We Can't Agree

bcbrown63 · June 2012

My fiance and I are having trouble agreeing on a honeymoon spot. HELP!

What I want:

I want to go to Maui and rent a condo for a week, rent a car, and explore the island. I've always wanted to go to Hawaii and there is so much to do! I've found some great rentals on VRBO for amazing prices.

What he wants:

He wants to book an AI somewhere in the Caribbean. He thinks that after the wedding's over, the last thing we'll want to do is worry about going to the grocery car and picking up a rental car.

What we do agree on:

We want to spend time beach, but also want plenty of activities. We went to an AI in Mexico 2 years ago and loved it, but agree that we want to go somewhere other than Mexico this time around. It also needs to be somewhere where we can venture off the resort and feel safe.

My worry about the Caribbean is that for the areas with the best AI options, it's so rainy in June. A friend just got back from Jamaica and she said it rained every day, and weather sites say that for much of the Caribbean, summer is hurricane season.

I did look into Aruba because it's supposed to have mild weather year-round, but I wasn't particularly fond of the reviews or the look of any of the AIs (we must've been spoiled in Mexico).

Any suggestions? I'd really just like someone else's opinion. We plan on being gone for 6 nights in June and our budget is approx. $5,000. Maybe Maui isn't even possible with this budget??

bcbrown63 · June 2012

grocery *store*. OOPS!

Summer2011Bride · June 2012

Well I am biased because we did Hawaii and I absolutely fell in love with it! FWIW, if it comes down to money, Oahu is the cheapest of the islands (where we went), and we still got beautiful beaches, lush greenery, we got to rent a car and explore the island, and they also have vacation rentals. In fact I know someone who stayed in one on the North Shore by Sunset Beach (great beach) and loved it. You can probably do Maui on that budget, but just in case.

I think of Hawaii as a "splurge" or "once in a lifetime" kind of trip, meaning the caribbean is more affordable and more easily accessible (shorter, cheaper flights) than Hawaii. It's a pretty easy anniversary trip or other vacation. But if you have the means to go to Hawaii now, I would jump on it.

BTW, we had a very relaxing time even though it wasn't an AI. Driving around and exploring wasn't stressful at all for us and many days were spent by the pool with a pina colada in hand

[Deleted User] · June 2012

I'd say it would depend on budget especially airfare as I know from our area we are talking about 2k round trip for airfare. That being said we've done 5 trips to the Caribbean in June and this is the first one where we have ever gotten rained out the whole trip. We are currently in key west and although technically not Caribbean it is tropical. Just an FYI, hurricane season Junenov applies to Hawaii too. as for islands safe to go off the resort of the three AI's we've been to,st lucia,Jamacia and Antigua we left the resort on our own in st Lucia and Antigua and it was perfectly safe. We even rented a car in Antigua.Where ever you choose to go just make sure to get cancel for any reason trip insurance.

bcbrown63 · June 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_we-cant-agree?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:11Discussion:0382e869-f3e1-40ce-986a-03ee162c90bdPost:7a8a36eb-5a9c-42b4-9f8d-287ab789b86b">Re: We Can't Agree</a>:
[QUOTE]Well I am biased because we did Hawaii and I absolutely fell in love with it! FWIW, if it comes down to money, Oahu is the cheapest of the islands (where we went), and we still got beautiful beaches, lush greenery, we got to rent a car and explore the island, and they also have vacation rentals. In fact I know someone who stayed in one on the North Shore by Sunset Beach (great beach) and loved it. You can probably do Maui on that budget, but just in case. I think of Hawaii as a "splurge" or "once in a lifetime" kind of trip, meaning the caribbean is more affordable and more easily accessible (shorter, cheaper flights) than Hawaii. It's a pretty easy anniversary trip or other vacation. But if you have the means to go to Hawaii now, I would jump on it. BTW, we had a very relaxing time even though it wasn't an AI. Driving around and exploring wasn't stressful at all for us and many days were spent by the pool with a pina colada in hand :)
Posted by Summer2011Bride[/QUOTE]

I agree with you that we'd still have a relaxing time even if we didn't do an AI. Did you stay right on the beach in Oahu? The rentals I was looking at appear to have a small beach right in front of the rental, but I think we'd either have to walk or drive to find a larger beach. I know Kaanapali has bigger beaches and it's not too far south of where we want to stay.

