Multi island advice

Old May 1st, 2008, 10:42 AM
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Multi island advice

WOW-So I am really adept at planning great trips and became totally overwhelmed trying to plan 3 islands of Hawaii. I found a Perillo 11 day trip with really nice hotels, meals, tours and free time. Is $6800 ridiculous with inter island air and all transfers, tips and gratuities along with all the sightseeing? I started to add the hotel nightly, all meals that Perillo included, luaus and tours, car rentals and it seemed even if I found an independent price of $3800 adding everything else on was thousands. Any opinions on my research and/or thinking? Thanks so much
lorlexrik1 is offline  
Old May 1st, 2008, 11:47 AM
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I would first ask if you like someone else to run your day as with tours happens. You did not say where you were traveling from so the price doesn't say anything at this point.

With 11 days, I'd do two islands at the most. If you rent a condo on each island and cook some of your own meals that will save bunches.

I am sure that the have negotiated rates for hotel rooms, meals and tours so you wouldn't be able to match that but I guess it depends on your preference of travel. I prefer to do things on my own at my own pace.
beth_fitz is offline  
Old May 1st, 2008, 04:40 PM
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I agree with Beth while we have done a couple of tours on the islands to do one for the whole trip doesn't inerest me.
One thing is are the restaurants places that you would choose yourself?
You said luaus as in more than one, why?
Are all the offered tours places you want to see?
Also to enjoy your 11 days 2 is a good number.
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Old May 1st, 2008, 05:33 PM
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I just looked at their site & the way I read it:

Drums of the Pacific (Maui) is included

Helicopter tour on Kauai & Polynesian Cultural Center on Oahu are add-ons.

The tour starts on Oahu and ends on Kauai (Big Island if you add more days)

So you would have to make arrangements to get back to Oahu for a return flight or book one that flies from where you are coming from to Honolulu & return from Kauai. Airfare from & return to your city is not included.

You can easily do a city tour of Honolulu with USS Arizona Memorial (free) & National Cemetery of the Pacific (free) for just the cost of a rental car.

You can get by on $20-$40 a day each for meals.

You can find decent lodging on Oahu for $150 a night including parking.

A rental car will be about $20-$25 a day for a weekly rate.

I agree with the others that you are better off booking your own trip & staying on two islands.

You can find lodging on Oahu for $150/night including parking. Maui would be a little higher.

Look at www.vrbo.com for some really good deals.

Lots of info:

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...1&tid=34812564





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Old May 1st, 2008, 05:48 PM
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If you like tours and don't want to hassle with the details yourself, then the tour you describe might just be the best thing for you.

Most folks on Fodors tend to be more independent travelers who enjoy researching and making their own travel arrangements.

When I first visited Hawaii in the '70s, I went on a package that included air and hotel. My girlfriend and I rented our own car and then drove around spending the whole vacation checking out options for our next trip because we were so disappointed in what the tour company had provided us. Now, with the internet and all the guidebooks, it's much easier to make one's own itinerary and arrangements.

But, that may not be what you want to do. For a first time visit to the islands, your tour option might be a good choice.
Supercilious is offline  
Old May 2nd, 2008, 12:46 AM
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If you are adept at planning great trips, then maybe Perillo is not for you. But, I agree--you need to assess what you do and don't want to plan for yourself. If hiring a company to do all the legwork for you, plus any research on the history and anecdotes of every area, is worth going through any hassle, why not?
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Old May 2nd, 2008, 12:49 AM
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Sorry, I hit POST too soon.

I meant to add that another compromise to using Perillo itself is to book the trip yourself (since it sounds like you've done some research) but book land tours with Roberts or E Noa as needed.
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Old May 2nd, 2008, 06:17 AM
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Thanks for all the replies. I guess I was really looking at the monetary value of the tour. I wanted a rest from planning and plotting, waiting for the car, parking at the hotel, arranging inter island flights, deciding where to go etc. I'm flying from Fort Lauderdale with Delta miles so I only have to worry about interisland air. We're both a little hyperactive so I'm not worried about the tour being frenetic but I would like to know the island before I leave and not just say I was there. We have never been on a tour before. Thanks for helping me through my confusion.
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Old May 2nd, 2008, 07:44 AM
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If you are flying to Hawaii from Florida, you really need a couple of low-key days to rest and get caught up with the time change. An 11-day, 3-island tour is the last thing I would want to do.

You could have a wonderful time by makeing two hotel reservations and renting cars to visit two islands. There is no need to tie your self up with a bunch of strangers being bussed around the islands to the next tourist gig.
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Old May 3rd, 2008, 10:42 PM
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I went to Hawaii last year in June. My advice...take an inter-island cruise. We took the Norwegian Caribbean Line. It takes off from Oahu and goes to Maui, Kauai and the Big Island. We rented a car in every port (not through the cruise line), and did our own tours, with the exception of the Wailea River Cruise. Your luggage is in one place, no carrying and packing/unpacking. You have all the meals you want already paid for. We generally only breakfasted in the buffet and did a late night meal in the French restaurant (slight charge) or dining room (avoid the buffet for dinner - better food in the dining room), at least we did if we weren't eating dinner on an island.

