Maui:
Island is difficult to navigate. Lots of one lane bridges and low speed limits, even though its small it takes a long time to get all the way around. Recommend 4-wheel drive but not something too big because you will take up too much of the road. East side is the wet side, west side is the dry side more touristy. I camped the entire time here, except one night and did minimal hiking. For these reasons I am putting it at the bottom of my list. Also, Lehainia, which is the main tourist area on the West side of Maui reminded me a little of LBI mixed with Red Bank. It had cute little boutiques and surf shops along a cobblestone street. Haleakala crater was gorgeous at sunrise but a very far drive from the Kipahulu campground, which was much warmer than Hosmer in the winter time. Kipahulu campground was a great location with tidepools, a waterfall, and the seven sacred pools right there. Camp Olowalu south of Lehainia was the nicest private campground I stayed at during the entire trip, offering nice new showers and bathrooms, but they came at price. At $20 a night it was the most expensive campground of my trip as well. With beach access to a beautiful snorkeling and whale watching spot it was well worth the money. The East side was definitely a bit chiller and I was only able to get in the water if there was a tidepool or at the red sand beach. The shoreline is very rocky and the waves were very big. The West side was much warmer and the water was almost like a lake with no waves at all. If I went back I would definitely spend more time in Paia, which is a hippie surf town on the north shore. I also think I would spend more time in Kihei, which was a tourist spot with lots of restaurants and resorts on the south side but seemed more chill than Lehainia.
Turtles, whales, dolphins
Hippie commune 🙌
Oahu:
Again be prepared for lots of driving if you want to see the whole island. It doesn't matter what kind of car you have here. All the roads are developed and there are normal speed limits. Traffic can be an issue around Honolulu during rush hour. Keep in mind you cannot drive all the way around the island!! This is a mistake that my mom and I made and it cost us of hours in driving. I didn't camp at all on this island and I hiked the most out of any of the islands. Again, I think my experience here is too skewed one way to put it on the top of the list. Obviously, Honolulu and Waikiki are huge tourist destinations but if you are looking for something more remote there are definitely options available, such as Waianae and Haleiwa. There didn't seem to be a wet and dry side on the island. Overall, the weather was probably the worst during my time on Oahu. There were a couple of days were it rained on and off a bit and some strong winds. The waves were so huge it made it impossible to swim unless you were at a protected bay. Oahu definitely had more beach access than Maui overall with less rocky shoreline. The island offered some amazing hikes and it was good to learn the history of the islands and really feel the spirit of the Hawaiian people. If I ever went back I would spend my time in Haleiwa on the North Shore.
Turtles, whales, monk seals
Hippie commune 🙌
Kauai:
Definitely the easiest island to get from point A to point B. Since it's the smallest of the islands you can get from one side to the other in 2 hours or so. Again, you cannot drive around the whole island! I would recommend 4-wheel drive here. I didn't have it and wish that I did. Some of the cool hiking spots required 4-wheel drive to get to. I had a really nice balance of camping, hiking, and relaxing at a resort here. I also stayed at the nicest resort of the trip and did the most challenging hike of the trip. For those reasons it is at the top of my list. I also left with the feeling that this was what Hawaii was suppose to be like. I wasn't ready to leave. There was definitely a wet side and dry side. I am just not sure what it was, haha. I know for sure the south side is the dry side. When I was East it seemed cloudy and cold, same for when I was North. When I went to Waimea canyon which is West it is called the wettest place on earth and it was freezing...so I am not really sure. I do know that for hiking the Napali coast the mild temperatures were perfect and then I came back and went South to Poipu to hang at the beach where it was 85 degrees. The whole island has a laid back feel and small town vibe. Each little small town has their resorts, shops, and restaurants. The other islands it seems like one big tourist trap Lehainia, Kihei, and then nothingness. There are so many accessible beaches, virtually no rocky shorelines, and the waves seemed to much more manageable. One regret I have is that I didn't snorkel at all. I went to plenty of beaches that had snorkeling, I just didn't. I loved Poipu and would definitely go back. I loved the Napali coast and would definitely go back. I loved Princeville but it was not the right time of year, I would go back in the summer. I would have loved to spend more time in the canyon as well in warmer weather.
Monk seals, goats, dolphins, probably turtles but I wasn't looking
Hippie commune 🙌
Hawaii aka The Big Island:
The most challenging of all the islands to drive. Not only because it is the biggest and takes a long time to get to each destination but a lot of the local spots require off-roading and you definitely need 4-wheel drive to navigate the terrain. The main roads are developed and have high speed limits but to access a lot of the beaches you need to take dirt roads which contain lava rocks. You can travel around the entire island. I felt I again had a nice balance of camping, staying at a hostel, and with friends. Unfortunately, I didn't stay at any resorts here to be able to speak on them but the vibe here is so local that I don't even remember seeing that many! The East side is definitely the wet side and the West side is definitely the dry side. Out of all the islands, this is a very clear difference, with an extreme difference between the two sides. The West side is probably the hottest of all the islands and the East side is probably the wettest of all the islands. I lucked out when I was there and had almost no rain. Because the West side gets blocked by Maui the waves as not as intense, making the water more manageable as well. The issue with the West side is beach access. I found that the Big Island for as large as it is has far less beach access than Oahu and Kauai. I think a big reason for that is the terrain. Having lava rock covering so much of the island makes it hard to make roads to get to the beach. When you do find your way to a beach it has a lot of coral, lava, and trees. Beautiful scenery but not much for laying out and getting a tan. Have I mentioned there is an active volcano?! Currently flowing lava into the ocean like a fire hydrant?! It is amazing!! That alone makes it worth it! When are you are ever going to get to see something like that in your life?! Not to mention the fact that the island has so many different climates and ecosystems, it is incredible!! Just a different vibe from the other islands in so many ways. The people, the landscape, everything about it. Different and interesting. I highly recommend it.
Turtles, whales, dolphins, monk seals, shark, goats, horses, cows
Hippie commune aka Rainbow Gathering 🙌
Most of us don't have the opportunity to go the islands for 6 weeks and get the chance to experience them the way that I did. I highly recommend if you do want to go and only have a short period of time.
For the hiking and outdoor enthusiast any of the islands will do but I think Oahu or Kauai as my top choices.
For leisure resorts and relaxing at the beach and snorkeling Kauai or Maui West side.
For the science nerd in all of us the Big Island! LAVA! VOLCANO!
For the hippies you are welcome everywhere you just have to know where to look 😂
The islands all have something very different to offer and my experiences were very on all four but I ranked them as such:
1. Kauai
2. Big Island
3. Oahu
4. Maui
Who knows how it would have changed if I would have visited them in a different order?
AROOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
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