Hawaii Information

We spent a week on the Big Island pre-kiddos, it was amazing!! I highly recommend Waipio Valley, it is so gorgeous. We bought a travel guide, can't remember which one, maybe Lonely Planet? That was invaluable, particularly for finding restaurants. Remember Costco is the very best place to buy gas, snacks/sodas/food, and definitely souvenirs for friends and coworkers if you do that kind of thing. We rented kayaks and paddled across Kealakekua Bay. About halfway across we were surrounded by spinner dolphins. We just sat quietly and watched them swim. When we got to the opposite side we swam around in the shallow, clear water watching fish. So cool. We just rented the kayaks and headed out on our own, but this bay is a great place for guided kayak/snorkeling tours as well.
Have a great time, I am jealous :)

Hilo and the other side of the island are VERY different. When we took our kids there almost 5 years ago we flew into Hilo and drove to the other side of the island. We saw some interesting sights along the way. You'll find more sun and better beaches on the Kona side. We actually spent two nights at a B&B in the rainforest near the volcanoes. We had a little house/cottage to ourselves. It probably slept 6 and had a little kitchen. Only one bathroom though I think. They have other rooms and cottages too. It wasn't luxurious, but the hosts were very nice and it was a unique experience. It was located right outside the national park containing the volcanoes. Your kids are old enough to enjoy hiking across the hardened lava. There are marked trails. There's a great pancake restaurant in Hilo. It's pretty well known. I can't remember the name of it, but you probably just need to Google "pancakes Hilo" and it will come up. We also stopped in the tsunami museum in Hilo. The kids were a little bored (9 and 12 at the time), but we found it interesting. Have fun!

ETA: Ken's House of Pancakes in Hilo, open 24 hours. Popular, gets busy. Doesn't look like much.

Sorry for the multiple messages, but do you like Thai food? If so, the Thai Thai Restaurant in Volcano Village (very small village) was amazing 4 1/2 years ago. My husband considers himself an expert and he loved it. We got carry-out.

LOVE LOVE LOVE KONA!!!

lol... sorry. When I went with my family (parents/brothers) while I was in college we went to the Big Island. We actually traveled all over the island and stayed a few days in each area. We were there for two weeks. We started and ended in Kona, and it's a wonderful city.

I WOULD say that you have to go out to Volcanoes National Park, but I don't know how mobile your dad is. You could always do a night trip out there, though, and at least watch the live flow from the entrance. Doing a day trip and hiking out to the live flow, though, is likely to be beyond what your dad is capable of. It's not an easy hike, and there aren't exactly any trails.

Check out the lava tubes if you can (hollowed areas that lava once flowed through).

Be advised, a lot of restaurants don't have liquor licenses on the Big Island, so they don't even sell beer or wine.

This place is really neat, and should be easily accessible for everyone, if I remember right. http://www.letsgo-hawaii.com/heiau-hawaiian-temples/

In (or around) Kona, there's a place you HAVE to go (if you have this kind of sense of humor!). http://www.alohahawaiianstore.com/ The website says they're 8 miles south of Kona. :) Donkey Balls are THE BEST!!

There are several different plantations that do tours, I believe, so that could be neat, too.

There is just SO much to do on that island! It's also where most of "Jurassic Park" was filmed!! :)

ETA: They've got tons of different kinds of beaches on the Big Island, as well. I can't speak for the others islands, but I know the Big Island has white, black, green, and your typical "tan" sand beaches. The black and green are the most unique. http://www.gohawaii.com/big-island/regions-neighborhoods/... This looks like a pretty popular/easy access one. The one we went to was WAY off the beaten path and we were the only ones there, but you had to hike across an old lava field, so not something everyone would be up to.

I go with my daughter to Hawaii usually every other year, easy from Los Angeles and we usually use United miles. When we go to the Big Island we usually split our time between Hilo and Kona - to us they are like different islands. Have a great time, we were just there in September.

L.:

I lived in Hawaii. It has been sooo long though, I can't offer you any recommendations.

It rains EVERY DAY - some days for about 5 minutes, sometimes longer.

There is one mom on here who lives in Hawaii NOW and will hopefully see your question and give you some great recommendations.

My best friend went to Maui and stayed a week at the Four Seasons. And took a bike ride up to the volcano. Bus ride up and bike ride down. It takes about 7 hours and they feed you lunch half way down. She said it was a BLAST!!!

Oahu is VERY touristy now. Not like when I was there. Waikiki has changed.
Pearl Harbor is great for the Arizona Memorial.
You can drive across a bridge to Ford Island too...
Diamond Head is a great place to go wandering up and around. I believe there are now helicopter rides around the island.

Black sand beaches are a unique experience....
It WILL be a wonderful trip. Rain or shine!!

Check out www.hawaii.com

Have fun!!!!

Not much Big Island info. Have been to all the others and LOVE Maui. Oh, wish I was there right now. Our kids had the time of there life when we went last years, soooo wonderful. Have fun.

My husband is from Honolulu, HI. I have been to the big island one time but going with his family who have been countless times was pretty amazing.
I would suggest staying in Kailua-Kona area. There is a lot to see on both sides but we did Hilo side with volcanoes national park in 1 day. We made like 8 stops that day to a beautiful waterfall, to see where Kamehameha I was born (beautiful valley), lava flow tube, a couple shopping stops and then went to volcanoes national park at night to see the lava flowing. It was gorgeous. Since they are local and his aunt is a teacher of Hawaiian studies, we also saw 2 heiaus (WOW) and the king's path and the queen's bath (all on Kona side). There is also the city of refuge which was a huge hit with me because of all the sea turtles and another heiau where Captain Cook was killed (amazing snorkeling).
I have been to Oahu 6 times now and have yet to make it to Pearl Harbor. There is a lot of things to do there as well. If you have any questions feel free to PM me and I will answer as best as I can.
Also the jet-lag is excruciating on the way back.

I hope y'all have an amazing time!!!

Our round trip tickets for the two of us in late September for our honeymoon were $1600 total, even in the off-season. I think that's just the way it is. Best to buy early. I would warn you of the jet-lag on the return trip. We made the mistake of flying out of San Antonio and then having to drive back to Dallas; it was like having a normal day, and then driving to San Antonio at 7:00 pm - brutal!

Not sure if you are only looking for info on the places you mentioned, but my family and I went to Maui over the summer, it was fantastic. We stayed at the Ritz Carlton in Kapalua beach- gorgeous. Not busy or crowded at all.

Here's what locals and other more traveled people to us. They said that Oahu is just crowded and like any other city. Maui is less busy, cool with the volcanoes, etc., and lots of other stuff to do. Kuai (sp?) is way more laid back and quiet, not so many people.

Have a great time!!

Hi-
I went to the Big Island in October 2011 and we had a great time. It was 5 adults and 1 kid and so we rented a house with 3 bedrooms and a swimming pool. We had two rental cars. We stayed near Kailua-Kona (but not in). We did do the drive out to Hilo the one day tour the volcano. We found most everything we needed/wanted around Kailua-Kona.

We found the house on VRBO.

Good luck!
L.

when we go to the Big Island, we fly into Kona and stay at waikeloa village. The is a beautiful Hilton resort there as well as a big Sheraton resort. Hilton also has several time share properties (2 or 3 bedroom condos) there that you might be able to rent if they have rooms open during the time of your visit. there is shopping there and several restaurants. We stop at Costco and stock up on food and drink, because food is very expensive there. Then we take a few day trips to different parts of the Island. It is very diverse and there is so much to see. Have a wonderful trip! Aloha!