faron

Okay, this is a long way out, but my wife and I have begun saving for a 2 week long tenth anniversary trip to Hawaii in summer 2006. I've been reading the boards, and beginning the planning.

This first question (more in months to come) is about organizing our basic travel. I'm thinking 2 islands, either BI + Maui or BI + Kauai. Those with experience please give me feedback on or alternatives to this plan:

Arrive Maui stay one night within reasonable distance to airport (shuttle). Sleep and roam around, but leave the next day for Hilo and rent car/jeep. Get room for 2 nights someplace in volcano village, explore the volcano. Move for 3 nights or so to the Kona side, where we get into island mode. Then back to Maui for a week in a rental condo on the ocean and a rental convertable to really do the island beach sun thing, including daytrips to waterfalls, views, and etc.

I'm thinking this way I get RT air to Maui, then add the interisland for Hilo so we can depart at the end from Maui directly rather than having to leave Maui for Hilo to catch our mainland flight. The alternative is to fly into Hilo, spend our time on the Big Island and then go to Maui for our week, but then return to Hilo before flying home.

I may be too deep in the details for my own good, but hey, I've got three years to fantasize about this trip and plan it. Your thoughts? (and if we decide on Kauai instead of Maui, do I have to scrap this plan to get a decent fare from the mainland?)

Our interests are in the volcano and natural wonder of the Big Island, plus a heavy dose of island relaxation for the remainder. Hence leaving Oahu off the list, and wanting to stick with 2 islands.

Thanks!

panhandle

I wouldnt stay near the airport for a night. The interisland flights are so short you might as well get the travel over with and get out on the beach. After flying all day the previous day and have to get up and do it again the next day just wouldnt be much fun. We havent stayed on BI but you may be able to fly into BI and home direct from Maui depending on where you live. We used a package dealer (ie: Pleasant Hawaiian , Fun Jet , Apple Vacations) They were able to make hopping islands affordable and easy. They also seem to get better deals at hotels...just be sure to check which hotel and what type of room they want to give you and upgrade to suit your travel needs.
We went to Kauai and Maui and loved both. Maui was a little more upbeat while Kauai was more relaxed. You cant go wrong with either...keep us updated and/or takes US with you!

Pumpy

Here's my suggestion:
1. Kauai & Big Island
2. Spend 7 nts & eight days on BI
3. Stay on Kohala Coast BI with 1-2 of those nights on Hilo/volcano side of island
4. Fly in and out of Kona and head to Kauai for a very relaxing rest of trip. Definately plan on going to Pali Hali (sp?) State Park Beach. How this beach is not consistently rated the best beach in Hawaii is beyond me?
5. Don't stress about your trip as what ever you decide will be great!

circa

It's wonderful you are starting to plan
now...that's part of the fun of going.

But to get a better "feel" for what you are wanting to do, we should know a few more details.

Where are you flying from?

What type budget...."budget", moderate,
upper-end.

Some thought as to the type accommodations ($$$)

I would first get my activites sorted out and then figure out the air travel connections.

There are several companies that special in fly/drive deals....that come with hotel and car, that are very good values, if you need this.

"panhandle" is correct...if possible keep your travel time minimize....2 weeks flies by fast....

(Big Island my favorite island. the "lava flow" is awesome. Been to all the islands several times, BI many.)

Check several travel guides....such as
"Big Island" Revealed, and Maui, Revealed. Lots of helpful info.

You will get lots of good info...but you will have to sort it out....it can be overwhelming....so much to see and do

Hawaii....it's all good

faron

Thanks to you three for the great info so far. panhandle has convinced me not to take a day off traveling upon arrival - just get to the first destination. I have been assuming that air fare costs will make it logical to fly from/to mainland using same airport - is that true? if that's a fair assumption, I would prefer our flight to the mainland to depart from the island of last lodging (which should work unless that's Kauai, right?)

I'll be getting several travel guides soon - I enjoy the planning stage a lot, and I SO appreciate the real world experience of folks on this board.

Taking circa's points, here's some info about us and our desired activities:

We'll be flying from Michigan (live in Lansing but often fly from Grand Rapids; use Detroit only if significantly cheaper). It doesn't matter where we connect through from there - cost wins over convenience and comfort.

