Oahu in December

[Jcsgt]

It seems there's a good chance my dive buddy and I will be travelling to your neck of the woods, the last part of November or first part of December.

What are the local diving/weather conditions that time of year? What's the viz like, then?

What hotels would you recommend that would be near diving? Do any dive op's pick you up at the hotel or would you recommend a rental car?

Anything else we need to know before booking travel?

 

[VBlueV]

hmmm.. thought you were a local.. maybe that was just a similar screen-name..

anyways.. diving conditions in Nov/Dec are good/excellent from the south and west shores. (north shore surf is mostly too high for diving.. and east shore can be iffy)

water temp is 72° to 75°F.. i use a 3mm full suit.. and sometimes add a hood in the winter months.

viz is 30 to 100+ feet depending on the surf conditions and location.

any of the downtown hotels in waikiki would be fine.. most dive shops will pick you up from your hotel.. especially Island Divers Hawaii.. and they'll provide at least weights and tanks or even a full set of equipment if need be [1-888-844-3483 (Toll Free)]

whales start showing up around then too.. so keep an eye out during the boat ride to the dive sites.

cheers
joey

 

[justleesa]

Hotels: What price range would you be interested in? Is close to the beach important to you?

All dive ops pick up and drop off if you are staying at a Waikiki hotel or condo. This way you don't have any parking worries at the dock .

 

[Jcsgt]

I figured I needed to visit you guys over there, in honor of your state fish and all.

Anything I need to know about as far as taking our own gear, such as weight restrictions, etc.?

 

[Jcsgt]

hmmm.. thought you were a local..

No, but I do play a local on television.

 

[justleesa]

can't say what the limits would be, sorry - you're going to have to check with your air carrier.

I would highly recommend taking your own gear (except weights and tanks of course )

It's shorts weather all year long, but you might want to take a pair of pants and maybe a sweater along because some places have their air conditioning on to the tilt.

that's off the top of my head, If I think of anything else I'll let you know!

 

[Jcsgt]

Okay, we're looking at the Queen Kapiolani Hotel (moderate), located behind the ResortQuest Waikiki Beach Hotel (formerly Aston). Anybody have any thoughts about this?

We'll have a rental car (came with the package), so we're not caring about being a bit further from International Marketplace.

Which luau would you guys recommend?

Yes, we'll definitely be taking our own gear.

Thanks in advance!

 

[justleesa]

It is a nice hotel, Alcina stays there when she's here. It's close to the zoo, about a block from the beach, close to where they show the movie (sunset on the beach - if is happens while you're here). Near Ted's (famous burger place), Starbucks around the corner.....if you take the road strait out you hit the H1.....IMP is about a 15 minute walk away

I've heard the one at Princess Kaiulani isn't that great. The top three would be paradise cove, germains and polynesian cultural center (North shore)

 

[Jcsgt]

You're wonderful, Lisa! Thanks!

 

[cruisegirl]

Jcsgt,
I was in Hawaii in October of last year.... Loved it.... I would recommend the Ocean Resort Hotel Waikiki.... It's clean, has a pool, restaurant, little gift shop, kitchenette's in the room and is one block from the beach And it's inexpensive compare to others. Unless you want the Hilton or Ritz Carlton, you can't go wrong.... lol
The Luau we used was Paradise Cove..... They came and picked us up at the hotel and dropped us off... Worked out great.....
I was the only diver of the group..... I booked my dives with AAA Diving.... I will post a review here soon but I loved my dives.. The owner's name is Alex and he's awesome. I'm a newer diver and had about 20 dives under my belt then.. I was quite insecure with diving outside of my element, i.e. California and my regular dive buddies. But he was great... Paired me up with a great buddy and had a blast...

Hope you have a great time.... Then again, it's Hawaii.... How can you not?? lol