FS Lanai - Hawaiian vs. private charter offering
Jun 14, 2019, 9:34 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Gold, Marriott LT Platinum
Posts: 2,327
FS Lanai - Hawaiian vs. private charter offering
Dear Flyertalkers and FS experts
I will be staying in the FS Lanai end of September.
I've seen that they offer a kind of private charter flight (for about $500 oneway) but it's also possible to go from Honolulu to Lanai by Haiwaiian as a (separate ticket) connection from our AA flight (incoming from LAX) for $238 return.
My question is: Has anyone done the journey and how? Is there any disadvantage if I simply choose Hawaiian?
I would be tempted to spend the money on food and drinks, but maybe one of you will advise me otherwise.
Many thanks from London
Daniel
I will be staying in the FS Lanai end of September.
I've seen that they offer a kind of private charter flight (for about $500 oneway) but it's also possible to go from Honolulu to Lanai by Haiwaiian as a (separate ticket) connection from our AA flight (incoming from LAX) for $238 return.
My question is: Has anyone done the journey and how? Is there any disadvantage if I simply choose Hawaiian?
I would be tempted to spend the money on food and drinks, but maybe one of you will advise me otherwise.
Many thanks from London
Daniel
Jun 14, 2019, 12:35 pm
#2
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kirkland, WA, USA
Programs: Marriott Gold; LEGO VIP, Amex Platinum, HHonors Gold
Posts: 563
I have done this recently. They implied the charge starts at a per-couple price of $1,000 return, and includes all private transfers, I don't know how much they charge per-person.
The beauty of this transfer is there's almost no waiting. We were picked up at our plane and escorted to baggage claim. They took our bags, walked us to the SUV and drove us to the other side of the airport. We did have to wait in the charter lounge (not the FS Lana'i lounge) for 20 minutes or so, but then we took the plane directly to Lana'i - Bose headphones provided!
We were then taken directly from the tarmac, with our luggage loaded into the back, in another SUV to the hotel. No waiting. Since we weren't in a group of other arrivals, check-in was a breeze.
Reverse that to get back - we drove from the hotel (this time in their Tesla Model X) directly to the plane and off we went.
From my front door in Seattle to standing in our room was exactly 10 hours. And over 7 hours of that was in a 737.
For us, we got a really good price for our long flights, but the add-on cost for the short one was over $700 return for the 2 of us. That made the decision much easier, and was well worth the extra $300 or so
The beauty of this transfer is there's almost no waiting. We were picked up at our plane and escorted to baggage claim. They took our bags, walked us to the SUV and drove us to the other side of the airport. We did have to wait in the charter lounge (not the FS Lana'i lounge) for 20 minutes or so, but then we took the plane directly to Lana'i - Bose headphones provided!
We were then taken directly from the tarmac, with our luggage loaded into the back, in another SUV to the hotel. No waiting. Since we weren't in a group of other arrivals, check-in was a breeze.
Reverse that to get back - we drove from the hotel (this time in their Tesla Model X) directly to the plane and off we went.
From my front door in Seattle to standing in our room was exactly 10 hours. And over 7 hours of that was in a 737.
For us, we got a really good price for our long flights, but the add-on cost for the short one was over $700 return for the 2 of us. That made the decision much easier, and was well worth the extra $300 or so