Post # 1
Member
4027 posts
Honey bee
hi Bees! I’m in the process of emailing back and forth with our travel agent discussing our honeymoon and what island(s) we want to go to..
We have a 12 hour direct flight planned for the morning after our wedding (I realize this is NOT ideal but since we only have 7 days I would like to get as much time as we can in so this unfortunately is our only opition) so our flight leaves at 8:15 EST and should be landing in Honolulu at 1PM…
Now here’s where we’re stuck…we’re pretty much set on Maui But I thought it might be good to get another island in the itinerary which Oahu would make the most sense since that’s where we have to land anyways. So here is the question, do you spend 2 nights in Oahu and then leave for Maui on the 3rd day of vavation to stay there for 5 nights OR do we JUST go to Maui and stay there 7 nights?
obviously there are positives and drawbacks to both scenarios but to maximize our time and knowing we don’t have a lot of time in general, what are your opinions? Do we just stay in Maui and forego Oahu so that we can REALLY relax or do we try to pack in as much as we can by doing two islands? Most people I ask are trying to convince us to just do Maui but I’m not sure! Please help!
Post # 2
Member
694 posts
Busy bee
Cheekie0077: I think it depends what you want out of your honeymoon! Oahu is great and has a lot of things to do and has more “city” life I would say than Maui so if you wanted to go to comedy shows or more nightclubby type places it may be worth it, but if what you want on your honeymoon is to snorkle and lay on a beach and eat Poke I would say just go straight to Maui! Both islands have great tours and hikes you can take (I would seriously recommend going to the sugar, pineapple, and lavender farms! so cool!) so really unless you want more “nightlife” I would just go to Maui!
Post # 3
Member
2600 posts
Sugar bee
I think that it might be fun to island hop. It’s been a long time since I’ve been to Maui so I can’t really say much about that island, but Honolulu is a regular city. If you stay exclusively in Waikiki, it will feel touristy, but the city as a whole has a lot more going on than just Waikiki, so if you like a little city life when you travel (sightseeing, arts & culture, shopping, etc.) and sort of take in “local culture” then Honolulu might be a good choice. It’s also not a long flight or expensive flight to get from Oahu to any of the outer islands–usually like, 45 minutes or so. To me, it’s kind of like taking a train ride from Florence to Rome or something and not really a big deal in terms of “travel-hassle.”
Definitely, definitely visit Haleakala when you’re on Maui, preferably at sunrise!
Post # 4
Member
4027 posts
Honey bee
bklyn18: BothCoasts: thank you so much for all your comments! Honestly I’m still so torn. Part of me would love to get familiar with the culture, arts, city life and Pearl Harbor which is something we wanted to see but at the same time the prospect of a very long flight the morning after the wedding makes me think that we might just be too exhausted to REALLY enjoy Oahu since we will only be there 2 nights BUT at the same time I don’t want to just do one island and later feel cheated, like we didn’t do enough. So many people are warning us how tired we are going to be the day after the wedding and then a whole day of flying makes me wonder if it’s worth it for only 2 nights….
and thanks for your tip about visiting Haleakala! two of my coworkers raved about how amazing it is! Definitely will be one of our excursions. Any other tips on what we should not miss while in Maui?
Post # 5
Member
431 posts
Helper bee
My bf and I just did Maui for 8 days -our original flight home got cancelled so we got an extra night in paradise. To be honest, I found 7 days days we were actually there was just perfect. It allowed for a mix of activity and just nothing. We did the road to Hana (so beautiful), made a lei at the aquarium, went to Maui Winery (a highlight if you like wine, especially fruit wines), spent a night in Lahaina, snorkel tour to Molikini, lots of beach and snorkel time, we did the pineapple plantation, we to La Perouse Bay (super cool area to see the lava flow), and a few other things here and there. My only regret was not doing a helicopter tour… I think whatever you will choose will be lovely, but the fact you are travelling as far are you are you need to take in to account how tired you will be from the wedding and flights. Then again Oahu has some great sights like Waikiki, Polynesian Cultural Centre, and Pearl Harbour. Just don’t jam pack you plans unless that is your typical MO. Aloha!
Post # 6
Member
47189 posts
Honey Beekeeper
Cheekie0077: It depends on where you are flying from. We have a choice of direct flights to Oahu and Maui from where I live. If you are coming off along flight, you might want to fly direct to Maui, if possible,stay there for the first part of the week, then go to Oahu for your last two days. You could see Pearl harbor, check out the Bishop Museum, then rent a car and drive around the island the next day.
If you only want to lay in the sun on the beach or by the pool, it really doesn’t matter whether you do that on Maui or Oahu.
For more ideas on what to do, there are lots of old threads about honeymooning on Maui, some of them quite recent.
Post # 7
Member
4027 posts
Honey bee
canhorsegal: wow thank u so much for all your suggestions! All of those things sound really awesome! I def want to do the road to Hana and I will take into account all your opinions!
julies1949: I will talk to my travel agent and see! actually if I could get a direct flight from New Jersey to Maui that would be ideal as we could relax more and then go to Oahu… That’s sounds like a good option! Thanks!
Post # 8
Member
521 posts
Busy bee
There’s a ton to do on Oahu (compared to Maui) if you want to visit. But like some other people said, it’s really city-ish compared to the other islands. I personally would stay on Maui and enjoy that or go to the Big Island if you really want to do two islands. Main reason being that traffic here is horrific and it’s uncomfortably crowded. Maui is like Oahu-lite (I recommend the lavender farm!). But the Big Island is great and a little more rural. Hilo is great and Kona side is okay too. You can do a lot on those two islands and get the best value (in my opinion). On the Big Island you could swim with manta rays, go to the black sand beach, go to the green sand beach, go to volcanoes national park… There’s more, of course. Oahu is really only good if you want that stereotypical Hawaii vacation because it’s really geared toward toursits. Both Maui and the Big Island still have tourist areas so you won’t miss out on that. They just aren’t as expansive and crowded like Waikiki is.
If you have any questions, let me know! I was born on the Big Island and raised (mostly) on Oahu…. I’m very familiar with these two islands.
Post # 9
Member
4027 posts
Honey bee
skplue: thank you so much for that wealth of information. It never occurred to me to do the big island, sounds like fun though.. I still haven’t made up my mind of that the best option is… Grr! Part of me just wants to relax in Maui but I just don’t want to regret not seeing another island..
Post # 10
Member
154 posts
Blushing bee
Cheekie0077: You’ve gotten lots of great suggestions–it’s all beautiful and definitely depends what sort of thing you want to do more of and how many times you want to pack up your home base. One other option, which gets you to the main places in a week is the circle hawaii cruise NCL does. It’s a really fun trip and a super relaxing way to get an overview of the state, plus it includes your room, food, on-board entertainment, and transit around (r/t from Honolulu), so I think it can be a really good deal. I don’t think there are any sea days, so you have lots of time to tour and there are a couple of overnight stops to give you more time in port.
That said it only leaves once a week so there would need to be some luck involved re: timing if you already have your flights booked…
I’m not sure if anyone has mentioned this, but you could also think about staying on the north shore (of oahu) and then renting a car to go into honolulu/waikiki a few times. That would give you a more seculded experience but still have access to the bigger city sites.
Have fun!
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