Travel from the East Coast - time difference hesitations - stay over in LA?

[BDMX2]

Hi Everyone,

I had pretty much dismissed Hawaii since we live in New England and the time change is so drastic, but my 14 year old suggested it for a 2 week trip in the summer of 2019. So I'm in research phase.

My DH travels fairly frequently for work and hits the west coast from time to time, so I'm not really worried about him. DS is a night owl, so quite honestly Hawaii time isn't all that far off from his ideal waking and bed times anyway. But it is me, I seriously turn into a pumpkin around 8:00 or 9:00 pm since I'm up every morning before 5:00 (my grandmother always called it "up with the chickens" and said it was due to our farmer blood, LOL) If the time difference were in the other direction I wouldn't have any hesitations!

So, we're thinking it might be easier to adjust to the time change if we stop in California for a couple/few days in one direction or both. DS is a huge USC fan and would like to visit the campus, I'm originally from the LA area, so I wouldn't mind a day or two poking around the area since it has been so long.

Is this a valid thought process? If so, in which direction would you recommend staying for a few days? Or both? Or not at all, suck it up and adjust while we're in Hawaii and at home?

Any sage advice for me?

 

[Passepartout]

I'd try for a non-stop and only have to adjust once. Try to pre-adjust at home if you can (stay up a couple hours later than usual and sleep in late) Set your watches on Hawaii time as soon as you board the plane, then at bedtime Hawaii time take some melatonin to help you sleep, close the shade or use eye shades. I think going West is harder than East but ymmv.

Jim

 

[PigsDad]

I agree -- one time zone adjustment, no matter the difference, is easier that doing it twice. I find it helpful to force myself to stay up late the first day of arrival (no taking naps!) to make it a very long day. I find myself exhausted and then can usually sleep at least 8 hours that first night, and my body can resist the urge to wake up too early. Then I'm good for the rest of the vacation.

Kurt

 

[vacationhopeful]

When I leave town for a week or 2 weeks .. I run around like a crazy fool to get stuff setup for my vacation. Before sleeping on the plane, I figure out HOW a long or short NAP will mess me up for my vacation stay.

 

[slip]

I’m in the Midwest so only an hour difference and I go to Hawaii at least once a year. I’m all about my destination so I go straight there. If I want to visit California then that’s a separate vacation. Your situation is a little different since your from that area so you could make a stop but that’s less time in Hawaii. I would go all the way through.

 

[artringwald]

DW got tired of going home on the red eye flights (to MN), and we started stopping over at a west coast location and staying at an airport hotel with a shuttle. It worked out so good for us, we started doing it on the way over too. One big advantage is that you can book 4 flight segments independently, and look at many airline and stopover city options to get the best price. For our trip last month we flew 4 different airlines because that was the lowest price. If you get an Alaska Airline credit card they'll give you a companion ticket, and they have flights from several west coast cities to each of the 4 major islands. You don't have to fly home from the same island you landed on. Buy the interisland separately. Going over it's nice to arrive in the mid afternoon, so you're not arriving at the resort in the dark, and totally exhausted. If you're only going to stopover in one direction, it's definitely easier to do it on the way back. Jet lag is worse when traveling to the east.

 

[Roger830]

We're planning our fourth trip for next April from Connecticut.

We never had too much problem adjusting in Hawaii. We get plenty of rest on the plane, so we're not tired at our normal bedtime. It's harder to adjust when we get back home because we're not tired when we leave Hawaii in the afternoon, so not much sleep during the flight. We arrive at JFK about 7AM the next day, then drive 110 miles home.

We like Hawaiian Air out of JFK for the direct flight. Also the seating is 2-4-2, so the two of us don't sit with someone else.

 

[Luanne]

We had some disaster return trips from Hawaii to New Mexico and decided a few yesrs ago not to do that again. So now we fly to the Bay Area, spend a couple of nights in San Francisco, then fly out to Oakland to Maui. We do the same on the way back. This gives us a chance to spend some time in San Francisco, and also to see our older dd who lives in the area.

 

[HSB Chicago]

We go to Kauai each year, and have found that we like to fly out to the coast after work then spend the night at hotel near the airport. We usually are in bed by 10pm (PT). We wake up after 8 hours sleep, and then catch a 9am flight arriving in Kauai a little after 12. We find we are not tired, did we loose a full day to travel, nor are we exhausted from traveling 9-10 hours in one stretch. Plus we usually are settled and on the beach by 3pm!

 

[alwysonvac]

Is this a valid thought process? If so, in which direction would you recommend staying for a few days? Or both? Or not at all, suck it up and adjust while we're in Hawaii and at home?

Any sage advice for me?

We live in NJ. We find traveling eastbound is always the worst for us. Whether it’s traveling from NY/NJ to Europe or Hawaii to NY/NJ. We just don’t get enough rest on the overnight flights so it makes the jet lag worst.

