We will be vacationing in Hawaii for the first time from San Francisco.

Originally, we were planning a 16 day trip to Honolulu and Maui starting around last two weeks of November. Now, we are wondering if 16 days is too much time for the two islands and whether we could add a third without adding too much to the run around factor. We are a 30ish couple, a 70ish grandmother and a 16 month toddler...Interested in a leisurely pace of sightseeing and hiking but don't want to spend too much time on the same beaches.

Does anyone have any suggestions in this regard? If we add the third island, which should it be?..should we break the time spent on each island evenly?... or should we be spending more time in Honolulu vs the other two islands for example?

We'll be flying United to get from San Fran to Hawaii but would like recommendations on airlines for flying between the islands?

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

We took our Grandma and two kids, 3 and 11 to the Big Island last spring and they all loved it. We saw the volcano (driving from our Kona condo), a wonderful botanical garden on the Hilo side, there is also a free zoo in Hilo. Went to the beach every day, picniced some and ate out some. Rental car a must on BI. We brought our own car seat on the plane. There is so much to see, that we can't wait until we can go back again. Maui was about a 3 day trip for us on a previous occasion. Spent a week in Honolulu and didn't love it that much. We did enjoy the day we rented a car and drove all over the island, especially to the North shore to watch the surfing. Of course the weather is good almost anywhere, so it depends on how active you all want to be. I am jealous of your wonderful trip to come.

We just got back from a 14 day trip. We spend 5 nights on Maui, 3 mights on BI and 5 nights on Oahu.

I don't suggest doing 3 islands -- we wasted a lot of time packing, dropping off rental car, checking in/ security at airport, flying, getting new car, checking in hotel again etc.

I would do just 2 islands. 7 -8 days each seems about right to me. This will allow travel time etc without rushing it.

Hope this helps...
Debi

In my most humble opinion, air fare from San Francisco to Hawaii is relatively cheap, SOOO, "One trip....One Island". You don't spend your valuable time checking in/out of hotels, renting/dropping off cars, checking in/out of airports. ALSO, gives you even more reason to go back.

8-)

Hands down, your third island should be the Big Island. The Hilo side is much more Hawaiian. Go to Volcano National Park to see the volcano, lava flows, Thurston lava tubes. Go to Akaka Falls and to Rainbow Falls.

On Oahu, don't miss sunset at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel Mai Tai Bar. My wife and I are making our 9th trip, and we would NEVER go to Hawaii without stopping there. Also, go to Dukes Canoe Club and to the small villages on the North Shore. See the sunset at Sunset Beach. Many other things to do, but they are all in the books.

I would do two islands this time. I posted on your other post too, LOL.

Its a little difficult to make a suggestion to someone on how many islands to see on a 16 day trip here in Hawaii, its really based on personal preferences.

Now some people come here thinking that to "fill" their time up they need to go to a lot of different islands, which is really not the case (you could spend two weeks on Oahu and not get around to everything, especially without rushing yourself to death).

My personal recommendation...if you are set on the two islands, stick with it and don't push into a third (although each island here has its own beauty and uniqueness, no question about it), especially if its because you think 16 days is too much for only two islands. I would think 16 days is probably a perfect amount of time for two islands. As others have mentioned already, the time wasted on traveling to the airport, waiting on the plane, getting off, getting transportation, checking into the hotel, etc will potentially waste a lot of precious time.

What things are a "must-see" or "must-do" while you and your family are here? Answering that question will help in figuring out where and how long to stay. For example, if the volcano is a must but the main part of your stay is in Honolulu...then obviously you would have to go to two islands, Oahu and the Big Island. If a lot of your vacation is just to enjoy the beauty and serenity of Hawaii, that can be had on any of the islands over here...seriously. Its like I said originally, its a personal preference. Everybody that comes to Hawaii comes with different things in mind of what they want and how they want it.

Some people will be as busy as beavers from the time they set foot over here until they leave...and they would have it no other way. Others will come here and stay on one island, go to a different beach here and there each day to enjoy the sun and views, take in a dinner and show at night...and just basically "take it easy" the whole time they are here...and they would have it no other way as well. Most people usually fall somewhere in between these two...but again, its all up to what you want.

David
www.HowToDoHawaii.com

We are semi-regular visitors to the islands, and IMO, the BI is a must see. There are so many things there that you just cannot see anywhere else. Four or five days is a minimum for me. On the other hand as a matter of personal preference, about two days in Honolulu is about right.

From experience, just do 2 islands. You waste too much time packing & unpacking, & waiting at the airport(not to mention ...the lost luggage).We stayed 14 days & did 7 days at Maui, 4 days on Kauai, & 3 on the Big Island for our 25th Anniversary. Next time, we would do 2 Islands.But, visiting any island is unbelievable. Have a great time.

We just got back a couple of hours ago from spending 10 nights on the Big Island. This island is so big, you need a good amount of time to explore it. Maybe 4/5 nights on Oahu and then 11/12 nights on the Big Island?

To fly from island to island, like others have said, takes a lot of time; sometimes the inter-island flights aren't on time (it happened to us yesterday) and that only adds more time.

Interisland flight were much easier prior to 9/11. Especially with a toddler, I'd only do 2 islands-everything takes more time than you think!