Best Molokai Day Trip from Maui or Oahu
Filed under: 808Talk Answers, Hawaii - general, Maui Activities, Molokai, Oahu Activities
Brian of Alexandria, Virginia asks
What is the best way to visit Molokai Island as a day trip? I will be in Oahu for a week, then touring Maui, Kauai, and the Big Island as part of a cruise. I am especially interested in the history of the island, including its role as the location of the colony for those with Hanson’s disease (leprosy).
Would it be best to do this as a day trip from Maui?
Hi Brian,
It may be best and easiest to schedule your trip as a day trip from Maui, but I am concerned that you will find it hard to coincide your shore leave times from the cruise ship and the tour times so we’ll look into options from Oahu and from Maui.
Pacific Wings and Molokai Air Shuttle (808-567-6847) and Island Air offer flights from Oahu (Honolulu) to Molokai.
Molokai Outdoors looks to be an outfit that will set up all your flights or transportation from Oahu or Maui and get you started on a tour or with a rental - whichever you want.
The so-called ‘leper colony’ is located on the Kalaupapa peninsula and hard to get to, plus you must either take a tour or be invited by a resident - you can’t just wander wround the area. Here are some options:
Molokai Mule Ride
A ride down the mountain on a mule plus tour.
Molokai Ferry offers ferry-car packages, guided day tour excursions, and a hike and tour, all from Maui.
Which Hawaiian Islands are off-limits to Non-Hawaiians?
Filed under: 808Talk Answers, Hawaii - general, Laws-Rules
Cindy from Ontario, Canada asks
I heard someone say before that some of the Hawaiian islands are off limits to non-Hawaiians. Is this true or false? If this is true, can you explain briefly or direct me to information about the island or islands and why it or they are off limits?
Hi Cindy,
There is one island that is mostly off-limits to the general public but still populated. That island is Niihau, a small island just North of Kauai. Basically, it was bought in 1864 by a private landowner from the then Kingdom of Hawaii, and her family still owns it. There are about 160 people living on the island and most are Hawaiian. They intentionally maintain their isolation and perpetuate Hawaiian culture and traditions. More detailed information anout the history and people of Niihau is available at JaneResture.com and at Wikipedia.
There are companies who have rights to do some minor tours on and around the island of Niihau. Here’s a good listing of them at Hawaii Travel Newsletter.
There is another island that is visitor-restricted but no one lives there. It is called Kahoolawe and is located just off the South shore of Maui. Maybe someday we’ll be able to visit it, but for now it is off-limits to just about everyone. It was used by the military for training and target practice for decades, but now it is being cleaned up. Extensive information is available at Wikipedia.
Maui and the Big Island Day Tours from Oahu
Filed under: 808Talk Answers, Big Island, Big Island Activities, Hawaii - general, Maui, Maui Activities, Oahu Activities
I have seen that I can get cheap inter-island flights via “I flygo Airlines”. I will be staying in Oahu and want to visit a few islands for a day each.
I want to know if I visit Maui, or another island, how easy is it to get from the airport to a day tour. Is there somewhere that I can book a day tour that will pick us up from Maui airport and take us on the island ‘tour’.
I am mainly interested in Maui and the best island to see volcanos (which island would that be?)
Thanks, Vicki (Australia)
Hi Vicki,
The active volcano is on the Big Island, so it appears you would most like to visit Maui and the Big Island and you would like to use Go! airlines to defray some of the cost of this.
Several companies offer big and small bus and shuttle tours on these islands. If you are going to see a specific attraction, such as Kilauea Volcano, you will probably be able to find a company that will also shuttle you to and from the airport or just pick you up there if you book your own flight. If, however, you are going to do a “circle island tour” or just a general sightseeing tour, you may find it easiest to book your airfare through the tour company, and they may or may not (most likely not) use Go! airlines. I, by the way, have flown on all three inter-island carriers and Go! is my definite favorite at this time for the great prices and the short lines.
So, here’s some places to look for tour booking for island and volcano tours on Maui and the Big Island:
- Hawaii Active - general booking of several tours
- Paradise Excursions a 5 hour tour that does the up-mountain volcano stuff (no lava flow walk)
- Viator booking of a tour This appears to also be through Paradise excursions, but I can’t find it on their site, and it includes a trip down to the lava flow area
- Lava Tours - pretty complete volcano tour.
