Should I go to Hawaii again?
 

We've been there 4 times, and have been to all the islands except Lanai. I have free FF miles tickets to go anywhere in the US and Mexico. We LOVE Hawaii but are thinking maybe we should go somewhere else even though we are very tempted to go to Hawaii again. We are in NJ. We went to San Diego last year (it was okay). What do you think? We are a family with a 3 and a 1 year old. We love Mexico, too, but think it is not conducive to kids (we don't want to rent a car in Mexico). Thanks.

Why do you say Mexico is not conducive to kids? Are you thinking of Cancun with all the partying college kids?
You could go south to the Riviera Maya. Much quieter than Cancun with fabulous beaches (we went last summer with our 2-year-old).
Are you open to the Caribbean? Some islands are easy to get to from NJ, especially with 2 little ones (we live there too).
Good luck!

No.

Yes.

Um, how am I supposed to answer this deeply personal question? Go, if you love it. If you're looking for us to tell you there's a million other beautiful places in the world to see, there are. But if Hawaii is drawing you back, why would you resist? Who here is gonna tell you "You've been there too many times, you must go somewhere else?"

um,
roxy

I love the coast of CA, especially north from LA to SF. Then there's the wine country of CA, as well. Heck, I even find LA and Hollywood fun and exciting--lots o' activites for kids, too.

If the earth did not move (and not in a good way) in CA, if I were to live somewhere other than ATL, CA would be my second choice.

PCH is awe inspiring, depending on the time of year you go. We went in winter and spring (January and May), and it was beautiful then. I hear there are fog problems at different times of the year, not to mention rock/mud slides. We must have picked good times to go.

Mexico is certainly more affordable than the states, however. Canada is quite affordable also. I hear Vancouver is beautiful, but I've never been myself (it's on my list).

Next week will be our first trip to HI, so I have no comparison from that standpoint (yet).

Have fun and enjoy.

DD

caribtraveler~ can you tell me where you stayed in Mexico? I am considering the Playa del Carmen area. Is Akumel better? I have relatives who were at the Barcelo and loved it. Thanks for any recs.. I have two kids, 10 and 15, as well as a good natured dh. J.

I love Paris, and although it's a pain in the butt long trip from Hawaii, I try to go as often as possible. Sure, I should try Spain and Denmark.....in due time. For now, I absolutely love Paris so I keep going back to the places that make me happy.

Come on back to Hawaii and enjoy yourself!

jetset1: I wish I could give you Mexico advice, but I don't consider myself an expert. We only went once, stayed in Puerto Aventuras (45 minutes to 1 hour south of Cancun - GORGEOUS beach). We're going back in June though (just booked it - yeah! - staying in Cozumel and Cancun this time). Anyway, we went to Coba, Tulum and Yalku lagoon, but we didn't make it to Playa del Carmen or Akumal.
If you do a search for my screen name on the Latin America board, you should find my trip report.
Have fun when you go. We really enjoyed Mexico (I guess that's why we're going back). :-)

My sister took her young family to Costa Rica and they had a blast. They took some funky cruise (small boat) and the kids joined a young people's trip up a river with monkeys swinging over head. If you're asking, maybe you're ready to experience something new!

Ok..so silly me (says the hubby), Yalku is located in Akumal. That lagoon is amazing, fyi. The area looked very nice but that's all I know about Akumal.

4 times!?!
I've been to Hawaii 15 times and I keep going back.
Go,Go,Go.
-Bill

Follow your heart! While I love Mexico (Puerto Vallarta is my favorite destination) I agree it is a bit rougher travel for small children (food, water, language, currency). But there are many area you need not rent a car, PV being one of them. Mexico is simply a bit more "work" than Hawaii is IMO.

I'd stick with Hawaii for a few more years. In my experience I like different places at different times in my life... went to Mexico 1-2/year for about 10 years. Recently have gotten on a Hawaii kick for the last 3 tropical/relaxing style trips I've taken.

My girls, then 6, 6 and 8 loved Playa del Carmen. I liked it. Beautiful sugar-white beaches. We stayed at an all-inclusive. The attraction for the children was food available 20 hours per day, and pools, pools, pools w/ loud music. Well thought out kids program w/ many counselors. Attraction for us was 2 kids stayed and ate "free." Equally important-2 hours from Atlanta. Hawaii's at least 10 w/ a good tail wind.
In PDC we took the children out to snorkel a reef and to an "ecological" park, Xel Ha, where snorkeling, tubing was decent (the fish were well fed) though the park was crowded. We did not rent a car, relying on taxis, feet. My children, who went to Maui and Oahu a few months later, insist PDC was the best vacation they ever had.
I'd go to Hawaii and let the children suffer.