I would definitely avoid the redeye flights and stop over in California on the way back from Hawaii. We generally stay up until to at least 10pm the first night with no naps as PigsDad suggested above. We still wake up a little before sunrise during our stay but enjoy watching sunrises from our ocean-view balcony.

For our trip to Hawaii this September, we’re taking the direct nonstop flight from Newark to Honolulu but skipping the long nonstop flight on the way back home. Instead we’re flying from Maui to San Francisco (arriving in SFO in the evening) and staying three nights (Fri to Mon) then heading back to New Jersey (arriving in NY/NJ in the evening).

 

[bnoble]

On the way to Hawaii, we make it one very long day. On the way back, I like breaking it up into two and spending the night in a hotel somewhere on the west coast rather than doing a red-eye.

 

[Tamaradarann]

Hi Everyone,

I had pretty much dismissed Hawaii since we live in New England and the time change is so drastic, but my 14 year old suggested it for a 2 week trip in the summer of 2019. So I'm in research phase.

My DH travels fairly frequently for work and hits the west coast from time to time, so I'm not really worried about him. DS is a night owl, so quite honestly Hawaii time isn't all that far off from his ideal waking and bed times anyway. But it is me, I seriously turn into a pumpkin around 8:00 or 9:00 pm since I'm up every morning before 5:00 (my grandmother always called it "up with the chickens" and said it was due to our farmer blood, LOL) If the time difference were in the other direction I wouldn't have any hesitations!

So, we're thinking it might be easier to adjust to the time change if we stop in California for a couple/few days in one direction or both. DS is a huge USC fan and would like to visit the campus, I'm originally from the LA area, so I wouldn't mind a day or two poking around the area since it has been so long.

Is this a valid thought process? If so, in which direction would you recommend staying for a few days? Or both? Or not at all, suck it up and adjust while we're in Hawaii and at home?

Any sage advice for me?

You have gotten advice with just about all of the options. We have flown with one and two stops and would rather the Hawaiian Airlines direct flight from JFK to Honolulu for a number of reasons. One is the cost of cabs, hotels and meals to have stops with stay overs. The Hawaiian direct flight provides 2 small complementary but adequate meals during the 11 hour flight as well as a glass of wine. No additional meals, hotels or cabs for our trip. There is plenty of time for a nice nap on the flight. The flight leaves at 10 AM and gets to Honolulu about 4 PM which is perfect for retrieving the luggage, hopping a cab, checking in, getting settled in the room before dinner and then bed. The return flight leaves at 3:30 PM so with a late check out you have plenty of time to get your stuff together in the morning, check out, give your last sad good-byes to the ocean, catch a cab, eat a nice lunch at the airport and board. The flight home provides a small complementary dinner with wine, and plenty of time for a nice nighttime sleep. In the morning you get coffee and a small complementary breakfast with coffee to wake you up and start off your day for a 7 AM landing in NY. You are ready to go home to get your home back together; missing your island paradise very much.

 

[Bwolf]

When we went to Hawaii, we flew from Boston to Seattle, stayed overnight, and flew early in the morning. On the return, we flew to Seattle, hopped on a Red Eye, and got into Boston early in the morning. Worked for us, and I'm an early morning person, up at 4 am everyday.

 

[Dean]

Hi Everyone,

I had pretty much dismissed Hawaii since we live in New England and the time change is so drastic, but my 14 year old suggested it for a 2 week trip in the summer of 2019. So I'm in research phase.

My DH travels fairly frequently for work and hits the west coast from time to time, so I'm not really worried about him. DS is a night owl, so quite honestly Hawaii time isn't all that far off from his ideal waking and bed times anyway. But it is me, I seriously turn into a pumpkin around 8:00 or 9:00 pm since I'm up every morning before 5:00 (my grandmother always called it "up with the chickens" and said it was due to our farmer blood, LOL) If the time difference were in the other direction I wouldn't have any hesitations!

So, we're thinking it might be easier to adjust to the time change if we stop in California for a couple/few days in one direction or both. DS is a huge USC fan and would like to visit the campus, I'm originally from the LA area, so I wouldn't mind a day or two poking around the area since it has been so long.

Is this a valid thought process? If so, in which direction would you recommend staying for a few days? Or both? Or not at all, suck it up and adjust while we're in Hawaii and at home?

Any sage advice for me?

We lived there for 3 years and go back every few years. I'm a "rip the bandaid off fast" type of person. I would not go for a week only from the east coast but for the 2 weeks you're thinking, I would encourage it. What we do is look at the flight options then decide. Remember you'll gain time going so you'll get there the same day you leave, likely relatively early, but you'll want to go to bed in the afternoon then be up at 3 AM. Arriving I'd try to stay up as much as possible until at least 8 or 9 HI time (which is 5 or 6 hrs different depending since they don't do the time change). IMO, returning is the issue since most of the time returning flights leave in the afternoon or evening and you fly "all night". So plan accordingly. I wouldn't stop over just to break up the trip but I might if I wanted to spend a few days somewhere. What I would do is pay close attention to the total number of stops and total flight time as well as the arrival and departure times.

