my husband and I will be visiting HI late December which island would be best for a first time trip. we want to experience HI maybe do the beach, hike car tour dine out any suggestions? Thanks

The islands are so very different. It would help if you were more descriptive in what you want. All the islands have nice beaches, good dining, some hiking, etc..
Oahu-Has famous Waikiki beach, historical Pearl Harbor, Hanumauna Bay, Diamond Head, etc.. It has big city and beaches. It has it all.
Maui-Is more resort like. Lots of golf courses, big glamourous resorts, also has small towns.
Kauai-Very lush, good hiking, waterfalls.
Big Island-large, active volcano, very unique looking. Has many different climates on one island.
All the islands will have big luxurious resorts as well as small budget oriented ones. All islands will have nice beaches and many things to do. Read some old posts on the different islands or pick up a "Revealed"Book in the series. They give a good overview of different things about each island.
You will have a good time on any one of them

I think Maui is a great choice for a first island to visit. It has terrific beaches, and lots to see. Late December is a peak time. Many of the choice vacation rentals are already reserved. Hotels, airfare, etc will be high season rates. Try expedia.com or kayak.com for some ideas about accomodations. Determine a daily accomodation rate and let that be your guide. Remember dining/drinking can also be quite expensive.

All the Hawaiian Islands are beautiful, so you really can't go wrong in choosing one. I'd let the time of year dictate. We were on Kauai once, in December, and it was cool and rainy every day of the week. We tried to snorkel with wet suits on, but couldn't stay in longer than one hour.

That could have been an unusual December, but we went to the Big Island for our second week and the weather was much better. You might want to stay on the southernmost islands for better weather, but I'm not an expert. Maybe Google the weather stats in late December for each island.
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More to see & do on Oahu than any other island:

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

www.gohawaii.com Free brochure
www.visit-oahu.com Free brochure

www.visitmaui.com Free brochure

www.mauihawaii.org

www.bigisland.com Free brochure

www.kauaidiscovery.com Free brochure

www.kauai-hawaii.com

Get all the info & then make a decision what island(s) you want to go to.

I would pick either Maui or Oahu for a first time myself.