Hawaii Honeymoon

B

BOSS

100+ Posts
I am sure this topic has been discussed on this board before, but I didn't see it anywhere on the first two pages.

Planning a trip for our honeymoon in August and was wanting to get some input on places to stay and things to do.

Obviously, I want this to be nice, but I also don't want to declare bankruptcy while I am there. I think we have locked down the first few nights at the Ko'olina Beach Club in Oahu and are planning on staying a few nights in Maui and a few nights on Kauai.

Any suggestions as to places to stay or recommendations? Also, any input on how long we should stay on each island? We have set aside 12 days for the honeymoon, but will probably scale that back a little.

I appreciate the input. I'll hang up and listen.
 
I would caution against doing more than 2 islands. There is so much to see on each, you'll really sell yourself short flying all that that way to do so little on an island. I would recommend 1 island, 2 at the most. If you're staying 9-10 days (scaling back from 12), 4-5 days per island would be good. 2-3 days per island, you'll feel rushed and feel you missed a bunch. The islands are big. You need to spend some time there to really see them.

Oahu is must more populated, but lots to see. I think the beach club you booked is in a quieter area of the island.

Maui is beautiful. Stay in Wailea or Kapalua. Kaanapali is like Honolulu.

Kauai is quiet, green and rather secluded. Highly recommend.

Same for Big Island, my favorite island. You can save some bucks by staying IN Kona, as opposed to the Kohala Coast (Four Seasons, Waikaloa, Mauna Lani, Mauna Kea, etc.). If you go to the Big Island, I recommend staying there the whole time. Rain forests, coffee plantations, volcanos, waterfalls, mountains, star gazing at observatory, etc.

If you want to go nice, at the bare minimum, budget 10-15k, depending on your airfare (coach or first). That's a 4-star hotel, car and food (food is expensive). You need a car on each island.

If you do two islands, I would do Kauai and Maui in a 10 day period, minimum. Since you're booked on Oahu, hit Kauai next. Much different than Oahu and will give you a break from the people, unlike Maui.

Just some suggestions. Hope this is helpful.
 
^ Good answer.

We did 5 days on Kauai and 3 days on Oahu. We kind of wished we had done the opposite. 4 days is all you need to see Kauai, even at a slow pace. Except on your honeymoon, you will want a slow pace, with some 'down time.' It's not so much a sightseeing vacation for the first couple days anyway.

There is lots to see and do on Oahu, but that includes some city stuff. Waikiki is almost like Vegas in its 24 hour busy-ness. Kauai is all outdoor-type stuff.

BTW, north shore of Oahu you can go swim with sharks. Look up Hawaii Shark Encounters.
 
Maui is typically the honeymoon island but most who go to Hawaii often prefer Kauai.

The Hanalei Bay Resort or others in Princeville on Kauai are the nicest hotels in Hawaii and will be the most Hawaiian out of Maui and Oahu. If you have to stay on Oahu- look at the W hotel and the Mandarin Oriental- really nice places.

The Four Seasons on the Big Island is also really nice and secluded.

Then there are two wonderful hotels on Lanai;
The Lodge at Koele and The Four Seasons Manele bay.
We stayed at the Manele bay before it was a four seasons and it was really nice as well.
The Lodge has one of the top golf courses in Hawaii too.

Best of luck and Aloha!
 
We just booked our honeymoon to Maui in August; I looked at doing two islands, but chose to do 7 nights in Maui on the Wailea area (south side). We chose the Grand Wailea, which is between the Four Seasons and the Fairmont.

I agree with what was said above, look at two islands. Our travel agent tried to get us to do two islands in eight nights, but we decided not to. We do plan to take a day trip to Lanai though, so we'll visit another island, just not spend a ton of time there.

There's a ton to do on Maui - drive the road to Hana and check out freshwater lagoons, the black sand beach and the red sand beach. Snorkel trip to Molokini Crater or a day trip to Lanai. Fishing, eating, bumming around the beach, surfing, etc.
 
