# Prices in Hawaii - what's been your experience



## akp (Jun 25, 2011)

On my recent trip to Hawaii, I was so surprised at how normal the prices seemed to me for the most part.  I live in a fairly low cost of living area (Kansas City) and I expected to be horrified by everything.

Gas on Kauai and BI were about 20-60 cents a gallon more than here.  That last station on the north shore of Kauai was the highest by far that I saw.

Milk and food prices at the Foodland in Princeville and whatever grocery store I went to in Waikoloa were very similar to those at home.  I'm guessing on the order of 10% higher?

Where I DID see the shocking prices was the Island Gourmet in Waikaloa Village.  There I paid $9.59 for a gallon of milk and $7 for a box of cereal the night we checked in.

The other place I felt prices were high was the restaurant we went to in Volcano on the east side of the BI.  We went to a place called Lava Rock Cafe for dinner and breakfast on our overnight there.  I spent more on those 2 dinners (for 4 people) than I'd spent on the entire week's groceries, and unfortunately the food was just ok.  Those meals reminded me of one of the reasons I love timeshares!  The hassle of getting everyone out the door to a restaurant for breakfast was bad enough, but then I paid $48 plus tip for bad coffee and so-so eggs.  I can do so-so eggs for cheap, and I make good coffee!

Anita


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## rickandcindy23 (Jun 25, 2011)

I should have told you about Shearwater's hot breakfast that first day.  It would have saved you a bundle.  I like the breakfast, too.  It's tasty and worthy of a walk to the clubhouse.  The women get kind of cranky when you visit with your fellow owners/ exchangers, instead of listening to them.  

Gasoline has a capped price on Hawaii, I believe, I think it's because the taxes are a lot of the cost, and the state can control the cost of gas for locals.  It's usually > $1 more than home, so I am glad to hear it's not still a full $1 more per gallon for our trip in late August.  

Rick is a Taco Bell fanatic, and I am not kidding.  He was pleased with the Taco Bell food on the islands, including the price, which is very similar to home, and that is our lunch a few times in a week.   He makes me crazy with his love of Taco Bell.


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## gwenco (Jun 25, 2011)

*Hey - you're not in Kansas any more!*

You expect to pay the price to vacation in paradise.  To off-set some costs, we pack a jar of peanut butter, snacks and any other non-liquid stuff we can fit in our carry-on's.


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Jun 25, 2011)

The increase in price will be less if you use foods that are locally produced and processed.  Much seafood is about the same price as on the mainland, and the quality is often better.  Chicken and egg prices are generally more reasonable, as is local grown produce (mangos, papayas, tomatoes, corn).  

Wherever we travel, we usually adjust our diets to increase our consumption of local foods.  It's cheaper, and it also adds to the enjoyment of travel.


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## akp (Jun 25, 2011)

*The prices were less than I expected *



gwenco said:


> You expect to pay the price to vacation in paradise.  To off-set some costs, we pack a jar of peanut butter, snacks and any other non-liquid stuff we can fit in our carry-on's.



I had gone in with the perception that prices would be extremely high.  I was surprised (and of course pleased) to find that they were barely above my prices at home.  Except for that one $9 gallon of milk, LOL.  

We packed a good amount of food from home, too - peanut butter and Nutella, mac & cheese, my spices, etc.  

Anita


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## DonM (Jun 25, 2011)

akp said:


> ...Except for that one $9 gallon of milk, LOL.  Anita



Wherever you live, if you go to some esoteric/ organic / or just a small fancy gourmet store - off the beaten path location- you're going to pay more!!

If you go to Costco near the airport that gallon of milk will probably be close to what you pay in Kansas.

don


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## akp (Jun 25, 2011)

"You expect to pay the price to vacation in paradise. To off-set some costs, we pack a jar of peanut butter, snacks and any other non-liquid stuff we can fit in our carry-on's"  (this was a quote but I couldn't figure out how to quote from two posts"



DonM said:


> Wherever you live, if you go to some esoteric/ organic / or just a small fancy gourmet store - off the beaten path location- you're going to pay more!!
> 
> If you go to Costco near the airport that gallon of milk will probably be close to what you pay in Kansas.
> 
> don



You guys are preaching to the choir here.  LOL.  

I didn't start this thread to complain about high prices in exotic locations; I started the thread because I was surprised that they were NOT very high (except for that milk which I understood completely bc it was on the Hilton grounds).



akp said:


> On my recent trip to Hawaii, I was so surprised at how normal the prices seemed to me for the most part.
> Anita



Have prices in Hawaii come down recently?  Gas is about $3.75 here and on the islands I paid just over $4.00.  I think the most I paid was $4.35.  I was expecting $5.00 and up based on the hype. 

