Fellow Fodorites,

We are planning our dream trip (honeymoon) to Hawaii! Who has really helped you? What poster has given you information that made you say, "Wow, I'm glad so-and-so told us about that?" (after you've arrived there and you're enjoying the experience?)

In other words, who should we REALLY pay attention to?

Thanks in advance!

People can share their experiences with you, but bear in mind that these are all SUBJECTIVE opinions, and you may feel quite differently after visiting several different islands, which you SHOULD do in order to decide where you want to return in the future!

I attempted to reply to your posting via e-mail, only to discover that you are not using a vaid/working e-mail address.

Donna,

Sorry about the invalid e-mail address but someone in my family got spammed so badly that I'd prefer not to use my real address and prefer replies on the Forum. But thank you for trying to reply to me that way!

Dave

Dave and Joy,

What i've done in the past is, thoroughly read the boards of my specific interest... filter out who is hiding behind a business/commercial intention (LOTS of them do that here), and go with the ones that post from sincere past experience. Thats my advice.

I find that our host, Fodor's, has wonderful books that steer you in the right direction. Frommer's and Let's Go type books work great as well. Use them as a guide and then get feedback from those who have been.

Before our 2 trips to Hawaii, I listened to a lot of opinions and did a lot of research in the book stores. I really don't like the fodors books as much(oops), frommers is more subjective and I like it, Gault Milan has excellent info on hotels, etc., Rick Steves book 2 to 22 days in Hawaii is great, The Best Places to Kiss in Hawaii is another great one, Fieldings and Birnbaums too. The Zagat ratings book rate alot of the properties and I find that they are pretty accurate. Then I phone the hotel directly and get their rates and keep digging as they seem to have many rates, and then I phone a couple times more to be sure that the rate has not changed. It is a lot of work, and I actually enjoy it and it makes for a better vacation. We usually don't get packages although it doesn't hurt to compare. by the time I have done all this reading I am usually better informed than most agents.

Dave and Joy - you don't have to take the advice of just one or two people to have a wonderful honeymoon in Hawaii. Just do a search for Hawaii on here, read about other's personal experiences on the various islands and decide what's best for you. Hawaii is so beautiful and romantic, you can't go wrong. It's not a matter of "who you should pay attention to", as each of us has our ideas and opinions about our experiences which someone else is always going to disagree with. Just read what you can on here and in the books mentioned above and go for it.