Trip Coach: November 25, 2008

Sheila Beal: Hello Dunellen, NJ–Your question is a very good one and I think you are on the right track in feeling that three islands in 10 days may be a bit much. My advice is to pick two islands to reduce your transit time and get the most out of your vacation. Now the next challenge is picking two out of the three that you've selected. That is a challenge, indeed! You can't go wrong with any of them. If you love hiking, I definitely recommend that you keep Kauai in your plans. I love hiking too, and Kauai is one of my favorites for hiking. Now the tough part is choosing between Oahu and Maui. Again, you can't go wrong. It's really a toss up. Maui is less built up than Oahu, but Oahu has quite a bit of budget friendly things to do. I suggest that you have a look at the island visitor bureaus Web sites and order their free vacation guides and see if that helps you narrow down your selection. Here are links to their sites:

Kauai Visitors Bureau
Oahu Visitors Bureau
Maui Visitors Bureau

Another tool that might help you decide is that Blue Hawaiian Helicopters has a very nice series of virtual helicopter tours online. You'll be able to virtually visit the islands and compare them and see what catches your eye. You can access all their virtual tours from here

I hope this helps. Good luck in choosing your islands. Remember that you can't make a bad choice and chances are you'll fall in love with Hawaii and return to the other islands in the future.

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Burnet, Tex.: My husband and I are planning to visit Hawaii in April 2009 and are looking for an escorted land tour. The only one I have found on line is Perillo Tours. Is there another company there operating land tours?

Sheila Beal: Hi Burnet, Texas - Here are some companys that offer guided tours:

Roberts Hawaii

Polynesian Adventures

Discover Hawaii Tours

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Mount Prospect, Ill.: We are planning a trip to Hawaii next fall. My most difficult decision is what island--the Big Island, or Maui? Also, Resort or smaller hotel/condo development? Thanks

Sheila Beal: Aloha Mount Prospect–I can completely relate to the difficult task of deciding which island to visit. Even as many times as I have been to Hawaii, I still have trouble deciding among all the good choices. You can make a bad decision between Maui and the Big Island. They both have great scenery and activities to offer. Here's what I especially like about both:
Big Island
- The active lava flow is here and if you are lucky enough to see it flowing at night, it is absolutely spectacular. Bear in mind that there are no guarantees that the lava will still be flowing next fall.
- The Big Island has more diversity of terrain and climates.
- You can practically have two different vacations here on the same island. For first time visitors to the Big Island, I recommend at least couple of nights stay in Hilo or Volcano for exploring the lava activity and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Then, I recommend another 4 or more days on the Kohala Coast.

Maui
- The road to Hana is quite possibly the most beautiful drive in the world.
- Catching sunrise from the top of Haleakala (10,000 feet above sea level) is really a memorable experience.

As far as where to stay, I quite like the Waikoloa Beach Resort on the Big Island. The resort has a couple of hotels, several condo communities, golf courses, shops and restaurants all within walking distance. On Maui, the Kaanapali Beach Resort is similar, but with more hotels. If you decide on Kaanapali, I recommend staying towards the central or northern end of the resort where the beach is wider. Kapalua resort area is quite nice on Maui and a bit more quiet. The Ritz-Carlton Kapalua is out of my vacation budget, but I have stayed in the Kapalau condos which are more economical, plus some give you resort benefits including the use of the beautiful Ritz-Carlton Kapalua cascading pool.

I hope these thoughts help in your decision making. You'll enjoy Hawaii no matter which island you choose!

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Chicago, Ill.: I am traveling to Hawaii for the first time in February. During my week-long trip, would you suggest staying and exploring one island or trying to see two or three?

Sheila Beal: Aloha Chicago–I'm sure Hawaii will come as a welcomed warm respite from Chicago's cold weather in February! If you are going for a week, I recommend you just choose one island. There are two main reasons for this advice. First, there is more than enough to see and do on each island to fill a week. (Note: Lanai and Molokai might be slight exceptions to this rule depending on how active you like to be on vacation.) The other reason is that you lose quite a bit of time in packing, checking out of the hotel, flying or taking a ferry to another island, and checking into another hotel, which can quickly eat quite a chunk out of your valuable vacation time.

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Chicago, Ill.: Which island is the least touristy?