Hawaii advice needed

[metalsteve]

Hello,

Looking at Hawaii for a honeymoon destination next april.

Anyone been and can offer me any advice? We basically want to switch off and relax for most of the time, however we are interested in visiting the volcano and going on a whale watching excursion. Trying to figure out which island is best as a base.

From what i've read so far it seems a lot of the hotels are big resort style hotels, however we often like to stroll out and sample the food and bars etc in the local towns when we go away, does Hawaii offer this?

Thanks in advance

[Blackpuddin]

Was in Maui (Waikiki) two months back and was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. Honolulu is great for walking around at any time of day. It also has 'old' parts where there are plenty of character bars. Fantastic choice of food and drink. Dock area has some great fish restaurants, not all posh, many are just ordinary good value places where the locals eat. Ten minutes out of Honolulu up the coast you're into lovely unspoilt beaches. I reckon they've done well to keep it honest.
www.nonstophonolulu.com gives you a good overview of the nightlife. Perfect weather in April btw, good choice of month.

[SunnyD]

Um, Waikiki is in Honolulu which is on the island of Oahu, not Maui.

Maui is the most popular island for honeymooners and is supposed to be the most picturesque, but I've only been to Oahu so can't comment. Honolulu is very built up with a large mall etc, Waikiki beach being the most touristy area. As said before, heading up to North Shore is much quieter and you'll find some deserted beaches, but not sure about the range of hotels up there. Maui may be the best bet. Sorry if that's not much help!

[Blackpuddin]

SunnyD said:

Um, Waikiki is in Honolulu which is on the island of Oahu, not Maui.

Maui is the most popular island for honeymooners and is supposed to be the most picturesque, but I've only been to Oahu so can't comment. Honolulu is very built up with a large mall etc, Waikiki beach being the most touristy area. As said before, heading up to North Shore is much quieter and you'll find some deserted beaches, but not sure about the range of hotels up there. Maui may be the best bet. Sorry if that's not much help!

Ah bugger I always get those two islands mixed up, sorry, Sunny D is right, Honolulu is on Oahu. I reckon you could rent a house up on the north side, there are a few up there, quite a tempting idea though it doesn't take long to circumnavigate the whole island, about 4 hours, so you could stay pretty much anywhere and not feel cut off. An Oahu real estate website might be a good place to start for rentals. Turtle Bay hotel is up in the north, as usual it's a big place but the resort has some nice bungalows on the shore.

[Mermaid]

Kauai is probably the best & lots to explore

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g60626-...

[adsvx220]

Me and my wife had our honeymoon in Hawaii. Stayed just off Waikiki beach. We found it was a good base for exploring the island. We did a walk up to the near by diamond head crater, and visited pearl harbour- not a very honeymoon thing to do, but couldn't really miss it as we were so close. Our favourite part of the holiday was driving around the island. We near enough went round the whole island. It's stunning, you can find some lovely beaches to stop off at.
If its the right time of year you will be able to see some awesome waves, particularly along the banzai pipeline on the north shore if I remember rightly. The blow-hole along the south shore is a good picture stop- its a hole in the rocks that shoots up water as the waves hit.
We were quite surprised when we visited that the restaurants are mostly all within hotels, so do some research before you go to find out where the good ones are.
We did Vegas and San fran as part of the honeymoon aswell....definitely worth considering.

[YRRunner]

I lived on Maui for 7 years. Feel free to PM me with any specific information you need. Maui is definately the best of all the islands and I'm not just saying that. It has the best of everything, without the concrete jungle that Waikiki is, without the 3rd worldness of Hawaii (Big Island) and without the lack of things to do that Kauai is. Maui is unspoiled yet very exclusive compared to the other islands. Quieter and more idyllic than Oahu, yet plenty to do and see. Get a car and drive to Hana via the volcano (Haleakala), the road hugging the coast, Seven Sacred Pools, the bamboo forest leading to the bottom of a 900 ft waterfall, Charles Lindberg's burial place on a spit of land jutting out into the ocean, Hana itself (George Harrison's house on the beach). Pe'ahi for the famous "Jaws" surfing beach (40-60 foot waves). The most prestigious hotels (Ritz Carlton etc) are near Kapalua, up in the north of the island. Slightly cheaper but beautiful nevertheless is Kaanapali. Lahaina Town is fun, so is Whalers Village near Kaanapali. Great beachside bars and restaurants include the Hula Grill (an absolute must) or Leilani's at Whalers Village, Kimo's or the Lahaina Fish Company in Lahaina. If you want outstanding food, on par with Michelin standards, then David Paul's Lahaina Grill or Gerard's Plantation House. Too much to mention here. There are some great hotels down the south side in Wailea and Kihei, but TBH you will end up spending most of your time on the West Side (Lahaina & Ka'anapali. Don't bother with Wailuku or Kahului (where the airport is) as these areas don't really have anything for the tourist and are predominantly industrial and residential areas for the locals. Go whale watching, marlin fishing from Lahaina harbour, also trips to Molokini (the tip of an undersea volcano crater) where you can go snorkelling or scuba diving, or sail over to Molokai (a former leper colony) for great horse riding. If you're really hell bent on seeing Kilauea (Hawaii, Big Island) then fly from Maui to Hawaii and then take a helicopter trip, oh... and make sure you walk up through the old extinct lava tubes (really does your head in). If you feel the need to see Waikiki, Pearl Harbour, Kilauea etc., you can always fly there as internal flights around the islands are fairly cheap and very regular. Have a blast and as I say, if you want some specifics, PM me as I'm happy to assist.

[metalsteve]

Just wanated to say many thanks to you all for the help and advice given. We have decided on Maui as a honeymoon destination with a few nights in san francisco on the way. Currently just waiting on 2013 hotel prices to be confirmed before making a confirmed booking.

YRRunner i have sent you an email.


Once again thanks to you all, Pistonheads once again proves to be a fountain of knowledge!