My husband & I have decided to take our next vacation in Hawaii during the beginning of October. We are looking for good snorkeling, food, some sightseeing & a reasonable, but nice place to stay (maybe a B&B). I have been concerned about rough water during the winter months & thought I would get some opinions. Also, some suggestions on places to stay. Thanks

Just a thought, I have been to the Big Island twice in October to watch Ironman World Championship race...
Talk about an exciting time to be in Hawaii! Watch the rerun of last years race, (check ironmanlive.com under TV listings) and cheer on these athletes, swimming 2.1 miles, biking 112 miles and running a marathon! This will take place again Sat. Oct. 18th in Kona. Kona is a touristy sleepy town that comes alive with Ironman. The parade of athletes, the race, it's like a mini-Olympics. I am going again in Oct. for the 25th running of the race...ok, Kona is much more reasonably priced than Maui (condos over the ocean are half the cost!) and with a rental car, good beaches can be found. I stayed last time at Kanaloa at Kona (an Outrigger condo) and was perfectly happy with the location (shopping up the hill, groceries, movies, etc and pool. No beach, but just down the road are two.
Have fun! I can't wait!

Sparks, I think you will generally have great weather in Oct. If waves are high in one location, almost always they are smaller in another part of the island. There should be fewer tourists then as well. My favorite island is Kaua'i but each is special in its own way. I've never stayed in a B&B so can't make any suggestions there.

ttt

Stay on the south or west sides of islands. Poipu on Kuaii, Wailea maui.... Trade winds start and come from the east with bad weather.

I just booked a vacation for the first week in October to the Big Island. I decided on the Kanaloa at Kona condos after doing a lot of research. I booked the entire package (e.g., air/condo/car) through outrigger. They had the best price. We used pleasant holidays in 2001 to book our trip to Maui but they were $800 more expensive for this trip. My teenagers love to snorkel also and I have read that the Big Island has some of the best sites. We went to Maui in October 2001 and the weather was beautiful and there were no crowds at all. Of course, that may also have been due to 9/11. Good luck in planning your vacation.

Sparks, our first Maui trip was in October 2000. Weather was great. Don't know your budget or requirements but we went with a studio condo & repeated in 2002. I have a few pics at http://members.aol.com/ourfoto
Wish I could be back there now !
Have fun. Paul