Hello,

We will be going to Hawaii for a wedding next September on Maui. Maui is the only island we have been to, so would like to combine Maui with another island on this trip. Question is which one would be best for us!

We enjoy relaxing on the beach, snorkeling, body surfing, and shopping. Love real white sand beaches; did not see any in Maui.

Thanks for your help!
Michele

Sounds like Kauai might be the island for you. We've gone there twice in Sept and found it to be a great time to visit. We do all those things too, snorkle and relax especially. There are some really nice beaches. Check out The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook which a great reference for activities and beaches.

Kauai was thier last week and loved it!!

You might want to consider Oahu. Lots of shopping in Waikiki along with nightlife if that's what you want plus world class surfing on the North Shore.

Kauai is definitely more scenic and laid back... all depends on what you want.

Hi Michele,
We just returned from our honeymoon in the islands. We visited Kauai two years ago and I had previously been to Maui twice before this recent honeymoon. On our honeymoon we wnet to Maui, Oahu and the Big Island. I don't kno why the Big Island does not get more publicty but both my bride and myself prefer the Big Island. We stayed at the Mauna Lani Bay & Bungalows Resort. Visit there great internet site, www.maunalani.com. They have a small beach directly in front of the hotel, but small two person covered cabanas that you usually don't have to fight over with others at no extra cost. Another beach within a 5 to 10 minute walk away with great snorkling and better sand beach. They havea great breakfast buffet and the Canoe House is very romantic with sunset views. Contrary to other mixed reviews on this restaurant we got good service and the food was vety good. Don't miss going to Volcano National Park. We also wished we had time to go to Hilo and surrounding sites but not enough time. If I had too choose a single island to go to I would return here. Also walked around the Fairmont Orhcid property next door to Mauna Lani and hardly any poeple there but looked nicea nice property as well. The grounds at Mauna Lani were great, many fishpponds stocked witha variety of salt water creatures and local foilage. The service was not like it is at Four Seasons in Maui but it is also nice not being asked to havea cold towel or water very half hour too. I hope this informtiuon helps. If you need to know more let me know.

Based on your desired activities I would suggest Kauai or the Big Island. Kauai has great beaches, hiking, and snorkeling and many river activities (e.g. kayaking). The Big Island has the active volcano, a one of a kind experience. If you choose the Big Island try to pick a resort that has its own sandy beach, as often beaches here have lots of lava.
Snorkeling is also excellent on Big Island. Oahu has the most shopping to offer, but I do not think it is relaxing compared to Kauai or Big Island. Aloha.

ronjrank,

Thanks for the info about the Mauna Lani Bay & Bungalows Resort. I am strongly considering this place for Labor Day Weekend for a 4 night stay.

The price seems very reasonable compared to the Four Seasons on the Big Island, about $1000 less for a four night stay, yet it is very highly regarded by Conde Nast Traveler, scoring second only to the Four Seasons on the Big Island and in the top 5 for all of Hawaii.

Did you go on any tours during your stay, and if so, which tours do you recommend? Thanks.

Hi Rocco,
We did not go on any organized tours on the Big Island. We only had 3 nights at Mauna Lani, so we headed directly to Volcano National Park from Kona airport, this wasa 2 to 2.5 hour drive fromn there and Mauna Lani is 30 to 45 minute drive from Kona airport. Just to let you know we just came froma 3 night stay at teh Four Seasons in Maui before going to the Big Island and I liked the Mauna Lani better. The 4S in Maui is nice and you get pampered to death but I felt that the grounds and feel around Mauna Lani was nicer. I know the 4S on the Big Island does not have as nice of a on property beach as Mauna Lani. We talked to a artist at the Mauna Lani who has lived on the Big Island fora number of years and he sells his artwork at many of the Big Island hotels and he prefers Mauna Lani and Mauna Kea Hotels as the class of the island for what this informtion is worth. I know this isa tough decision as I went through this all myself. You hate to throw away $500 a night and not be happy. If you get in touch with the hotel directly I am sure that could help you get into organzied trips. Good luck.

Ron

Ronjrank,

Thank you for your advice! Can you tell me a little bit more about the Big Island. How was the beach there (or the one that you walked to) compared to those in Maui (our favorite there was the one at Kapalua Bay)? Is the Mauna Lani property near a town?

I have read that somewhere on the Big Island there is more of a white sand beach than maybe those on Maui. Not expecting ones like in the Caribbean, but I would love to hear more if anyone has been to such a beach!!!

So many choices...

Thank you!
Michele

Believe it or not, the whitest sand beaches I've found have been on Oahu's windward shore. I'm also a lover of white sand beaches (which don't seem to occur often in Hawaii) so if anyone has recommendations for the other islands I'd like to know.

Hi Michele80,
The sand on the beach at Mauna Lani is not the greatest but the sand at the beach which also belongs to Mauna Lani resort and isa 5 minute walk away is nice. Maybe not like it is in the carribean but for lack of smooth white sand this place more than makes up in romantic feel and also had some nice snorkling. IMO, the carribean can't compare to Hawaii. The resort is 45 minutes away from Kona and about 10 to 15 minutes away from another small town to the north whihc hasa few restaurants and shops. There is of course anohter nice sand beach at Hapuna Beach State Park which we looked at but did not use just 10 minutes from the the resort as well. Sand there looked real nice. I did hear that the seas pikc up in this area in the winter so I would expect that you should be okay in September. BTW we did see them setting up fora outdoor wedding adjacent to the beach and overlooking the sea at the resort while we were there. We did not see the actual ceremony but I suspect they do this type of thing all the time. You really can't go wrong going here. Also tell them that you are on your honeymoon and they may upgrade you, they did for us plus gave a us a bottle of champagne. I hope this helps. I only wished we stayed at this resort for our whole honeymoon.

The Kohala Coast of the Big Island has beautiful beaches. I stayed at the Mauna Lani a few years back and it definitely is a nice 5 star resort.