We have visited Maui 2x and love the diversity of the island (last time there approx 6 years ago). Our favorite activities are sailing,snorkeling and swimming in the surf/playing on the beach. We also enjoyed biking down Haleakala and visiting the quaint village of Lahaina.

We are thinking of going back to Hawaii for a 7 day vacation - probably in June 2006 as we fear April will be too cold for our liking.

I am afraid of "going back" to Maui again as we will not be able to re-create the awesome trip we had there last time. We are thinking of visiting the Big Island but just don't know what to expect. We like "doing" things as opposed to sitting on the beach all day or relaxing by the pool, preferably sports type activities - hiking, sailing, snorkeling etc.

Is the Big Island for us? Also any recommendations on hotels would be greatly appreciated.

PS Our other option is to go back to Maui and probably stay at the Four Seasons - haven't been there before, but heard many wonderful things about Wailea. We have always staying in Kaanapali in the past.

The Big Island has LOTS of things to do! Volcano National Park alone has several days' worth of hiking, and then there are the Waipio and Polulu valleys, etc. We were there for 10 days, and I still didn't get to do all of the things I wanted to do!

I liked the Big Island because it was not so commercialized as the other islands.

The only downside is that since the island is younger, the beaches there are not as nice as on other islands. There are only a few wide, sandy beaches on the island, and they are mostly on the Kona side.

I live on the Big Island and I agree with Christie. There is plenty of hiking to be done here, especially at Volcano National Park. Hike across Halemaumau Crater or many other trails Polulu Valley is an easy 20 minute hike, Waipio Valley is steep getting down and up, but beautiful once down in the Valley. the Kona side has sailing, snorkeling, zodiac trips etc. and some beautiful beaches (around Waikoloa and Hapuna Beach which was #1 Beach in the world a few years ago.) Hilo is even quainter than Lahaina and is a "real" town, not just for tourists which seems Lahaina has become. And you can't see any lava flows on Maui! Since you've already been to Maui, why not try something different, you only go around once, might as well experience it all!

The BI is GREAT, we thought it is even more diverse than Maui, there are tons of things to do and the snorkeling is incredible. Check out the many trip reports on this site and get a copy of Big Island Revealed. There are more beaches than you think!

We were in Hawaii for the first time in March 2005. We stayed on the Big Island and on Maui. We loved both but really liked the Big Island better. There is a ton to do. We stayed at the Fairmont Orchid and we were upgraded to the club level room which was great. We also stayed at the Fairmont Kea Lani on Maui which is supposed to be even nicer than the Orchid but we preferred the Orchid. We did like the Wailea area. A couple of days it was raining in West Maui but it was beautiful in Wailea. BTW - it was pretty warm in March so I would think April would be fine.

Too cold in Hawaii in April??? We routinely go in January and February and it is plenty warm.

Agree with pdxgirl. Is 80 to 85 degrees too cold?

If you find April in Hawaii too cold you you might also find June in Hawaii too cold. Maybe you should consider going somewhere that is warmer.

Thanks for all the responses. Sounds like the Big Island is a wonderful place to visit. Thanks for the tip on Big Island Revealed! I'll definately look into that. And will have to make a decision soon, I am attempting to use FF miles to purchase our tickets.

Regarding temperatures, we are a little spoiled. We live in Southern California and are used to warm temperatures. So what some feel is warm to them is cool to others.

Our last visit to Maui (6 years ago) was mid May. The day time temp felt fine, but a little cold for swimming and evening temp required jackets. I guess I am a whimp when it comes to being cold. Most of my friends travel to Hawaii in August when day time avg temp is in the 90's. But if the day time avg in April is 80-85 that is nice.

But after saying this maybe evenings year round in Hawaii are cool due to being right on the water and the offshore breezes in the evenings.

I copied this from triplpanningweather.com.

April - Spring weather pattern has become well established, very few winter type storms ever occur this month. Tradewinds are usually quite strong on the windward sides, and frequently carry moisture in the form of cloudiness and showers with them. Lots of sunshine in the leeward areas. Mild weather prevails from the second half of this month through October. Tradewinds blow on the average 74% of the time. Sea water temperature averages about 75 degrees F.
April averages for different locations on Maui
Lahaina 84-65 F. (28.9C-18.3C) 1.05" of precipitation
Hana 80-67 F. (26.7C-19.4C) 8.95" of precipitation

Kahului 82-66 F. (27.8C-18.9C) 1.84" of precipitation
Kahului % of possible daytime sunshine: 56%