By all means, go back to Hawaii if that sounds like the best vacation for you and your family. However, it sounds like maybe you haven't given much thought to Mexico or researched the many, many possibilities there. There any many great places in Mexico where renting a car would not be necessary. What is it about Mexico you think is "not conducive to kids" who are only 1 and 3 years old? At that age, do they really care where you are?? Check out Cancun and the area around Playa del Carmen, Puerto Vallarta on the Pacific coast, and Cabo san Lucas. Lots of opportunities for relaxing beach vacations for families. You might like an all-inclusive resort.

Have you already checked to see that you can use your FF tickets to Hawaii when you want to go? When we tried to use FF miles to Hawaii, booking 6 months in advance for the low season, we were told we should have booked a year in advance; but it could have just been that our program was more restrictive. Anyway, have a great time wherever you go!

I just can't imagine flying to HI with a 3 and 1 yr.old but you've obviously done it and think it's ok. Unless the tickets need to be used, I personally would go to Fla. for now and save the FF for another time. I also agree there are plenty of places in Mexico where you wouldn't have to rent a car if you just want a beach vacation, but you can't get around the water/food problem. What about Bermuda? Is that included in these tickets? Great beaches, family friendly. You haven't mentioned what time of year though.

You can get around the "water/food problem" if you stay at an all-inclusive in Mexico.
Wouldn't use tickets for Florida-there are many cheap fares to Florida from the northeast. I'm also not crazy about Florida.

Lex1- I disagree completely. You can run into food poisoning or pick up tourista at an all-inclusive buffet just the same as at a sidewalk taco stand!

The sickest person I ever witnessed in Mexico was a woman trying to board a flight home (I won't go into details but it had to do with a bad pina colada earlier that day at her A-I resort hotel).

If you are using FF miles then you're not booking a package, meaning you must rent a car or use taxi going to Riviera Maya. I can't remember the price but from Cancun airport to Playa Del Carmen is approx. $80+ each way for taxi last year.
We were in Cancun and PDC last year and did not like it at all. The food is cheap, but you have to be careful about the water and food still. Cancun is a party place and we were constantly harassed about buying timeshare everywhere we go. PDC is more laid back but has lots of topless sunbathers. We stayed at a condo near the pier to Cozumel. I did not think the beach was that pretty. It was rough in late May and has a lot of seaweed on the beach, which were never cleaned. But that is just our condo.
Use plenty of sunscreen. We are not fair and have been to Hawaii a few times. The kids never had sunburn there, but they were burnt badly in Mexico, using SPF 40 . The scalp can peel if you don't use protection for the head.

We went to Hawaii this past summer and loved it. When deciding where to go this coming summer for our 1st anniversary, we kind of felt like we should be trying someplace new, but decided to go back to Hawaii. There is just something about it, I guess.

I have been to Mexico, too, and liked it, (Cancun) but there were a lot more families in Hawaii than what I saw in Mexico. If I had FF miles, I would use them to Hawaii because it seems like you're getting more for those miles. It's generally a longer, more expensive flight than Mexico, so I would rather use them to Hawaii.

Suze:
You can get food poisoning at any buffet. We don't really know that the unfortunate tourist was plagued by a bad pina colida, do we?
All inclusives in Mexico thrive because they control quality. They prepare food w/ purified water and serve purified water, and ice cubes made w/ it, on the premises. I already voted for Hawaii above, but not based on bad science.

We are going back to Hawaii this summer for the 5th time. We have been going every other year. We vacation other places on the years we do not go to Hawaii and every place we have gone always pales in comparison IMO. Last year we went to Grand Cayman and the entire time we were wishing we were in Hawaii. Hawaii is such a bargain compared to the Caribbean and IMO Mexico does not come close to being in the same league as Hawaii. So, my advice is go to Hawaii!

