Omari

We will be in Oahu for 8 days and I have a rental reservation for the trip. I also have the book Driving and Discovering Oahu.
The question is "Is it a must to have the rental car to enjoy the whole island??"

mdardie

Yes. I spent a week in Oahu last summer and we had a van. It does depend what you would like to do while you are there. We stayed in Ko Olina which was 20 minutes outside of Honolulu. If you will be satisfied with spending your time in the city, then you may not need one. But if you want to take a trip up to the North Shore, Hanama Bay, and other beautiful beaches, you definitely need a car. Make sure to go to the shrimp huts near the north shore. You will probably read about them in any travel book. Most amazing shrimp I've ever had! Tell me more about your trip and maybe I can give you some more tips!

lcuy

It is a lot easier to get out of Waikiki and see the better parts of the island with a car.

You may not need a car the whole time though. There are several rental agencies right in Waikiki, so you could do some daily rentals or rent for one week, and just hang out close to your hotel the other days.

Omari

Thank you for your help. I am staying at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, and I plan to hit the North Shore and Hanama Bay. If you can give me any more help I would love it. I will be able to cook while there, so where would be a good place to get food with out loosing my shirt??

puddy

You don't need to rent a car for the entire stay, if you don't want to. There are many rental desks in Waikiki that you can rent from for a day or two or three. I would decide how much time you will be spending in the Waikiki/Honolulu area compared to the rest of the island. There are tour shuttles to Pearl Harbor, Hanama Bay, and other places. They have a great bus system that you can use in and around Honolulu (Diamond Head, Iolani Palace, etc). I was there for 5 days and rented a car for one to tour the North Shore and the rest of the island... it worked great for us.

Car is nice to have, but if you are trying to save money, you don't need it the whole time. I would rent one for 2 days, but again, it depends on where you will be spending the majority of your time.

Omari

Thank you

islandboy81

I would highly recommend you getting a rental car for at least two days. We just got back from vacationing in Oahu and loved the time we had with the car. As you probably already know, there are a lot of shuttles and buses that go pretty much anywhere in the island. However, they don't offer the convinience of having your own car. We were able to drive around Oahu and stop at any place we wanted at our convinience, which would be pretty hard otherwise. For example, while driving around the North Shore, we saw and stopped at several really nice beaches and shops that we would have probably missed if we were on a bus or shuttle. Renting a car, I feel, just makes traveling around the island a much more personal and fulfilling experience.

By the way, there is hardly any traffic once you leave the general Honolulu area and Hawaiian drivers are very courteous, at least compared to most of the drivers we have here in New Jersey, lol.

Cats_Do_Dance

My family just returned from Oahu. I wouldn't say a car is a "must" but it certainly was nice to have. ITA with the drivers in Hawaii being very courteous, I believe during our entire time there, I only heard a horn honked once and I think that was to let another driver know they were free to pass.

bradshawgirl

Hmmm . . . what if you decide to rent a car for two or three days while staying there? Do most island hotels offer parking for guests, or should that be planned on as an additional expense?

bonniebroad

In Waikiki/Honolulu, it is almost unheard of to have free parking at a hotel anymore. If you rent a car, you will have a hefty parking fee, as a rule, amount depending on the hotel.

hawaiihoneymoon

Hi - we were on Oahu for just 5 days last year for our honeymoon and we rented a car for 2 out of the 5 days. I would say it is a definite plus to rent your own car. Spending 8 days int he waikiki area is going to get very boring after the first couple days and you will want to venture out to see the rest of the island. Relying on public transportation can be a pain. Having a car will allow you to drive along the North Shore (which I highly recommend). While you are there, having your own car allows you to make stop anywhere you like along the way. I rememeber my husband and I stopped to get shaved ice, we stopped on each and every quaint little beach we saw (SUNSET beach was our favorite - defintely go there). There was a small little stall which was selling fresh shrimp curry (or something, I don't even rememeber) which my husband stopped to have. You can also drive to Pearl Harbor (rather than taking those horrendous tour buses). Polynesian Culture center is another place you can drive to - and there are beautiful views along the way - where you can pull over at your own leisure to take really amazing photographs.

So having a car allows you to travel at your own leisure and stop and go as you wish - I would recommend booking it before you go since you can get better rates on the internet(as we did). Everything there is more than double the price. And you should plan on spending some time on Waikiki (and therefore don't book a car for those days). Only book the car for the days you want to travel around.

Cornelius15

no a car is not needed for all 8 days
I would say rent a car for one to two
days and while you have it ride up
to the Pali Lookout. otherwise
THE BUS and listen to an array of
fun accents while trying to discern
them quietly for amusement.

vegaslover73

Yes. We were there 7 days and used our car every one of them. Get out an explore all of Oahu!

spootiskerry

If you want to save money, you really can get by w/o a car at all. The bus goes to all of those places mentioned. See if you can get a bus schedule ahead of time and plan accordingly. You can take the bus up to the North shore, surf all day and take it home. I lived there 6 months and found the bus to be cheap and easy...and like a previous poster said...you get to listen to the local accents. It's a bit of culture!