We just scheduled ours flights a few months ago. We have to go somewhere to get started either as a commuter flight or driving. While Delta is the main option, American has become a viable options going west as well. AA was much better on price, arrival times, length of flights and the return time. We fly to DFW then straight to Maui going but have to have an additional stop returning for Kauai for any airlines or else we had to go back to HNL. Delta has a direct flight from ATL. We always try to minimize the stops since we've seen a lot of delays, decreasing stops reduces the chance of a delay getting us and messing up the entire flight timing.

 

[Egret1986]

As previously stated, you've received opinions about every combination.

We've only been to Hawaii once in June 2015. We live mid-East Coast. We stopped in San Jose, CA for the evening and stayed near the airport overnight. We flew out the next morning to Kauai. On the way home, out of Kona, we chose to fly home without an overnight stay on the West coast. It worked for us. We're considering a trip again in 2019. We would most likely do it the same way. There's benefits to all the options. As you say, you're in the research phase. There's no right or wrong way to do it. As you research, you'll see what will work best for your family. Start playing with the airfares when they become available, trying different combinations. Yes, there will be additional costs if staying over in LA, but perhaps that's not an issue. However, I do understand the motivation of others to get to paradise as soon as possible.

 

[BDMX2]

Thank you all so much for sharing your thoughts and experiences! So many varying ideas, which tells me that we'll really need to think about what is the best fit for our family. So many good ideas to mull over. Again, thanks so much!

 

[WalnutBaron]

A couple of additional thoughts about a stopover in L.A:

1. As you know from having lived there, the summer in L.A. is probably one of the least desirable times of year to go, simply because a) it can get hot; b) the smog is at its worst because it hasn't rained in months; c) in your case, the USC campus will be pretty deserted and your son may not get much of a feel for what things are really like when the undergrad students are there. All that said, LAX is the closest major U.S. airport (other than San Diego, I guess) to the Islands, so it's a great jumping off point for you if stop on the way, or a great temporary landing spot if you choose to lay over on your way back home.
2. LAX has been undergoing an interminable upgrade for the past few years, and the project is not going to be completed until 2023. When it's finished, it will be fantastic. In the meantime, the traffic in and out is pretty horrendous, even by L.A. standards.
3. You're smart to plan for a two-week vacation. Since you're losing a lot of vacation time just flying, making it a full two weeks makes sense. For the same reasoning, I'd recommend taking at least a couple of days in L.A. to see the sights, especially if you're planning to make a campus visit to USC. One thought: consider scheduling a campus tour through the Admissions Department, conducted typically by a student. It might be a lot more meaningful and interesting for your son.

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

I am from New England and have been to Hawaii on multiple occasions. I can tell you from my personal experience that traveling West is never an issue, however traveling back East causes all sorts of problems for time adjustments.

With that said, I would suggest a one or two day layover on your return trip in either San Diego, LA, San Fran., Las Vegas, Chicago, or Seattle. This should break up the trip to allow you to return east with minimal disruption.

Do the trip and enjoy yourselves. It is so worth it!




.

 

[JIMinNC]

I agree 100% with TheTimeTraveler. I've never had an issue going from the eastern time zone to Hawaii. We usually leave Charlotte between 7am and 10am Eastern time and arrive in Hawaii between 3pm and 5pm Hawaii time. The 5 or 6 hour time difference (varies with EST or EDT) makes it 8pm to 11pm by our body clock. We'll generally get checked in at the timeshare, unpack, eat dinner, and maybe even stop by the grocery store to at least get some breakfast items. By the time all that is done, it will be 10:30pm to 11pm Hawaii time. We'll be tired since it's 3am to 5am by our body clock, but by going to bed around 11pm Hawaii time, we will get our normal 8 - 9 hours or so of sleep that night and won't wake up until around 8 or 9am the next morning. That will get us oriented to island time and the rest of the trip we'll be fine.

Coming back east is an entirely different story, at least for me. Virtually every Hawaii to east coast itinerary is an overnight red-eye flight. We'll leave Hawaii in the evening sometime, fly all night, and arrive back in Charlotte mid-to-late afternoon the next day after an early AM connection somewhere. I'll cat nap on the flights a little, but won't sleep that well. While I'll be dead tired from the travel after we get home, at my normal bedtime of 11pm to midnight, my body clock still thinks it's 5 or 6pm. Nevertheless, that first night - because I'm so tired from the flight - I might actually sleep fine. But on night #2 at home, I typically won't be able to go to sleep before 3 or 4 in the morning. That will usually drag on for a couple of days before my clock readjusts.

As an example, I just returned last night from four days in Tucson on a business-related trip, and even with the modest 3 hour time difference, I'm still sitting here online at 2am...