Whichever island you choose, get this book for the respective island.

hawaii revealed

I went to oahu, maui and kauai last year over 14 days. I spent the most time in kauai and wished I spent more there. On kauai, we rode in a doorless helicopter, ziplined, boogie boarded, snokeled, saw waterfalls and hiked the na pali coast. You can do most of those things on any island.

The guidebooks can fill your days to capacity and then some. Seriously, buy the book(s) and plan your days. I've never done this approach and I've been to europe several times, australia, india and costa rica. The books will tell you so much more than what's apparent on the surface.
 
A second for the "Revealed" books. They are a must.

RE: Kauai, I would recommend staying on the west side on Poipu Beach. That way you see some great sunsets. Princeville is a beautiful resort, but I like sunsets.
smile.gif
 
I've got hotel taken care of for the Ko'olina for 5 days. I guess that means I am locked in on Oahu for that long. I am hearing that doing two more islands in a week or less would be way too much travelling, so what would you guys suggest?

I hear the Road to Hana is awesome, which is on Maui, but I have heard Kauai blows the other islands out of the water.

I am also wanting to do the volcano thing too. Help prioritize for me.
 
sorry to act like the know it all. i just love Hawaii.

go to Kauai. Save Maui and the Big Island for the next 10-12 day trip.
 
Let me ask this stupid question - we are planning on flying into Oahu and that's the main reason for staying at Ko'olina.

Would it make more sense to reject the offer of staying at the Ko'olina and just hopping over to either Maui or Kauai and spending most of our time on those two islands and pretty much blowing off Oahu?
 
it wouldn't NOT make sense. every island is different, it just depends what you want to do: relax on a beach, explore, hike, etc. Oahu does have Banzai Pipeline (something EVERYONE should see before they die), great snorkeling at Hanaumau Bay, Pearl Harbor, Waikiki (great beginner surfing). There are just more people everywhere you go.

Personally, I go to Hawaii to relax, eat great food, play golf, be pampered at a 4-5 star resort. That's just me, I'm high maintenance like that. Big Island, Maui and Kauai are more suited to taht (Lanai moreso, as it's so less populated).

It is a tough choice, I know, but what great choices you have. But flyng from island to island is not a big deal at all. Like flying Southwest Austin to Dallas.
 
You might want to consider staying in Oahu on the end of your trip instead of the beginning. It's busier and more touristy... You might not want that the first few days of a honeymoon... Plus, most of the flights back to the mainland go through HNL and don't leave 'til night. If you check out of a hotel that morning, they will store your luggage and give you a room for an hour or so that afternoon so you can take a shower and change before you head to the plane. If you've stayed on a different island, this isn't an option. We were really glad we planned it this way.

We did 3 islands in 10 days (3 on Maui, 4 on Kauai and 3 on Oahu). It wasn't a honeymoon, but it was just about perfect for us... We were busy the whole time and felt like we really got to see everything we wanted.
 
Wife and I stayed out at Ko'Olina a few years back. You will want to rent a car, as it is 30 minutes from Honolulu and is pretty much out by itself(with the JW Marriott). There is a town about 5 minutes before you get to Ko' Olina with a Safeway if you want to grab some groceries.

Oahu can be as busy or isolated as you want it to be. You can typically find uncrowded beaches in the North Shore, as well as at Kailua. Kailua is great and the drive across the island on Hiway 1 is beautiful.

I concur with the 2 island idea. Wife and I tried 3 on our wedding/honeymoon and we were exhausted by the time we hit Kauai..
 
We went to Kauai only - awesome place. Not only is there a lot to see, you can also spend time together in many romantic locales.

Just an amazing place. You can do the rest of the islands later on.
 
I've been to Big Island four times and still haven't done all the things I want to do. That place is amazing, but my brother says Kailua-Kona is getting a little too commercialized (traffic, etc.). He lives in Hilo.

It doesn't matter where you go in Hawai'i, you'll have a blast... and you'll always want to go back.
 