Did the Costcos help bring prices down?  Or was the high price thing over-hyped?


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## MichaelColey (Jun 25, 2011)

T_R_Oglodyte said:


> The increase in price will be less if you use foods that are locally produced and processed. Much seafood is about the same price as on the mainland, and the quality is often better. Chicken and egg prices are generally more reasonable, as is local grown produce (mangos, papayas, tomatoes, corn).
> 
> Wherever we travel, we usually adjust our diets to increase our consumption of local foods. It's cheaper, and it also adds to the enjoyment of travel.


Excellent suggestion, and something we do as well.


DonM said:


> If you go to Costco near the airport that gallon of milk will probably be close to what you pay in Kansas.


At Costco, the prices OF EVERYTHING were almost identical to mainland prices.  Wal-Mart was a little higher.  Foodland was quite a bit higher.  We did most of our shopping at Costco and Wal-Mart.


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## Kauai Kid (Jun 25, 2011)

A can of tomato juice in Texas is 98 cents.

A can of tomato juice, with Safeway discount, is over $3 

It is cheaper at Wal Mart but I was in Kihei.


Other than that, costs seem reasonable considering how far things have to be shipped.


Sterling


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## tompalm (Jun 25, 2011)

The high cost of Hawaii is having to pay for housing and utilities.  Usually gas is about 50 cents a gallon more than the mainland.  Right now, while the price of gas is high everywhere, it is only a little higher in the mainland.  When the price of gas goes down in the mainland, it will remain a lot higher in Hawaii. Otherwise, living in Hawaii is not much higher than the mainland.


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## akp (Jun 25, 2011)

*You're killing me!*



tompalm said:


> Otherwise, living in Hawaii is not much higher than the mainland.



are you TRYING to talk me into moving?  Cuz I'm already half way there.


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## Kauai Kid (Jun 26, 2011)

A few years back I got the book MOVING TO HAWAII.

Unfortunately for me, the book was about moving to the Big Island only.
I'd rather move to Kauai.


Sterling


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## slip (Jun 26, 2011)

I read that same book last year. A pretty realistic view, although not everything
applies of coarse.


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## Margariet (Jun 26, 2011)

We found everything more expensive than on the US mainland. Not that it was a problem for us, coming from Europe everything is relatively cheap for us, but gas, food, shopping, groceries, everything is more expensive on every island. And the diversity of food, expecially fresh fruits and vegetables, is so much lesser than on the mainland. And the magazines arrive weeks later than on the mainland. Believe me, I do love Hawaii and we are going back but it's no cheap paradise for Americans.


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## DeniseM (Jun 26, 2011)

gwenco said:


> You expect to pay the price to vacation in paradise.  To off-set some costs, we pack a jar of peanut butter, snacks and any other non-liquid stuff we can fit in our carry-on's.



I hate to tell you this, but peanut butter is not allowed in carry-on's unless it's 3.4 oz. or smaller and you put it in your baggie of liquids.  It is specifically listed as not allowed:



> Not sure about what you can and can't bring through the checkpoint? Here's a list of liquid, aerosol and gel items that you should put in your checked bag, ship ahead, or leave at home if they are above the permitted 3.4 oz.
> 
> * Cranberry sauce
> * Cologne
> ...


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## DeniseM (Jun 26, 2011)

Margariet said:


> And the diversity of food, expecially fresh fruits and vegetables, is so much lesser than on the mainland.



This is true on Molokai, but the major stores on the Big Island, Oahu, Kauai, and Maui have very large and complete produce sections.  What couldn't you find?  Did you try the farmer's markets? That's the best place for produce.


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## akp (Jun 26, 2011)

*I learned this the hard way*



DeniseM said:


> I hate to tell you this, but peanut butter is not allowed in carry-on's unless it's 3.4 oz. or smaller and you put it in your baggie of liquids.  It is specifically listed as not allowed:



I didn't specifically check the guidelines for peanut butter; never gave it a thought really!  So into the trash went my unopened container of peanut butter.

Anita


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## cgeidl (Jun 26, 2011)

*One pound of Mauai Onions*

When my brother in law was with me a couple years ago we got a pound of Mauai onions that was just about what he had said he paid in WA for a 50 pound bag of Walla Walla onions.
We find fast food restaurants significantly higher and not offering the mainland specials. For example Ruby Tuesday's salad bar is much smaller and twice as much and KFC is much higher.
Costco is the same but grocery stores are about 40% higher than the mainland IMHO and we use the commissary which is about 15% higher . Haven't seen many good farmer's market deals but the fruits are good .
We go every year for threee or four weeks and we already have 18 (two for one meals) for next March and April.


