Is Hawaii Overrated As a Vacation Spot?

Went to Maui all the way from UK for a wedding where my wife was maid of honour. I moaned about travelling all that way but then I loved it. The road to Hana was great, although a car not far ahead of us drove off a cliff. I enjoyed it more than Tenerife or Bali personally.

Its incredibly overrated as a vacation spot. Its fantastic if you are local I'm absolutely sure (except for the cost differential thing) since you are 15 mins away from so many fantastic environments and you have a ton of great daytrips but as a "let me fly somewhere" for a vacation kind of thing, its not even top 10 imo for tropical, beach, rainforest, etc.

Similar to Vegas though depending on what you want it can fulfill a lot of checklists in a short trip so from that perspective it can be hard to beat, especially if your vacation time is limited, its a lot of people, you can't travel that far, want to not travel internationally, etc.

Kauai was beautiful and the food (especially seafood) was some of the best i've had.

Kauai is PHENOMENAL. It's not that expensive either. You can pull a hostel stay for super cheap too.

Been there twice. Will definitely go back.

Oahu was eh.

Maui was paradise.

meow said:

I went to Maui two years ago and it was amazing. Beaches different depending on which side of the island you were on. I went to the black sand beach , saw the rainbow trees (felt like I was in a painting), did the Road to Hana, went to Haleakala for sunset, snorkled, hiked, flew over the lava on the big island and along the sea cliffs. Just amazing.

If there's a comparable cheaper experience, let me know because I'm going there next.

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Check out Bali.

Violence Jack said:

Not for me it wasn't. Tons to do, easy to get around, and not that many people on the island of Kauai. It was paradise.

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+1

From a food perspective Hawaii seems like it'd be beat by a lot other places.

I don't think it's overrated but it is expensive and all the miscellaneous hotel fees are total bullshit.

Went to Oahu wasn't anything special. I had more fun for cheaper somewhere else.

For me the routine got boring fast. Wake up, eat, hiking or some nature museum, go to beach and eat. Life shutdown at 8 PM every night.

I probably could have done more but it wasn't my trip to decide. But I definitely will not be going to Hawaii unless I am in a relationship.

I wanna go...

Hawaii's great, I definitely prefer it to the Caribbean destinations.

But is it worth the distance and the premium? That's really a personal decision.

Went there October of last year. Traveled to Oahu and Maui. Both incredible experiences. Driving around Oahu with the wife and a couple of friends to the North coast was amazing. The food was great if you know where to eat. Maui was so chill. We went to the black and red sand beaches. Softest sand beach was in Oahu. Did a lot of hiking. Saw a triple rainbow at Maui. Hawaii is overrated if you do the touristy shit. Stay away from that. Go explore.

I've been to Cancun and several other islands. Hawaii is still my favorite

I exclusively spend all my vacations on the Hawaiian islands. I never get tired of it. I think I would like to live there but my wife disagrees.
The traffic on Oahu is insane though near Honolulu.

Kauai is where it's at

Sampson said:

I guess if you're afraid of Spanish speakers (EDIT: this is a joke) or you don't want to/can't leave the country for whatever reason, it's good. But otherwise there's many other places in Latin America that offer the same sort of experience.

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Theres plenty of non spanish speaking caribbean islands.

I dunno I spent my honeymoon in Maui and it was wonderful. Would love to go back someday, just a beautiful place.

Not many other places have Mauna Kea and the Keck Observatory. That whole day (and night) was one of the most beautiful in my life.

I lived on Oahu for 2 years, and overall didn't like living there very much. (traffic, cost of living, cost of visiting mainland, unfriendly locals, hot and lack of AC, among other things)

The 'staycations' we did to Kauai and the Big Island were very memorable though. Would recommend those to people visiting. North shore on Oahu also great, especially in the summer when it's safer to swim. Waimea Bay is just amazing in the summer.

I've been to Kona twice for 4-5 days each (Kona Village in 2007, then Four Seasons in 2012, since Kona Village got damaged by a Tsunami; it was a wonderful time. It was however, work-sponsored (they picked the venue, as one of the owners had property nearby where we stayed)

If I had to pay (I'm in NH btw) I would go to FL/Caribbean for a similar experience n shorter commute, but I can see why west-cooooaast would do it. I'd love to go to Maui.

bionic77 said:

Oahu was eh.

Maui was paradise.

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This. Maui was incredible. Oahu was crowded and touristy.

Nah. It's great if you wanna see nature and stuff. I could see people thinking is overrated if they stay in Oahu and do touristy things though.

I loved the hell out of Maui.

i wouldnt mind dying there.

Maui and the Big Island are amazing places. The national parks there are absolute wonders on earth.