Our tentative budget is $7500, roughly divided as:
airfares (incl interisland)= 2250
lodging (@ $1000/wk) = 2000
car rentals (2@250/wk) = 500
per diem (75$ /person/day) = 2250
which leaves 500 for incidentals and impulses.

I'd guess that's on the "budget" side of moderate, but not totally "on the cheap".

I am quite sure we want to:
1) spend 2 days or so at the volcano, including an after dark excursion, etc. likely stay 2 nights just outside the park.
2) drive the saddle road, see the observatory, etc. (means car rental from Harpers?)
3) spend remainder of Big Island time between exploring and chilling (Kona side).
4) but I'd like to see Hilo side.

On other island:
1) chill together (beach, hammock, leisure drives, sights, sunsets, eating & drinking, etc.)

Accomodations I was thinking - 2-3 nights B&B at volcano area; 3-5 nights on the Kona side in a posh place we might afford; then 6-8 nights in one spot (owner rental condo on beachfront is my ideal) on the "beach" island (Maui or Kauai). Definitely want to do the "active" Big Isl first, the "relaxed" other last.

What's the realism of all this?

Thanks again, and I'll eventually start a couple separate posts about specifics.

patg

Since you are on a budget, I think you should let the airlines determine your schedule. ;-) What I mean is that you can fly from the mainland to either Oahu, Kahului (Maui) or Kona (BI). Since you have so much time to plan, keep prospecting for airfares and get a sense of what each route costs. You may pick up a bargain, for example, by booking at a slow time (say, February for an early June departure)or when a new route is added or expanded, such as flying via San Jose. (The interisland routes are easy to book later.)

If you are thinking of using FF miles, call their service desk and ask lots of questions about when to book - those tickets go very fast.

Keep track of your options through Orbitz, which will suggest many alternative flights if you select options on airport locations and flexible days. The airfare from the midwest can run $600 - $1200 or more, so it is definitely worth the effort. And so is your planning; you'll be glad to have things worked out in advance so you can just go on "Aloha time" once you arrive. Good luck!

EricoSmith

I found a one way rental between Kona and Hilo for the same price as a local. So don't assume that you need to fly in and out of the same airport on the BI.

circa

faron....good info....I am sure you will get lots of help...looks real do-able....will watch for yours posts

lahainaluna

Just up front I would like to suggest that if you finally have any inter-island filghts that you schedule them in the early morning or late afternoon. It seems that half the population needs to travel mid-day.

Cost-wise it seems to be cheaper to schedule the flight from the mainland in and out of the same airport

faron

lahainaluna,
thanks for the tip on interisland - I'll make a note of that. And so far my research agrees with your thought, that arrival departure at the same Hawaiian airport is the way to keep cost down.

i'm seeing $650 or so for RT from Michigan (Grand Rapids) to Maui, which would work for me (even assuming it's another $100 or so by the time 3 yrs rolls around). Now I'm waiting for books to arrive so I can study up and ask questions about other details.

circa

faron: couple of thoughts.

Driving the saddle road. Harpers does allow it. Other rental companies do not. I have driven the saddle road from the Hilo side only. Road is not so bad..but the weather can turn quickly and make road vision difficult. Also no services on the road. The last jaunt from the visitor center to the top of Mona Kea is very steep (15-18mph)
max.climbing up hill.

The Puna district south of Hilo is very rustic and basically unspoiled...good describtions in Big Island Revealed.

Kona side accommodations. In Kona within walking distance of downtown; south of Kona on Alii drive 1-3 miles; Waikoloa:23 miles north of Kona "resort" area. Of course there are other places, but these seem to be the basic areas that are most poplular. Just depends on what you are looking for. Condos in all areas.

