Hawaii vs. other exotic locations
 

Hi everyone. I received some great info on this board about planning a vacation to Hawaii. My question is this - how does Hawaii compare to other exotic locations such as French Polynesia and Fiji? We're looking for a once in a lifetime trip with great beaches, water activities,lush surroundings and intimate location. In other words, we're looking for a romantic vacation and typically like a less commercialized vacation. We don't like to be in the middle of hoards of crowds, or overwhelmed by loads of families with young children. We typically like the smaller resorts with a more personal atmosphere where we can get a sense of the culture or area around us. Looking for quiet location but still want things to explore - mountains, waterfalls, beautiful gardens and perhaps some golf (although golf is not necessary). If we choose Hawaii, we'd be looking at Kauai and perhaps a short stay in Maui (Kapalua). Does Hawaii sound like it would fit what we're looking for, or should we consider something more remote? We've been to Bermuda before and loved it but looking for a change of pace. Would appreciate any feedback from thoe who have been to Hawaii and/or other locations.

Interesting question, Bosco. I'll be curious to see the response from those who adore Hawaii & go frequently. I'll give you my take, which I think may be a minority view. I have only been to Kauai and only once (so far). I live on the east coast & never had a particular interest in going, but close friends moved there. So again, not a typical experience because I didn't stay in a hotel. We did go to eat/visit at both the Hyatt on the south shore & the Princeville on the north shore-I guess the 2 best by everyone's standards. They're both BIG. Not sure there are any smaller, boutique type places of the sort you describe.

Overall, you are very much aware of being in <i>America</i> there. So despite the amazing scenery, terrain, lushness etc. etc. etc., many restaurants are in strip malls (even the best ones). Yes, you can find beaches that are almost deserted (at least when I was there). But what struck me was how far I had travelled to still feel like I was in America. Actually, I think this sense of familiarity is what many people <i>like</i> about Hawaii. It certainly didn't feel foreign to me, let alone &quot;exotic&quot;.

Apropos of your mention of Bermuda, which I also love, I remember a thread on the European board with someone asking whether England felt like a foreign country (because they speak the same language). I was surprised how many people said no it didn't feel foreign. Well it sure feels more foreign than Hawaii. They speak differently, drive on a different side of the road, eat differently, celebrate different holidays, have different educational system, have different history etc.. Hawaii has few of thsoe differences.

I've not been in French Pol. or Fiji to compare, but I would gather, just from reading, that there are hotel accomodations that are more in keeping with what you describe. I think New Zealand probably offers what you're looking for &amp; possibly Australia. If it doesn't have to be an island &amp; English speaking, parts of Mexico, to me, have more of what you describe. Also some of the eastern European countries that are newly opened to western travel are said to have amazing beaches. And then there are islands in western Europe that, depending on season, might fit the bill you described. And what about some of the lesser traveled Caribbean islands like St Lucia?

For other ideas, Concierge.com is a website that includes articles from Conde Nast Traveler. Departures.com is the American Express online travel magazine magazine.

Good answer, mclaurie.
One of Hawaii's downsides is that it doesn't feel truly exotic (per your description), and it sounds to me like exotic is something bosco is looking for. A different culture is necessary for an exotic feel IMO.
The major cities and resort areas of Australia don't really feel exotic to me (which is OK, they have plenty of appeal regardless), and while New Zealand is an extremely worthwhile destination it lacks the beaches which it sounds like bosco is looking for.
Some of the Caribbean islands have great beaches, enough cultural uniqueness to feel somewhat exotic, but I don't think any one island has everything being 'wished for'. The great beach islands (Anguilla, T&amp;C, Bahama out islands e.g) lack terrain and beauty. Islands like St. John lack the exotic flavor being described. I don't consider Jamaica a &quot;once in a lifetime&quot; destination.

That said, Bora Bora and Moorea seem to be what bosco is imagining, along with Fiji if world class luxury accomm's are not a necessity.
Also, Phuket Thailand and Bali belong on this list, along with the Seychelles. Those are the world's best exotic &quot;once in a lifetime&quot; romantic tropical destinations.

Fiji for sure. Much more 'exotic' than 'americanized' Hawaii, cheaper than Moorea or Bora Bora and much closer than Thiland, Australia or Bali!
And you CAN find world class accommodations in Fiji!
BULA! (That's a Fiji greeting)

I ADORE Hawaii, of course, and find it to be plenty exotic for my tastes. It helps to have an interest in the history and culture to see that it is very different from the mainland US. And every island has so many different terrains - from rainforest to mountain to almost desert.

I have not been to Bora Bora but find the Travel Channel stories and the website offerings on the Hotel Bora Bora to be fascinating! Little huts over the water...

In my opinion, French Polynesia is what Hawaii was, 75 years ago. (and I lived in Hawaii and still love it.)

I stayed on Moorea for a week, and it's quiet, quiet, quiet (except for some roosters crowing at an unusually early hour of the morning). No traffic lights, none at all; a slow, gentle way of life. People smile and wave at you on the streets. Beaches are beautiful, water crystal clear, and the lagoons are calm with tiny ripples instead of waves. Lush and verdant foliage in the jungle. Very little (if any) night life. Few restaurants, and food is EXPENSIVE. All of French Polynesia gets approximately 250,000 tourists a year, the same amount of tourists that Hawaii has on all the islands in one day. The only golf course is on the Island of Tahiti, and it's not exactly what you'd call a good course. Some of the newer hotels have TV's &amp; phones in the rooms. A lot don't. Because it's soooo quiet, couples get to spend a great deal of time together. Which means that some couples come back from Tahiti either more in love than they've ever been, or some return planning their divorce.
Not that you would...it's just that sometimes people think they want to &quot;get away from it all&quot;, and never really know what they're going to miss until they're actually there.

It's beautiful, but then again, so is Kauai. Just in a different way. I would say, however, that Tahiti's water is definitely calmer and clearer than Hawaii's.

I've been to Maui twice, but if I never go again, I wouldn't be disappointed, for the very reason others have mentioned. It doesn't feel exotic at all, just like a nice resort area.
Until I can afford Figi, which sounds incredible, I'm happy to go to different spots in Mexico...
Puerto Vallarta has wonderful jungles, Mexican charm and great beaches, just to name one fantastic place there.

I was very disappointed to hear a less than glowing report from friends who spent some significant time in the Society Island over the past few years. They have told us that both Tahiti and Bora Bora have become very congested and pollution is a serious problem on Tahiti. They told us that when they were there they were not able to find a single clean beach on Tahiti because the waters were all polluted. They also said that Bora Bora was like visiting an old tourist attraction that had been allowed to become overrun with people and not maintained. It was also very dirty and pollution in the surrounding waters was a big problem there as well. They did, however, find Moorea to be in better shape, but in general they found the Society Islands to be suffering from over-population and over-tourism. They also found sewage and human waste to be a problem in Fiji, with beaches quite often soiled due to run-off from overflowing sewage.

On the other hand, they brought back glowing reports from Tonga.

I have yet to explore these islands, so I am only reporting information passed on to me by others. But their pictures and stories were enough to convince me that I probably do not want to visit Tahiti in the near future.

Thanks for all the great feedback. Everyone confirmed what I have been thinking. Hawaii's not what we're looking for and I've also heard a lot of reports about the over-commercialization of French Polynesia. Fiji sounds great, but at one of the more upscale resorts. Any other comments???

I forgot to mention my friend who now lives in Kauai went to the Cook Islands on vacation :) Have a read here

http://www.ck/

Another place that has beautiful beaches, wonderful waterfalls and great small hotels is Costa Rica. Last time we were there, we were standing on a beautiful beach, and we decided that we very possibly would not return to Hawaii. For us in the midwest, Costa Rica is much closer, and to my mind, just as beautiful. And more exotic.

Jean

JeanH,

Headed to Costa Rica next year... what was your fav beach, small hotel, etc.??

bosco: Travleis and others have given a fairly extensive list. To really get exotic culture one must travel outside the U.S. and its territories... Thailand, the Seychelles, Costa Rica etc.

My take on Hawaii vs. these other destinations is pretty much the opposite of yours. I'd rather exchange exotic culture for safe drinking water, world-class food and lodging, good roads etc. Heck, some of these places (Fiji e.g.) are going through political turmoil, and that's the last thing I want to deal with on a once-in-a-lifetime vacation.

There are still places in Hawaii where one will actually feel like they're half a world away. Molokai for example. Waipio Valley and South Point on the Big Island are other examples. Try a web search for &quot;Waipio Cliff House&quot;.. ;-)

Been to Hawaii (Oahu &amp; Kauai) and loved it, but both French Polynesia and the nearby (and much cheaper) Cook Islands blow Hawaii away. Bora Bora is flat-out the single most beautiful place I've ever been, but Moorea, Rarotonga and Aitutaki (the latter 2 in the Cook Islands) are not too far behind. All four feature lagoon environments with calm, clear water ideal for snorkeling (though not for big wave sports like surfing). It's said that Rarotonga is like Hawaii was 50 years ago (actually more like 70) - withough a single traffic light on the entire island and no buildings higher than a coconut and I'd have to agree that it's probably an accurate statement.

