My husband and I have 10 days in January for a vacation and we would love to go to Hawaii. Unfortunately, due to both of our schedules, the vacation has to be in the month of January. Neither of us have been there before, so we would be happy to see any of the islands. However, we would like to go at a time when the weather will be warm (doesn't have to be hot, just not really cool), and not the rainy season. Not knowing anything about Hawaii, my question is do you think there is any part of Hawaii that would be good to visit in January, or do you think we should just choose a different destination where the weather would be better. I've read a lot of these posts and I haven't read anything about visiting any of the islands in January. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

I'll say it so no one else has to...of course no one can predict the weather (blah blah blah).

Erika,
I was in Oahu/Kauai in the beginning of January a few years ago, and the weather on both islands was very warm (70s/80s). I don't remember ever being cold. Oahu was always sunny. Kauai was a bit rainy however -- but that might just have been a fluke.

Hope this helps.

We also are (hopefully) looking at going in January; thinking of just the Big Island of Hawaii.

Just starting to look into this, but some travel info says January seems to be busy season. ("busy" = more expensive and more crowds)

For more research, check out The Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau at:

http://www.gohawaii.com/

If it looks too expensive, its back to the Utah national parks for us!

It seems to me that in Hawaii, the north shores get the most rain, while the south sides are hot and dry. On Kauai, the Princeville side is rainier, on the big island, it's Hilo (rainforests galore.) The weather should be fine (70's?) With ten days, I'd stick to one or two islands. Have fun!

January and February are busy months here in Hawaii, I guess because everyone from colder climates want to be here and lie on the beach. My cousin came in February last year, and we spent so much time being beached whales, we got 3rd degree burns!! (So yes, bring lots of sunscreen with high SPF.)

The "winter" is defined as "rainy season" in Hawaii, but that doesn't mean it rains every day, if at all. This past year, it was as if we didn't have a "winter" at all. At the coldest (and we're talking record-breaking temperature), it MAY dip all the way down into the mid 50s, usually in the rural areas. If you're staying at a higher elevation, it may be colder than that. But for the most part, you'll enjoy high temps of 80s in the day and maybe lows of mid- to high-60s at night. Here in Hawaii we call that "double blanket" weather. ;-)

"Busy" season typically starts the 3rd week of January; if you can travel early in the month, you may get some deals. Depending on where you are from and what you consider "cool", a "cool" day in Hawaii is rare, no matter what time of year.

Thank you all so much for your helpful advice! We live on the East coast (NJ) so in January we'll be wanting a break from the cold winter weather, but an average temp in the 70s would be great. Thanks again!
Erika