Hi,

We're considering a family vacation to Hawaii in the next 12 months, but I don't even know where to start planning, so I'm hoping for some helpful advice to point us in the right direction.
Here's the vital stats:
Family of 6 (Wife and I, kids 17, 13, 12, 9). We'd like to spend 7-10 days.

things we're interested in:
Beach time
golf
seeing a volcano
a bit of history (especially Pearl Harbor, the Arizona Memorial and the Missouri)
local culture
Wildlife/sea-life
My oldest daughter is also studying Japanese, so anything regarding Japanese heritage in Hawaii would be fun, too.

At this point, I'm looking for places to stay, which type of accommodation (hotel, resort, vacation rental) and any other advice to point us in the right direction. I'm also looking for estimates on possible costs, which has been tough to research given the size of our family. So, any advice would be greatly appreciated. thanks!

Hawaii for Dummies is actually a very good book to help you start your planning.

Some of the things you mentioned are island specific. Pearl Harbor is on Oahu. Volcano National Park on the Big Island is home to Kilauea (most active in the world) and to Mauna Loa (largest in the world). Maui has Haleakala National Park~a volcano with an enormous crater; hardy folks can take bike tours. Most of the islands offer wildlife tours~whale watching, snorkeling, observing turtles. Golf and beaches are pretty abundant.....

The suggestion to look at guide books is a good one. Decide on your island and go from there, or chose two and check websites like travelocity for packages that offer stays on two islands.

There's more that differentiates the islands, too.

Oahu, of course, has Honolulu, and Honolulu has Waikiki, which is where most of the hotels are (nice beach, but very built-up...from what I've heard, the Cheesecake Factory in Waikiki is the highest-revenue outlet in the chain (enuf said!)). But Oahu also has the windward side (Kailua and Lanikai, about a half hour from Waikiki, are both beautiful, and the north shore (Sunset Beach, for ex., and the town of Haleiwa), and the drive between them is spectacular).

Maui is more developed with resort "areas" - Kaanapali Beach, Kihei, Wailea. It also has the town of Lahaina which is fun to poke around and is about 3 miles from the Kaanapali Beach resort area. What's nice about Kaanapali Beach is that you can walk from one end to the other on a paved beach path (I think Wailea might have something similar).

Kauai is more undeveloped than Maui. It has some beautiful lodgings, but they aren't in resort 'communities'. It's lush and beautiful, very laid-back compared to the other two. Although I love Kauai (an am going for the third or fourth time in the fall), it's not where I would choose to go with kids, unless they love to hike and hang out doing nothing.

Maui or a combination of Oahu and Maui (if you have 10 days) would be my choice with kids.

Oh, and if it were me, I'd definitely choose to stay at a condo on the beach, rather than a hotel. With 4 kids, it would be nice to have both a kitchen (even if just for breakfast and snacks) and living room where you can all congregate. My favorite is Kaanapali Alii in Kaanapali Beach, but there are loads of them.

Looking at the ages of your children, a kitchen would be a plus. I vacation with two other families, and at one point we had 4 teenagers. We finally opted to go on a cruise so the kids could graze all day!

We love Kona on the Big Island. There is so much to see and do. We have rented a condo from VRBO and had good success. There is Costco and supermarkets for groceries and gas. Drive to the volcano for the day. Free zoo near Hilo. Farmers markets and the best beach Hapuna. Kona Brewing company for beer and gourmet pizza outside. Our girls are 9 and 17. We have been there twice with them and they loved it all. You could read my previous posts. The best part about Kona is that it is not overcrowded with tourists. There is lots of space to go wherever you want and you can always be alone if your family wants to.

We have loved our Hawaii family vacations. I agree that a condo on the beach would be the best way for your family. With the ages of your kids, I would suggest flying into Honolulu, staying a couple of nights. You could visit Pearl Harbor then. Then fly to Maui for the rest of your trip. You won't see an active volcano on Maui, but there are more beaches there. I love the Big Island and Kauai, too, but for a first trip Maui would give you more options.

What we like to do is plan an active day (snorkeling, hiking, etc.) and then a relaxing day. We enjoy hanging out at the resort, walking on the beach and relaxing, but we also enjoy snorkeling and hiking. Sometimes people plan so much on their Hawaii trips that they come home exhausted. If you go to Maui, staying on Kanaapali Beach would put you near restaurants and other things to do.

Our teenagers loved Hawaii. We've taken them twice (the other times were just hubby and me!). The first time we went to Maui for 8 nights and then Oahu for 3 nights. The second time we took them we stayed in Kauai for 7 nights. If you enjoy lots of hiking and snorkeling, Kauai is also a good choice. But there aren't as many choices on Kauai for restaurants, etc., so for a first trip I think Maui is the best choice.