Will be interesting to follow you evaluation of Maui or Kauai as time goes on.

pspercy

Couple of thoughts on posts so far.. projecting fares that far into the future is bordering on sorcery given the current state of the airline industry, but I realise you must start somewhere Maybe we need Southwest Airlines to buy Aloha or something !!
Also, you can (at present) fly directly into Kauai(LIH) from the mainland. Right now, I'd concentrate on deciding which island(s) to target, (tentatively)pick your digs according to budget and then start the fare hunt. Personally I'd keep the hotel/island moves to a minimum but others will disagree.
The state has good info re "which island" see www.gohawaii.com or www.hawaii.com (a commercial site). I'm biased so I can't fault including Kauai but don't know BI at all.
Happy planning.. Paul

Patty

From the mainland, you can fly directly into Honolulu Oahu (HNL), Kahului Maui (OGG), Kona Big Island (KOA), and Lihue Kauai (LIH). As far as I know, there are no mainland flighs into Hilo (ITO). LIH and KOA direct fares tend to run a little higher than OGG due to fewer flights available. Also when comparing roundtrip vs. open jaw prices (into one city, out of another) keep in mind that with the open jaw, you'll have one less interisland segment to buy. Sometimes it works out the same or close, even if the open jaw is a bit more expensive.

KimF

Using frequent flyer miles for just the interisland flights is pretty easy. It's usually only about 5,000 miles for a one way flight. Both Hawaiian & Aloha airlines are partnered with other major airlines who's mile you could use. Just check Hawaiian's & Aloha's websites.

faron

Thanks for the additional thoughts on airfare sorcery. I'll start a new thread soon, but on this point I'll just note that there are flights from the mainland into Hilo (I am quite sure, though now that I write that, I realize that I've been watching fares on Travelocity using the farewatcher, but only some of them have I clicked all the way through to see the actual legs of the flights -- but I think that I've seen at least one that goes directly to Hilo from Seattle or somewhere). Please correct me if I'm wrong on that.

At the moment, my thoughts are turning to Kauai rather than Maui as the second island (with Big Island), and I'm thinking: into Hilo, 3 nts at Volcano; Hilo to Kauai, 5 nights on Kauai (Poipu?); then Kauai to Kona, for 6 nights or so in the Kohala region, before driving back (1 way rental Kona-Hilo) to Hilo for the last leg out.

How's that sound (the logistics, not the island selection) to those with experience? If I can't fly to Hilo w/o going through Honolulu, I'd adjust it to go in and out of Kona, but still fly interisland from Hilo to Kauai - just means I drive to Volcano a longer way from our first airport landing (Kona to Volcano is what 2.5 hours?). Hilo would be better.

Thanks again, and weigh in on my post next week (after I get some work done) about the relative merits of a BI-Kauai vs. BI-Maui itinerary.

Faron

Patty

I'm almost certain there are no mainland-Hilo nonstops from LAX, SFO, or SEA, at least not currently. Could be by 2006, who knows?

I don't think it makes much of a difference though, either way you're looking at making one cross island drive either at the beginning or end of your trip. Hilo is about 40 minutes from VNP.

circa

Personally, I think you are making too big a deal of the air travel. By the time you go (2006) the whole playing field could be different. As the actual time approaches (say within 6-9 months of departure)when you would start booking your trip, then decide on the best route(s).
Also, after planning a trip for 3 years, I doubt it an extra flight leg, couple hours flying, or driving a little more is really going to matter.

What to do and see is usually the comsuming issues....(and which islands!)

But, all and all, sounds like you have good handle on it!!

Hawaii....it's all good!....

catrd73

I am going on my honeymoon in October. We are from MI as well. We are flying out of Detroit since we are getting married over there, but the price was the same out of GR at that time. We are flying into Kauai and leaving from Maui to come home. I went through Apple Vacations & it is as part of a package, but airfare was running about $600ish when I booked in May.

dededoug

Now that it is Spring 2006, do you have your 10th anniversary trip to Hawaii all figured out? I'm curious as to your final choices as my family is going to Hawaii this summer (BI and Kauai)and your previous posts sounded a lot like what we might be interested in as well.

DawnCt

Delta flies into Kona from SLC with a departure from Oahu. I would do that. Spend 5 nights on the Kohala Coast with a one way car rental. Drive to Hilo, spend two nights dropping off the car there. Fly to Kauai from Hilo, spend 4 or 5 nights and catch an interisland flight to Oahu for the remaining 2 or 3 nights. Visit Pearl Harbor, hike Diamond Head, enjoy Honolulu and then sadly....come home. That will limit your out of pocket interisland flight to two segments and you will get that third island. Or you could fly out of Maui, stay and bit longer than two weeks and do the same thing.