First time vacationing to Hawaii.....suggestions please?

[spoolin01]

Sounds worth checking out. Where is The Rock?

It's been awhile since I looked at the reviews at shorediving.com, but it was the best resource by far, compared to other books, for finding access points.

 

[tphelps]

I would like to be situated in an area of Hawaii with great diving (including the famous manta ray dives I've seen on YouTube), but also in an area with an abundance of tourist attractions for me and my family to do. Water sports is great, water park, amusement park, shows, restaurants.....that sort of thing. Looking for best time to go where it's the most affordable and can see the most attractions.

Aloha Eric, I live in Hilo on Hawai'i (aka "Big Island"). The manta dive is in Kona so you would want to come to our island for that. Hawai'i has a very diverse amount of attractions such as our famous Kona coffee sampling/tours/tasting, great dining, awesome waterfalls, hikes, the best night sky in the world at Mauna Kea visitor center, and of course the active lava flow from Kilauea in Volcanoes National Park. That being said, we do NOT have any amusement parks or water parks, I think that's more of an Oahu thing. From my experience, Hawai'i is also going to be more affordable, in general, than Oahu. Of course it depends where you stay, etc. You can find great deals through time share exchanges or Air BnB on here.

If you decide to come to Hawai'i and have any other questions feel free to shoot me an email (see my signature below).

 

[tarponchik]

Sounds worth checking out. Where is The Rock?

It's been awhile since I looked at the reviews at shorediving.com, but it was the best resource by far, compared to other books, for finding access points.

The Rock is in Miloli'i's northern end, opposite the T-intersection of Eono St and Kai Ave.

 

[Chocoholic]

Hi I'd like to take my family (myself, wife and 2 kids 17 and 10) spring/summer 2018 to visit Hawaii. I'm an intermediate diver with approx 150 dives, Nitrox and drysuit certified. I would appreciate suggestions as far as airlines (good service, reasonable pricing), hotels, dive operators, areas of Hawaii to stay in, excursion options, etc. I am just starting my research so I can begin making reservations, any help is greatly appreciated and thank you in advance.

Airlines: I would consider Alaska Airlines - their visa card gives you a companion fare for $125 - you pay for the first person and the second flies for $125.
Accommodations: my favourite is Maui Hill in Kihea (for Maui) it is within walking distance of the boat harbor for trips out to Molokini, check it out on tripadvisor. For the Big Island there are a lot of condo options along Alii drive or up in Waikoloa Beach. We have stayed at Kanaloa at Kona, Kona Coast Resort and Royal Sea Cliff Resort. I would suggest a condo for the kitchen and the laundry facilities. The Kona Reef is close to 'downtown' Kona for the family to walk around while you are diving.
Rental Car: you will need a rental car on either Island. If you have a Costco card you can save quite a bit on your rental.
Diving: Dive & Sea Maui - they leave a bit later than the rest (better ambient light photos) and have a really comfortable boat. Shore dive with Shaka Doug.
Big Island Divers - they have four boats which are not crowded with good DMs. Shore dive rent tanks and do two-step.
Consider the Manta Ray night dive - it is awesome and your family can snorkel it.
Attractions: Big Island - go to the volcano, Akaka & Rainbow Falls, hike Waipio valley, hike Pololu Valley, visit Hawi, go to the top of Mauna Kea, Hapuna Beach is awesome. The family can snorkel Two step (near the Place of Refuge) while you shore dive it. Kahaluu Beach in Kona has good snorkeling too. Kayak Captain Cook and snorkel it too. Consider doing the wild dolphin snorkel with Big Island Divers it is so much fun.
Maui: Haleakala for sunset, Io needle hike, day drive to Hana and stop at many waterfalls along the way, walk the boardwalk in Kaanapali, go to any beach and hang out.
have a great trip.

 

[garrytuba]

The Big Island does offer quite a variety of things to explore along with great diving on the Kona side of the island. If you are interested in shore dives, there are lots of opportunities in many different areas. We take our guests (sugar-inc.com) out on dive sites south of Kona at various places depending on safety issues. The winter time presents more problems with northwest swells. For information concerning other things to explore, Big Island Revealed has a wealth of information.