My husband and I are planning a trip to Hawaii in Jan/07 to celebrate our 10th anniversary. From the research I%26#39;ve done already, Kauai seems to have everything we are looking for in a romantic getaway. We are planning to go for two weeks and I thought that we might divide our time between staying on the east and south side of the island and of course visiting the canyon and NaPali coast from there. I am wondering though if we would be missing out on the true ';Hawaii experience'; by not visiting at least one of the other islands while we are there - any thoughts? Is it cheaper to fly to the main island and then get an inter-island flight to Kauai versus flying directly into Lihue? I look forward to hearing any feedback.
Alison King ( Ontario, Canada)
first time in Kauai
I do not believe there are direct flights to Lihue, everything connects in Honolulu, maybe Maui.
You have picked a great island to visit. Kauai is my favorite, along with a lot of other peoples. Since you are staying 2 weeks, I would suggest visiting another island.
first time in Kauai
I don%26#39;t know about Ontario, but you can fly direct SFO-Lihue on United. That%26#39;s what i am doing this summer! For me, 2 weeks on Kauai would be heaven, and I would not need to go anywhere else, but if you get restless without a lot of nightlife, you may want to check out another island too, maybe Maui?
Kauai is a little harder to get to, but well worth the effort. We spent 11 days there and it wasn%26#39;t enough!
United currently flies directly into Lihue, from SFO and LAX. The return connections are brutal, however. The overnight flight into LAX arrives at 04:54, then you are waiting for connections and dead tired. Return into SFO is similar.
The interisland flights can go on sale for as low as $38 and are frequent. It might be easier to fly into Honolulu and make connections. You then have an option to spend a few days on Oahu. There is a lot to do and see there also! While it isn%26#39;t my favourite island (Kauai is), I am glad that I visited.
When I go back to Kauai in 2007, I will fly through Honolulu and spend a few days there again.
Monitor the airfares this year, using the direct and non direct options, to see what works best.
On another note: You will be flying out of TO I presume. Also, take a look at the US border cities for fares (Detroit/Buffalo for you?).
My sister flew out of Burlington,VT -Orlando, instead of Montreal on Jan 4-12 2006 for $183 p/p CA, taxes in! Five people, hotel with breakfast, airfare for %26lt;$1600 CA. I couldn%26#39;t believe it. The hour it took her to drive down was actually less than the time she stood in the Immigration line @ Trudeau Airport last year.
Weird, we got great direct flights from LIH to SFO in May. I think we left around 1:30 PM and got to SFO at night but not too late. Keep checking as it must change as demand changes. I agree I think Kauai is my favorite and by switching you basically lose a day of vacation. 2 locations on that island is a great vacation idea.
Sorry, the airline was United.
While Kauai is absolutely gorgeous, you%26#39;ll be able to see most everything you want in a week. And that would be a relaxing week, too, not one where you%26#39;d be wiped out from doing too much on any given day.
I%26#39;d really recommend seeing a second island, my choice would be Maui. Never been to the Big Island, that might be a possibility, too. A week in Kauai followed by a week in Maui would the trip of a lifetime, IMHO!
2 shorties: I wonder if the overnight UA flights were the only options available to us because of Eastern connections/times?
I booked in Jan for Apr--maybe they were sold out!
I would pay for an overnight in either SFO or LAX to connect the next a.m. and avoid the lag/lack of sleep! Maybe next time, I will try to book separate return segments and see what pops up!
%26gt;%26gt; While Kauai is absolutely gorgeous, you%26#39;ll be able to see most everything you want in a week. And that would be a relaxing week, too, not one where you%26#39;d be wiped out from doing too much on any given day. %26lt;%26lt;
No way, not IMHO. You can certainly do both Maui and Kaua%26#39;i in 2 weeks, but if you want some time to just relax you%26#39;ll only be able to hit some of the highlights. I%26#39;m not sure what you mean by ';true Hawai%26#39;i experience'; because each of the islands has different things to offer. Maui is more developed and crowded than Kaua%26#39;i, but you can get away from both depending on where on the island you go. Kaua%26#39;i is much more laid back. If you want nightlife, it%26#39;s not the place for you.
Both islands have dozens of beautiful beaches, wonderful scenery, all kinds of interesting things to do and see, great people, good restaurants and a variety of types of places to stay. While I love Maui, I%26#39;m pretty much hooked on Kaua%26#39;i.
As far as flights, prices just depend on what the airlines are doing at the time. If you%26#39;ve never been to HI it might be worth flying into HNL and spend a day or so just to see the Arizona Memorial and maybe do the drive around Oahu. It%26#39;s very rural and beautiful once you get away from HNL. If you do that, I%26#39;d suggest doing only one other island.
You might be able to get direct flights to and/or from Lihue and/or Kahului. If you%26#39;re lucky, the new cheap interisland airline will be flying by then. I think I%26#39;d figure out an itinerary and then look at flight options. Interislands are generally pretty easy to get.
Taking red-eye from HNL to SFO or LAX and then the early flight home is a buggah. We often plan on staying over one night near the airport and catching a flight home at a more civilized hour.
Don%26#39;t worry, it%26#39;s Hawai%26#39;i. You%26#39;re going to have a blast no matter where you end up staying.
thanks to everyone who replied to my post - it reaffirmed what I had already thought - Kauai is for sure where we want to spend the majority of our trip.
If you%26#39;re going to go to two islands, go to the other one first. For once you%26#39;re seen Kauai, nothing compares.