We were in Hawaii ten days, had 4 islands (we stayed in Oahu a couple of days at the start), and a wonderful time.

Of course, the cabins aren't a luxury hotel, but we were there for Hawaii, not a hotel room. You can get the 7-day cruise for as little as $500 per person through the discount sites. Keep your eyes open. And don't get sucked into the cruise activities, unless you're done with an island anyway, or it's a night when the ship is on its way. We considered the ship to be our hotel, not our vacation. And you just can't compare NCL to a Royal Caribbean cruise.



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Old May 3rd, 2008, 11:54 PM
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A little more help...

Oahu:

Polynesian Cultural Center - do the Horizons Show and the villages, avoid the luau.

The Pearl Harbor memorial is free, including the boat ride out to it - get there early (7 am), though, for a ticket, and go back later at the time specified, or you might not get a ticket. Look for the drops of oil rising to the surface from the sunken USS Arizona, and spreading out in a rainbow slick, like teardrops, one at a time.

Stop at a fruit stand along North Shore. The farther away from Honolulu you go, the cheaper the fruit. Avoid the first several.

See the lighting of the torches at night on Waikiki.

Stop for a look at the palace in Honolulu.

Head down the coast for one of the best snorkeling beaches in the world.

Drive up to Diamond Head then hike the rest of the way to see the sunrise/sunset.

The Dole Plantation. Take the train ride. Do NOT miss the tacky plastic pineapple full of the most wonderful fresh pineapple sorbet you've ever tasted. I dream about that sorbet. Pineapple ice cream doesn't sound that great, but trust me on this one. We didn't have time for the garden tour and maze, because we had to get back for our time-slot at Pearl Harbor, so I can't comment on it.


Kaui:

Drive to Waimea Canyon. Go all the way to the top for the most spectacular view. You think that you've seen magnificent as you stop on the way up, but it's the last stop that blows your breath away. In June, we picked up ripe mangoes from below a tree on our way up the to the canyon. You've never had a mango until you've had a truly ripe one.

Drive to see Poipu Beach, Shipwreck Beach and the Spouting Horn. Snorkel at Poipu Beach. We went there first thing (5:30 am) in the morning on the last day there and were joined by seals. They're protected, so you can't harass them, but they swam up, looked us in the eye, and barked hello.

Drive up to Kauai's North Shore and the Kilauea Lighthouse. A lot of nice places to eat there.

Take the Wailea River Cruise to the Fern Grotto. We had to take the one offered by the cruise line to ensure getting back to the ship on time for departure.

The cruise ship goes along the Na Pali shore, but if you're not on a cruise, it's a must do.


Big Island:

Hilo Side:

Take the car up to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Do the overlook at Volcano House. Hike through the Thurston Lava Tube. Drive along the rim to see where the steam is seeping/pouring out of the ground. Go down the Chain of Craters Road, if it's open.

Drive to Rainbow Falls and Boiling Pots.

Stop at the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut factory.

Kona Side:

Drive to see the Painted Church and stop at a coffee plantation. We stopped at the Holualoa Coffee Company.

Leave plenty of time for snorkeling at Honaunau. Huge sea turtles swim and bask there, and tons of tropical fish. If you get there early in the day, you might see dolphins. We didn't.


Maui:

Get a convertible for this island.

We drove up through Paia, and did the drive to Hana, ending with the O'heo Gulch, or the Seven Sacred Pools as it's called. Lots to see on the way. Beautiful. Falls, Outlooks. Hiking trails. Smoothies at Huelo Lookout. A stop at Black Sand Beach. Swimming at O'heo. Driving back as the sun is going down and a beautitul sunset. More ripe mangoes.

Snuba diving (scuba without the credentials, with a tube connected to air above attached to a hose down to your breathing device) and snorkeling at Molokini, a sea life refuge in a mostly underwater crater off the Maui coast. Huge abundance of sea life.
The best deal for the boat trip and diving and snorkel equipment was "Aqua Adventure".

A trip to Lahaina. Old Town. History. Museums.

Continue along the coast to Kaanapali and Black Rock. You have to pay through the nose for parking at the big hotels. You can't avoid it. Beautiful beach. Abundant marine life and the huge sea turtles at the base of Black Rock, a big cliff at the end of the beach.

The trip up (and down) Haleakala at sunrise was something we wanted to do, but it was either the diving trip or that, and it lost. Something to consider, though.

We missed out on the Old Lahaina Luau, because it was sold out several weeks before we went. Buy your tickets on-line several months in advance. It's supposed to be the most authentic one in the entire Hawaiian Islands.

There you have it. All that, and all of the scenery in between, and the restaurants, and shaved ice, and Hilo Hattie's (can't miss that, at least once, though souvenirs are cheaper at ABC Stores all over the islands, or - really, a tip from a native - K-mart), and tropical flowers and greenery everywhere.

Don't look for the Aloha spirit on Oahu, but you'll find it on Maui.

Have fun!




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