August - Warm, sunny to partly cloudy days are the rule for August. Tradewinds are still fanning the island with great regularity. Occasionally a tropical storm or Hurricane will get close enough to Maui to cause our winds to stop and the humidity to rise to uncomfortable levels, though it is unusual. Small-medium size waves continue to be at times a problem...in that, the South shores, where these waves impact, are the same beaches that the visitors (who often are not used to waves of any size) are at play and sunbathing. Persons should be careful during these periodic high surf events. Tradewinds are blowing on the average 94% of the time. Sea water temperature averages about 79 degrees F.
August averages for different locations on Maui
Lahaina 88-69 F. (31.1C-20.6C) .18" of precipitation
Hana 84-71 F. (28.9C-21.7C) 5.62" of precipitation

Kahului 88-71 F. (31.1C-21.7C) .49" of precipitation
Kahului % of possible daytime sunshine: 73%

It is hardly ever in the 90s in the islands. It might feel like it when the tradewinds stop blowing!

-Bill

Sorry. That site is hawaiiweathertoday.com

http://hawaiiweathertoday.com/content.php?pid=19#

-Bill

One of the things I love about the Big Island like Maui is the whale season. Hopefully you will see whales in April. April is the end of the season so maybe you will be lucky. It is one of the most awesome memories of my trips to Hawaii.

We once stayed at the Hilton Waikola and would not recommend it as it is too huge, like disneyland. The Fairmont Orchid does look beautiful. We checked it out when we were staying at the Hilton. I would love to stay there. As noted, there is plenty to do on the Big Island. No one mentioned visiting the Heaous. (sacred sights) and sorry about that spelling. No one mentioned the coffee tasting either. If you're coffee lovers you'll be in paradise.

I know what you mean about being spoiled. I'm born and raised in so Cal. and my husband has to make fun of me every time I need a jacket in Hawaii.
Have a wonderful trip.
Laurie

Hi,
We spend one week on the Big Island and one week on Maui. While I thought that Maui was really pretty, I had more of an adventurous spirit on the Big Island. I think the resorts there are nicer as they are not as crammed together. Volcano National Park was OK (if you want to see a real volcano in action, go see Arenal in Costa Rica). We really loved the place of refuge, and snorkelling there was great. If I were to go back to the Big Island (which I will some day), I would divide my time between the Four Seasons (very serene and dreamy) and the Mauna Kea ( the BEST beach and very relaxed). Hope this helps.
Kirsten

"We like "doing" things as opposed to sitting on the beach all day or relaxing by the pool, preferably sports type activities - hiking, sailing, snorkeling etc."

Then the Big Island is for you. It offers a wide range of environments, climates and sports activities. If you were going in March or April instead of June it's possible you could be scuba diving one day -- and snow skiing the next!

You mentioned hiking and snorkeling, and the BI excels at both. If you're seasoned hikers I heartily recommend the Muliwai Trail, on the western side of Waipio Valley. In a word, stunning. For details see the bottom of this page:

http://www.alternative-hawaii.com/activity/biecotr.htm

For snorkeling check out Kealakekua Bay, near Ke'ei and Captain Cook. If you go very early morning (just after sunrise is absolute best) the variety and numbers of fish (and often dolphins) are way better than Molokini or even Makena on Maui. You'll be blown away.

I so prefer the Big Island to Maui. I may go back to Maui - if I'm traveling with someone who has never been and just absolutely has to go - but I seriously doubt it.

There is plenty to do on the BI. This is not an issue. The issue is whether or not you will like the topography. That is it is dry and rocky on that side of the BI. Its not as pretty in that regard as Maui. If you go to the east side of the island, towars Hilo then it gets lush because most of the rain stays on that side. Other hotel choices with good beaches are the Hapuna Prince and th Marriott Waikoloa. The latter is located conveniently across from the Kngs shops where you will find some restaurants and stores. However a friend of mine was there last month and noted the Marriott is doing some construction now and it was a bit noisy so you have need to look into that. Cheers, Larry

Wailea/Four Seasons is wonderful, sand is like velvet and service spectacular, BUT if you want to do the Big Island, which looks like the moon when you first drive from the airport, my choice would be to split the time if you have it between Hapuna Prince, (beach is pristine, not one stone on it), very similar to Mauna Kea, next door, both crescent shaped and Four Seasons Hualalai, wonderful resort, always listed as #1 on travel channel best hotels. Beach is rougher, but everything else, including exclusive golf course for guests only, is fabulous. Also only about 5 minutes from airport> I guess, I'd prefer Maui for the beaches and Hawaii for the adventure. Have fun, you can't really lose!!

Forgot to mention, we went near end of September two years ago because it was our 45th anniversary. We had always gone to Hawaii in the winter. But this was great, no crowds, great weather and if this matters, we had a chance to talk to the pilot on the way back and I mentioned the flight was so smooth and he said it's always more bumpy in winter especially over the mountains. All in all we preferred the time and now go to the Carribean in the winter instead.