The hotels charge from $20-$25 a night for parking for your rental

Okay, here's my trip: Aug 28 - Sept 5

Aug 28: Arrive at night = sleep at an inexpensive hotel in Waikiki

Aug 29: Scope around the area, check into the resort, enjoy the beach

Aug 30: Polynesian Cultural Center, which should take up the whole day. $125 Ambassador package with prime rib (I just want decent food that everyone else is getting in the middle of nowhere)

Aug 31: Rent a car, go diving as a beginner, Discover Scuba Diving in Oahu,$ Oahu First Time Diver Specialist, Scuba Dive Hawaii Honolulu this place looks like to have good reviews $115. Btw, is know how to swim mandatory for diving? I
don't know how to swim (fails)

Sept 1: Beach/shopping/relax, fly to Kona in the afternoon, rent a car in Kona (Mustang convertible or Kia Accent? Can I switch in between? Save some $$$)

Sept 2: Drive to Volcano sites, explore beaches or hikes

Sept 3: to be planned (I will have access to a car rental) Suggestions?

Sept 4: Beach/Relax, fly back to Honolulu, sleep

Sept 5: Shopping and more shopping, fly back to Vancouver

Note: Kona parking at my resort is only $10 all day, so that's reasonable. I will be bringing my own GPS.

I am still in the planning process, not into skydiving but will consider parasailing, snorkeling, and other suggestions. Basically nothing too strenuous and looking for some relaxing time.

um yes you have to know how to swim!! beginners panic. which is bad when your UNDER WATER. lol

i know for a fact that prices climb to 30 a night. i was at the hyatt in may and they charge 30 a night for self park of 35 for valet.

and about the contradicting comments in was in context to what the op was asking. he was asking about 2 cultural center packages. one which include the round trip tour by bus. you were refering to doing the two events separately. so i said it contradicted itself because if he went with the bus tour trip to the cultural center he would not be able to go and get other food on that day because he wouldn't have a car.



to the op,

you packed a LOT into your vacation. hawaii's about relaxation and enjoying the beach. just my 2 cents.

Can anyone recommend a good place to stay outside of the Waikiki area?
I'll be renting a car, so distance doesn't matter THAT much.

price range? turtle bay is really nice but pricey

Ya, Roy's uses local ingredients..... I thought I was stepping into a chain store like Earls or something. A very GOOD surprise.

Well the clientele of Eggsnthings is 99% from Japan. And since this place is in all of the Japanese guidebooks -for Japanese people guidebooks are bibles. They must go!

Don't get me wrong, its good, but just not worth the wait when you're on vacation.

Not really Oahu specific...but how far in advance do you normally have to make a reservation for a luau? I'm going to Maui in November, most websites claim the luaus sellout weeks in advance. I was hoping to book when I arrive so I can see what the weather is like first. Any suggestions?

maybe a couple daysm ost places have specific seating and the good ones will get snatched up a few days early but you can usually get seats the day of.

Leaving tomorrow! just used Priceline for a convertible Mustang on the Big Island. :D

Still have to book and haven't decided on the Polynesian Cultural Center package yet... damn it

^How much did you pay for the Mustang if you don't mind me asking? I'm looking at a rental car as well, and it's about $168/week for a compact and $300+/week for a mustang. I looked at a Viper and it was $460/day :lol

$200 for 3 days (Hertz). Plus $11 a day for extra insurance. Including all taxes.
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^Thanks

We have 10 days for our holiday. We're looking for a relaxing trip (I've been working 50-60hrs/week for the last couple months, and I will be working every single day October until the day we leave for our trip). Am I best to spend all 10 days in Maui, or do you think I'll be able to split the trip 5/5 Maui/Oahu without it feeling too rushed? (First day, flight arrives in the evening and last day flight leaves early, so really 8 days 4/4)

Rent the cheapest car at the lowst price. Once you show up at the lot, there's usually a few convertibles available. I've been to Budget and Enterprise, both have offered an upgrade to a covertible Mustang or Jeep for an extra $10/ day.

When we rented from Alamo in Maui, we signed up to their Insiders Club (free) for am extra 10% discount and stacked it with an Entertainment Book discount. They didn't have any economy cars when we got there so we got a mid-size for the same price. Ended up getting a 4cyl Sonata just for the fuel economy. The TPMS light was on when I picked it up so they reset it. It came on again 3 days later but I didn't want to go back and swap cars so I just called them about it and kept it. We got another discount for our trouble upon drop-off and it ended up costing $86 total for 7 days.

I would do a split between Maui and Oahu. I love Maui and had a blast there but I cant see myself finding something to do over 8 or 10 days without getting a little bored. There are a lot more things to do in Oahu and 4 days on each island should be enough. You can do some activities on either island to provide some more flexibility to your schedule (snorkeling for example).

ahhh Hawaii.... I love that place.