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## bailey (Jun 27, 2011)

rickandcindy23 said:


> I should have told you about Shearwater's hot breakfast that first day.  It would have saved you a bundle.  I like the breakfast, too.  It's tasty and worthy of a walk to the clubhouse.  The women get kind of cranky when you visit with your fellow owners/ exchangers, instead of listening to them.
> 
> .


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## bailey (Jun 27, 2011)

rickandcindy23 said:


> I should have told you about Shearwater's hot breakfast that first day.  It would have saved you a bundle.  I like the breakfast, too.  It's tasty and worthy of a walk to the clubhouse.  The women get kind of cranky when you visit with your fellow owners/ exchangers, instead of listening to them.
> 
> You may save a bundle but would walk away very hungry.  We got there about 8:05 and found no sausage left, very little eggs and some juice/coffee.
> 
> ...


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## isisdave (Jun 27, 2011)

I am pretty sure the "island grown" pineapples at Kauai farmer's markets come from Costco. I think Costco gets them from Maui, but here in California I know they're usually from the "island" of Costa Rica.


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## MichaelColey (Jun 27, 2011)

bailey said:


> The Farmers Markets were much higher than the stores also. $7.00 for a pineapple while only $1.00 in the stores.


Yeah, the Farmer's Market we went to seemed pretty hit and miss.  I did get a few things at decent prices, but most seemed higher than the supermarkets.  I think the cheapest pineapples I saw were $5, while they were $3 at Costco.



isisdave said:


> I am pretty sure the "island grown" pineapples at Kauai farmer's markets come from Costco. I think Costco gets them from Maui, but here in California I know they're usually from the "island" of Costa Rica.


The ones we got at Costco were Maui Gold, and they tasted phenomenal.  We went back three times, primarily to get pineapple.  Wish we could have taken some home with us.  To buy them online, it's $25 for one, $41 for two or $85 for six.  No way am I going to pay over $20 for a pineapple.  The six pack is tempting, but personally I'd rather just go back to Hawaii.


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## Twinkstarr (Jun 27, 2011)

akp said:


> On my recent trip to Hawaii, I was so surprised at how normal the prices seemed to me for the most part.  I live in a fairly low cost of living area (Kansas City) and I expected to be horrified by everything.
> 
> Gas on Kauai and BI were about 20-60 cents a gallon more than here.  That last station on the north shore of Kauai was the highest by far that I saw.
> 
> ...



Had the same sort of reaction last year when we went for 17 days. I remember reading someone being shocked at the price of pool bar drinks at one of the Marriott's and thinking it's a few dollars more than one at WDW.


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## ThreeLittleBirds (Jun 27, 2011)

We lived on Maui for a few years and I always tried to defend the fact that it is not that much more for food, if at all for many things.

There were a few exceptions. Tomatoes being one. Although, I think there was a shortage on the mainland at the time as well. Fortunately, my husband was working with an organic tomato gardener at the time, so we had free ones. We also had an abundance of free avocados. More than we could ever eat. If you are an avocado fan, take a trip to Makawao and walk down the street. They are literally sitting on the side of the road. It's also easy to find some fruit and veggie stands in Kula and Haiku. Most are on the honor system.

We don't drink cow's milk, so it didn't affect us, but I believe it is more costly there.

I drove a Volkswagon TDI, which I ran on 100% biodiesel fuel (vegetable oil). Maui has a biodiesel plant there, and at the time the cost was $2.54/gallon vs. over $3.50/gallon for regular gas. I lived upcountry and worked at the Ritz, so stopping at the plant to refuel was actually convenient for me (it's in Kahului). I would love the day that rental car agencies carried diesel vehicles in their fleet.

We are also huge sushi fans, and find the sushi bar at Foodland to suit us well. Sure, every once in a while we would treat ourselves to some restaurant sushi, which is the best we've ever had, but the Foodland sushi is still better than the stuff we can get at a restaurant here in Colorado.

It's a great idea to adjust your diet to eat locally.


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## LisaRex (Jun 27, 2011)

Maui's prices seem to be about 25-30% higher than my hometown on most items. 

The biggest shock I had was the prices on St. John.  $7 seemed to be their price point for everything.  $7 for a box of granola bars. $7 for a bag of salad. $7 for a pound of hamburger.  It doesn't make sense to me that an island 2000 miles from anywhere can offer competitive prices, but an island relatively close to the mainland, and surrounded by other islands that presumably needs to be supplied with food, would be so high.  I guess it's the captive audience thing.


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## sailingman22 (Jun 28, 2011)

We find the prices in Hawaii either at par or cheaper than Vancouver Island. Its all about choices.


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