Saturday, March 24, 2012

First Trip to Hawaii - Multiple Island w/ an 18-month-old

Hello - My wife and I are trying to plan a multi-island trip to Hawaii for Aug/Sept this year with an 18-month-old for 12 nights. Neither one of us has been to Hawaii before, so we%26#39;re really not sure where to get started! Can anyone recommend a tour company or travel agent that can provide initial quotes for multi-island vacations? Are some islands known to be much better suited for younger kids? Any other tips for a family just getting started on planning a first trip to Hawaii? Thanks!



First Trip to Hawaii - Multiple Island w/ an 18-month-old


You can easily book everything yourself and chances are you will save money that way. With 12 nights I wouldn%26#39;t do more than 2 islands.





Get a guidebook ';Hawaii for Dummies'; is a good place to start.



First Trip to Hawaii - Multiple Island w/ an 18-month-old


You could see 2 islands - but I highly recommend that you restrict your visit to two islands. Maui and Oahu are great for first-timers. Spend 6 nights on each.





Get a good map and a copy of Hawaii for Dummies or another travel guide that covers all the islands ... and isn%26#39;t just alot of hotel/restaurant list filler pages.





You should try to fly into one island and home from the other to avoid another interisland flight.




First of all, I%26#39;d immediately question why you want to do multiple islands. Interisland flights will cost you a minimum of three, and more likely four to six hours of your vacation time each time you change islands. The flights are short enough that your 18 month old won%26#39;t get a nap in on the flight, but the whole turn-in-car, check-in-bags, security-screening, board-plane, fly, disembark, claim-bags, rent-another-car process is going to make for a very unhappy toddler. Unhappy todder = unhappy parents.





We%26#39;ve travelled three times to Hawaii with our now 2 1/2 year old and had a wonderful time each time for the most part. But the airport experience is not particularly enjoyable, and you%26#39;re better off limiting it as much as possible.





Also, if you are coming from New York, your 18 month old will suffer from jet lag. If normal ';wake up'; time is 7 am, you%26#39;ll be up at 1 am HST that first morning. My daughter adapted at the rate of about 1 hour a day.





With an 18 month old, I%26#39;d think long and hard about limiting yourself to one or maybe two islands. You won%26#39;t be able to spend long days out exploring; naps and snacks and diaper changes/pit stops will slow down your ability to explore.




Get Hawaii for Dummies....each Island totaly different from each other.



Use the left Margin for activites and hotels/condos.



You will want a Condo with such a small child. Sun in Aug will be 3 times stronger then in NY...





Some gereralities........ Aug/Sept will be clear and HOT on all islands...you will need AC.. cheaper places do not or charge $20+ a day for AC.





Maui is the best for families....Big Island way to rugged to children under 6



Each time you change islands it takes 1/2 a day. and costs $50 to $70 pp one way




Dear Mike: Remember, the later in the year you land at da beach the fewer daylight hours you will have.





Yep, just start shopping for 3 seperate items: car, plane, hotel. You%26#39;ll probably get just as good of prices. Alternately some package deals on Expedia, Orbitz, etc. include all 3 but mostly for major resorts. Don%26#39;t forget to have budget in mind before you start shopping.





Yep, what Husker Mike said. If you get the little one all the way from New York w/o a melt down consider yourself lucky plus island hopping would burn up a whole day of beach time :/





Here%26#39;s good general guide to the islands.



www.alternative-hawaii.com/special/bispdx.htm





Start thinking of things you expect out of your trip.



For example if you wanna do mostly beach time that%26#39;s gonna be Waikoloa area on the Big Island. If you are gonna wanna see all the stuff on the Big Island then maybe 5 nights Kona condo, 2 night Volcaon, 5 nights Waikoloa cause loop around island is 220 mile (not including side trips).





Alternately Kauai is small enough to do from one location. Poipu Beach condo over there would be excellent choice and you are more likely to get walk to the beach accomodation and just ';camp out'; in one location and do more relax (non drive) time.





Come back w/ more questions when you decide what island is best.





Aloha, TheodoreJay




The first time we travelled to Hawaii, my ds was 12 months old. He had no jet lag on the way over. Slept right through on the first night. On the way back is worse. It%26#39;s been the same for every trip for all my kids.





Continental has really good deals on flights from Newark to Honolulu right now. I would try to grab seats on one of those if you can.





I would second the recommendation for a condo vs. a hotel room. Some of the hotels have condo accomodation like the Hiltons on Oahu and the Big Island, the Westin on Maui and the Marriotts on Kauai and Oahu. I would start with those as a first-timer.





Don%26#39;t try to do more than 2 islands on a 12 day trip. The recommendations of Poipu on Kauai and Waikoloa on the Big Island are excellent. There are equally child-friendly areas on Maui and Oahu.





Have fun planning.




A trip with an 18 month old child will govern the type of holiday. personally, I would stick to one island..for the sake of the baby and yourselves.. First timers..Maui.. You will have a great time. Condo without a doubt. With the baby it is a no brainer. 12 nights is going to fly by...Flying from the East coast is a long way and the adjustment time is not to be overlooked.




We traveled from Boston to Hawaii when my son was 12 months old, he did not get jet lag westbound, but we all paid when we got home, his body clock to took a few days to reset. He did get up early when we were in Hawaii but that was fine with us. I think the most important suggestion I can make is do a condo. Having snacks, drinks and room for him to move about was key.



Maui was an easy island for us, we rented a beachfront condo in west Maui and kept him lathered in sunscreen, played in the sand and surf in the AM and at sunset, did our sight seeing mid-day so that he could catch some naps.



We did do Big Island that trip as well, which was good, he liked Pu%26#39;uhonau o Honaunau (Place of Refuge National Park). You could also do SeaHorse Farm http://www.seahorse.com We had 7 full nights on each island which made moving once easy.




Amen to the two-island-maximum notes. If you can fly direct into Honolulu from NY (Continental does this, I think), do that -- and make Oahu one of your islands. I would plan to stay outside Honolulu -- east side or north at Turtle Bay; maybe Ko Olina (west).





Maui would be my choice for second island. Get a beachfront condo where you and your toddler can be in and out of the sun, sand, water as needed. Get something nice so that when it%26#39;s naptime or early bedtime for the little one, the adults will be able to relax on a nice lanai and still feel %26#39;on vacation%26#39;.





There is a whole string of beautiful swimming and snorkeling beaches in South Maui -- starting at the Kamaole Beach Parks in South Kihei and running through Wailea and Makena. In West Maui Napili and Kapalua are nice for families; Lahaina/Kaanapali more %26#39;go-go%26#39; active.





If you can give us your budget for lodging we can suggest places you might like.





Booking Hawaii is easy: Plane, car, lodgings.





BTW, the only way I%26#39;d suggest you see more than two islands is if you wanted to take the NCL 7-day cruise around the four major islands -- then stay put on one island for the remainder of your vacation.




Mikesmyth



we went through AAA. We had a intial visit with the agent and she gaves us brochures on island highlights and a travel book. We then went on the various cruise websites to see some of the tours they offer figuring they had a condensed version of some of the entertainment on each island. After narrowing down the islands we asked her to price a cheap, middle of the road and higher price package. She gave us lots of options on where to stay on each island. It may cost more doing this but it was a completely hassle-free vacation. After booking Aloha closed and all our flights had to be changed but the travel agent took car of that.

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