If any of this sparks your interest, you might want to take a look at my series of trip reports &amp; hi-rez photos of all these places (including the overwater bungalows that French Polynesia is so famous for). Just do any search engine search on &quot;LordBalfor&quot; (one word) and you'll pull them all up.

Ken

PS - One of the trip reports I posted specifically compares Hawaii to French Polynesia and the Cook Islands. You can find it &lt;A HREF=&quot;http://www.epinions.com/content_3387...HERE&lt;/A&gt;

kEN

Whoops! That didn't work. You can find it here:

http://www.epinions.com/content_3387203716

Ken

I've been to both Kauai and French Polynesia and agree the atmosphere and feeling of being in a foriegn culture is much greater in the latter. I wasn't quite prepared for the fact that the percentage of the population which is native is so much greater in French Polynesia than in Hawaii, or that it would have so much more of a &quot;third world&quot; feel than Hawaii. When you have non-native culture there, of course it's French rather than American, so it's doubly exotic to Americans, but FP is much less French than Hawaii is American.

If you do go to Kauai, the North Shore would be much more to your taste, bosco, than the South/Poipu. It is much slower paced, less visited there, and the scenery of Hanalei Bay and the Na Pali Coast is as beautiful as anything I saw in FP. There are two strains of atmosphere there, one rich older golfer around Princeville (which does have superb golf courses) and hippie/new age around Hanalei. Nothing very exotic culturally to anyone who's been to the California coast, though.

In Tahiti, my feeling is that the sooner you get off the island of Tahiti itself to the other Society Islands, the better. The other islands are much less crowded and more beautiful. Bora Bora is gorgeous (as are the incredible schools of tropical fish you can snorkel among...best snorkeling ever there) but is really very, very small, and most of what there is of it is mountainous, so as popular as it is, I can see the inhabitable areas of it getting too crowded. The few hotels there are certainly very expensive.

Moorea, though, was wonderful...less crowded than Tahiti or Bora Bora, large enough to have many places to explore but small enough to be able to explore thoroughly, overwhelmingly native in population, with accommodations at a variety of price levels. (Yes, there are a couple or three world-class hotels, with world-class prices, there too, as there are on Tahiti and Bora Bora.) And the whole island, but especially Cook's Bay, is just spectacular, with many exotic-looking peaks and spires. Cook's Bay is where most of those shots you associate with Tahiti from the Bounty movies and other sources were really taken, because it looks more like we think Tahiti should look than anyplace actually on Tahiti.

But I imagine Moorea is becoming less and less of a secret, and even it may be more crowded and commercial than you are wishing for. I have no first-hand experience in the other island groups, but did cruise amongst the Society Islands and can tell you there are other islands among them that are much less visited than Moorea. Raiatea is a large and beautiful island with a substantial native population but comparatively few hotels. We cruised along miles of shoreline with few people. And we were especially charmed with the little island of Huahine, which was very lovely itself, had a couple of beautiful upscale hotel properties we visited, and had great views of Bora Bora and Raiatea. It seemed very quiet and peaceful there.

makai1, My favorite hotel in Costa Rica is Makanda by the Sea in Manual Antonio. Not on the beach, but up on a hill with beautiful views. There is beach access via a fairly steep trail. Only saw one other person down there during several treks down the steps. Makanda has villas and studios. Nice infinity pool and a good small restaurant. I have nothing bad to say about the place, other than if you need a/c, some of the villas aren't.

There are some wonderful sounding 'on the beach' small hotels further north in the Guanacaste region of the country, but we've never headed up there. We tend to travel in the dry season, and I understand it's fairly brown up there,and I want to see lush jungle.

Manual Antonio is very popular and becoming more and more 'discovered', so it's getting crowded. That being said, we found several beaches in the park itself that were virtually deserted.

Jean

Wow - Can't thank you guys enough for all the great advice. You've givien me a lot of great ideas to explore. Still interested in Fiji, perhaps some of the less travled areas in Hawaii. I'd like to check out Molokai and Waipo Valley before elimiating Hawaii. I also never thought of Costa Rica and don;t know anything about it. Aside from Makanda at the Sea, are there any small, intimate places that are on a great beach? And is are there regions in Costa Rica that are safe? As far as FP, I think we've eliminated it. Much too expensive and I really do want a place that is friendly to Americans. Thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts.

Also p thanks to LordBalfor for the links. I'm looking forward to checking out the comparisons. Cooks may still be an option.