Tell me about Hawaii...

[ckelly10]

I've not been to Hawaii but considering booking to go in a few months so taking in a lot of these points! Definitely want to go to Maui !

 

[mark_syd]

Hi All

My partner and I will be travelling SYD-JFK in Feb 2014 with a 6 hour stopover in HNL. Just wondering if others have had this same/similar stopover and how they filled in the time?

Also, after leaving New York we will be stopping in HNL for 3 nights on our way home to SYD and there have been some great tips about things to do in Hawaii so far on this thread.

 

[get me outta here]

Here's a link to TA that may make a few points for you to consider:

What to do -6 hours of layover in Honolulu Airport - Honolulu Forum - TripAdvisor

 

[JohnM]

More on hiking to the larva flow: Hike to See Lava in Hawaii | See Lava | Hawaii Lava Boat Volcano Tours. This featured (p36) in the Life & Leisure Luxury magazine insert in the AFR today.

I just trekked out by myself. It was a fascinating experience that I'd highly recommend. If you do it by yourself, check how far it is and the likely time to get to the active area. It was quite a long way when I did it and you need to be very careful to allow time to get back before dark. Wear good hiking boots but be prepared for the soles to get very worn as walking on the basalt is like walking on ground glass and take water.

 

[lovestotravel]

At best you would have 2 hours out of the airport, so I guess a quick trip to Wakiki would be nice, but you'd have 90-120 mins there which is still nice and better than the airport!

EG Land 12pm
Get out of the airport about 12:30pm AT BEST
Actually get out of airport 1pm
Taxi/bus to Wakiki - Arrive 1:30pm
Leave Wakiki 3pm
Arrive back at airport 3:30 pm
Flight departs 6pm

 

[mark_syd]

Thanks for your input get me outta here and loves to travel.

 

[get me outta here]

If you just want to get out of the a/port and don't have any heavy luggage without actually trying to 'do something', you could catch TheBus out side the a/port ($2.50 exact or $5 for the two of you but no change is handled at all on TheBus). Ask for the transfer ticket which entitles you to continue back within a 2 hour window, if you don't take the taxi - just do a sort of round trip to get the lie of the land. I encountered a BNE couple doing just that when they had a 6 hour layover. The downside is that you will be doing yet more sitting down and may fall asleep!

Here's a link to TheBUs to consider: https://www.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8...732868,1.450195&saddr=Honolulu+airport&daddr=

 

[quick_dry]

Was snorkelling on the interest list?

I would hire a car and get out to the beaches on the North and East shore - we preferred the non-touristy beaches, they had nicer sand and better snorkelling.

Towards the northwest corner of Oahu, behind the Dillinger airfield there is a 'beach access' sign on the side of the road (just past a kids camp), it's frequnted by a bunch of sea turtles and has lots of clown fish, anemones, etc - I enjoyed it much more than Hanauma Bay. Also google for the 'turtle cleaning station' - this one can be tricky to find, best way is to watch from the beach for a while and note where the turtle heads pop out of the water - then swim for that.

As others have said - shrimp trucks. Most favourite meals there were at dodgy looking vans on the side of the road, with paper plates and copious amounts of fried shrimp and/or poke.

 

[MelbMan]

To the OP we're not long back from Hawaii where we spent most of our time in Maui, just a night or so in Waikkiki. One of the other posters is correct, Waikiki is a lot like Surfers Paradise not really my favourite and the hotels are quite pricey. A lot of the flights back to Australia (Jetstar for example) leave at about 8.30am in the morning so there's no choice but to overnight in Oahu the night before you fly. We flew this time with Jetstar. Paying for extra legroom seats in economy and the meals and entertainment package was money very well spent.

Maui
We rented a great condo in Lahaina just a few blocks back from Front Street..Maui Paradise Rentals - Maui Vacation Rental Resort Information April who resides in Washington DC is a pleasure to deal with. We stayed in the 2BR condo. The grounds of the resort have great gardens, a pool and a lanai with seating like a queen size bed and a thatched roof overhead. An a BBQ. We'd go back here in a flash. We had a Chev Impala for our 5 days.
I wouldn't personally worry about Gerards in Lahaina either to eat or stay. This condo is far nicer, has included high speed wifi, all the good USA cable stations. Main Street Lahaina is fabulous, 1915 type architecture, America does simply the best burgers and the Mai Tais in Lahaina were far better than on the North coast. To my mind I could happily base myself in Lahaina and 10 miles north or south of there. There's a particularly nice bakery and bit of coast 10 miles south Lahaina.

On Maui we also spent a couple of nights in Paia in a hotel that gets rave reviews online. The Paia Inn is hideously expensive, no breakfast included and parking is in paid lot down the street. The whole of Paia has a hippy vibe, that and hippy type food is not my go. With the Hana Highway we did that one afternoon. Hana when you get there is nothing special. But if you continue on through Hana south to do a bit loop back to Paia the road gets interesting. Very interesting and remote. We had this Chev which luckily was solid with high profile tyres. The road is narrow, mostly bitumen. It's possibly like the east cost of the North Island north of Gisborne. Up where they filmed "Whale Rider". That part of NZ few white people go. South of Hana has this wonderful remote feel to it and once you get to the other end some interesting hotels and bars. Yes you can leave Paia late morning and be back about 8pm at night. But a nights break in Hana might be a decent idea.

