Best Island to Visit in Hawaii

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anonymouschris

Diamond Member
Jan 17, 2001
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for those of you who visit often or live there...as a first time tourist to HI...which island is best to stay at. I am typically not big on the touristy spots, but want to make sure I enjoy what HI has to offer. Thanks.
 
Muse

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
41,080
10,319
136
I lived for 2.5 years on Maui. I'd say either Maui or Kauai for a first visit. Oahu is too populated, too much like "the Mainland." The Big Island ("Hawaii") is another possibility. The other islands are even more off the beaten path, if you really want to emphasize that.
 
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milagro

Golden Member
Jun 19, 2001
1,459
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Originally posted by: Nikamichi
Kailua in Honolulu!
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WTF? that's like saying "Sacramento in San Francisco"

There are lots of attractions on Oahu but unless you stay on the north shore or in a bed/breakfast somwhere, you'll likely be in Waikiki where you can expect touristy. If I had to recommend a neighbor island, first choice would be the Big Island of Hawaii.

Enjoy!
 
dainthomas

dainthomas

Lifer
Dec 7, 2004
14,952
3,941
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Don't listen to these guys. North shore of Oahu rocks. If you wanna sleep or whittle wood the whole time, go to one of the other islands. Big island would be cool to check out Kilauea, though.
 
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bwnv

Senior member
Feb 3, 2004
419
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My vote is Maui. For one thing, if it's raining all you have to do is drive to the other side of the island and have a good chance it's sunny. Also, they have a Gump shrimp place that has pretty good prices (lahaina)
 
Whoozyerdaddy

Whoozyerdaddy

Lifer
Jun 27, 2005
19,216
1
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Been to Maui a dozen or so times (just got back actually ;) ), Hawaii once, Lanai twice and Oahu for a day.

Maui wins by far. This is the place to stay. Nice rooms, cheap (relatively speaking), right on the beach and a five minute walk from the main shopping district on Front Street in Lahaina.

I want to check out Kauai next time though. I would have gone this time but the weather was horrid.
 
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CFster

Golden Member
Oct 16, 1999
1,903
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Honolulu on Oahu was just a pit for me. The whole island actually. Pearl Harbor was interesting, after that I couldn't wait to get off the island.

I enjoyed Maui a lot better. So much so that I got married there. Very laid back atmosphere - lots to see.

That was like 10 years ago. At that point the flights for residents between the islands were like $45. I remember talking to an Avis rental car agent on Maui - she had never been off the island her whole life. It's like 60 miles wide or something. I would go out of my mind.

Just goes to show what it's like at most tourist traps - most of the locals are at the poverty level.



 
Homerboy

Homerboy

Lifer
Mar 1, 2000
30,890
5,001
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Lanai
Hey its where Bill Gates got married and spent his honeymoon...

We spent a week there. Simply amazing.
 
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vegetation

Diamond Member
Feb 21, 2001
4,270
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Maui is good if you like to lounge at luxury resorts and never leave the compound except for visiting typical tourist traps. It is a crowded island as well, since infrastructure cannot support the amount of tourists it receives. You're likely to bump into other tourists far more than residents.

Big Island is fascinating with the Volcanos but the scenery gets a bit dull after a while (lava begins to look all the same). Beaches on BI are not so great due to little erosion taken place -- good beaches requires millions of years to take shape. For this reason I wouldn't plan an entire vacation around it, unless you love rocks.

Kauai is the nicest in my opinion, with its beaches, mountains, canyons, but be aware there are still issues in the northern areas due to recent floods. Otherwise, a good island to stay at.

Oahu has a lot of treasures but something like 90% of tourists never leave waikiki so they just don't know what's out there. Residents hesitate to tell tourists where to go since we want to keep what's left out there to ourselves.
 
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Doggiedog

Lifer
Aug 17, 2000
12,780
5
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Originally posted by: CFster

Just goes to show what it's like at most tourist traps - most of the locals are at the poverty level.
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Seriously. I took one wrong turn somewhere on Maui, went up some weird road and ended up in a shanty town. I felt like I was one of those National Geographic episodes in Africa. Fortunately, the locals were nice and pointed out the right directions for us.
 
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AmigaMan

Diamond Member
Oct 12, 1999
3,644
1
0
My wife and I have been to almost every island (Big Island x2, Maui x2, Kauai, Molokai, and Lanai) and I think we like Maui the best, the Big Island a close second, and the rest in any order. Lanai and Molokai were a bit boring but we were only there for a day trip on each. Kauai is laid back but still has plenty to do. Not very touristy either. The BI is loads of fun if you like driving and doing the adventure thing. We love Kona-town even if it's a bit touristy. Maui has tons of stuff to do and probably the most beautiful out of all of the islands. It has a bit of everything and we never felt bored. Our next trip will probably be back to the Big Island since we haven't been there in a couple years.
 
HamburgerBoy

HamburgerBoy

Lifer
Apr 12, 2004
27,111
318
126
Although Maui is great, Kauai is just awesome.

Originally posted by: dainthomas
If you wanna sleep or whittle wood the whole time, go to one of the other islands.
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Yeah, because we all know that the other islands have no hiking trails or beaches. :confused:
 
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