First I want to express my thanks to previous posters on Maui, especially Heidi, for the information I gleaned before I went.
We had a dream vacation on beautiful Maui at the Grand Wailea resort for 8 days, and then two days on Oahu-- Sheraton Waikiki.
We realize that we may not have seen all the best of Oahu in such a short time, but purely based on beach, hotel, ambiance, and natural beauties, we much preferred Maui, a purely personal opinion. We did enjoy the Pearl Harbor sightseeing on Oahu.
I of course am not suddenly an expert, but if anyone has any questions I'd be glad to respond, either here or by email. I was never certain I wanted to go to Hawaii in the first place, now I can't wait to go back.

I still have one question though: what is the correct pronunciation, including syllable stress, of Haleakala?

Elaine,

Hi. I visited Maui and Oahu in July, 1999, had a great time. Did the sunrise bike trip down Mt. Haleakala, after a slight panic attack. Actually, I was very excited about the opportunity to do this tour, and planned it all for my not-so-sure-about-it friends and I. On the way up instead of sleeping like my friends, I was looking out the windows at every opportunity, listening to the van driver tell about what to expect, etc. By the time we got to the top, I was so scared and thinking what a fool I am, this could be deadly. Don't know what came over me, never had a fear of heights before, know how to ride a bike, etc. Well, after losing the previous night's dinner in the restroom, I decided I didn't come all this way and make all these plans to not go through with them. I did it, and was so very glad.

I know I'm rambling.... sorry. But the pronunciation is, I believe, Hol-E-auck-a-la.

Sandi

HI Elaine!
Let me start out by saying Thank you! I've never done this kind of chat before and I find it so helpful! To begin, I just booked my honeymoon to Hawaii in August and it is both of our first times there. Although, it was not my first choice...( and I appreciate your honesty as well) I'm sure that it will be a phenomenal trip and one that we will probably want to do again!.
Your message has helped me to feel more comfortable with my decision and it enabled me to get a sense of what we might expect when we go there. Since you have been there already, would you mind telling me what you thought of Oahu overall?
I booked our trip to begin in Oahu for 5 nights. I must tell you that my fiance and I aren't the "sit on the beach all day types", but we do enjoy history, culture and island hopping as well as the beaches (we're both in our mid 20's, in case you were wondering). Do you think that Oahu would be a nice place to spend our first few days/nights on our honeymoon.? Or is there another island that you think would be a better choice for what we're looking to do?
To be honest, I'm not so much concerned about the second half b/c we are staying at a beautiful hotel in Maui.
Any help and or assistance would be most appreciative! Thanks Elaine!

Hi April
As I mentioned in my original posting,
I only spent two days on Oahu, in Honolulu-Waikiki. We spent one entire day sightseeing in Pearl Harbor
(The Arizona Memorial, the Missouri battleship, and the Bowfin submarine) and we enjoyed it very much, we are all history buffs. However, it was a tiring day, and we stupidly didn't put on sunscreen because we stupidly didn't realize we'd need it even though we weren't on the beach, so remember that.
Our second day in Honolulu was spent on Waikiki beach, and also some browsing-shopping. There would be many people I'm sure who will quickly point out that I didn't see the most or the best of Oahu, by a long shot. However,
although I thought Honolulu and Waikiki beach were clean, they seemed very congested in comparison to where we had been in Maui. In my
mainland opinion, the part of Honolulu I saw was overbuilt, didn't seem to have much in the way of zoning and planning because the tall buildings come up so close to the beach. We also would see a tall office building, walk around the corner, and see small private houses in the same neighborhood.
I don't want to start a controversy here as can happen when people have different impressions of the same place, or even because, as I said, I didn't see the rest of Oahu.
What I can say definitely is that I would not start my honeymoon trip in Honolulu specifically, at least not for 5 days. Prehaps try another area of Oahu, try Kaui, and just save a little time for the historical sightseeing around Honolulu.
Again, just personal viewpoint.

April, while not in our mid 20's, we have been to Hawaii 8 times in the last 15 years and planning our 9th. Oahu- our least favorite island. We've tried it twice and won't go back except to pass thru the airport. There are some interesting sites on Oahu but Maui for a mid 20 year old would be fun. On Oahu , the north shore is beautiful, Pearl Harbor and teh Polynesian Cultural Center. Consider Kauai and Maui.
Bart

Pronunciation of Halaeakala is "Hol - ay - auck -uh - lah." Hope this helps -

For April---If you would like to learn about the culture of the Hawaiian people, plus others of Polynesian, do not miss the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie. You can drive out on your own or arrange a bus tour through your hotel. I would suggest going in the afternoon and staying for the luau and evening show. Also plan a trip to the Bishop Museum, located just outside of Honolulu.