Summer2011Bride · June 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_we-cant-agree?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:0382e869-f3e1-40ce-986a-03ee162c90bdPost:fc2d4d8b-9d2d-4f54-8f4b-bc8be3abab5b">Re: We Can't Agree</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: We Can't Agree : I agree with you that we'd still have a relaxing time even if we didn't do an AI. Did you stay right on the beach in Oahu? The rentals I was looking at appear to have a small beach right in front of the rental, but I think we'd either have to walk or drive to find a larger beach. I know Kaanapali has bigger beaches and it's not too far south of where we want to stay.
Posted by bcbrown63[/QUOTE]

We stayed right on Waikiki but we stayed at a resort. The friend I mentioned had a vacation rental across the street from a beach, so although she couldn't look out her window and see the beach, they just had to walk across the street to get to it.

I have seen some condos for rent on maui on vrbo.com for about $900/week in the off season (which usually includes summer). So I might check there for Maui and the Kaanapali area.

bcbrown63 · June 2012

Thanks for all of your suggestions! I'm still hoping he'll come around to the HI idea, but if not we may end up putting it off a few months so we can look at an AI elsewhere when it's not rainy season.

fallbride1109 · June 2012

We picked up a rental car in Maui and actually loved using it. The drive is so easy--it's not like driving in rush hour or anything. It's beautiful everywhere you go. We didn't do the grocery store/condo thing but once you get there, you are totally relaxed. I don't see it as a big deal at all.

An AI in the Carribbean would be fun too and is on my bucket list. But I agree with the PP--we used our HM as a trip of a lifetime. We can go to an AI anytime.

jemmini6 · June 2012

I've never done an AI, so I can't attest to it, but I love love LOVE Hawaii. H and I have been every year since we met and have been to almost every major island, we even got engaged in Hawaii. We've stayed in condos on every trip but the first one and lemme tell ya, it's the way to go. I love feeling like we have a 'home', not just a hotel room. We usually only cook one or two nights the time we're there and then have snacks, fresh fruit, and drinks in our room. As for the driving around...that's the best part. Every island is absolutely beautiful and it'd be such a shame to not explore it. It can also be really relaxing too, one of my favorite activites we did was drive around with the windows open and stop at random fruit stands or coffee places (yum...Kona coffee).

As for the energy you'll have after the wedding for doing those things, I really don't think it matters. (And picking up/dropping off a rental car is usually a lot less hassle than getting a cab or waiting for a hotel shuttle.) I mean, obviously you want to plan enough time to relax and have to yourselves (wink wink). H and I did spend a lot of our HM lounging around and doing 'married' things, but you do need a break every once and a while, lol. And Hawaii is suck a beautiful place to explore and very romantic

Obviously, you know where my vote goes here. Plus, the weather isn't as iffy. Stay on the leeward side of the island and you'll probably only get a few short showers. Even then though, our most recent trip to Kauai (during the rainy season...on the windward side) rained for hours almost every day and it was still a blast (ATV-ing after the rain is an awesome way to make the best of muddy grounds). It's hard to have a bad time in Hawaii.

...and now after talking it up, I want to go again....lol.