I got married in Maui last year and loved that place. I was there for a week and could have stayed longer and had plenty of things to do. I agree with the other posters who recommended not doing more thant 2 islands. There is just so much to do. If you are interested in Maui, you may want to consider flying directly to Maui from the mainland. Also, when you have booked your hotel rooms call in advance and ask to speak to a manager. Tell them that this is your honeymoon and you want to ensure that you get a great room. I probably got the best room in our hotel that way.
 
Adding to this can someone recommend a hotel where i canget a villa/bungalow etc and 5 star service. Dont want to spend more than a 1500 a night.

Which Island? Etc.

I'd like the hotel to be quiet and relaxing but within driving distance of fun.
 
5-star bungalows for $1500/night will be challenging.

Big Island-Mauna Lani Bungalows are what you're looking for, but it is 20-30 mins from Kona/fun (the Big Island's version of "fun") and they are around $5k night.. The only real nightlife is in Honolulu. There is some nightlife on Maui, but you won't find much nightlife anywhere in Hawaii other than Honolulu.

Check out Turtle Bay on Oahu. Quiet side of the island and not far from the nightlife in Honolulu.
 
Just curious. Why fly over to Hawaii when there are so many get places to go closesr to HK? Bali, Phuket, Koh Samui, Langkawi, etc..
 
I went to Maui for my honeymoon 2 years ago and stayed at the Sheraton on Kaanapali Beach. It was easily the nicest hotel on that beach, and we probably had the best room in the resort with 2 separate ocean front balconies. On the same beach, there is the Westin, which was almost like a Disneyland with all the little kids, and a Hyatt, which seemed luxurious but had no beach (WTF).

If you are going to Maui, I would recommend the Kaanapali area for younger couples who like hanging out on the beach and enjoy a little night life. If you want a little bit slower pace, or are looking for spas and shopping, then try the Wailea area. Some hotels that come to mind are the Fairmont Kea Lani, the Grand Wailea, and the Four Seasons. You can't go wrong with any of them. Either way, if you are on Maui, you MUST do the road to Hana.

On a side note, I am somewhat hoping to visit Kauai this summer, and am looking for suggestions on where to stay and what to see. Is the Na Pali coast as good as I've heard? Has the tourist boom affected it in any way? What else should I know about Kauai?
 
no tourism boom.
NaPali coast is unbelievable.
Hike or helicopter Waimea Canyon. The Grand Canyon of the Pacific.
Stay on Poipu Beach. Several great hotels. The Link
 
We honeymooned on Maui and Lanai. Lanai is the place we want to go back to. As far as honeymoons go, there's not a better place. One freaking stoplight on the whole island. Beaches to yourself. The two big hotels are both great. Hell, they sell bottles of wine in the gift shop for $15 bucks and cans of beer for $1.50. I can't think of many things I would recommend as highly as Lanai. Check it out.
 
HIHK,
We just got back from the Four Seasons Maui. I believe it is the only 5-Star resort on any of the Hawaiian Islands. Every employee there who had been to the FS on the Big Island said it was better than the one on Maui which blew us away, because FS Maui is fabulous. That is our next stop. If you stay there, post a review.

You can never go wrong with a Four Seasons. There is one on Lanai too.
 
Headed to Maui at the end of May for two weeks.

We are taking my mom and dad for their 50th wedding anniversary.

Cannot agree more with the only two island suggestion. We did Maui, Big Island and Lanai in a ten day span and it was too much packing and repacking. But, it was cool to see the different places.

We also stayed at Manele Bay in Lanai and had a great time. The golf course there and at the Lodge are a must. On the big island we stayed at Mauni Launi and it was very cool with great service.

On Maui, we are going back to the Kaanapali Alii. Great condos with 1,800 square feet of room on the beach.

Aloha!
 
Tailgate,
Mauna Lani is my family's personal favorite. Did you eat at Canoe House? Nap in the hammmocks?
 
ahhhh the hammocks
smile.gif


Seriously, this is one place (Mauna Lani) you do not hear a lot about (ie Four Season) but the staff and accomodations are just as splendid. The location is also outstanding. I need to go back now
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