are things I don't want to leave in a hot or cold car. 

All the resorts have taken our phone number and offered to call us when our unit is ready. This has worked to varying degree's with different resorts. DRI has been very bad lately about NOT calling us when our unit was ready. Marriott sometimes does, sometimes doesn't. I don't recall HGVC ever offering to call us but just telling us to come back after 4:00.


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## artringwald (Apr 2, 2013)

We had a 15 hour/overnight layover is Seattle this year, so we booked an airport hotel. It was a nice break, and we arrived in Hawaii in the early afternoon instead of late at night. After waiting for over an hour for the rental car, we got to the resort at 4 PM, just in time to check into the room. Wrong! Had to wait, and DRI has never called the cell phone as soon as it was ready. No problem though, here's what we did while waiting:


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