We just totally changed our March travel plan from Oahu/Kauai/Maui to Big Island/Maui. It seems more exciting to us to have more variety in the trip. We%26#39;re going for 13 nights, hopefully March 8 through the 21st. We want to book ASAP. We%26#39;re in our thirties and hope to pay about $7,000 for all lodging and travel, not including food and activities.
I%26#39;m thinking we%26#39;d fly into Kona, stay a few nights in Kona area and a few nights on the other side of the Big Island, and then fly to Maui. Fly home from Maui. We have lots of Maui info but nothing on the Big Island, since we just changed our plan.
--How to break up 7 nights on the BI? I.e. how many in which areas?
--Which area to stay in on the ';wet'; side of the Big Island?
--Any specific hotel recs? We will need most to be mid-range but want to spend a few nights of the trip at more luxurious places if we can.
--Any other tips?
Thank you!
P.S. Forgive me if this is a double post. My first one didn%26#39;t seem to ever show up.
Honeymoon Itinerary HelpI hope you enjoy the Island of Hawaii!! Don%26#39;t be put off by the lava fields you see upon landing at KOA...there are lush green parts of the island, just not there. If you want to see Volcano National Park and the east side, maybe 2 nights over there. People will probably suggest places up in Volcano Village.
On the Kona/Kohala side, the Sheraton is popular and lower-priced but be aware the pools are not heated and there is no ';beach'; where you can enter the water. You%26#39;d have to drive to beaches, but the place is conveneient for snorkel/dive trips from Keauhou.
The Marriott Waikoloa gets dumped on by some (not exactly sure why), but it is on a good beach and very close to others. It is on the Kona/Kohala border, convenient to Shops and restaurants. I was in the public areas a couple of weeks ago and I thought it looked very nice. If you want to spend more, Mauna Lani Bay Hotel is my favorite in the world. See my review.
Honeymoon Itinerary Help$7000 seems a little high to me. If you paid $700 per plane ticket, which is on the high side, that leaves $400 plus per night for a condo. The condo you are staying in on Maui is nice, but not particularly luxurious so I%26#39;m assuming you aren%26#39;t paying that price for your condo there. Are you saving money there to spend on accommodations for the Big Island? If so, I would definitely stay in the Kohola area rather than Kona where the nicer resorts and hotels are. The Orchid is lovely and we%26#39;ve always enjoyed our stays there, but there are several fabulous places in that area to stay. If not, the Sheraton is a more mid range property. There are several condos available as well in the Kona area, but I think you are wanting a resort, right? You could stay 4 nights at one of the very nice resorts then drive over to the other side and stay in a B%26amp;B, visit Volcano National Park, and the other beautiful sites. If you do it this way, you could fly to Maui out of Hilo instead of driving back to Kona to save some drive time, but remember there will most likely be a drop off charge for your rental car if you pick it up at the Kona airport and drop it off in Hilo.
We would love to spend less if we can! Plane tix for us from Wisconsin right now are about $900 pp.
OMG, I didn%26#39;t know you haven%26#39;t got your plane tickets yet. Eeeekkkk...this might get ugly.
With respect to pricing, have you tried a travel agent and asked for a generally more mid-priced deal?
I think your budget is very nice and should allow for comfort. Might I also suggest you check out Mauna Lani Bay Hotel - no I haven%26#39;t stayed there, but it gets great reviews all over the place. Top that off with their reservation/specials page they are offering a 25th anniversary sale - 25% off for this year! It looks positively delicious to us and we are going for our 30th honeymoon.
Conratulations and have fun
Congratulations, and I don%26#39;t know that I%26#39;d spend a few nights on the wet side; they might really be WET. I%26#39;d go for 5 and 2, I think. The Volcano lodging will be less expensive. I%26#39;d do the math and figure out your actual nightly budget for the west side rooms ...
sorry, I have enough trouble sorting my own budget without pricing trips out for others, you will need to pick a number for the Kohala area (Kailua-Kona is not that romantic), and then see what fits.
I think your trip is going to coincide with Spring Break vacations which seem spread out through March these days, which means the family appealing hotels will be full up with kids ... for that reason I%26#39;d probably skip the Marriott, the Hilton, and the Sheraton (which is in Kailua-Kona). If Mauna Lani is too high or the Orchid, I%26#39;d look for a deal at Hapuna Prince.
If you want a condo for 5 days, there are many fine choices, but you are awfully close to the date, you%26#39;d better move fast!
The Marriot gets dumped on because it%26#39;s an entirely mediocre hotel, even for a Marriot, on an island with some really great hotels. It certainly isn%26#39;t the way to start out a honeymoon!
So from what I gather you%26#39;re planning to spend about $5,000 for 13 nights of lodging. You%26#39;re staying in Maui for 6 nights, spending what, about $2000 of that? That leaves you with $3000 for seven nights, or about $350 per night before taxes.
I%26#39;d go with the Mauna Lani. It%26#39;s perfectly located to do day trips to the %26#39;wet side%26#39; (no need to stay over there), has a beautiful little quiet beach on the property, nice swimming, great walks on the ocean and among the fish poinds, and is all around a very nice hotel in the price range.
I would only stay at one property, there%26#39;s no reason to move around if you only are here a week. But you could spend a night or two down in Volcano if you wanted.
PlayaGirl,
First once you are married, are you going to change your screen name?
Second, Book AIR NOW. ASAP, get Farecast and see what it says, but most likely it will only get more expensive. Decide, book and then work on lodging and rental car. Do NOT delay any longer.
Good luck and happy travels!
Thank you! We actually were laughing about the screen name comment. It%26#39;s ';playa,'; meaning ';beach'; in Spanish, not ';playa';, as in ';I%26#39;m such a playa.'; I bet a lot of people think my screen name means I%26#39;m a player/';playa';.
Latest itinerary includes the Mauna Lani...we%26#39;re really excited. HOpe to book tomorrow. Still just deciding if we can save $$ anywhere by cutting any corners (not cutting the Mauna Lani).
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