Hawaii Ohau and ???

We will be going to hawaii for the first time with our 2 kids, 7 and 9 y.o. last week of January/ first of Feb 2008. Being form the east coast, keep in mind we probabaly won%26#39;t be frequent flyers to Hawaii.

Our second week is part business(4/7days), so we are staying in Waikiki and will do the Haunauma bay, Diamond Head, 1 day windsurf (for dad) in Kailua beach and the other usual tourist stuff.

For the first week, however, we are having trouble deciding wether we should just stick to Ohau and stay in an area outside of waikiki/honolulu to explore the more natural side or go to another Island. Basically, we are looking to walk rainforests, waterfalls, safe snorkeling and boogieboard maybe surf, but away from line-ups, traffic jams, crowds of Honolulu...If we can find it all in Ohau, Great! But if you think we would really miss the typical Hawaii everybody dreams of, then please advise.

Thanks

Alouette

PS: Kids are surprisingly good hikers for their age.

Hawaii Ohau and ???

With 2 weeks, you ought to go to at least one other island.

Maybe 8 days on Oahu %26amp; 6 on another island. Normally I would say 7 nights each, but considering you will be limited on Oahu for 4 of the days, I%26#39;d give Oahu one additional day.

Maui is my second favorite, followed by Big Island.

Lots of info including sites with free brochures for all islands:

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g29222-i37-k647862鈥?/a>

Hawaii Ohau and ???

I used to live on Oahu and always found enough there to keep me happy. The other islands are great as well, but if you want to avoid having to travel between islands, I think you can be happy with Oahu.

I%26#39;m delighted to hear that you want to get out of Waikiki and explore the more authentic aspects of Hawaii. Believe it or not, there are great natural spots in Honolulu, just minutes away from Waikiki (Manoa Falls, Lyon Arboretum, Foster Botanical Garden). Those first two are among my favorite spots in Hawaii. Lots and lots of terrific, rainforesty kinds of hikes start in Honolulu. You might enjoy a hiking guide book which can direct you to the trail heads once you get there. I can give you the name of a good one if you need a recommendation.

If you would like to get out of Honolulu, I would recommend heading for Kailua. There are a few smaller hotels on that side, I believe. There is lots of great hiking that starts in Kailua, as well. In addition, Kailua has a very nice beach park. The water and the sand are beautiful. It is not as ';touristy'; as Waikiki, so you will get more of a feel for local culture there. Kailua also has a couple shops which can rent you kayaks, either single or double kayaks (I recommend the double kayaks, of course, since you have kids). A company called Twogood Kayaks will not only rent them to you, but also transport them to the beach and pick them up when you are done. The water is usually quite gentle, so as long as everyone is a swimmer, there should be nothing to fear (the rental shop will also provide you with lifejackets). From Kailua beach, you can actually kayak out to a couple neat, unoccupied islands which are just offshore. Pack food and drinks, because you will want to explore.

As far as snorkeling goes, most people head to Hanauma Bay. Hanauma Bay is a beautiful location and there are lots of fish, but I actually don%26#39;t enjoy the snorkeling there. The water is quite murky. I never did find a snorkeling spot that I truly enjoyed on Oahu, but other folks have mentioned Shark%26#39;s Cove and Ko%26#39;Olina Resort. I%26#39;m sure the water is much clearer there, but I%26#39;m not sure about how many fish there are.

I get the impression that you are open to authentic experiences, and not just the typical tourist type events. If that is the case, I would recommend that you check the newspaper for local events. It seems that every weekend there is some kind of festival or fundraiser or something going on that is fun. What I miss about Honolulu are all the free events that are held for children. They really do provide folks with a lot of fun things to do, so check it out and see what interests you. Don%26#39;t worry about feeling out of place because you aren%26#39;t a local. Most people there are very warm and welcoming.

One thing to scan the newspaper for is any kind of hula event. I%26#39;m not talking about the hula shows that you can pay to see in Waikiki. See if you can find a hula competition going on, or a tribute to a queen or king, or any kind of festival. Real hula is truly from God. It is a beautiful thing. I hope you can find some real hula before you leave the island.

Good luck with your trip!

Got to Maui for your first week. Take advantage of the opportunity to see two islands.

(Your kids will love the whales!)

Yes, that is something I meant to add: humpback whales are in Hawaiian waters from December until April each year, so be on the lookout for them. They can be seen from any of the islands. You don%26#39;t necessarily have to take a whale-watching cruise to see them, but you increase you chances of seeing them if you take a cruise, and you of course get a closer view.

From Oahu, there is a place called Makapuu Point where we used to go to look for marine life. This place is on the eastern end of the island. You do a short ';hike'; (I think all or part of the hike is paved now) to the top of a high cliff where you can look out over the ocean. We used to see turtles and dolphins there. I don%26#39;t think we actually saw any whales there, but we might not have been there at the right time of year. It seems to me that it would be a good place to whale watch if you didn%26#39;t want to do a cruise.

