Trip to Hawaii
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- jnnbugg
soooOOoo im planning a trip to Hawaii with my man! Id love to stay in some sort of bungalow and sweet hotel thats not super touristy. I was wondering if you any of you have suggestions on places to stay or adventures to have there. Not really wanting to stay on the big island..Kauai would be awesome. Thanks.. maka laka loua shakey shakey.. i dunno..
- dropdown0
It's not Hawaii, but a buddy of mine just got back from a 2 week vacation that lasted a month in Nicaragua. Said it was gorgeous and super cheap.
Check out the last island he stayed on.
- jnnbugg0
Wow! That looks amazing. Thank you!
- surface0
you're dead on with kauai. definitely the least bit tourist-influenced, although i haven't been there in the last 3 years. the island is small enough to travel around within a few days.. including some amazing beaches, a multi-colored grand canyon lookalike and just good local-like lifestyles to be around.
- arthur0
I second Kauai. I also really like the north shore of Maui, far from the tourist stuff, near Paia. Mix with locals, take the road to Hana...
- jnnbugg0
Do you have any suggestions on where to stay on those islands that arent too expensive? I dont need a steam room in my bathroom or anything...just a roof over my head :) I did go to Kauai a long time ago, but ya know it was with the fam.
- Pack a tent and your goods and stay at different beaches outside of the tourist areas. Less $tparsons
- lherb0
Haven't been to Kauai, but I stayed in Lahaina on Maui for a week, it's an old whaling village, not as touristy as other areas, not a big resort town. The road to Hana is also a must, but plan to stay over night on the other end, the trip takes longer than you expect and there is some great stuff to see while your there.
- DCDesigns0
Anywhere you can find in or near Hanalei. It's kind of a hippy town with an amazing bay! It's very relaxed there. My wife and I loved it.
- surface0
jnnbugg, give this site a go: http://www.kauaidiscovery.com/
grabbed it off google. it really does look like the photos on the site.
- jnnbugg0
Oh rad, Thank you!
- slinky0
i am heading to hawaii also with my fiancee (wife when we go) on August 30th, and we are trying to think of where to go.
- fooler20
Waimea Plantations, cool cottages with a brew pub on the grounds. Not to touristy like a big resort. Very laid back, not the best beach access but rent a car and drive to one or up the canyon.
- and the drive is not bad at all.. less than 2 hours to get across the whole island if i remember correctly..surface
- Humanhand0
For Kauai: if you want off the beaten path look into the cabins at Kokee. Also there is a bunch on lesser priced places to stay in Poipu. If you want crunchy granola vibe Hanalei is your best bet. While on Kauai, look into the day hike to Hanakapiai. Or a boat ride up the Hanalei river. Utterly amazing in all regards.
For the Big Island: The most affordable areas to stay are Kona or Hilo. Hilo being a bit rustic and historic, Kona being a mini Waikiki. If you want unique and beautiful I would recommed upcountry Waimea. Utterly amazing. To do, I would recommed swimming with manta rays or going on a Kona coffee farm tour. Also the food on the big island is next level.
Hope this helps.
- gabe0
i went with my fiance about 4 months ago. we went for 14 days and it wasn't enough time. spent half the time on the big island and the rest in maui.
we ended up using triple A to get a good price on a package deal, then picked out one or two nicer plays to drop in and stay at along the way that weren't included in the package price.
we figured we weren't going to spend that much time in the room, so why spend an absurd amount of money that could be better spent actually doing things?
we had a rental car the entire time, but while on the big island in particular we rented mopeds, got a big map, then spent a lot of time just cruising around the island. stopped off at lots of private beaches, coves, etc. that you wouldn't know about unless you rode past them. it was great sightseeing on your own, and riding mopeds with your significant other is a blast...
as lherb mentioned, i definitely recommend the road to hana on maui. you definitely should make a 2 day trip out of it. there are a ton of resources that list specific areas to check out, but you definitely don't want to miss the bamboo forest...and within there, there are a series of waterfalls that you can climb to as you progress to the next waterfall (i believe there are 5). some of them require a bit of physical strength, but previous visitors were kind enough to place climbing ropes that will help along the way...
- gabe0
also, we dropped $125 a person to go scuba diving our second day in maui and were a bit let down. i ended up going to a surf shop and bought 2 sets of snorkel gear for $99 each. we went snorkeling along the coast outside of our hotel in Lahaina and saw some of the most amazing sea life ever. green sea turtles, manta rays, etc.
i definitely recommend this over paying for a guided snorkel tour...
- arthur0
I stayed in this little freestanding cottage right on the beach in Paia with my son a couple years back and it was awesome. Kitchen, laundry, on the beach. Minutes from the small town. I can't find it online now, which sucks, but it is the top search result here. Link to more details is broken: http://vacation-rentals.travel.l…
Hana is a great drive. Stop a couple times to hike up to waterfalls and catch some great lava tubes near the town of Hana. Hana itself is very relaxed and has a nice black sand beach.
- Point50
Kauai was nice. Hope you don't live any where with great restaurant/customer service , because the lazy laid back attitude is horrible when it comes to that. If you know you're going to be hungry at 5p, get to the restaurant at 4p... you might get your food around 5p if you're lucky. The hiking up on the northwest end of the island is awesome. Traffic can get hairy in some sections in the mid-afternoon (just one lane each way). Don't stay on the East Side of the island (Kapaa area) like I did, way too touristy, hated that. If you like coffee get some legit kona coffee at a plantation while you're there.