Kauai
The northern end of this island is fabulous. Green and lush, around Princeton is fabulous

Big Island Hawaii
Really liked the feel of this island. It's quieter than the main island. Kona is pretty decent.

Oahu
I don't really like Waikki or to be honest a lot of the tourist norms in Hawaii. Hawwain Airlines staff just stand back as you self check in your luggage. I would have thought in a country where there's a short of work, low wages, that there would be people around to load bags, etc even if you had to tip. But no. Gas and groceries is expensive in Maui. America and Americans seem forced to queque for everything.
The rental car lots are generally offsite to the airport. And hotels in Waikkiki in Jul are very expensive. Condos charge you a cleaning fee of about $150 when staying at Maui. The food at any USA airport is awful and they are a bit of a nightmare to negotiate.


But the weather is good, the food is pretty good (don't miss the plate lunches in Lahaina just north of town up near Safeway. Tee shirts are about 6 for $20 in Lahaina and very good quality. And if you are a bloke some of the "eye candy" is as good as you will see.

Have fun!

 

[get me outta here]

And if you are a bloke some of the "eye candy" is as good as you will see.

Have fun![/QUOTE]

Geez. I'm glad I'm past being fodder for this sort of comment.

 

[MelbMan]

"No crime in looking" most of us say. Possibly the main difference in Hawaii and more so Maui is bikini's don't seem restricted to the beach. I travelled with my wife. We found a lot of the waitresses for example on Maui were just like a lot of the contestants on say American Idol. Very nice looking, friendly girls. Possibly summer jobs for some of them. Didn't ask whether they were from Hawaii or doing summer jobs from mainland USA. "Get me outta here" I wouldn't say I pick my destinations according to what the "scenery" is like. More about the weather and other factors.

 

[get me outta here]

I did the round Island tour of Oahu with E Noa Tours earlier this year on a small bus and I got a lot out of it for 1 day. You can of course drive yourself if you have a car, as you probably will, but if not, it means that both of you will see the scenery, not just the passenger, and you'll will learn a lot more. The driver really knew how to involve and entertain everyone and on the bus were newly weds/a kid/middle aged/ 2 oldies - everyone from around the world. It stops at a shrimp 'truck' for lunch. E Noa Tours - Honolulu - Reviews of E Noa Tours - TripAdvisor

Also, this was good and should be booked a few days in advance Shangri La - Honolulu - Reviews of Shangri La - TripAdvisor The tour leaves from the HNL Museum of Art which has a nice restaurant for post tour - book a table at the same time as the Shangri La tour.

 

[mark_syd]

At best you would have 2 hours out of the airport, so I guess a quick trip to Wakiki would be nice, but you'd have 90-120 mins there which is still nice and better than the airport!

EG Land 12pm
Get out of the airport about 12:30pm AT BEST
Actually get out of airport 1pm
Taxi/bus to Wakiki - Arrive 1:30pm
Leave Wakiki 3pm
Arrive back at airport 3:30 pm
Flight departs 6pm

Thanks lovestotravel. It's more about filling in time and not sitting in an airport, so quick trip to Wakiki may be the way to go. We will be leaving the sightseeing when we return to Hawaii after leaving New York.

 

[MissBurrill]

I have visited Hawaii six times. I love having lunch at Rum Fire at the Sheraton in Waikiki. The burger is delicious, it washes down well with a beer and has a beautiful ocean view.

I know you've said you're staying at the Hilton but I will mention Waikiki Beachfront Rentals. That's for anyone in future who looks at this thread for accommodation ideas. They are a private condo website and you choose your room when you book. Your room isn't serviced for the duration of your stay but the savings are great. Plus the rooms have a kitchen. Located at the Ilikai hotel they are on the edge of Waikiki next to the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Our friends who stayed at the HHV last year loved the place. Make sure you take some time to visit the penguins on the grounds of the HHV.

We catch The Bus a lot which is fantastic for $2.50. Last year we caught The Bus to Pearl Harbor. While waiting for a bus back to Waikiki a van pulled up offering us $5 each for a lift back to our hotels. We hopped on board, happy for a quick ride back without the stop/start journey of The Bus.

Traditionally there are fireworks on a Friday evening near the HHV. Last year they were Tuesday and Friday evenings so plan to watch them at least once.

I'm sure you know to save your quarters for the laundry and dollar bills for tipping. When staying in a hotel I tip the house keeper daily. Some people only tip on check out day but what if it's your person's day off and someone else receives the tip? A couple of years ago I stayed in a hotel and left a $2 tip on my bed. Later in the day the housekeeper saw me leave my room and hurried up, thanking me for my generous tip. I guess my tip paid for most of her bus fare to work.

I agree that the Cheesecake Factory is a must for a meal. It's easier to get a table at lunchtime than dinner. Jimmy Buffett's across the road is a good substitute if the wait time is too long. Not the same but still good.