I was delighted to answer Budget Travel Magazine readers’ Hawaii travel questions yesterday. There were over 30 great questions that I answered. If you missed the chat, then perhaps you’d be interested in reading the full transcript. Here are a few excerpts from the chat.
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Burlington, N.J.: We are planning on visiting Hawaii in October of 09. What Island/Islands would you recommend visiting? (There will be 4 of us all 63 years old. Probably be our only trip there. Planning on 9 or 10 days.
Sheila Beal: Aloha Burlington, N.J.–First off, you might want to consider a cruise so that you will get to see the highlights of all the islands a week. You could spend the extra two or three days on Oahu where your cruise will most likely start and stop.
If a cruise doesn’t appeal to you, With 9 or 10 days, I’d recommend you select no more than two islands to visit. I know it’s challenging to select the islands, but rest assured, they are all fantastic and have things that make them special and unique. (Though I’ve been to them all several times, I still don’t have a favorite!) To reduce the amount of time you spend traveling from one island to the other, you may want to choose Oahu and an outer island. The reason being is that the Honolulu airport (HNL) is the hub for the vast majority of inter-island travel. To help you narrow down the best island for you, order the free
travel guides from the island visitors bureau and take a virtual helicopter tour on BlueHawaiian.com
Kauai Visitors Bureau
Oahu Visitors Bureau
Maui Visitors Bureau
Hawaii’s Big Island Visitors Bureau
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Haleyville, Ala.: My wife and I want to travel to Maui for a couple of weeks beginning on April 20th, 2009. We would either fly from Huntsville, Ala. or Nashville, Tenn. Right now, flights from these two places are extremely high. Any chance the cost of airfare may come down for our desired time of travel? Thanks for any advice.
Sheila Beal: Hello Haleyville, Alabama–I sure wish I knew the exact answer to your question, but unfortunately, there’s no way to predict that, particularly in our present economy. Here’s a couple of thoughts for you:
– Sign up for custom e-mail alerts from your desired departure cities on Web sites like Kayak.com, Expedia.com, Travelocity.com, Orbitz.com, etc. Airlines also offer offer this type of free alert service.
– Orbitz.com has a guarantee that if you purchase a flight and someone else purchases the exact flights for less, they’ll automatically refund you the difference.
I hope you find a great airfare bargain! __________________________________________________________________________
San Diego, Calif.: We will be visiting Lana’i next February. What should we be sure not to miss? Thanks. Leonard
Sheila Beal: Hello Leonard–Lana’i in February will be excellent for whale watching, so don’t miss that. You can watch from the shoreline or take a whale watching cruise. From the Four Seasons at Manele Bay, you’ll find an excellent vantage point.
Don’t miss the hike to Koloiki Ridge for an excellent view of the gulch and nearby islands.
Don’t miss Hulopoe Beach which is great for sunbathing and if the water is calm enough, snorkeling. If you go there in the morning, there’s a great chance you’ll see dolphins. They love this bay. Many people get to swim with them. You’ll also find Puupehe (Sweetheart Rock) in this area, so do take the short hike out to see it.
Check out my Lanai articles for more ideas.
Sheila Beal
