For years, I've been wanting to get away to Hawaii ... any recommendations on when to book travel? Thanks in advance.

P.S. I am not picky about which island to stay on

I have been to Hawaii 4 times 2x in Oahu, 1x in Maui, 1x in Kaui (I have not been to the Big Island yet but planning my 5th trip this May to the Big Island) over the last 7 years. My first 3 visits I went in either late Sept. or Oct. My last trip I went in May 2004. I choose Sept/Oct/Nov/early Dec. or late Spring (late April or May) because its considered the offpeak shoulder time for Hawaii when schools are back in session and there are less families. Not only is it less touristy, I usually found better discounts available on airfares/hotels during these periods. Plus its perfect weather as its considered Hawaii's dry season. Although you will find rain at any point in Hawaii yearound. The temperatures are around mid 70's or low 80 temp range during the Autumn season.

I would avoid going to Hawaii during the major holidays especially Christmas/New Year's time. One of their major peak times. You will pay a lot more for airfares/hotels. As I mentioned earlier, avoid the summers as there are a lot of families with children (not that I have anything against children) are out when schools are out during the summer. I would also avoid traveling from Feb through mid April as this is considered Hawaii's rainy season. I knew some friends that went to Hawaii in early March last year, they got socked with non-stop rain for most of their week's vacation. A Hawaii local told them that the rainy season for Hawaii is from Jan-April.

Hope this helps,

Mahaloo,

JH

you may want to ask this in the hawaii forum.... they'd probably know better for sure.

JH,

Thanks for taking the time to respond. Great info indeed! Have a great one.

I have been to Hawaii 4 times 2x in Oahu, 1x in Maui, 1x in Kaui (I have not been to the Big Island yet but planning my 5th trip this May to the Big Island) over the last 7 years. My first 3 visits I went in either late Sept. or Oct. My last trip I went in May 2004. I choose Sept/Oct/Nov/early Dec. or late Spring (late April or May) because its considered the offpeak shoulder time for Hawaii when schools are back in session and there are less families. Not only is it less touristy, I usually found better discounts available on airfares/hotels during these periods. Plus its perfect weather as its considered Hawaii's dry season. Although you will find rain at any point in Hawaii yearound. The temperatures are around mid 70's or low 80 temp range during the Autumn season.

I would avoid going to Hawaii during the major holidays especially Christmas/New Year's time. One of their major peak times. You will pay a lot more for airfares/hotels. As I mentioned earlier, avoid the summers as there are a lot of families with children (not that I have anything against children) are out when schools are out during the summer. I would also avoid traveling from Feb through mid April as this is considered Hawaii's rainy season. I knew some friends that went to Hawaii in early March last year, they got socked with non-stop rain for most of their week's vacation. A Hawaii local told them that the rainy season for Hawaii is from Jan-April.

Hope this helps,

Mahaloo,

JH

If you aren't taking kids, it is well worth going after school starts in the fall. The prices are lower and the islands will be less crowded.

My only trip to Maui, 7 years ago, was booked for the week after Labor day week; shoulder season. The day after I booked the trip, I realized my kids would be starting school then. It cost another $2,000 (for 6 of us) to move the dates forward 5 days (into the very end of peak season). The day after I did that, they published the school calendar and I realized they would miss the first day. Oh well.

As the Hawaii forum will be a better place to have your questions answered (both the Hawaii forum mods live in Hawaii and they would be very helpful I think when it comes to questions like this), I'm going to move it there.

Thanks!

bhatnasx
Budget Travel Moderator

My favorite time is always in late Sept to mid-October. Mild weather, smaller crowds, and decent airfares and hotel rates.

I see a few years ago in this thread it was mentioned that Aloha had a AAA rate, is that still true?

I'm looking for KOA - HNL on August 13, 2006 in the late afternoon or early evening and then returning to KOA on August 17th as late as possible (flight back to US leaves KOA at 11pm so I dont necessarily want to have to get a car for a few hours to entertain myself while back in KOA.

Island Air doesnt have anything that gets me back to KOA after 2pm.

Any input? I saw that either Aloha or Hawaiian had a promo last year that you could buy one get one free on the first or last flight of the day, would love to see that promo brought back!

I have found that the week AFTER Thanksgiving is the best week in Kauai; I typically fly Saturday after Thanksgiving which is when most people who have gone for T'giving week are flying home. I return sometime late the week after. This was my second time doing it this way - the crowds will have dispersed, prices softened a bit and in general the vibe is good. The one exception to softening prices is the cost of air tickets during this period - in general Nov-Dec is a very busy time in Hawaii so you might have trouble finding a good deal to the islands.

Last time I did this I was flying AA and my upgrades cleared both ways at the 48 hr window!

I see a few years ago in this thread it was mentioned that Aloha had a AAA rate, is that still true?

I'm looking for KOA - HNL on August 13, 2006 in the late afternoon or early evening and then returning to KOA on August 17th as late as possible (flight back to US leaves KOA at 11pm so I dont necessarily want to have to get a car for a few hours to entertain myself while back in KOA.

Island Air doesnt have anything that gets me back to KOA after 2pm.

Any input? I saw that either Aloha or Hawaiian had a promo last year that you could buy one get one free on the first or last flight of the day, would love to see that promo brought back!
Unfortunately, the AAA rate is no longer valid for Aloha. In addition, the cheapest fares currently can be had on Island Air. So you might have to pony up the money or use 10k NW/CO/AA/AS miles for a RT on Hawaiian or 5k UA miles for a trip on Aloha.

Unfortunately, the AAA rate is no longer valid for Aloha. In addition, the cheapest fares currently can be had on Island Air. So you might have to pony up the money or use 10k NW/CO/AA/AS miles for a RT on Hawaiian or 5k UA miles for a trip on Aloha.

i dont have any miles on those carriers but i have a boat load with Delta, can i use my delta miles to redeem on NW or CO?

i dont have any miles on those carriers but i have a boat load with Delta, can i use my delta miles to redeem on NW or CO?
Unfortunately, Delta miles cannot be redeemed on Hawaiian or Aloha Airlines. And, you cannot transfer them to Continental/Northwest without significant devaluation (not worth the transfer). Nor does the two carriers service any routes except HNL-OGG, so I think you unfortunately may be SOL.

Hawaii is like sex...there's good Hawaii and great Hawaii. But there is no bad Hawaii.

Go whenever and where ever you can. It's all good! :cool:

Only suggestion is that you get a guidebook, and talk with people who have been here a lot. Each island, and different areas on each island have very distinct qualities and personalities. Honolulu couldn't be more different than Hanalei, as an example. Your research should yield great rewards.

Have visited in January, April, June, August, Sept, Oct, and Nov over the years... Oct + Nov have always been perfect. Our visit in April was also perfect and the least crowded I have seen.

One person noted the first week of December. This is typically an inexpensive time to travel to Hawaii and the Caribbean.

There is no bad time to go....only more expensive/crowded times. My own research shows this to be Christmas/New Years thru February.

Agree that going when kids are typically in school makes a difference.

I tend to get steered often by FF award availability or sale fare availability into April and May, especially the two weeks either side of May 1. That's probably indicative of lower crowds, which is always a plus (rest assured the place will not seem deserted at any time of year).

A nice bonus is the Brothers Cazimero annual May 1 concert at the Waikiki shell. Traditional Hawaiian music and a real favorite with the locals.