The Caribbean is great too. So is Mexico. It's like asking if lobster is overrated because you get jumbo prawns for a couple bucks less. It's a win either way.

my wife is from Oahu and still has family there so we go back once every few years. done the tourist shit to death. what i really look forward to when going back is eating the food. but i think if you want a vacation, try the other islands.

yogurt said:

This. Maui was incredible. Oahu was crowded and touristy.

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The north side of Oahu isn't bad, but overall if you want peace and tranquility Oahu is the worst island for that. Downtown Honolulu feels just like any major city and you can forget you're on an island at times. not ideal.

CrocM said:

The Hawaiian Islands contain all the earth's terrestrial biomes, except for tundra. There's no other place like that.

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This. No other island/tropical vacation spot has such a diverse terrestrial biome. Not Bali. Not Cancun. Not the carribeans. So to say you can have a similar experience elsewhere is bullshit

Yes. I also hate nature vacation spots tho. I don't want none of that shit.

I would side with overrated. I went to Maui with my wife and kids and it was awesome and beautiful and fun but not somewhere I am dying to go back to anytime soon. Although we did have this amazing lobster grilled cheese sandwich thing that was the most amazing thing I have ever eaten in my life. We have joked that if we do go back it would be for that.

I've been tempted to try it but it just feels so far from the east coast, when I could be in Cuba in 3-4 hours.

No, Hawaii is amazing

Then again when I went, we island-hopped on a small sailboat so it was terrifying and unforgettable

Yes. I also hate nature vacation spots tho. I don't want none of that shit.

Depends on what island, and where you stay.

It sounds amazing to me. You just have to 1.) know when to go. 2.) where to go.

Depends on what ur looking for? I love Hawaii so much. It's safe clean and chill. Each island is it's own unique place. I find kauai is my favorite but I always do a day in Waikiki to start and get my eat and drink on lol. Then it's pure vacation mode.

Raguel said:

This. No other island/tropical vacation spot has such a diverse terrestrial biome. Not Bali. Not Cancun. Not the carribeans. So to say you can have a similar experience elsewhere is bullshit

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i mean sure, if what gets you hard in the morning is going out and looking at plants, go for it.

captive said:

i mean sure, if what gets you hard in the morning is going out and looking at plants, go for it.

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You don't know what a biome is, do you?

I prefer Hawaii and will pay the premium because of the overall Asian culture and influence.

Maui was awe inspiring. The snorkling is some of the best in the world, and every bluff looked straight out of a postcard. Plus the whole island is packed dense with activities and hiking opportunities. The Road to Hana alone is more memorable than some of the other vacations I've been on.

DazzlerIE said:

North Shore of Oahu is heaven on earth. Avoid Honolulu and it's possible to visit relatively cheaply

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^This.

CrocM said:

You don't know what a biome is, do you?

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i had to look it up, yes, based on this definition here, don't wake me up early to go with you, if thats you're thing.

a large naturally occurring community of flora and fauna occupying a major habitat, e.g., forest or tundra.

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for me, when i go on a trip i bring my cameras so its birds and landscapes that do it for me.

Beach resorts get boring after a while. Like, after 2 you realize it's all the same shit. You eventually realize you are wasting lots of money on trips that aren't different. Go to the local beer store, buy some vodka, a 24 case, and go drink at a lake or beach. Saved you a week, time off work, and money.

For those saying Hawaii is expensive, where did you stay? That hasn't been our experience, but I'm just curious. We've tending to look for local rentals, avoiding resorts, and book about 6 months in advance during the off season from Sept-Oct and have always found great deals. It's probably also a matter of where you stay. We've only been to Oahu once, but have been to the big island multiple times, and loved Maui and would like to plan a trip back there as well.

Posting from Hawaii on vacation:

Yes

Sounds like you were in Oahu, which yeah it's overrated. Try Maui or Kauai next time and you won't want to leave.

Went to Maui and absolutely loved it. It was a beautiful island, all the people we encountered were extremely nice, the food was amazing though pricey, and the weather was perfect. The road to Hana was a really fun experience, but we kind of messed up and took the rental on roads it wasn't supposed to be on. Try a different island, each of them offer a difference experience and you might like one of the others much more than where you went.

captive said:

i had to look it up, yes, based on this definition here, don't wake me up early to go with you, if thats you're thing.


for me, when i go on a trip i bring my cameras so its birds and landscapes that do it for me.

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Oh then you'll love Hawaii. Most beautiful landscapes I've seen outside of some parts of Utah/Colorado/Arizona.

Ellyshia said:

Posting from Hawaii on vacation:

Yes

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If it's so great, why are you posting here?

Kidding :)

FRANKEINSTEIN said:

I went to Maui a few years ago and loved it. Almost every vacation by the end I'm ready for it to be over. I could have used another week or 2 there.

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Came in to say exactly this. I loved Maui, was there for 10 days and wish i could've stayed 10 more. It is definitely expensive though, especially renting a car.