Travel
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
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Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Hawaii: Other islands to visit other than Maui and Kauai?
We would like to send our parents on to Hawaii for their 10-year wedding anniversary. My mom has been to Maui and Kauai (step-dad has never been to HI), but I know my mom would love to go back to Maui again.
We were thinking of flying them to Maui, and then purchasing some island-hopping airfare to other islands.
1. What other islands are worth visiting? (What airline would you recommend to go island hopping?)
2. Would you recommend a day trip or spending the night? (If you have hotel recos, that'd be great.)
3. Any specific activities you can recommend at the other islands?
Re: Hawaii: Other islands to visit other than Maui and Kauai?
Oahu is my favorite island. There is so much to see and do there. I love it because there's a little bit of everything.Hiking Diamond Head, driving up Tantalus Road, Waikiki Beach, Kailua, North Shore, Manoa Falls, Pearl Harbor, good shopping and restaurants.
I also really enjoyed the Big Island. Volcanoes National Park is absolutely amazing in my mind. Such a neat place. We also enjoyed touring a coffee farm, visiting a black sand beach, and hiking to waterfalls.
I don't think day trips are worth it. If they're going to go to another island, I think they should spend the night and see more of the island.
Thanks for the recommendation for Oahu and the Big Island. If they went there, how many days should they stay there?
We spent 6 days on Oahu and 4 days on the Big Island. I think our time on Oahu was perfect. Ideally, I would have liked to spend another day or two on the Big Island, though.
I would highly recommend the Big Island. We stayed at an amazing B&B called Ka'awa Loa Plantation. It's beautiful and affordable. It's also very close toKealakekua Bay where you can rent a kayak from a local and swim with wild dolphins. This was really one of the most amazing experiences of my life.
Your parents would love it!
This sounds amazing! Thank you for the recommendation- I will look into it. I think they'd love to swim with the dolphins- do you remember which company you went with?
I've been to Kauai, Maui and Oahu and loved them all.
If they are history fans, Oahu is fantastic because they can do Pearl Harbour. Its also fun to spend a day in Waikiki just walking around, shopping, eating, etc.
I would think if you added a 3-day trip to Oahu they could have 1 day for Pearl Harbour (our trip to Pearl Harbour also had a driving trip around the North Shore which was really cool) plus a day for Waikiki, and 1 day climbing Diamond Head and whatever else.
If you just arranged a day trip to Oahu, I would do the one that does Pearl Harbour in the AM plus a driving tour on the North Shore.
Haven't been to the Big Island to comment but i've heard great things.
We did this in Hawaii through a company called Sunlight on Water. They were great - highly recommend.
They also do the night snorkel with the manta rays which was incredible. The Big Island is a great island and one of my favorites (headed back next month).
Popular resorts there include the Four Seasons, the Fairmont Orchid, and the Hilton Waikoloa Village. The Hilton will be full of kids. All three are north of Kona, and the downside is that you're pretty much stuck at the resort (whichever one you pick) for all meals, which gets expensive.
As with all the other islands, you want a rental car. Driving around the island can be fun, and the hike in Akaka Falls is gorgeous (and easy).
Apologies for posting the Maui stuff under Kauai.
My husband and I went to the Big Island and Maui for 5 days each. The Big Island was amazing, we did a helicopter tour over the volcano. Absolutely amazing, and well worth the trip! We stayed at a resort called the Mauna Loa, and it was fantastic. Amazing snorkeling, turtles come right up to the resort and aren't afraid of people so they come right up to you, and their breakfast buffet is like nothing I've ever seen.
When we went to Maui, we stayed at the Kapalua villas, which shares property with the Ritz Carlton. They have a spa that you can use all of the facilities for free, but the massages and treatments are extra. We walked right up to the Ritz Carlton and used their swimming pool (amazing) and other facilities as well. If they go to Maui, I would highly recommend doing the Road to Hana, which has amazing views of waterfalls and landscapes/seascapes. Hope this helps!!
We spent our HM on Oahu for 9 days and I wish we could've spent more! We really like exploring things though and getting away from the tourist areas. PP's have given some good suggestions as to what to do there. If you only had a day or two, I'd probably do Waikiki and maybe Pearl Harbor. But ideally, I'd spend 3-4, so they could make it to other areas of the island as well, like the North Shore.
You mentioned swimming with dolphins. We did this in Oahu at Sea Life Park. I really enjoyed it. Looking back, I probably wouldn't do the cheapest package again, but rather pay a little more to get more time with the dolphins and have a smaller group in the water.
It is not mentioned much, but I would highly recommend at least a day trip to Lanai. Trilogy has a day trip out of Lahaina which is really nice:
http://www.sailtrilogy.com/lanai/discover/
If they'd like to stay overnight, there are 3 hotels on the island. The Four Seasons Manele Bay is right on the beach. Last summer, my husband really swam with dolphins there- in their natural habitat.
We love Lanai- we are going there for our 5th trip this summer.
Also off the beaten path is Molokai. It has alot of aloha- but I would not recommend for a first time Hawaii visitor.