Not aimed at OP, I also know Hawaii is VERY expensive, so $45 per day just to park a car shouldn't raise eyebrows, but to me that's just nuts. I would probably research areas with easy transit (if possible) to places I want to visit rather than add an extra $300 - $450 to my bill just to park a car.
Given the remoteness of much of what people will want to see, easy transit is likely very difficult to swing unless you're in Waikiki which is not where most people will want to spend more than a day or two.
Post by underwaterrhymes on Apr 27, 2023 17:44:53 GMT -5
Happy Anniversary!
My contribution to this is to please avoid AirBnBs during your visit. They’ve contributed greatly to the housing crisis there and out-priced many native Hawaiians. 💔
Not aimed at OP, I also know Hawaii is VERY expensive, so $45 per day just to park a car shouldn't raise eyebrows, but to me that's just nuts. I would probably research areas with easy transit (if possible) to places I want to visit rather than add an extra $300 - $450 to my bill just to park a car.
Given the remoteness of much of what people will want to see, easy transit is likely very difficult to swing unless you're in Waikiki which is not where most people will want to spend more than a day or two.
That makes sense, and probably explains part of the higher cost for rental cars, even pre-COVID.
DH and I had hoped to celebrate our 10 yr wedding anniversary in HI, but then COVID. I must say planning pre-COVID was a bit overwhelming, maybe even comparable to Disney. Another friend that I used to work with went (again I'm sorry I don't know which islands) last year (22), and the other family who planned their trip didn't research enough. They went in April and stayed on the rainy side, during rainy season. With my luck I'd do the same thing.
We did this last summer and it was amazing. We stayed on the big island the whole time. (It was 1000 times cheaper to rent a car for a month vs. a week or two at different islands) We had a condo in the Kona area and we did stay one night in volcanoes national park. I can go on about it, so feel free to message me if you have any specific questions. We choose the big island bc it has so much to do. I think we had maybe 1 or 2 pool days, but basically we were all over. Black sand beach, green sand beach, rain forest, cattle ranches, it really has it all. We rented a Jeep, which I highly recommend. We will definitely do it again sometime, and I would have no problem going back to the big island. (Edit to say my kids are 6 and 10)
Interesting! I’ve been using dates this summer to get an idea of prices and it only seems about $400 more to do cars on different islands as opposed to a monthly rental on the Big Island, but I’ll investigate more. I know we would save on a rental if we did one for one month, but even on one island, I really like to stay on both sides. Obviously, I’ll have to weigh the cost for the hassle of always driving from one side.
My contribution to this is to please avoid AirBnBs during your visit. They’ve contributed greatly to the housing crisis there and out-priced many native Hawaiians. 💔
This what I always tell people! There’s really a ton of stuff to do on Oahu once you’re away from Waikiki and the ala moana mall. Although my best ever Thai meal was right around the corner from there.
if I had to pick one island to spend two weeks on I’d pick the big island. And I might divide the rest of the time among Kauai, Maui and Oahu, but make sure I found day excursions to places like Molokai, where I don’t think you can overnight anyway 9although I could be wrong about that.)
That’s definitely the case in Waikiki and likely in some $$$ resorts.
Yes my friend said paying for a parking spot at their hotel, which I don't believe was a resort, was more per day than the cost of the rental car per day. She was told (by management of the hotel?) it's to deter car rentals, or maybe driving in general?, but I'm not sure I might have misunderstood that part. I don't know which island(s) they visited, but I think one included the big island.
Either way $45 per day to PARK a car, on top of the current outrageous prices to rent a car, then the very expensive food, and hotel fees upwards of $800 a night could make a two week trip a $10k+ vacation. That doesn't even include airfare. I assume OP is budgeting down to the penny, so knowing these weird ones offs may help even in planning which islands to visit or which hotel or resort to choose. I personally hadn't heard of paying to park on site at a hotel, or separate resort fees until my 30's at places like Vegas (resort fees) or maybe Disney (to park, maybe even resort fees too), I can't remember now as that was almost 10 years ago. We did a lot of AI's or places you weren't charged to leave a vehicle overnight.
