by duhkine » Mon Feb 07, 2005 6:38 am
It depends if you want to have a "touristy" experience or want to have a more relaxing, quieter and isolated experience. The tourist experience is definitely Waikiki. The hyatt regency is right in front of the surf break Canoes, which is the best beginner break in the world to me and you can rent boards from there. However theres a street in front of the hyatt then the beach. I like the hilton hawaiian village. the beach there is on the property, it has a gigantic pool, penguins, nice scenery but the beach there is not as great and its further from the surf. the sheraton is also great because its right next to the surf and it is home to the hanohano room, which is a great restaurant 30 storied above the beach that overlooks the waikiki stretch and is where they take tthe famous pictures of waikiki.
If you want the quieter and more private approach, I suggest maui or kauai. Kaanapali on maui has a huge stretch of hotels on the beach. I dont know the surf there though. On kauai, the grand wailiea is immaculate but i dont know about the surf on kauai well.
If you want quiet but on oahu, turtle bay is the best.
I think waikiki is the best choice overall because you cant go to hawaii without visiting waikiki. I say 80% of all tourists stay in waikiki. theres tons of shops, free trolley service, new sidewalks and fountains, tons of hotels, sunshine, the greatest 2 miles of beach in the world and so many things to see and buy. its crowded when surfing but if you have an instructor you should be fine. you can also go with the hawaiian fire surf school, which is a surf school that the Honolulu Fire Department organized. They take customers to an isolated surf spot and teach them to surf for a few hours. they stress safety and the surf is totally uncrowded from what I know. their prices are a bit steep but it includes everything including lunch, transportation, board and aloha.
When is this trip anyway? I can tell you more details and tell you the best places to see. Private message me. Aloha!