best time to go

[Karencruiser43]

First time to Hawaii, can anybody tell me the best time to go. I like it hot around 80-85 and can anybody advise which is the better island for beaches, shopping and sightseeing. Many thanks for any help!

[shemo]

I live in Honolulu and I think the best time is April thru the end of July.

August and Sept will be hot and dry and the vegetation will have suffered. Sept-Oct is hurricane season(+-) and our usual tradewinds slow down making it more humid. Winter can sometimes be rainy. Everyone says this is the coldest, wettest winter we can remember.

There is only about a 5 degree difference in our winter / summer temps. Winter is about 79-82 and summer is about 84-88. A good website for local weather is ...hawaiiweathertoday.com.

Oahu has great beaches and surfing plus shopping.

Kauai is tropical and green all over with a fabulous scenic canyon.

Island of Hawaii (Big Island) is great for the volcano and waterfalls.

Maui has Haleakala Crater, the scenic road to Hana/Seven Pools and great resorts and beaches.

Most of the us live on Oahu so that is where you will find the most shopping (Ala Moana Shopping Center/Waikiki/Aloha Stadium Swap Meet).

It is also where you will find the most traffic and the most high rise buildings.:)

[beachchick]

For the warmest temps, June through September will be your best bet. But you will miss the whales (if that's important to you) and other things (like big flowing falls; you really won't see them in their glory in most Septembers, for example). The weather doesn't change all the much throughout the year. The winter months are usually rainier, but it rains throughout the year in various parts of the islands.

 

There are some great threads with detailed information and opinons. Here are some threads to get you started narrowing down which time might be best for you:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=924312&highlight=best+time

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=891530&highlight=best+time

(My post #3 on this one has links to other detailed threads about this and one of those has links to even more threads you might want to read.)

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=932559&highlight=best+time

 

For us, any time is a good time to be in Hawaii.

 

As for better shopping, beaches, and sightseeing, all the islands are good for different reasons. Each has its own vibe and attitude. It honestly would take hours to list everything that's good on each island. You might want to just browse around the forum for a while and also see if your library has the "Revealed" guide books. There is an entire book for each island (which give you an idea of how much there is to see and do and buy). Truly, there are hundreds of worthwhile things in all the categories you mention. It would be good to narrow down

 

beachchick

[mikaula]

We have been in April, July and November. We had the best weather in April. Our next favorite was November even though we had a little rain. July was very hot and humid and if you weren't in the water you were wet anyway from sweat. But really, anytime in Hawaii is better than time at work!!

[cruiseman40]

Aside from specific dates, best time to go is when one has money!

[whale-watcher]

Our top two priorities were whales, and leaving MN when the weather here is the worst, so we went in January. Some wind and rain, but not much, and never for more than a few minutes. I would repeat this trip (on the POAM) every winter if I could!

[smrtypnts]

I live in Honolulu and I think the best time is April thru the end of July.

August and Sept will be hot and dry and the vegetation will have suffered. :)

Your opinion is that the best time is from April through July, yet you go on to say August and Sept will likely be hot and dry and the vegetation may be dry and suffering. Sooooo, that said, I plan to go July 23-30. Do you think the scenery will still be lush and beautiful or is it your opinion that it will be on it's way "out" and not worth things like, the Road to Hana and other like experiences?:cool::confused: