Hi All,
I'm getting married next May and we have set our hearts on visiting Hawaii for our honeymoon. We've done quite a bit of research but I'm now at the point of information overload!!!
Ideally we'd like to spend 9 days or so exploring both islands and the last 5 days in a nice hotel doing nothing but chilling out before we return home.
We'd like to stay in B&Bs for the 9 days while we are exploring the islands but I'm not sure how to split that out. I'd really appreciate any help anyone can give me for the following questionsbr />
- Which island should we spend more time on exploring and which should we choose for limited exploration but complete relaxation?
- Can anyone recommend some boutique B&Bs on either island ideally within walking distance of some nice restaurants?
- What activities/sightseeing do you think is a must for each island?
- Which hotels would you recommend for our final 5 days that won't completely break the bank?

Many thanks!!!!

JF to me you have it ALL on Kauai! It is a beautiful island, and you never tire of it. If you are into hiking, it's there, if you are into just laying around the beach it is the best. I just got back a few weeks ago and we have been going to Kauai for 15 years and never tire of it. We actually stayed in a beautiful condo in Poipu which I highly recommend. We prefer the condo's for more privacy. here are my pictures from our trip - the first few are from Oahu where we decided to spend a few days first - view it in the slideshow it's much better. We spend 2 weeks on Kauai normally in Feb. when the whales are there. This was a special trip in May for just my daughter and myself. She is the last of 3 girls and just finished college so it was our famous girl trip!

http://picasaweb.google.com/banas.po...mma/Kauai2009#

If it were my honeymoon, I would spend all nine days on Kauai. It takes 5 days to see all the scenery, points of interest, and do all the fun activities. Then I would spend the last 4 or 5 day relaxing at the Grand Hyatt resort in Poipu Beach or the Marriott at Kalapaki beach. The Hawaiian islands aren't really much of a B&B place. It's a place of hotel resorts and condos.
Get the book The Ultimate Guide to Kauai by Daughty and it will answer all the possible questions you could have about where to stay, what to do, and where to eat.

We recently returned from Hawaii. Our trip included Kauai, the BI, and Maui. We have often stayed in B&Bs on the mainland but for Hawaii we (also) found that condos are the way to go if the mega resorts don't appeal to you.

Unique to BI is Volcano National Park. If this appeals to you then the location to stay at is very limited. We found it very interesting BUT, ours was not a honeymoon. Except for Volcano, you can focus your trip on Kauai.

After lots of searching we selected a condo: Kuhio Shores, #216, 5050 Lawai Road, Koloa, Kauai. The location is perhaps twenty feet from the water and adjacent to The Beach House, one of the best restaurants in Hawaii. This is near Poipu. We were there a week but would have been happy there much longer.

We used many guidebooks but the one we kept returning to was the Ultimate Guide noted above. There is one for each island and a companion website. This excellent resource is available from Amazon.

Be assured that any of the three islands I mentioned is a wonderful escape and will be great for a honeymoon.

One last note: I would include a rental car in my plans unless you want to be at a mega resort for the entire stay. As you develop your plans return here for more details.

Here are some websites for luxury B & B's on the Big Island http://www.waianuhea.com/

http://palmscliffhouse.com/

This place has cottages for two in south Kona. http://www.hawaii4two.com/

Thanks so much for all your help! I've ordered the Ultimate guidebooks which should hopefully arrive next week. Any other advice will be gratefully accepted!