Thank you all for the good insight/tips. Still haven%26#39;t made up our minds though.

As far as Whalewatching, it is always a grand experience, I agree, but we happen to live 4 h away from a great whale watching spot, so we would%26#39;nt necessarily go out of our way to see whales.

Volcanoes and snorkeling are something we cannot do around home, so we are maybe looking towards the big Island. Is 6 days enough to ejoy the Big Island?

Thanks.

I would vote for Big Island for your family. It has so many different micro-climates and winter is the best time to be there, IMO. (Heats up in summer and fall.) Winter limits the possibilities on Kauai and Oahu because their northern areas are often cool, rainy and windy then.

The best lodging on Hawaii is in the NW corner, but there are some good places around Keauhou, too. You%26#39;ll see a moonscape of lava when you land at Kona. There%26#39;s beautiful ranchland above, and plenty of ';typically tropical'; as you get over to the wet side and drive towards Hilo. (Hilo has little appeal for me; see it and keep moving.) If you want to spend time seeing the volcano area, stay a night in the town of Volcano -- nothing terrific but OK lodgings. Be aware that this island is huge -- larger than all the others together.

If you decide on the Big Island, check out Volcanoes Village for lodging. I just started researching for next year%26#39;s trip and it looks like a great place to stay for a few nights while at Volcanoes National Park.

We were on Oahu and Maui this summer with our 19 year old daughter. We actually ended up leaving Maui early and going BACK to Waikiki because there was so much to do on Oahu. Having been to Maui several times in years past with just my husband, (and loving it!) I never thought I%26#39;d see the day when we chose Oahu over Maui, but with kids of any age, there%26#39;s more on Oahu.

We have finally decided on going 6 days to Big Island. Can anyone suggest an itinirary to get the most out of the experience. We%26#39;re thinking 3 days Volcanoes park and 3 days Kona-Koala side. Also, WHich beaches wuold be safe for snorkeling in the winter with the young ones.

Thanks!

I would stay two nights volcano and four kona side.

safe visits for snorkelling. as long as the weather and wind holds, there are quite a few places. In big wind, stay out of the water.

we stayed at outrigger keahou. i really liked this place and think it is not too outdated, but pool needs upgrading or at least upsizing.

there is a great little snorkelling only beach right there, and it has lifeguards on duty.

another place is down near captain cook ( that is up high but the beach down near there) spellings escape me. it is deep , but you dont need to go in very far to see loads of turtles and fish.

I would suggest you take the plunge and do a tour. there is a great one which goes out near captain cook, and has a slide for the kids, jackets for them to wear, and even though you live near a great whal place, the whales that time of year are really close and plentiful. the day we spent by ourselves snorkelling, people actually had whales swimming right by them while snorkelling. I wish i was there.

another place is near the place of refuge, you see the local kids there, although if they are not good swimmers and it has any wind, it might be a little hairy. but try it and go and spend time at the place of refuge the kids will enjoy it.

another place to see, but will end up costing loads is to take a tour up to the top of Mauna Kea for sunset. what an experience. it is freezing though literally and you get to wear sub artic parkas and gloves supplied. then you go down to the visitor centre and look at the stars with a knowledable guide. this is a wonderful experience. you can see all of the northern sky and 80%of the southern, so unique in the world.

I%26#39;m sure you will enjoy Big Island. Unless you are very interested in geology, I wouldn%26#39;t spend more than one night at Volcano. I hope you understand that you will be seeing craters and cindeer cones, not any hot, flowing lava (except in the film at the park center).

Place of Refuge is erie and interesting. You will drive through the macnut farms and coffee plantations to get there.

We%26#39;ve twice stayed at Keauhour Surf and Racquet Club. It%26#39;s convenient to drive to into Kona Town, but you%26#39;re not stuck in that aging hippie place. Not too far from the airport or Place of Refuge.

The best lodgings are in Kohala. We%26#39;ve stayed at the Waikoloa and at Vista Waikoloa. Kids should like to at least see the hotel with its motorized cabin cruisers and monorail, and the dolphin enclosure.

One of my favorite drives is from Waikoloa up around the top of the island and back along the ridge into the town of Waimea, over to the ';wet side'; for a bit, then back down to the Kohala coast. The drive along the wet side to Hilo is tropical and lovely. Hilo itself reminds me of a set for a western movie. Very hot, humid, never-dries-out-can-be-moldy place. Nice home for tropical flowers; not so nice for this mainlander to try to stay in.LOL

Be prepared for some driving to get from place to place. Consider a helicopter tour over the volcano; luau at Kona Village Resort (Kohala); ranch tour Waimea.

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