3 Families to Hawaii - Where?
 

Pardon the length, but I'm trying to give all the info I can, here.

Every year, our family of four goes on a trip with 2 other families of four for a week during the summer. We live pretty close to the beach in California, and we usually rent a house on the sand not far from our own homes. As the kids have gotten older, we have done more activities, like last summer we went ATVing on sand dunes and on a crazy 4-wheeling Hummer ride. Now we want to go to Hawaii and are torn between Maui and Kauai. The kids range in age from 11-17. They are actually a pretty low-maintenance bunch so we don't need to be on the go all the time, but we definitely like to have a couple of activities in the mix just to keep it interesting. It would also be nice if the kids could walk to town or shops or a place to get a bite to eat. For the adults, cocktails, reading, napping, boogie boarding and eating = relaxation, but we are always up for adventure as well.

My family of four went to the BI and loved it and did it all, but it isn't "beachy" enough for this group. Some of us have been to Oahu, and while it's indeed beautiful, it's more touristy than what we want for this particular trip.

So, Maui or Kauai? We've never been to either. I don't know the towns, and I don't know which sides of the islands are "better" for beaches in the summer...

Ideally we'd like to rent a house or two with easy beach access, and we need sleeping quarters for 12, which can sometimes be a tall order.

Any suggestions appreciated. Mahalo in advance.

My sister just got back from Kauai with her family inlcuding 3 kids 13-17. They also recently went to Maui. While they said that kauai was fun they all agreed that they liked Maui better. I have taken my 2 kids to Maui twice and they loved it. I've been to Kauai twice and while I personally love Kauai I think kids the age you listed may like Maui better.

I agree with Maui. At those ages, I think the beach choices are more plentiful. And mine at 10 and 15 really liked it.

Thank you! This gives me a great place to start. Can you point me to towns, beaches or preferred sides of the island?

Lahaina is a very quaint town that is wonderful for shopping.
The Kaanapali, Napili, and Kapalua areas are very nice.

Maui!

Kaanapali has Whaler's Village shopping center, which is good because kids can get there by themselves at least from the hotels/condos on the south part of Kaanapali beach (Hyatt, Marriott, Westin, Kaanapali Alii, Sheraton, Kaanapali Villas, Whaler -- not sure if I've left any out). I don't know if there are any larger home rentals in the immediate area, which there likely would be closer to Lahaina.

Maui

Lots of info. Skip the Oahu things & see the websites:

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34812564

Thank you everyone. I don't feel so in the dark now, and thank you, Dusty, for the link info. Very helpful. West Maui sounds like it would be best for our group. We like to rent a beach house because it allows us more options for meals, etc., but after looking into rentals (for 12 people) I have to admit, I'm pretty shocked by the cost of so many of them. Thousands of dollars per night? And we want to stay for a week? Yikes! The other side of Maui appears to be less expensive but not so easy for the kids to get around on their own.

<i>Thousands of dollars per night? </i>

Well, our 1-bedroom *** condo on Kaanapali Beach in August cost $400 a night, and only slept 3, so I guess I'm not too surprised!

Rentals for 12 people are going to be expensive, no matter where. Kihei has the least expensive condos. &quot;The other side of Maui&quot; is not cheaper, presuming you mean Paia.

Kaanapali area would give your kids independence.

Realize that summer in Hawaii is not the cheap season. It's summer vacation so lots of families are going, especially around July 4th.

Beachfront houses? Yes, they are going to be expensive. Wait until you see the cost of food.

When our family and friends went together (a group of 9) we stayed at Lahaina Shores (definitely not $1000's a night!). It is walking distance to the town of Lahaina, with lots to see and do. This worked well for us, and might for yours too, because people could go out on their own, alone or in various groupings, and we were not always tied to the rental cars.

Thanks Suze. I'll check out Lahaina Shores. We usually rent a five bedroom house so each parent couple gets a bedroom, the boys get one bedroom and the girls get the other bedroom. We've never rented multiple condos and I'm willing to look into it but I can already see it will open a whole new can of worms because we'll have to figure out who has to stay with who vs. who gets to stay with who (because of ages), boys, girls...aye yi yi.

The hotel gets mixed reviews. My family thought it was a good deal for the price. We were an all-adult group (two generations) so were just divided up into couples or a single each having a room. The condos are differently owned so some are furnished nicer than others, but all our rooms were OK.

What I so liked most about it was the casual atmosphere (it is not a &quot;resort&quot;) and being walking distance to the town of Lahaina. Also there was decent parking for our couple of rental cars.

I say Kauai...Maui is a lot like S. Cal in many ways and the Lahaina/Kaanapali areas are very resort-y. If you want laid back beach style, I suggest Hanalei. There are some wonderful beachfront homes and also &quot;compounds&quot; made up of several island style homes that your kids would love...jump off the pier, fish, snorkel, surf, walk into town for shaved ice, play ball on the large grassy lawns, etc.. You said the kids aren't high mainetenance so if they want to be outdoors all day and don't need to be near a mall or a movie theater, go to Hanalei. They'll go to sleep sunkissed and waterlogged every night!
Don't know of specific websites but if you do a search for Hanalei you will most likely find some grat family oriented places on the beach.

Here's site with some family houses on Hanalei Bay. http://www.beachkauai.com/
I haven't stayed at the family homes but did stay at the Beach Cottage. The views are as the photos show.

$2000 a night divided by 3 = around $650 a night, which isn't bad for a family of 4 staying beachfront in Maui. That's what a nice 2 bedroom unit at Makena Surf, Polo Beach Club and Kaanapali Ali'i goes for and you'd end up paying close to that or more for a hotel room for 4 at the Westin, the KeaLani or the Hyatt too.

I forgot...as far as beachfront rentals go, I don't think it gets any better than Hanalei on Kaua'i. Here are some links to places that I know that might work for your group.

http://aninialoha.com/nalu.htm
Nalu and Paniolo are side by side, 3 bedrooms each.

http://aninialoha.com/hanalei-house/

Egads Caterpillar, Martym &amp; Iamq,

Thanks for your tips. Choosing between Kauai or Maui is such a wonderful dilemma to have!

Personally, I lean toward Kauai and the other adults do, too. We just wondered if Kauai would be too quiet for the tribe of pre-teens and teens that will be in tow. Thanks to your suggestions, Kauai now beckons again! The Hanalei area sounds like it might be a great option.

If you're planning on all staying in the same place, for a group of that size you may want to contact a resort manager/realtor on Maui. They may have some recommendations. There have been some new laws about renting homes so you should make sure of what you're getting. Sullivan Properties in West Maui has several 2 &amp; 3 bedroom locations with a max of 6 or 8 in a room.