Topic Wiki

Please post your questions in the correct thread. This thread, as the title clearly states, is for general Hawaii questions only.

If you have any questions that pertains to a particular island, post it in the appropriate island thread. See below for links to all island threads.

You'd get far better answers there, and chances are that your issue was already discussed at length too.

DansMeals: Hawaii For The Kosher Traveler:
-Part 1: General Info And The Island Of Oahu
-Part 2: The Big Island of Hawaii
-Part 3: Maui
-Part 4: Kauai

Related DD Posts:
-Ultimate Hawaii Mileage Chart and Everything You Need to Know About the Hawaiian Islands (2015)
-Trip Notes: Maui No Ka ‘Oi (2014)
-Trip Notes Kauai: Heaven On Earth (2014)
-The Hawaiian Islands. (2011)
-Traveling To Hawaii…With A 5 Month Old (2011)
-View From The Room (2011)
-Pearl Harbor…70 Years (2011)
-Shaloha! (2011)
-Hawaii Trip Notes: Kauai (2009)
-Hawaii Trip Notes: Oahu (2009)
-Which Miles To Use To Fly To Hawaii?

Related DDF Destination Threads:
-Big Island Of Hawaii Master Thread
-Kauai Master Thread
-Maui Master Thread
-Oahu Master Thread
-Lanai, Molokai, and Niihau, Hawaii Master Thread

Background on Hawaiian Islands
You've probably heard of Honolulu. That's the state capital and is located on island of Oahu, the main island with the largest airport. Honolulu hosts the famous Waikiki Beach and if you look at pictures, it looks like Miami. One long beach with a strip of hotels. Most DDFers say to go to one of the other 3 main islands which are less touristy and the hotels are more spread out. In no particular order, the other islands are Maui, Kauai and Hawaii (yes, that's the name of one of the islands. It's also known as The Big Island - confusing because Big Island sounds like it's the "Main Island", but Oahu is the main island). Direct flights from NYC only go to HNL. You can get direct flights from other cities (LAX, SFO, OAK, SJC, SAN, DEN, DFW, PHX, SEA, ORD as examples) to the other islands. Hawaii is amazing - have fun! The main airport codes are:
Oahu: HNL
Maui: OGG
Kauai: LIH
The Big Island: KOA, ITO (2 airports on 2 different sides of the island)

Interisland flights:
Hawaiian is the main interisland carrier and flies HNL, LIH, OGG, KOA, and ITO. They have countless flights each day and are nearly always on time - often even early. Never book a tight connection hoping that the interisland flight will be delayed.

Go and Island Air fly from HNL. Mokulele flies from HNL and KOA, as well as to Kapalua (JHM), Hana (HNM), Molokai (MKK), Lanai (LNY), and Waimea-Kohala (MUE) on the Big Island. Hawaiian's subsidiary Ohana flies HNL to MKK and LNY.

You can also use 5k AA, 6k UA or 7.5k HA miles each way to fly interisland. You can use 15k DL pesos for a RT interisland. United allows a free stopover on a round-trip, so for instance you can fly HNL-LIH-OGG-HNL for just 12K miles.
HA has several tiers, similar to DL, the lowest tier is the only one that's available using partner miles, but with HA miles you can purchase tickets that are otherwise unavailable for additional miles.

@Yehuda's thoughts on deciding between Kauai and Maui:
Here's a list of the main activities on both islands. Decide what interests you, and then you'll know where to go.

Kauai has what many say to be one of the best hikes in the world - Kalalau Trail. Most people will only do the first part, but it's still very highly regarded. The views atop Waimea Canyon are breathtaking, yet Maui also has breathtaking views at Haleakala. Kauai also has some supposedly awesome off-roading on Miloli'i Ridge Road. Sunset at the 12-mile long Polihale Beach is supposed to be quite the sunset. A helicopter tour of Kauai is generally said to be much better than a heli tour of Maui. If the water is calm, Queen's Bath, which is a natural pool in the ocean you can swim in that's protected from the ocean's force by hardened lava, is SICK, but Maui has the same thing by the Olivine Pools. Kayaking down the Wailua River to "Secret Falls" is supposed to be great as well. Of course, the luxurious, tropical amazingness of the Grand Hyatt Kauai is a huge boost for Kauai, except for its beach, but the great Po'ipu Beach is 5 minutes away.

