Honeymoon for Beginners...Hawaii

Re: Honeymoon for Beginners...Hawaii

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  daria24 member

  

  August 2012

  I went to Kauai, Maui, and the Big Island for my HM. I liked Kauai and The Big Island a LOT more than Maui. Maui, to me, was very fake and touristy, much more expensive than the other islands, the hotel rooms were TINY compared to similar brands on the other islands, etc. 

  
  

  Pros for Kauai: it's small, each to get around, very laid back, less expensive. The Napali coast is gorgeous.

  
  

  Cons for Kauai: Most of the beaches are narrow (like at hide tide, the beach disappears narrow) so if you are looking for those wide sandy beaches, we saw a lot more of those on Maui. But the beaches we went to were all very interesting, lots of different back drops, great snorkeling, etc.

  
  

  Pros for Maui: I think the "sights" in Maui are slightly better than Kauai-we loved the Road to Hana and Haleaka. Kaanapali beach is the sort of wide sandy beach you imagine for Hawaii. 

  
  

  Cons: Maui is a LOT more expensive. It's much larger and takes a lot of driving to get anywhere. I don't think the scenery is as nice as Kauai (we drove through a lot of burnt out mountain areas in Maui).

  
  

  On Maui we stayed at the Westin which is would not recommend-the rooms were TINY. The Sheraton and Hyatt were much nicer when we walked through them. 

  
  

  BTW, ALL beaches in Hawaii are public, you won't find a private beach. Even if the hotel is blocking the beach, there is always a public access point. 

  

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  Magdala9 member

  

  August 2012

  We stayed at the Fairmont Kea Lani on Maui and loved it.  DH purchased a package through his AMEX platinum card that included their fabulous breakfast bunch.  We could have rented snorkel equiptment at the hotel and gone snorkeling at their beach but DH wanted to dive at Molokini.  He dove, I snorkeled.  It was fantastic.

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  jemmini6 member

  

  August 2012

  Congrats on your engagement!  I absolutely love Hawaii, and there's really no 'wrong' way to do it.

  
  

  I;ve been to both Maui and Kauai, and have stayed in both traditional hotels and condos, so hopefully I can be helpful.  For the islands themselves, they are both spectacular.  Unfortunately, we didn't get as much time on Maui as the other islands I've been to, so that's a weak area of advice for me.  I loved what I saw of the island though, it's beautiful, laid back, and there's lots to do.  We stayed in the Lahaina area, which is one of the bigger tourist areas, but it wasn't overwhelming and it was nice to have a lot of options for restaurants & shopping so close.

  
  

  Kauai is gorgeous and very lush, I've never seen so many waterfalls just looking out the car window.  It's very laid back, not very crowded, and definitely beautiful.  However, all those waterfalls and lush landscapes are due to it being the wettest of the Hawaiian islands, so you should be prepared for at least a little rain (not all the time, but probably a short shower at least daily).  It doesn't detract that much though, I absolutely loved sitting on our lanai in the morning drinking coffee listening to the rain (also, being your HM, you have a great 'rainy day activity' to keep occupied :).  There's definitely no shortage of beautiful drives or fun activities on Kauai either.  We had a blast.

  
  

  As for hotels vs condos, that's probably a matter of personal preference.  We stayed at the Royal Lahaina on Maui, which was a traditional hotel.  It was nice enough, just a standard room, but the hotel was in a great location on a great beach.  Since that was a shorter stay, and was a few years ago now, I don't really recal what amenities the hotel offered.  I do remember it being a little more crowded though, as far as seeing people out and about more, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

  
  

  We stayed in a condo/timeshare property on Kauai though and while it wasn't on a beach (many of them are, but ours was on cliffs overlooking Hanalei Bay) and I preferred that accomodation.  We had a kitchen, but we rarely cooked.  It was just nice to be able to keep drinks and snacks in the room, maybe take home leftovers from a nice dinner and eat it for lunch the next day.  Since it was a condo, we had a lot more space too, a full kitchen/dining/living room, two full bathrooms, and one bedroom.  It felt more like 'home' than just coming to a hotel, which I really like.  However, it isn't the resort feel, so that's something to consider.

  
  

  But like I said, Hawaii is an amazing place, so no matter what island you go to, or where you stay, you will have a fantastic time.  Enjoy your HM!

  
  

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  fallbride1109 member

  

  August 2012 edited August 2012

  We chose Maui over Kauai but honestly I don't think you could go wrong with either.  We chose Maui because we thought it had a nice balance of beauty and things to do.  DH was afraid he would get "bored" on Kauai!
  
  We stayed at the Ritz Carlton in Kapalua because it was a more secluded area with it's own beach which was about a 5 minute walk down from the hotel.  I have a review with pics in my bio.  We got a large suite which was really a waste as we weren't in our room that much and didn't use the sitting area or the kitchen at all.  A standard room would be fine for as much as you are in it.

  Planning the Meal
  With All the Trimmings
  

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  kellbell07qt

  

  August 2012

  Hi! After a lot of thought and consideration, my fiance and I also decided on Hawaii--we're actually splitting our 2 weeks across Oahu (fiance wants to see Pearl Harbor, so we're only spending the 1st 2 nights there at the Halekulani), Maui and Kauai. Would it be possible for you to also spread your time across both islands?
  
  When deciding on what islands to see, everyone RAVED about Kauai, so that was a no-brainer. We worked with a travel agent who suggested the Koa Kea resort. Originally, we had considered the St. Regis, but our travel agent warned that the northern end of the island tends to receive more rain and apparently getting to the entrance of the Na Pali coast takes much longer because you have to drive clockwise around the island (rather than the more direct route which would be counterclockwise--apparently the terrain is too rugged to enter there).
  
  As for a second island, we had a hard time deciding between Maui and the Big Island; however, we ultimately decided on Maui given there are far more updated luxurious hotels there (aside from the Four Seasons on the Big Island, which you have to make reservations for nearly a  year in advance as we've been told). Plus, my fiance is a consultant and, while him being on the road so much is rough sometimes, the perk is that he achieved Diamond Status at Hilton hotels, so we'll be staying at the Grand Wailea in Maui with tons of points.

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