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Biggest tip : if you look in flyers that have coupons ( they are all over the streets in bins : you'll know what i mean ), you can get a coupon to be picked up in a limo from your hotel and driven to the airport for $29.99.
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i just came back from my 3rd trip late june and i still love it . Tons of places to go, things to eat and not to mention FREE PINEAPPLE at mcdonalds when you order a meal!!!

on the serious note, you can try all the popular places to go.
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(20 mins from waikiki) hanimuma bay : great place to go. You can rent some gear ( snorkel and swimming fins ) but, it isnt what it used to be, you were able to feed the fishes before. Not as many fishes in the water as you would want to see but its a great place to view some coral reefs
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(1:15 from waikiki) Pearl harbour : don't cut your self out. Probably one of the best things to do while your there. If you like looking at history, definately a must go.

fees :

USS Arizona Memorial, Shuttle Boat and Museum (free)
Bowfin Submarine Park Outdoor Exhibits (free)
USS Bowfin Submarine ($10 admission)
USS Missouri Battleship ($16 admission)
Pacific Aviation Museum ($14 admission)
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Oh and if you love WW2 history, check out Fort De russy Military reservation: it used to be an military fort back in the day and there are tons of historical things to see. Its like they have a time like of what happened to hawaii during the WW2 . Oh and not to mention they have a cobra helicopter on top of the building and a tank or two and a bunker

Admission is by donation and i ended up giving $20 cuz i'm a history fan and things like this tickle my spine and also cuz the old man behind the counter asked me if i was military. :fullofwin:
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FOOD:
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There is this place on the corner of Kuhio ave and Nohonani St, it used to be a jack in the box but its been replaced by an AWSOME RAMEN noodle house. CHEAP, tastey and fast. cheap as in 4.99 for a good meal.
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Makittii Hawaii: A hello kitty all you can eat buffet. They have crab, steak, sushi and chinese. I pretty much tackled the sushi all night haha. Anyways its 14.95 with the coupon from the booklet coupon i mentioned earlier and if you don't bring the coupon, i think it's 20 bucks a person.
Makittii Hawaii - Waikiki - Honolulu, HI
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Fatty's Chinese fast food: over all a decent place. pretty cheap and they cook it old school chinese style ( walk in a bar looking place, sit in stool and order and they cook the food 3 feet away from you )
Fatty's Chinese Fast Food - Waikiki - Honolulu, HI
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but just like JAckel mentioned , you can go to the :

alamoana mall: they have LV & Gucci and all the sha-bang
http://www.travelagentcentral.com/fi...oanacenter.jpg

nternational marketplace : i personally love going there after eating just to burn calories and go for a stroll with the wifey.
http://alohasecrets.com/oa-pt-international-market.jpg


Im pretty sure that Jackel and I have missed other places to go but i'm also sure your gonna have a blast weather you go to these places or not.

This is probably one of the biggest posts iv'e ever made, only because i love the people , love the food and best of all, the weather.

Have a great time!

i posted this in the golf thread but i guess i will post it here, i'm leaving for hawaii tomorrow, and was wondering if anybody has played golf in maui, we are renting clubs there wondering what is a decently priced course and where to rent a decent set of clubs.

Okay guys, got the okay from the boss for holidays! I'm pretty set on doing Oahu/Maui 5 days each. Gonna start looking into hotels and flights. Thanks for all the info!

Flights are booked, now looking at hotels :)

I had read some decent reviews on Makittii but when I went, it was a complete nightmare. It's a great value for the selection you get but the food was lukewarm and most of the food was barely edible. The men's washroom had cockroaches and no running hot water. Maybe the food was on an off day but I just felt dirty eating there. I love dives and hole in the walls but this was not a good experience.

Speaking of hole in the walls, check out Me's Bar-B-Que not too far from Makittii.. Awesome Korean place open from 7am-9pm Mon-Fri. Their breakfast is very popular and the Korean dishes will fill you up with some leftovers.

If you also need a cheap meal or a quick snack, check out Shirokiya at Ala Moana. The entire upstairs floor is FILLED with different Japanese food stands. They have everything you can think of from bento boxes, sushi, takoyaki, desserts, you name it. On the bottom floor, they also sell Japanese snacks and mochi.

Darn, I was actually going to try that place

Currently in Kona surfing RS and the epic supercar impounding thread.

I will have post what I have done in Honolulu and the Big Island when I get back. It's been a lot of fun.

FYI: Food at Roy's was garbage.
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which roy's did you end up at?

Waikiki behind the shopping strip. Their menu sounds very tasty and the presentation is excellent. However, the food is lacking. Vacation is too short, only 3 days left.

p.s. Ripping Big Island roads/highways is amazing. 1000x better than Oregeon coastline. No cops, no cars, endless curvy roads :D
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SHRIMP TRUCKS on the North Shore!... freakin' DELICIOUS!... there are dozen's of posers, you gotta hit up the original, Giovanni's!