Quote:
Originally Posted by Buff
I've been to Maui in 1987, Kauai in 2004 and Big Island (Kona side) in 2012. Stopped for a day in Waikiki on the first two trips but flew straight outta Kona in 2012. My memory of Maui won't be sufficient to chime in on that as I was in middle school and now I'm an old man.
However, Kauai was the most relaxing vacation I ever had in my life. Everything is so chill and laid back. Get a car. It's only like 1hr to go from North Shore to South Shore. Google Maps tells me 1hr 21 minutes from Hanalei Bay to Poipu beach but I don't remember it taking anywhere near that long when we were there. You need to rent a car to get anywhere efficiently on any of the islands. We snorkelled on the beach where Bethany Hamilton lost her arm to a shark. I didn't see the shark, they must have relocated it. 
Big Island is really awesome too. We stayed in the golf course in Waikoloa Village, we were there for a wedding and that was the cheapest group rate, so we did some driving, but it was worth it. You mostly drive along the coast line so you never get bored and the landscaping when you're cutting across land is still picturesque. Volcano was ultra cool! |
It would have taken less time in 2004 to go across Kauai then it does now because the roads are the same but there's lots more people, so traffic is much worse.