Hawaii crime
 

I hate to even bring this up, because we all love Hawaii so much, but I've been reading a lot of guide books for my upcoming trip to Hawaii, and in Frommers, the author advises to be extra vigilant on the North Shore, and mentioned how some people have gotten robbed while waiting for the bus on the North Shore. In the past, I have read about thefts, and rental car break-ins throughout Hawaii, but this makes me nervous because it is so brazen.

When we were in North Shore 6 years ago, we went to Waimea Beach. My husband dropped me and my 1 1/2 year old baby off while he went to look for a parking spot. While we were waiting for him, a group of teens was hanging around and one girl came up and asked me for money. I said I didn't have any (which I didn't), and she walked away, but I was very nervous. So I felt like I almost could have been robbed.

I know everyone says to just be alert but it is a little hard when you are on vacation, happy, in paradise, to be suspicious and on guard the whole time.

Even my relatives who have never been to Hawaii, were telling me how they heard on the news there has been a lot of crime there. Does anyone know how bad is it really? We'll be heading to Oahu, Maui and Kaui.

Crime stats for Hawaii are at:

http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/hicrime.htm

This info reveals some interesting statistics, e.g. the state ranks 6th highest in the U.S. in the total Crime Index, but 43rd in Violent Crime. So an overwhelming majority of crime in Hawaii consists of non-violent offenses.

Another interesting fact: murder rates in the state were actually much lower in 2006 than they were in 1960(!).

We've been going to the islands for 25+ years and have never run into violent crime, although we do have plenty of first and second-hand experience with vehicle break-ins (which are epidemic on some remote parts of the islands, such as South Point on the Big Island) and pickpockets/purse snatchings in Honolulu.

Personally I wouldn't spend much time worrying about robbery on North Shore. Simply exercise the same common sense you'd use at any vacation destination (e.g. don't leave valuables inside your rental car when it's unattended, or on your beach towel when you take a dip in the ocean etc) and you should be fine.

Maxine, I think fdecarlo has the right idea. No need to stress about it, just use normal caution. Even though you are on vacation in paradise, it is still the real world and you need to think about personal safety, water safety, sun exposure.....

We stayed on the N shore for a week this summer and had no negative incidents. I understand your concern about being hit up for money by a teenager (that would have made me uncomfortable, too, esp if there was a large group of teens seemingly looking for trouble to get into) but I don't think it is the next thing to being robbed.

I am guessing you will have a rental car, and won't be using bus stops on the N shore anyway, right? That is what Frommer's (my 2006 copy, anyway) is advising.

Like some parts of the U.S. mainland, Hawaii has a crystal meth epidemic. So far, the main crime this inspires is burglary (i.e. non-violent). So here are some tips from the "Surviving Paradise" guidebook to protect yourself against burglary while in the Islands....

• Never leave anything of value in your rental car—--including in your trunk—--while you are at the beach,a waterfall, or on a hike. And of course never leave anything of value in your car overnight. Experienced thieves can break into cars, including trunks, in seconds.

• Don’t ever let anyone see you putting something in the trunk or digging through bags in your car. Find what you need and have it at hand before you drive to that lovely waterfall or trailhead.

• Leave valuables behind in the hotel safe. Don’t take them to the beach or leave them in your car.

• Keep your rental car keys with you at all times, even when you are in the ocean. Some swimwear comes with a sealable plastic pocket that you can put your keys in. You can also strap them to your wrist, surfboard, or boogie board. During peak tourist seasons, rental cars are stolen on a daily basis.

• Keep the doors of your hotel or condo locked at night, including backdoors on lanais (balconies), even if they are above ground level.

We just got back from 9 days on Maui and didn't have any issues nor hear of any. We use the normal precautions that everyone is repeating. Don't make yourself a target and you should be fine.

We were also just on Maui. Things seemed better to us. I know a lot more people tried to sell us "maui wowie" on our last trip. Only one tried this trip. (We declined, of course).