reaching out to fodorites yet again for their expertise!

Our family..OH, daughter 21 and son18( by then) and i will be travelling to hawaii from sydney australia mid november 2014

we plan on having about 20 days...7 on oahu based in a condo in waikiki (have emailed the wyndham condo owners and am waiting for their responses)
we will fly to oahu and intend travelling to the Big island the same day ...hiring a car from kona i guess

wed prefer to base ourselves in two or three bases and doing daytrips if it makes sense
rather than continuing to move in a loop
how many days do we need to do this in...at this stage we have about 13 if we stick with the 7 days in oahu
some might say thats a lot for waikiki but we do want to shop and do a bit of relaxing before heading home
i dont know whether wed consider a third island...id rather restrict the number of moves we do

so with 13 days at our disposal,,,what do you suggest we do> what places do we base ourselves...prefer condos i think to save on cost of getting two hotel roooms but would consider good cabins in caravan parks too

we like scenery

beaches but not necessarily sunbathing or snorkelling//would love to watch big surf and surfers at their game! ( i believe theres some of that on oahu)

gentle walks (not all of us are fit enough to handle high altitude and steep gradients or very long walks as in several kilometres at a time)

volcanoes/lava flows would be cool for the kids to see

stargazing...dont know about the altitude though..might not be able to handle it...are there alternatives?

captain cooks site is a must see for us aussies and any other historic sites

coffee plantation...any good ones>

wildlife sanctuaries/ regions...

markets

we have plenty of time to see stuff at a leisurely pace this time so we are open to any suggestions but especially where to book our accommodation...dont know how many bases we need
also any suggestions as to how to get the cheapest flights between the two islands would be appreciated...i believe that booking well in advance can save a bundle
thank you so much for any tips

Assume you have already read some books - other threads on the Big Island? Plenty to do there and I suggest starting on the Hilo Side (flying into Hilo and renting a car) - and exploring the Volcano and that lush side of the island for a few days (you can drive up to the Volcano in about a half an hour from Hilo if you don't want to stay at altitude - but it's not that high at lodge level).

Then head north - up to Waimea/cowboy country for a couple/few days and then kick back for week somewhere on the Kona side - north of Kona if you are concerned about VOG.

Anymore - flights between the islands are pretty much the same price - but some others may be able to provide some discount info.

Agree with TomSD, stay in Hilo or Volcano a couple of nights and then move to Kohala rather than Kona, better beaches and less vog.
I'd do Oahu last, that way you don't have to drag your shopping along with you, and your flight to Australia probably leaves early from Oahu, JMO.
Try this site for car rentals: discounthawaiicarrental.com

Oh thanks folks
Spent a sleepless night and researched more about vog

It seems quite concerning and everyone except me have issues with respiratory system
My son I particular fit n strong suffers allergies as does OH n daughter too has issues
I'm beginning to think that we minimise chance of bogging out n go to Oahu for one wek and Maui for ten and maybe just do a daytrips or overnight to big island or skip altogether
Any opinions on vog? I'd never even heard of it til yesterday n it has put a spanner in the works

Fortunately - I have not had the "experience" with VOG while on trips to/around the Big Island but if there are respiratory concerns - yes, you can take day flights from Maui over to BI, or even do an overnight.

Again, if you flew into HIlo - you can see some of the beauty of that side of the island (the greenest side as it gets the most rain) - including Akaka Falls - and easily get up to see the Volcano - and also drive at least part way around the island if you like, over to Kona side and fly back from there.

You can also take a helicopter trip, whatever.

thank you tomsd..sounds doable..id really like to see cooks memorial...so maybe do the kona side and give volcanoes a miss but then isnt that the voggy wind side of the island? i think youre meant to hang round north of kona if you want to breathe with ease lol and cooks down south is he not?

lanejohann, I just want to add that we spent 4weeks in Kona in Feb and never experienced VOG. We took a snorkel trip that went to Cooks Monument that served a wonderful breakfast and lunch. We loved it! http://www.adventureinhawaii.com/bigisland_hulakai.htm

If you want to minimize the chances of Vog on the Big Island, stay in the Kohala area. Much better beaches, great snorkeling, better weather, etc. than Kona. The way the wind blows, it rarely experiences vog.

You can still do a day trip to Capt. Cook monument, maybe on a snorkeling trip. They have many boats that do that trip and it is a quite enjoyable day.

We spent a week last year in a condo a few miles south of Kailua-Kona, and I can only recall one morning that we awoke to clear blue skies. Other days were either overcast, or the horizons blurred by a voggy haze. It didn't bother us, and didn't seem to bother others, but when you're expecting bright, sunny days.... A few months ago we spent a week in the Mauna Lani Resort property on the south Kohala coast. Based on our experience there, I'd have to agree with what I'd heard/read about that area having the most reliably good weather in all the islands. Beautiful, clear, sunshiny days, without a hint of VOG.

Yeah, Cook's Monument is in south Kona, on Kealakekua Bay, and only easily accessible by boat. Honestly, except for the snorkeling there, I think you'll be disappointed. On the other hand, I think you'd find Pu`uhonua O Hōnaunau worth the trip.

Okay thanks for all the good advice folks

After considerable research and dab sting I've decided to can the trip to big island
I'm sad but not willing to risk my daughters health in particular so I've started a new thread re Maui.. Thanks again!

I've been to Maui and there's lots to do! If you're up for it, you can get picked up about 4AM to go the top of the Haeakala crater and bike down (all downhill) or maybe just go at sunrise or sunset with a tour or drive it. You can rent a car and drive to the Needle and rainforest and then go to other areas-Lahaina and Whaler's Village. Wailea has great beaches with snorkeling and kayaking. You can do the drive to Hana but pack a lunch and go early-part of the fun is stopping along the way. If you don't get seasick, you can go whale watching, too.