# Rental car needed? for Ko olina



## pefs65 (Jul 24, 2012)

Hi Guys 

Another rental car question.

Will be in Oahu Ko olina for 4 days. Have young kids who probably will like the beach, pool, and activities near the resort.

Any need for a rental car for the 4 days?  or should I just take Roberts to and from the airport?  Thanks


----------



## Quadmaniac (Jul 24, 2012)

Rental car is cheap and you'll pay more on a cab going back and forth to airport. Parking is free at the Marriott Ko Olina, not sure about the other resorts. 

Other benefit is that you can easily go for meals in Kapolei 5 min away as the food is expensive at the resort. I was at Longboards at the Marriott for happy hour - 2 drinks, a turkey club with tax and tip $45! Couple of days earlier, group of 5 with 7 drinks, french fries and nacho chips $85 all in! We went to Kapolei to pick up lunch at a Korean BBQ place - 5 meals, all in $43 and we could not finish all the food. 

So many choices in Kapolei for food. All the different restaurants are there and way cheaper than the resort.


----------



## pefs65 (Jul 26, 2012)

Thanks I can see why a rental car in oahu is worthwhile.
Is it difficult to drive from the airport to Ko Olina with the traffic?
Should I do a tour to Pearl Harbor/ Diamond Head/ Waikiki ? or do you think I could drive to them with the rental car?


----------



## pefs65 (Jul 31, 2012)

I decided on rental car in Oahu also. Way more freedom and choices to eat.
Will drive to diamond head and waikiki beach walk.
Also will get tickets to Pearl Harbor online and drive there also.


----------



## Quadmaniac (Jul 31, 2012)

pefs65 said:


> Thanks I can see why a rental car in oahu is worthwhile.
> Is it difficult to drive from the airport to Ko Olina with the traffic?
> Should I do a tour to Pearl Harbor/ Diamond Head/ Waikiki ? or do you think I could drive to them with the rental car?



Easy drive. If anything, the difficult drive is in Honolulu/Waikiki as the traffic is nuts! Just not what you would expect for a nice "relaxing" vacation is traffic that is way worse than traffic hour.

With a rental car you can go to all those places as we did and loop the island. So much easier to go to places for dinner and get in and out instead of waiting and waiting like we did for Hilo Hattie - my sister wanted to take the free bus even though the car was parked a few blocks away at the condo she rented. Took 90 minutes before the bus came, we stayed for 45 min and went back. A waste of an afternoon when I should have just gone to get the car even though my sister wanted to "ride the bus". It could have been an hour trip total rather than a 3-4 hour waste.


----------



## Tamaradarann (Aug 1, 2012)

*Ko'Olina you need a car, but not in Waikiki*



pefs65 said:


> I decided on rental car in Oahu also. Way more freedom and choices to eat.
> Will drive to diamond head and waikiki beach walk.
> Also will get tickets to Pearl Harbor online and drive there also.



I agree that you need a car in Ko'olina.  That is the reason we didn't buy Marriott and bought Hilton.  We stay at The Hilton Hawaiian Village for the entire winter in Wakiki without a car.  We walk to all the restaurants that we could want and take a bus if we want to go to downtown Honolulu.  We walk to beach walk daily; sometimes twice a day.  We walk to Kapiolani park right by diamond head at least once a week; sometimes twice.  There is shuttle that will take you to Pearl Harbor and back.  However, if I stayed in Ko'Olina I would get a car.


----------



## tompalm (Aug 3, 2012)

I always rent a car on every vacation.  But, if your family loves the beach and doesn't want to leave the beach, you might be able to get by without a car.  I was at Ko'Olina about a year ago and they had a shuttle from the airport to the hotel.  So, if they still have that you can save money.  However, the cost of going out to eat is very expensive in that area.  If you have a car, you can save enough by going other places to pay for the car.  It just depends on how you want to vacation. 

If you want to see the island, go to Pearl Harbor, and Waikiki, you will need a car and it will be better just to get one when you land.


----------



## PearlCity (Aug 5, 2012)

I would say a rental car is needed. It's a bit far away from most of the action.. but if you want to drive to Kapolei to go to resturaunts. stores and civilization then you need a car...there isn't much at Ko Olina..But, I'll tell you this you won't regret staying at Ko Olina instead of Waikiki. Ko Olina is not crowded, the resort is beautiful and you'll just love it.  I'm local to Oahu and I love staying there. I"m looking to buy a Marriott TS just so I can stay there...

Have a great time!


----------



## hapstersmom (Aug 7, 2012)

Yes, unless you plan to stay on property and eat all your meals at this resort or the others on the lagoons there, you will want a car. The water park is a short jaunt from there. There is a large movie theatre in Kapolei. Brick Oven Pizza, a small local chain of three (from Kauai, where the other two are) has good prices (for HI), excellent service, and excellent pizza. If you want to leave the area to see the NS, Pearl Harbor, etc, it will be much cheaper to have the car rather than paying taxi's or tour busses.

Have a wonderful trip.


----------



## amyhwang (Aug 9, 2012)

pefs65 said:


> I decided on rental car in Oahu also. Way more freedom and choices to eat.
> Will drive to diamond head and waikiki beach walk.
> Also will get tickets to Pearl Harbor online and drive there also.



I don't know what you mean about getting tickets to Pearl Harbor online.  You simply go there - early! - and then get a free ticket with a time on it.  You also can purchase tickets to explore the submarine and ship (we did the sub last time - my kids had fun, and we had a couple hours to kill before their time to see the memorial).

I definitely recommend getting there as early as possible!  I've been way too many times, since we lived on Oahu for a while.  Afterwards, we always have lunch at Genki Sushi in Pearl City!  Nom nom....  

You do need a car at Ko Olina for sure!


----------



## frank808 (Aug 9, 2012)

I would get one for sure.  And I second pearlcity in that you love Ko Olina.  I love it there compared to HHV for relaxation.  If you want to shop and dine, Waikiki is preferred.


----------



## pefs65 (Aug 9, 2012)

Thanks Guys for all of the great feedback and info.
I cant wait to go to Oahu with my family for the first time. We are very excited.
Renting a car while  staying in Ko Olina will give us a great many more dining options and allow us to check out the sights like Pearl Harbor, Waikiki beach walk and Diamond Head!


----------



## Tamaradarann (Aug 10, 2012)

*I can relax at home*



frank808 said:


> I would get one for sure.  And I second pearlcity in that you love Ko Olina.  I love it there compared to HHV for relaxation.  If you want to shop and dine, Waikiki is preferred.



I totally concur with getting a car in Ko Olina and I agree with the thought that it is more relaxing to be in Ko Olina than HHV.  We love Waikiki and Honolulu for the Shoping, Dining, Symphonies, Festivals, Kapiolani Park, Royal Hawaiian Band, Parades, Street Performers, People watching on the Beach, People watching on the street, and no drinking and walking laws.


----------