Thank you everyone for your advice and other suggestions. When I meant that Mexico was not as conducive to kids, I really meant stroller friendly, sites to see for kids, and yes, also the water and food. We've been to Mexico twice (Puerto Vallarta & Cancun) and we loved it, but both times we hopped on and off buses to get anywhere (this is pre-kids), and I can't imagine doing that with two kids and a double (?)stroller/diaper bag. We love Hawaii for the fact that it is so family friendly, and Oahu has the zoo, the aquarium, places to walk to, and just tons of things to do, as well as in the other islands. I am leaning towards Hawaii again. Yes, it is a killer flight to get there. I think it took us over 14 hours last time, with transfers. ugh. But it is so worth it. I am also considering your other suggestions. They are all very good ones. I am similar to the last poster, Mauitammy, because we have been going every other year, too, and last year we decided to go to San Diego, which was great for kids, but it was just not as special as Hawaii. And I don't even know if I can get plane tickets to Hawaii for this summer yet, so we'll see if we actually go.

Thanks again!

Just returned from 6th trip to Hawaii last night (3 to Kauai, 2 to Maui, 1 to Big Island and Oahu combo). Have found that Hawaii is simply getting too busy for us and it's time to find something quieter (if there is such a thing). Time to try other tropical locales. Have to say that of all the Hawaiian Islands, Kauai is our favorite - friendly, helpful people, least amount of traffic (but still more than we like), and some beautiful quiet beaches. If I were burning FF miles, I think I'd choose the Caribbean side of Mexico, especially if I originated from the East Coast. We are on the West Coast so Hawaii is an easy hop and we had this window of time so Hawaii it was.

inthechips2 -

You might want to look at the Cook Islands. Like you, I LOVED Kauai - but the Cooks blew it away. Often compared to "the way Hawaii was 50 years ago", Rarotonga is clean and modern but the beaches there are typically pretty empty and there's not a single traffic light anywhere in the Cooks and no building higher than 3 stories. Avarua on Rarotonga's north shore reminded me a bit of Hanalei on Kauai. Raro (and Aitutaki) are similar physically to (and often compared to) the much more expensive islands of French Polynesia (Bora Bora and Moorea in particular) with wide, calm lagoons and crystal-clear water perfect for snorkeling and swimming. Surfing is poor there though because the islands are pretty much entirely surrounded by protective reefs. Also not much nightlife it that matters to you. Airfare to get there is pricy but once you are there it's pretty reasonably (was cheap before the recent fall of the US dollar). Same latitude as Maui (and due south of there) but with reversed seasons as they are in the southern hemisphere.

Check into them and see what you think.

Ken

Thanks Ken, actually the Cook Islands have been very much near the top of our "list". We are hoping for a month-long trip to New Zealand in another winter or so and would include a stop to the Cooks either coming or going. Our preference is snorkeling, so it sounds as if the reefs surrounding the area would fit our needs! Nightlife not a concern as our days are spent exploring, sunning and swimming when in the tropics. We have recently heard from friends who snagged a great deal out of LA so know they are possible! Thanks.

Air New Zealand (the only airline currently flying to the Cooks) used to offer a free option on your ticket to New Zealand where you could get off in the Cooks and stay for a week or so then catch a later flight the next week on to New Zealand. Heck of a deal. Don't know if the still do that though (be sure and ask when the time comes).

Ken

Aloha!!I guess that lets you know where we like to go.We are going back to the north shore of Kauai for our 5th time in 6 yrs in two weeks.We like the Hanalie area.It's paridise on earth!We have talked to many travelers about Hawaii,and 98% say they wished they had stayed on Kauai the whole time they were on the islands.We can't get out of the Honolulu airport fast enough.But anyway-head to paridise-KAUAI. Have fun

MarineR: You might have thought about the following already...but one thing you might want to consider if you go back to Hawaii is to fly non-stop to California, spend a night there, then go on to Hawaii. It would make the long trip much easier for you and your spouse, but most importantly for your children.
Good luck.

<We don't really know that the unfortunate tourist was plagued by a bad pina colida, do we?> Well Lex1, yes, actually I do. Or at least that's what her husband said while she was throwing up into a paper bag in the terminal ("She should have stuck with beer like me, not had that pina colada.")

I don't want to argue but as a frequent budget traveler to Mexico I get defensive & tired of people assuming that All-Inclusive hotels are OK and everything else is not safe. That is ridiculous.

Not to belabor the point, sorry to get off track, I'd really rather continue talking about Hawaii which is fabulous!!

I love Hawaii too, we took our then 9 month old daughter in November 2004, on our fourth trip. I just wish it wasn't such a long flight to get there now that we have a child. My suggestion would be St. John USVI, it would be quite a bit closer than Hawaii. Gorgeous beaches, stay at either a villa or at a hotel (Westin or Caneel Bay), rent a 4WD to explore the island.