My wife found a great mileage deal with Continental to leave on Thursday and come back on Tuesday. We are going to Maui and Honolulu. This is our first time there; any recommendations on things I have to do?
Check out the North Shore in Oahu. Unbelievable waves and sights. Haven't been to Maui so I'm no help there...
hanauma bay is a nice place in oahu. get there early and have a picnic on the beach. ppl snorkel, but not too much to see except for some fish. go play a round of golf at turtle bay maybe, it's pretty affordable and a nice course.
Uh... Pearl Harbor? Plus, while you are there, there is a WWII submarine museum next door where you can tour a sub. FYI, Pearl Harbor is free (or was when I went) so if you pay, you are just paying for a ride there... If you make it to the Big Island, you have to see Volcanos National Park and snorkel Kealakekua Bay...
Matsumoto's Shaved Ice North Shore - Honolulu. DiamondHead trail if you want to do some hiking (has stairs and a road ) - At the very top there's a pretty good view of Honolulu.
I don't know The Big Island, only Waikiki and around Honolulu from '09 vacation. In Waikiki Beach, you can snorkel on the small reefs they have for water retention. The SwoLy family and I saw some small tropical fish there without having to go to Hanauma Bay (but HB is better, I heard, and you need to go there EARLY to get good spots). Take some goggles or snorkeling equipment. Polynesian Cultural Center - a whole day experience on the windward side but expensive. I wished I could have done Pearl Harbor, USS Missouri, submarine museum, etc. Where are you staying in Honolulu?
I agree, the Road to Hana is greatness but it's a couple hour tour if I remember correctly but you get some wonderful vistas along the way including the aforementioned black sand beaches. Also be sure to go to the top of the Maui volcano Haleakala, it pretty awesome up there, just take a sweater.
Some people recommended things to do and the family and I did some: http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=171474 . Nice! I think this is the one with the submarine dock and station and its own outdoor mall, isn't it? Yeah, also, the beach is beautiful there, they also have pools and a large closed-up pond with seawater. Here's a panoramic view of Waikiki (Honolulu) from the boat that takes you out to the Submarine:
beautiful shot, Swoly! the hike up Diamond Head is a nice trek, but it can be easily traversed by old and young alike... Duke's on Waikiki Beach is a nice tropical restaurant that is great for people watching. The Chart House is good, too. I checked out local bard Red Lion University while I was there to see what the townies were up to. there's a nice open-air shopping mall that is well known in Waikiki, I forget the nake but you can get all your souvenirs covered in one stop if that's your thing... then there's a huge mall inland for your average department store needs... obviously Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona.
If you have a day to spare go to Maui and do the bike ride down the volcano. It is 32 degrees on top and 95 degrees at the bottom. They give you all the gear and clothes you need. The pick you up at 3 am and then drive you up the volcano so you can see the run rise.
While it is a must see it is a complete buz kill, do it first if you want to go but dont' do it last.