Right but there are a lot of places to stay that aren’t at resorts or in cities (parking in Kona proper is likely going to have a cost). There are condo communities, for example, meant for tourists. We even had a garage to use on the big island at one of the houses in a vacation rental community. Since we rarely stay in resorts, we don’t normally pay to park. Since OP mentioned budget, I have to assume that they are looking for rentals, not hotels/resorts.
Post by bugandbibs on Apr 27, 2023 22:51:02 GMT -5
I’ve never had to pay for parking in HI, but some places don’t guarantee a spot so check into it. Personally, I prefer Oahu and Kauai. Oahu will have the best food options including amazing Asian bakeries that don’t cater to tourists. Kauai is more chill and laid back with quiet beaches and good day hikes.
Don’t overthink it. You can make any spot the right vacation for you. There are points of interest for everyone. Start with something you know you want to do and work outward from there.
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I would move to Kauai in a heartbeat, so I’d definitely spend the 2 weeks there. We also spent time in Oahu and staying in the Nkrth Shore was absolutely the way to go- we really disliked Waikiki the two nights we were there (wedding lodging). We stayed at Turtle Bay in the north shore and it was the nicest hotel I’ve ever stayed in.
We did this last summer and it was amazing. We stayed on the big island the whole time. (It was 1000 times cheaper to rent a car for a month vs. a week or two at different islands) We had a condo in the Kona area and we did stay one night in volcanoes national park. I can go on about it, so feel free to message me if you have any specific questions. We choose the big island bc it has so much to do. I think we had maybe 1 or 2 pool days, but basically we were all over. Black sand beach, green sand beach, rain forest, cattle ranches, it really has it all. We rented a Jeep, which I highly recommend. We will definitely do it again sometime, and I would have no problem going back to the big island. (Edit to say my kids are 6 and 10)
Interesting! I’ve been using dates this summer to get an idea of prices and it only seems about $400 more to do cars on different islands as opposed to a monthly rental on the Big Island, but I’ll investigate more. I know we would save on a rental if we did one for one month, but even on one island, I really like to stay on both sides. Obviously, I’ll have to weigh the cost for the hassle of always driving from one side.
Why do you recommend a Jeep? rough roads?
We booked our car (through Costco) really far in advance and got a good rate. 3 weeks was around 3.5k and when we bumped it to a month, it dropped down to 2k. We drove all over the island and and back and forth a few times on saddle road. We didn’t need a jeep for the roads, but it made driving around really fun and totally worth the extra expense. Also, we usually gassed up at Costco as it was cheaper. We thought about taking a hopper flight to another island for a couple of days, but in the end we never did and had plenty to do on the BI. Facebook groups were really helpful in getting recommendations so definitely join some for the islands you are thinking about.
A few random thoughts... For big island I've gotten a rental on Kona and returned in Hilo (or other way, I play around with it) quite a few times. The price difference was negligible. I also always book through Costco and find them to have the best price. Also I've found Hawaii vacations through Costco that were a really great price and including the resort fees and all. Hotels (especially on Oahu and Maui) have resort fees + parking fees which usually average an extra $100/day combined. That being said I would still rent a car. There is so much to see and driving is really the best way. Public transportation takes forever if going from one side of an island to another. There is also hourly car rentals from like hui car share which may work out better? You can't go off roading in any rental cars, so don't get a jeep with plans to go to the top of Mauna Kea or something. Depending on the island roads can be very steep, but are paved.
I’ve never had to pay for parking in HI, but some places don’t guarantee a spot so check into it. Personally, I prefer Oahu and Kauai. Oahu will have the best food options including amazing Asian bakeries that don’t cater to tourists. Kauai is more chill and laid back with quiet beaches and good day hikes.
Don’t overthink it. You can make any spot the right vacation for you. There are points of interest for everyone. Start with something you know you want to do and work outward from there.
I lived there 3.5 years and had to be very cautious about parking. My apt only came with one spot.
I've been to all the islands allowed to non natives. I got married on one and honeymooned on another. Years later lived on a third.
From what you've said I'd probably recommend Kona (bi) or Kailua (Oahu). I love Molokai and Kauai but am not sure they fit if you're not beach all day people. Kona probably first
I feel like if you are spending a month in hawaii you should probably at least spend a long weekend on Oahu to see Pearl Harbor, etc The big island does seem to be the most affordable so in terms of staying a month that would probably be my choice to get a great place with a nice pool.