bcbrown63 · June 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_we-cant-agree?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:0382e869-f3e1-40ce-986a-03ee162c90bdPost:2e3e1d48-9258-4561-aefe-2ab716e5e444">Re: We Can't Agree</a>:
[QUOTE]I've never done an AI, so I can't attest to it, but I love love LOVE Hawaii. H and I have been every year since we met and have been to almost every major island, we even got engaged in Hawaii. We've stayed in condos on every trip but the first one and lemme tell ya, it's the way to go. I love feeling like we have a 'home', not just a hotel room. We usually only cook one or two nights the time we're there and then have snacks, fresh fruit, and drinks in our room. As for the driving around...that's the best part. Every island is absolutely beautiful and it'd be such a shame to not explore it. It can also be really relaxing too, one of my favorite activites we did was drive around with the windows open and stop at random fruit stands or coffee places (yum...Kona coffee). As for the energy you'll have after the wedding for doing those things, I really don't think it matters. (And picking up/dropping off a rental car is usually a lot less hassle than getting a cab or waiting for a hotel shuttle.) I mean, obviously you want to plan enough time to relax and have to yourselves (wink wink). H and I did spend a lot of our HM lounging around and doing 'married' things, but you do need a break every once and a while, lol. And Hawaii is suck a beautiful place to explore and very romantic :) Obviously, you know where my vote goes here. Plus, the weather isn't as iffy. Stay on the leeward side of the island and you'll probably only get a few short showers. Even then though, our most recent trip to Kauai (during the rainy season...on the windward side) rained for hours almost every day and it was still a blast (ATV-ing after the rain is an awesome way to make the best of muddy grounds). It's hard to have a bad time in Hawaii. ...and now after talking it up, I want to go again....lol.
Posted by jemmini6[/QUOTE]

<div>
</div><div>Oh my gosh, after hearing you rave about it I really want to go, too! </div><div>
</div><div>That's a really good point about how it can be more stressful waiting for cabs than getting a rental car. I'll have to bring that up to him. :)</div><div>
</div><div>Have you stayed in Maui? If so, in what area did you stay? I'd be kind of disappointed if we wouldn't be able to make a trip out to Hana, but I'm not sure how far it is from the West side of the island. We wouldn't want to be stuck renting another room. </div><div>
</div><div>Since everyone's saying such great things, I don't know if I'll be able to settle for anything else now!</div>

bcbrown63 · June 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_we-cant-agree?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:0382e869-f3e1-40ce-986a-03ee162c90bdPost:d8ca5f4e-7182-4d41-8ba7-7c6882d5b88b">Re: We Can't Agree</a>:
[QUOTE]Some of the driving in Hawaii is fun and beautiful, but some is awful. There are lots of unpaved roads and one-laners that cut around mountains. We almost got run off a road by a local, which was terrifying because it was cut into the side of cliff. H found a place to stop, which was good, because I sobbed my eyes out for the next hour or so. That being said HI is still awesome, but the driving it not all paved roads and waterfalls.
Posted by Liatris2010[/QUOTE]

<div>This is good information; if we do go we'll need to make sure we figure out our routes ahead of time when we go exploring.</div>

bcbrown63 · June 2012

Another question for those of you who've been to HI, how expensive is the food compared to food here? Both grocery stores and restaurants. I've heard people say that they weren't expecting the food to be so much more than in the continental US, but I'm not sure what "so much more" would be.

daria24 · June 2012

I'm in Maui right now, staying in Kaanapali. Last week we spent a week on Kauai which I enjoyed a lot more. Maui is much more crowded, touristy and higher priced. That being said, I think you can have a very relaxing te here, there are plenty of great beaches in West Maui with very little driving. As for the unpaved/difficult roads, I think this comes down to where you are from. I'm from rural PA and we have A LOT of roads like this, it didn't bother me at all. Feel free to PM me if you want more info about our Maui trip.

xctennis · June 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_we-cant-agree?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:0382e869-f3e1-40ce-986a-03ee162c90bdPost:880ccfc1-2069-4000-9984-2e9037fbaa56">Re: We Can't Agree</a>:
[QUOTE]Another question for those of you who've been to HI, how expensive is the food compared to food here? Both grocery stores and restaurants. I've heard people say that they weren't expecting the food to be so much more than in the continental US, but I'm not sure what "so much more" would be.
Posted by bcbrown63[/QUOTE]

Restaurant food is comparable to the US depending upon where you go, but the local hole in the walls are the best. Fruit at roadside stands and farmers markets is well priced, the grocery store prices are much higher, for some items about double what you'd pay on the mainland. I think you'll be able to stay within your budget with a vrbo (I was just on Oahu and stayed at one on Sunset Beach) - and just because you have a kitchen doesn't mean you have to use it.

bcbrown63 · June 2012

Thanks so much for all of the advice, I'll make sure to remember all of it. Especially so because he agreed to go to HI! I'm sure it was you guys' comments that made his concession easier! Thank you!!

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