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Hawaii has been our family's choice for vacations for the past 10 years. We have stayed in all types of places on almost every one of the Hawaiian islands and done many fun activities. Here are some tips we learned along the way to make our vacations more fun.
#1. Respect the
Hawaiian sun. Hawaii is in the tropics and the sun is very intense.
People without sunscreen can get a sunburn in under 20 minutes at midday. Pour
on the sun screen, stay in the shade, wear a hat, and acclimate the first few
days until you get a feel for the impact of the sun to your skin. On every trip
to Hawaii we see lots of people with painful sunburns. A really bad sunburn
can ruin a great vacation. We have had a few ourselves. The one we remember the most
was on a long kayaking and snorkeling trip where we used lots of sunscreen
but after snorkeling forgot to put it back on the top of our feet where the snorkel
fins rubbed. We got a painful sun burn on the part of our feet not covered with sun screen.
Two of our best remedies for a burn are aloe vera (the fresher the better) and tea (we
throw tea bags in a bath - it helps take out the sting).
#2. Plan your budget and research the cost of the activities you would like to do to include
them as part of your overall budget. We usually stay in a cheaper hotel to allow
a budget for lots of activities. Renting snorkel gear can be $10 a day per person, a scuba outing starts at $75 for an hour per person, helicopter rides start at $100 a person . There are so many things to do in Hawaii, that activity costs can add up fast. If we go on trip where we just want to lay around
the pool, we spend more on the hotel and try and travel off season so we can
get a really good deal at a top four star hotel. Most hotels charge a parking fee for your rental car; $10 to $20 a day. If your rental car is sitting in the parking lot while you are relaxing around the pool it may be cheaper to take a taxi when transportation is needed. If we plan to drive to multiple
places, we spend more on a nice car and stay at cheaper places to make up for
the extra cost. While on vacation it is harder to say "no", after
all it's a vacation and arguing over money is the opposite of relaxation and fun.
But coming home after having spent thousands more than expected can create a post-vacation
stress.
#3. Plan for romance
in advance. Line up a baby sitter at the hotel when you arrive or bring
one along with you so you get the time together you deserve. If you are going at high season, set up the babysitter before you arrive so you will be sure to have one. We find Hawaii
incredibly romantic and the things we especially like to do, our kid does not enojoy or
is under age to do. So we make sure to prepare in advance to have time together
and get the romance.
#4. Buy the most
enjoyable flight over you can afford. It is a long way from the mainland to Hawaii and the flight can add to or subtract from the overall experience.
Pick departure and arrival times that best suit your sleeping schedule. Leave
after a great night sleep, arrive while it is still light and easy to get to
your hotel in an unfamiliar and new place. Try and get on the newest planes with the most
leg room. If you can afford it, fly first class or upgrade to first class with
frequent flyer miles or try and get on standby to first class at the airport.
The fun can take longer to get to if you arrive exhasted and all the relaxation
gained from the trip can be lost by taking a red eye flight home to arrive the
morning you are due back at work.
#5. If you're traveling
with kids, plan in advance to make the trip fun for them. When our son was small we let him pick a small toy that could be opened on the flight after take off and brought
activites to keep him occupied during the long flight. We brought
snacks for the plane and snacks for
the hotel that we knew he really liked. We picked hotels
that had kid friendly cable channels and activities. We planned for lots of free time for him to play
in the pool and do nothing. As he got older, we picked activities that he enjoyed like jet skiing and walking in to see lava flows. Here are some suggestions for fun activities with kids in Hawaii. We brought his nintendo game cube in our luggage and later his computer to keep him happily occupied. We found condos to be more comfortable with a teenager than sharing a hotel room. Our vacations are the most fun when everyone has a great time.
#6. Bring a computer to access the internet. We bring a lap top computer to remotely access our email, banks, and play games. Hotels and rental cars often have better deals through the internet then if you come in person or call. We also use the internet to check out local activities and park times and get driving instructions. The internet is a great thing to have access to on the trip.
#7. Buy luggage
that supports your trip. We've tried to go the cheap route with
luggage and have found that they often did not last through one trip to Hawaii.
Dragging luggage with broken wheels and broken zippers through airports is really
a pain. Having handles that don't come up high enough causes back pain. So
we have become believers in investing in luggage that supports our trips. We
like multi-level duffle type suitcases. We put our snorkeling gear and beach
stuff in a compartment separate from our clothes. The more compartments, the easier for us to
keep separate the clean from the dirty or wet clothes while moving from place
to place.
#8. Stay near the
activities that you love. If you want to surf in Waikiki all day stay
near it. If you want to hike in Volcano National park, stay in Volcano town a few days.
Having to drive to your activities every day and dealing with parking and crowds
is less fun than being able to walk directly from your hotel room to your favorite
activity. Our favorite activity is snorkeling, so we stay at hotels where
we can walk to great snorkeling. If we are going to do several activities on
a trip, we change hotels to be near each activity for the time we are doing
it. We have met many families that spend most of their Hawaiian vacation driving
from one activity to another each day.
#9. Stay for as
long as you can. Europeans have told us that you need the first two
weeks of the vacation just to relax enough to have a vacation. We often spend
the first few days in Hawaii just sleeping and relaxing. The more time we can
spend, the more we can enjoy the relaxed pace of Hawaii. Getting a large block
of time is not easy and it is one of the reasons we have spent so many Christmases
in Hawaii because that was often the only way we could get more than five days of vacation
in a single block of time. Later in our career we had more time, so we spent 3-4 weeks in Hawaii each year. We rented condos and got great rates by renting for a month, even if we ended up leaving before the end of the month. We believe longer stays keep us healthier during the rest of the year.
#10. Sketch out your days in advance Whether you want to catch up on sleep, have an adventure, or reconnect with your family, having a plan for your time while in Hawaii will better ensure that you come home with that accomplished. If you want to see an erupting volcano, lose weight, visit a telescope, take romantic walks on Waikiki beach, or any of the huge possibilies a vacation in Hawaii offers you and your family, advanced preparation gives you more assurance of it happening the way you want it.
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