Maui has the Road to Hana, which is an incredible drive through what feels like a rainforest with tons of opportunities to take small hikes to waterfalls and pools. It's just wow wow wow. Sunrise at the top Haleakala is not to be missed. A boat trip to snorkel by Molokini Crater offers what is supposedly some of the best snorkeling visibility in the world. Warren & Annabelle's Magic Show is supposed to be a great night out. The hotels are also magical, perhaps to a lesser degree than GHK, but the beaches by the main hotels are a big plus over GHK's beach. EDIT: The Grand Wailea in Maui is a gorgeous hotel that rivals the GHK (and its lazy river actually moves as opposed to GHK's ). Add in the fact that its beach (Wailea Beach) is swimmable and doesn't require the albeit short drive to Po'ipu Beach that the GHK does, I'm not sure that the GHK should be a reason enough to tip the scales in favor of Kauai over Maui anymore.

So, pick the types of activities you'd want to do and then you'll have your island. I personally liked Maui better mostly because of the Road to Hana, but to be fair, I did miss out on the Kalalau Trail in Kauai due to weather.
« Last edited by jj1000 on December 25, 2023, 10:30:33 AM »

Author Topic: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?  (Read 485041 times)

Offline westman812

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1040 on: December 05, 2014, 10:12:24 AM »
Not that you're likely to find availability on either >:( >:( >:(...

Having flown both the A330 and 767 on my last trip (both DL, but I beleive that the UA 767 is pretty much identical) I could say that for me personally it would be worth it. The 767 just doesn't compare to the A330 in space, comfort, and privacy.

+1 absolutely worth the stopover for the A330. Even better imho to stop in ATL as opposed to West coast- short flight to ATL and then nice roomy seat all the way to HNL- flight felt short due to the comfort.

Offline PBaruch

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1041 on: December 05, 2014, 10:13:56 AM »
Anyone have idea on how 2 PP can go from NYC - Hawaii (visit 2 islands) + hotel/apt rental leaving on Thurs 1/15 and returning on Sat night 1/24 for $2500-3000?

Go to a DDS and you'll learn how to do far more with far less.
What do you do after your dreams come true?

Offline westman812

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1042 on: December 05, 2014, 10:14:25 AM »
Thank you so much Fishy!  You're super!!!
Would just note, we won't be doing any water sports. So that should loosen the proposed schedule a bit. (BTW, is the beach water pleasantly warm in the winter?)

Do you think I can stick in a day of Kauai? Or Maui?

Another option is to spend shabbos in HNL city then spend the rest up north in Turtle bay. Plenty of awesome activities up there and still get the Hawaiian feel.

Offline nirc

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1043 on: December 05, 2014, 10:40:47 AM »
Go to a DDS and you'll learn how to do far more with far less.

if you're referring to a Dans Deal Seminar, there are 2 issues:
1) i live in chicago, which iirc never had 1 here.
2) i would like to leave in January so no time to start earning points.

Offline Dan

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1044 on: December 05, 2014, 11:13:52 AM »
if you're referring to a Dans Deal Seminar, there are 2 issues:
1) i live in chicago, which iirc never had 1 here.
2) i would like to leave in January so no time to start earning points.
1) Is false.
2) Is debatable.
Save your time, I don't answer PM. Post it in the forum and a dedicated DDF'er will get back to you as soon as possible.

Online Something Fishy

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1045 on: December 05, 2014, 11:24:23 AM »
Get the US card for your wife and yourself and you'll have 100k miles by next week.
Check out my site for epic kosher adventures: Kosher Horizons

Offline Dan

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1046 on: December 05, 2014, 11:24:58 AM »
Get the US card for your wife and yourself and you'll have 100k miles by next week.
Bingo.
Same goes for hotels.
Save your time, I don't answer PM. Post it in the forum and a dedicated DDF'er will get back to you as soon as possible.

Offline mochada

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1047 on: December 05, 2014, 11:58:01 AM »
Ok ok well there were 10 men, but none of them were prepared to lain, so it wasn't so much of a "shul", let's say. :)

When I went to Chabad of Kauai, if there were 8 more men, we would've had a minyan ;)
From my discussions with the Rav, he doesn't have a strong presence yet since he had only moved there permanently a few months back.
A women showed up for "Torah" classes.

Offline nirc

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1048 on: December 05, 2014, 12:08:45 PM »
1) Is false.
2) Is debatable.

i can't believe i missed out on it. when was it? do you have another scheduled?

at this time, i just want to spend cash and not use up points that can be saved for next years trip. can it be done with $3000?

Offline nirc

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1049 on: December 05, 2014, 12:10:06 PM »
Get the US card for your wife and yourself and you'll have 100k miles by next week.

whats the US card?
will these 100k points expire?
is 100k enough for 2RT tickets + hotel?

Online Something Fishy

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1050 on: December 05, 2014, 12:19:49 PM »
whats the US card?

- See DDMS yesterday.

will these 100k points expire?

