My wife and I will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary this year in December. I want to surprise her with a trip to Hawaii. We've never been and so I'm looking for advice on the best island, accomodations, etc. I've read some posts within the Fodor's forums and the "lush tropical" islands of Hawaii sound like a little piece of paradise. I want to stay at a nice hotel/resort/condo, probably in the 3-1/2 to 4 star range, depending on price. And, any suggestions on best places to purchase a package deal for travel between Christmas and New Year's weekends would be helpful.

Fodor's has a good guidebook for Hawaii that covers all the islands. You could start with that to narrow down which one(s) appeal most to you. Each of the islands offers what you describe. The largest concentration of reasonably priced places to stay is in Waikiki on Oahu.

The guide "Hawaii for Dummies" is a really good way to chose an island, despite the silly name.

You will be visiting in peak time, so packages may not be all that cheap.

Some general guidelines: One week per island. Don't try to cram too much into your trip. A rental car is needed on any island other than Oahu. Make your car rental reservation as soon as you make your flight reservations. Rental cars will sell out over Christmas and you can get stuck without one, or be faced with an astronomial rate ( like $1000 a week).

December can be rainy and the water can be relatively cool (relatively, as compared to the Caribbean).

www.tripadvisor.com has a very active Hawaii forum.

To get the best advice, give an accomodation budget in $$, not stars. No one really uses a star rating in recommending accmodations.

Consider Maui, Kaanapali area. A little away from the main beach is a nice ALL oceanfront hotel/condo, the Mahana. If you want a little further out, look into Kahana, Napili and Kapalua area condos. There are packages which is probably a very good way to go. I have used in the past Expedia and Pleasant Holidays with no problems. You might try Kayak.com for searching to get ideas

All of Maui is paradise, but there are huge differences among the is,ands, and among areas on each of the islands. Do you like "resorts"? If so, look at Grand Hyatt on Kauai, or any of the hotels on Kaanapali Beach on Maui. Would you prefer a condo to a hotel - Kaanapali Alii on Kaanapali Beach is great. Is natural beauty your focus - look no further than the island of Kauai.

A little more about you would help us help you.

I meant to say all of HAWAII (the state) is paradise, not just Maui.

I live here and am most familiar with Oahu. I have loved touring & visiting the other islands as a tourist. Agree that the time around Dec/Jan tends to be expensive. If you have flexiblity in your schedule & are trying to stretch your funds, you might want to expand the window of when you're interested in traveling.

There are some VERY reasonably priced package deals, especially if you're flexible. My BIL & niece came to visit & were able to stay in a hotel at Ala Moana Shopping Center for not TOO much more than the price of the plane tickets a few years back. They were here Dec/Jan window, I believe as well but booked fairly last minute when the packagers were just trying to fill up their openings.

If your wife likes rural, peaceful, quiet, spectacular, lush scenic beauty, I would recommend Kauai. IMO the most tropical and romantic resort there is the Grand Hyatt. If she would like a less quiet island with more shopping and more selection of great restaurants but still with much scenic beauty, I would recommend Maui. IMO the most tropical and romantic resort there is the Hyatt in Kaanapali.

I disagree with montereybob.

The Hyatt in Kaapnapali is resort-tropical, but is also very busy and full of families with kids.

especially over Christmas time......

Thank you all for the excellent advice. This trip I'm interested in the resort environment. Based on hpeabody's advice, which was consistent with what I read on other threads and comments herein, I looked in Kaanapali, Maui, and found a "deal" at Hyatt Regency Resort & Spa. I was happy to see that Montereybob actually recommends this resort. For 6 nights, between 12/23 and 12/29, the total package deal (flight, hotel, car) on priceline for a full oceanview room is ~$6,200 (~$5,300 for basic room). Seems like a perfect choice, but with the following drawbacks:

- $25 resort fee;
- poor and extremely cramped parking situation;
- hotel a bit dated;
- construction (completed by Dec maybe?); and
- very small beach in front on the property.

Given that I wanted to spend aroung $6K on the total trip, I'm considering my options. Since we've never been, Hawaii seems like the perfect choice, but living in Texas also puts me so close to the Caribbean that I have to consider that too.

Placename, what would your suggestion be to a comparable alternative (minus the kids and such) to the Hyatt?

The resorts in the Wailea area of Maui look lovely (we stay in a condo but have visited the area to scuba dive). A friend spent her anniversary at the Four Seasons in Wailea and loved it.

The Four Seasons in Wailea is outstanding, but I don't know if OP can get a package that would compete with the one from the Hyatt.

We stayed at the Grand Hyatt in Kauai last October and while we liked it very much, the only thing I would call "tropical and romantic" is walking on the beach after dark. During the day, it a large (but lovely) resort with all kinds of people - couples, families, old, young, and everything in between), plus it is huge. The pool area is great, although not much shade.

As for the beach at the Hyatt Kaanapali, the beach widens as you walk to the west, so I wouldn't let that stop you.

By the way, are you aware that if you get a Hyatt Visa card, you get 2 nights free at any Hyatt. We each got one and stayed 4 consecutive nights at the Grand Hyatt Kauai for a grand total of $0.00. They didn't even charge us the resort fee or tax, plus they upgraded our room!

Placename - Thanks for the Four Seasons suggestion. You're hunch is correct, I did not find that PL even offered it as an option.

sf7307 - You may have just saved me ~$2,300 and that puts the trip back within my original budget with ~$2k to enjoy on the island. Thank you very much for the credit card insight. I guess I would just have to ensure that I could use the 4 days during the Christmas week and then determine what the addl two nights would cost me.

I suspect there is a blackout on the free nights during the Christmas holiday, sorry.

We spent our 25th on Kauai at the Grand Hyatt and loved it - we did have an ocean front room. Love the hotel for its beauty and open feeling. Restaurants are pretty good and the entertainment is generally good as well. However you cannot really swim at their beach (Shipwreck Beach). Pool area as several "layers" to it which is nice Grounds are wonderful, very nice spa if you like getting massages, and it is not too far from Po'ipu Beach and some good restaurants. The Princeville area is quite lovely and a bit more upscale. Kauai is lush with hardly any shopping so if that is a goal, forget it - you are better off in Maui. Never get tired of going to Kauai (12 trips). We have stayed at hotels and condos and prefer condos mainly for the room you have and the fact that not every meal has to eaten out. I wish you luck on finding just the perfect place. Fodors forums are good for that.......

No blackouts - if a standard room is available when you call to reserve, you get the room.