To Elaine and April: Elaine, as you know from some of my other postings, I am a big fan of Oahu and personally think it's an amazing looking island. However, that said, let me say that years ago, I, too, stayed at the Grand Wailea and then came back to Waikiki and had some "adjustment" problems! But it wasn't so much the environment, but rather, the hotel was so "plain" compared to the Grand! However, I can tell you that by moving and staying on the 25th floor of the Hyatt Regency on Waikiki that I certainly had the most INCREDIBLE view I've ever had in all of Hawaii! And that compensated quite nicely for the Grand! And the hotel itself is really quite nice, even though it never makes any of the "best" lists! But then again, sometimes some of those "bests" are NOT really best at all! Of course, in your situation, like myself, making the transition from the Grand to the Sheraton of all places, would also be such a BIG disappointment, even though I feel that the ocean in front of that hotel is much nicer and calmer for swimming, etc., than at the Grand. You really should have checked OUT and gone to either the Hyatt, Halekulani, Mandarin Oriental or the Ihilani Resort and Spa (for total seclusion)! But the Sheraton? God help you!! (Since your e-mail address says "Mt. Sinai" I assume you're from New York(?). Since I assume you've been to the Caribbean before I'm sure you can see there's quite a big difference between those two areas!!)

April: Don't worry about your hotel choices at all. However, if money is NOT a problem, I would investigate the above hotels on Waikiki instead. If not, don't worry about it as you will have a blast just the same! I think you SHOULD stay on Waikiki FIRST to get a "taste" of Hawaii first (it IS crowded, but also FUN and EXCITING!) and then move on to Maui which is more quiet! However, BE SURE to circle Oahu or else you will be missing out on quite a lot of natural beauty! If you don't want to snorkel at least take a PEEK at Hanauma Bay from the top of the hill as it is quite a sight! And be sure to stop your car on the side of road in Waimanalo, just around the bend from Sea Life Park, and walk just a few steps down to a truly beautiful, white sand beach and gorgeous water! Have a great time and kindly post a report here upon your return!

We've been going to Hawaii every third year since 1981. At first, we included Oahu, and even loved the beauty of it (OUTSIDE OF WAiKIKI) Some favorites were the area around Sea Life Park, Hanauma Bay, the blowhole. But for the last 4 trips, we only pass thru long enough to get to the inter-island terminal. Our favorite is Kauai, but Maui is okay, Big Island does not seem to have the same "feel" to it and I don't think is as pretty. On our last visit to Oahu, we couldn't believe how many skyscrapers had gone up actually blocking the view of the beach. I remember being able to walk up Kalakaua Avenue and WALK past the pink palace. Now you can't even SEE it from the road because of other buildings. For that matter, I remember being able to walk the beach at night and listen to the lovely music coming from the various hotels. You can't even walk on the sand now. There is a narrow boardwalk-like thing - not the same at all! I know the hotel you're planning on spending five days in. It's just okay. I'd not stay longer than two or three days. Hope this helps. Remember, this is just MY opinion; I'm sure others will disagree.

Elaine,
What did you think of the Grand Wailea? Was it to Big? Tour groups? Kids at the pool? How were the rooms? What category did you stay in, and did you see the others? Where did you find the best prices at? Sorry for all the questions.

Thanks,
Jason

Elaine--

Your post was quite helpful to us. We are planning a November honeymoon trip to Hawaii, and we cannot decide between Oahu and Maui. While it sounds like Maui is the way to go in many areas, we are really interested in some of the historical sites in Oahu.

How was island hopping? I assume you flew into one airport and then took an island shuttle flight. As you can tell, we haven't talked to anyone about this because we've changed our mind on what to do about 4 times.

Our plan at this point is for 7 nights. Does it sound feasible to do, say, 4 in Maui and 3 in Oahu? Please...any help anyone can give would be so appreciated. We can't make up our minds to save our lives!!! Thanks.

pronunciation of Haleakala:
hah-lay-uh-kah-lah (small emphasis on "hah" and big emphasis on the "lah" at the end while elongating the 'ah' sound.
hale-house
a-one form of the word 'of'
ka-one form of the word 'the'
la-sun (there's supposed to be a kahako, something like a dash to elongate a vowel sound, over the 'a'

Lehua

Stacey,
Since you're planning a honeymoon trip, I would recommend Maui for a week. I'm no expert, but I think going to Hawaii is for the "experience", not so much for seeing everything. Last year my husband and I went to Maui for a week and loved it; it was our first time to Hawaii. We were so glad we were on Maui for a whole week and didn't have to waste precious vacation time packing and unpacking, spending time in airports, . There's so much to see and do on Maui, plus you want to have time to kick back and do nothing for at least a day or two or more, it's up to you what you want out of your honeymoon. Oahu will still be there next time...Maui has lots of outdoorsy activities to do plus wonderful beaches. If you're into historic sights a LOT more, then maybe Oahu is the place for you. Maui is fabulous for snorkelling and diving spots, don't miss it on your honeymoon. It's worth it stay a week. Just my opinion, hope this helps.