- Guides of Maui Land Tours
- Roberts of Hawaii Magnificent Maui Tour
- Roberts of Hawaii Maui Tour from Oahu
I hope you find one or two that you like Vicki! Have a great time! Come back and tell us how it went - I’d love to hear which ones you did and how you liked them. Aloha, Lisa
See also: Hawaii Island Hopping
Should I Rent a Surfboard in Hawaii or Bring my Own?
Filed under: 808Talk Answers, Big Island Activities, Kauai Activities, Maui Activities, Oahu Activities, Prices
Vicki from Australia asks
My friend is visiting Oahu in March. Would it be cheap enough for him to hire surfboards there or would it be better to bring his own?
Hi Vicky,
Well, before we explore prices and availability of surfboard rentals in Hawaii, let’s talk about whether it’s even a good idea to bring your own surfboard to Hawaii for use on your vacation. The How to Pack Your Shortboard for an Airplane Trip article at eHow.com reveals that surfboard noses are commonly broken in baggage holds and that airlines can charge big bucks for handling surfboards - so that’s a pretty big strike against bringing your own surfboard.
At Hawaii Surf Board Rentals.com on Oahu they state they offer free, island-wide delivery and pickup of quality surfboards for between $50 and $90 for the first two days and $10 each additional day. (Prices may change, check the website).
Also, anyone who wants to just try surfing in the Waikiki area can walk onto Waikiki Beach and rent a surfboard for about $20 for an hour or two. Just look for the rental booths and the racks and racks of surfboards. There are several spots along the beach.
So, Vicky, it appears to me that renting a surfboard once he gets here is your friend’s best option. I hope he has fun!
More rental websites:
… Neal wrote and suggested this - thanks Neal!
I would like to make a suggestion to let visitors know that they can also buy a surfboard when visiting Oahu. While many may prefer to rent, there are other surfers who can buy a cheap used surfboard here and then take it home as surfboards back home cost way more than they do here. Hawaii, being the home of surfing also boasts a wide array surfboard shapes and types and lower end prices. Aloha, Neal
When is the Best time to Vacation on the Big Island of Hawaii?
Shannon from Nebraska asks:
One question, when would be the best time to visit the Big Island? My parents and I were originally going to plan on coming in October (2007), but I’m thinking June would be better; it looks like it rains a lot in the fall months.
Hi Shannon - The Big Island is like all the Hawaiian Islands, in that it has a dry side and a rainy side and also that some times of the year and even some times of the day are rainier than others.
If you are planning on visiting the dry side of the island, which would be most anywhere on the West side, also referred to as the Kona side or the Leeward side, then rain really isn’t an issue. I like to refer to WorldClimate.com when talking about rainfall in Hawaii because it is just so easy and accurate to compare and research using it.
If we look at the rainfall stats for the area of Puako, which is a very dry area on the Big Island on the Kohala Coast, we see that for the last 32 years Puako has averaged less than 10 inches of rain a year, less than an inch of that in October.
Hilo is one of the rainiest areas on the Big Island, and is on the exact opposite side of the island from Puako. Hilo rainfall stats for the last 42 years show almost 136 inches of rain a year, with March being the rainiest month at 15 inches of rain and June having the least rain with almost 7 inches of rain. October falls somewhere in the middle with 11 inches of rain average.
My own experience of living near Hilo on the Big Island for over a decade is that March and April are the absolute rainiest times but many winter and spring days are overcast and it rains almost every night. June is the driest month but most of summer is consistently pretty and hot. If we absolutely have to have sunshine we go to the Kona side for the day.
I hope this helps you with your decision. Have a wonderful vacation.
Aloha, Lisa
Ok, we have planned a trip in November and will be doing some island hopping Should we buy our inter-island tickets now or wait till we get there?
A year ago I would have just told you to buy the tickets whenever was convenient for you, but earlier is better for being assured of the cheapest prices. These days, the answer is a bit more complicated because of the entrance of Go! Airlines into the market. Aloha and Hawaiian are being forced to meet Go’s current prices, which sometimes go as low as $19 one way. Considering Aloha and Hawaiian were charging $79 and up for one way tickets a year ago, this has got to be hard on them. It seems to me that Aloha and Hawaiian are both hoping that by maintaining their customer base Go! will eventually fail. I don’t know if the inter-island market can sustain three carriers, and I don’t want to speculate what the market will be like in November. I did check availability at the three websites and it seems that they are all already selling tickets that far out but there are lowest-fare seats available.