"Maui Revealed" and "Oahu Revealed" are good books to get you started. There is some controvery about these books because some people feel that the authors encourage tourists to go to dangerous areas, but I don't feel that is correct. Just always use common sense when you are near the ocean.

Have fun planning!

Because of your list of must-dos that means you need to choose the Big Island (volcano) and Oahu (pearl harbor). Personally I wouldn't let those dictate my island choice, but if they are important to you, then that pretty much narrows it down to spliting your time between those two.

Before my first trip to Hawaii I just checked out a big pile of guidebooks from the library and looked thru all the photos for starters.

I'll hit the library and bookstore this weekend. I like the idea of a vacation rental, but I'm still a bit tempted by a resort, or at least the idea of a resort. Unfortunately, I know next to nothing about what resorts offer, pricing, etc... Any thoughts on what a resort might be like?

You will need two rooms in a resort for that clan. Count on at least $300 a night per room, and then there is the rather expensive proposition of feeding them all. You might be shocked at how much a lunch of hamburgers and fries will cost for 6 people.

Honestly, I'd say you'd be lucky to do a nice resort for less than $900 a day.

I agree with suze. I think you'll find your priorities (interests) will change some once you actually get there, so don't let them dictate too much of your planning at this stage of the game. Because regardless of which islands you visit, you'll find plenty of interesting and fun ways to occupy your time.

That said, I kinda like Samsaf's suggestion of 2-3 nights in Waikiki and the rest of the time on Maui. And if you did that, maybe spend the time on Oahu in a resort, then find a 3-bedroom condo/home on Maui.

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There are some condo developments that are "resorts" in Kaanapali Beach, for example, the 3-bedroom villas at the Maui Marriott. Regardless however, if you stay at a condo within something like Kaanapali, the whole thing is like a resort (although you can't use the pool and probably the fitness center other than those at your own hotel/condo, they all share a beach and there's a shopping center in the center of all the hotels which has shops and restaurants, including fast food).

It sort of depends what you mean by "resort", because there isn't anything on any of the islands that is like the massive resorts in the Bahamas.

Thanks SF7307. I took a look on VBRO for rentals in the Kaanapali area, looks like a lot of rentals on these resort properties, which might be a good option for us.

time to go to the library, though, for more information. thanks!

Just wanted to add that while The Whaler is very popular and lots of people love it, I am not one of them. The unit we had was "fine" , but the grounds are nothing special, the fitness center is in the basement, and the pool is really small. That said, I understand they've done some upgrades since I was there in 2007. The most upscale of the non- resort condos is Kaanapali Alii ( the units are huge - some are up to 2000 square feet). The most "resort-y" are the Marriott Villas I mentioned. If you do look at the Marriott, make sure it's the new villas, and not the other part. I don't remember what they call the other part, but it's a remodel of what used to be the hotel, now all suites but with limited kitchens, whereas the villas are full-blown apartments. Oh also, each unit at The Whaler (and KaanapaliAlii for that matter) are individually owned, decorated, renovated and outfitted. They also all have different views - some ocean, some garden, some mountain.

BTW, there's excellent snorkeling at Kaanapali Beach. If you decide on Kauai, the surf lessons at Kiahuna are excellent. There's probably equally good lessons in Maui but there was no surf last time we were there!

You can see "a" volcano on most of the islands; "the" volcano, the live one that ierupts hot lava is on the big island of Hawaii. You can hike out over the new lava fields,walk through Thurston lava tube, tour Volcano national park and center, visit the art studios and galleries in Volcano town, go up to Akaka Falls, down in Waipio Valley, or drive up a volcano. there's plenty of snorkeling and other tourist activities as well. You might want to spend two days on each side of the island or just plunk yourself down in Waikoloa.

I'd split your time with Oahu. Kids love Waikiki- there's surf lessons at the beach, the aquarium, and tacky souvenir shops or find better souvenirs at WalMart nearby. See who can spot the most ABC stores. there are often street festivals or activities inside the hotels such as leimaking or hula lessons.Pleanty of japanese tourists in Waikiki. Your daughter can practice her language with the kids on the beach.

Snorkel at Hanauma Bay, climb the inside slope of Diamond Head Crater, Bishop Museum, Iolani Palace (only real palace in America). Check if the Japanese cultural Center or the Okinawan Center have anything going on while you're here. You can even just go and likely catch aikido or kendo practice at the Japanese Cultural center on a weekend.

Take an all day drive around the island stopping to watch the big turtles at Laniakea beach or do the super easy hikes of Waahila Ridge or to Manoa Valley falls.

Trust me, there is so much to do, you'll have to choose carefully to find time to lounge on the beach!