- 18 months if no activity.

is 100k enough for 2RT tickets

- Plenty, if there's saver availability.

+ hotel?

- Probably not.

See above.
Check out my site for epic kosher adventures: Kosher Horizons

Offline 3yummyboys

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1051 on: December 05, 2014, 12:46:01 PM »
whats the US card?
will these 100k points expire?
is 100k enough for 2RT tickets + hotel?

If you both get Hyatt card you can have 4 free nights for spending $1K each

Offline PBaruch

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1052 on: December 05, 2014, 12:49:27 PM »
The problem with spoonfeeding is that it never ends and this isn't the thread for it.  People need to make an effort on their own as well. 
What do you do after your dreams come true?

Offline 3yummyboys

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1053 on: December 05, 2014, 12:53:38 PM »
If I happen to know something I have no problem sharing it. Although I generally agree that everyone should do their own research and put work into it, I think giving them a push in the right direction is just a nice thing to do. Why not share your knowledge if it doesn't take away from you? Its not always about being too lazy to read, some of this stuff is very confusing!

Offline 3yummyboys

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1054 on: December 05, 2014, 12:55:47 PM »
That being said, I appreciate SFs response to the above question. SFs answer gave basic info pointing him in the right direction, while the guy who asked the questions still needs to do his own research.

Offline mechayamom

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1055 on: December 14, 2014, 03:25:07 AM »
If you could pick any month out of the year, what would be the best weather to go to Hawaii in?

Offline @Yehuda

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1056 on: December 24, 2014, 01:22:12 PM »
I think I like talking about HI every few weeks even if I know it's still so far away...

Got my Psak recently and I'm going to try to avoid being in HI for Shabbos. Therefore 2 Q's:
1) I was told the Safek begins Thursday at Shkia and ends Motzai Shabbos - is that correct?
2) Assuming it is correct, I think the most practical route would be EWR-HNL on a Sunday and then continuing on that afternoon to LIH/OGG (most likely, based on TRs) and then on Thursday, catching the 1/2PM flights LIH/OGG-LAX, spend Shabbos in LA and go home on Sunday. So, is Sunday night + 3 days + Thursday morning enough to say the trip is worth doing? I know it's not ideal for HI, but it's also not terrible...

Offline E-MAN

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1057 on: December 24, 2014, 01:25:56 PM »
I think I like talking about HI every few weeks even if I know it's still so far away...

Got my Psak recently and I'm going to try to avoid being in HI for Shabbos. Therefore 2 Q's:
1) I was told the Safek begins Thursday at Shkia and ends Motzai Shabbos - is that correct?
2) Assuming it is correct, I think the most practical route would be EWR-HNL on a Sunday and then continuing on that afternoon to LIH/OGG (most likely, based on TRs) and then on Thursday, catching the 1/2PM flights LIH/OGG-LAX, spend Shabbos in LA and go home on Sunday. So, is Sunday night + 3 days + Thursday morning enough to say the trip is worth doing? I know it's not ideal for HI, but it's also not terrible...
If you're not going to be there shabbos, what other choice do you have? I think you can do enough in that time to make it worthwhile.

Offline Joe4007

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1058 on: December 24, 2014, 01:56:37 PM »
2) Assuming it is correct, I think the most practical route would be EWR-HNL on a Sunday and then continuing on that afternoon to LIH/OGG (most likely, based on TRs) and then on Thursday, catching the 1/2PM flights LIH/OGG-LAX, spend Shabbos in LA and go home on Sunday. So, is Sunday night + 3 days + Thursday morning enough to say the trip is worth doing? I know it's not ideal for HI, but it's also not terrible...
Exactly what we just did (except that we stayed in CA a little longer). Was awesome!

Offline Ergel

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Re: Hawaii Master Thread: General Questions And Which Island To Visit?
« Reply #1059 on: December 24, 2014, 02:01:09 PM »
I think I like talking about HI every few weeks even if I know it's still so far away...

Got my Psak recently and I'm going to try to avoid being in HI for Shabbos. Therefore 2 Q's:
1) I was told the Safek begins Thursday at Shkia and ends Motzai Shabbos - is that correct?
2) Assuming it is correct, I think the most practical route would be EWR-HNL on a Sunday and then continuing on that afternoon to LIH/OGG (most likely, based on TRs) and then on Thursday, catching the 1/2PM flights LIH/OGG-LAX, spend Shabbos in LA and go home on Sunday. So, is Sunday night + 3 days + Thursday morning enough to say the trip is worth doing? I know it's not ideal for HI, but it's also not terrible...
No option just to keep a 2-day shabbos?
Life isn't about checking the boxes. Nobody cares.