What’s the finest island to go to in Hawaii?

Irrespective of the place you go in America’s fiftieth state, Hawaii affords all kinds of topographies, lodging, actions and experiences.

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Every Hawaiian island has its personal distinctive vibe. Six main islands in Hawaii are open to guests, together with Kauai, Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Hawaii Island. (The opposite two main Hawaiian islands aren’t open to guests: Niihau is privately owned, and the U.S. army used Kahoolawe in the course of the many years following World Battle II for bombing workouts and stays off-limits to the general public.)

How do you select between so many various variations of paradise? Here is a information to discovering one of the best island to go to in Hawaii on your subsequent trip.

Oahu

Good for:

• First-time guests to Hawaii
• Solo vacationers
• Giant teams
• Finances vacationers

Oahu is Hawaii’s most bustling and concrete island. It is residence to the state’s largest metropolis and business heart, Honolulu. Its airport, Daniel Ok. Inouye Worldwide Airport (HNL), has essentially the most air service of any location on the islands, making it the most affordable vacation spot for vacationers from the mainland. It additionally affords essentially the most nonstop flights.

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Inside Honolulu metropolis limits, Waikiki Seaside is the place to see and be seen, with loads of purchasing, eating and facilities to get pleasure from at high-rise resorts.

Oahu’s choices are extra various than simply Honolulu, although. The rising resort space of Ko Olina has a number of upscale lodging, together with Disney’s Aulani Resort and the 4 Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina. On the best way to Ko Olina from Honolulu, cease at Pearl Harbor, one of the visited historic websites anyplace on the islands.

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Oahu’s North Shore offers one other vibe that is downright chill with its beach-hopping, food-truck-loving, small-town surfer scene. In 2024, Marriott reflagged the enduring North Shore resort — Turtle Bay Resort — right into a Ritz-Carlton resort bookable from 88,000 Marriott Bonvoy factors per evening.

Hikers will discover loads of trails throughout Oahu, from the peaks of Diamond Head to less-traveled spots like Makiki Valley and Waimea Valley. Some common spots do require advance reservations.

Maui

Good for:

• Vacationers with youngsters
• Multigenerational journey
• Anybody searching for resort-based condominium properties

The second-most-visited island within the state and in addition the second largest, Maui is residence to the famed Street to Hana, Haleakala Nationwide Park and one of the best whale watching anyplace in Hawaii in the course of the winter months.

For a lot of vacationers, a trip to Maui is one of the best of each worlds. The island affords a few of the similar infrastructure, conveniences and actions of Oahu with out the visitors and concrete sprawl. It is potential to go to loads of sights right here and have an lively trip or simply get pleasure from some island relaxation and rest at a resort.

Although a lot of Lahaina stays off limits to tourism following devastating fires in 2023, the remainder of Maui is open for enterprise and is encouraging vacationers to return.

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Maui is a good decide for households with school-age youngsters due to its many actions. It really works nicely for multigenerational teams as a result of it has experiences that grandparents and grandkids can get pleasure from, such because the Maui Ocean Middle or dawn at Haleakala Nationwide Park.

The island of Maui additionally has many superb accommodations and resorts at all kinds of worth factors. Most are clustered in two main areas: on the Ka’anapali-Kapalua hall on the northwest aspect of the island and in Kihei-Wailea farther south.

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For its measurement, Maui affords a formidable number of accommodations for vacationers to ebook with factors. Most main chains have outposts right here, and plenty of properties provide condominium lodging that work for households or bigger teams. The Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa, the Wailea Seaside Resort by Marriott, the Grand Wailea, A Waldorf Astoria Resort, and the Andaz Maui at Wailea Resort have all scored nicely with TPG contributors and readers. Set jetters can verify into the 4 Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea, which portrayed “The White Lotus” resort within the first season of the hit HBO present.

Hawaii (the Massive Island)

Good for:

• Romantic {couples} getaways
• Luxurious vacationers
• Journey seekers

The island of Hawaii, sometimes called the Massive Island, is the most important and latest island within the chain. As a result of it is so huge, you want near per week to see every part. However, it affords many various journey experiences from day after day.

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The overwhelming majority of Massive Island guests stick with the western aspect of the island close to town of Kailua-Kona and the Kohala Coast, the place the massive resorts are. Luxurious seekers can get pleasure from high-end properties just like the 4 Seasons Resort Hualalai; Kona Village, a Rosewood Resort; the Mauna Lani, an Auberge Resort; and the Mauna Kea Seaside Resort, Autograph Assortment.

Households on a average finances can discover ample lodge choices, too. The Waikoloa Seaside Marriott Resort & Spa and the Hilton Waikoloa Village significantly cater to vacationers with youngsters. Pool complexes are a giant draw.

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Though it is fully potential to spend per week on the Massive Island stress-free on a resort seashore, the island can be an journey traveler’s paradise. On the northern a part of the island, vacationers can zip line, take excursions on all-terrain automobiles, soar into waterfalls, scuba dive or snorkel with big manta rays, or flume down historic sugar cane irrigation channels.

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On the southern a part of the island, you’ll be able to go to Hawaii Volcanoes Nationwide Park — however earlier than you go, verify which areas are closed attributable to lively eruptions. The city of Hilo on the japanese aspect of the island has its personal native vibe that may be an excellent getaway for vacationers searching for an genuine Hawaiian expertise.

Kauai

Good for:

• Romantic getaways and babymoons
• Journey junkies
• Rest seekers

Kauai’s lush greenery makes it, for my part, essentially the most lovely of all of the Hawaiian islands. It’s residence to waterfalls, mountain climbing trails and a wide range of eco-adventures. Most vacationers hunt down Kauai to keep away from the hustle and bustle of Oahu and Maui and have a extra unplugged trip expertise.

Sadly, Kauai’s pure magnificence additionally makes it much less dependable as a trip vacation spot. The island’s greenery comes from the substantial rainfall it will get, which makes it potential that your trip in paradise is a moist one. For that cause, it is most likely finest to plan for an extended journey simply in case the climate does not cooperate on a regular basis.

There are ample lodge choices on Kauai. For households, the hands-down winner is the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa in Poipu, identified for having probably the greatest waterslides and swimming pools anyplace on the island. The Grand Membership lounge is sort of particular, too, with quick access to breakfast, drinks, snacks and extra.

Poipu to the south is residence to fairly just a few different main resorts, together with the Sheraton Kauai Resort. Princeville to the north has many others, such because the 1 Resort Hanalei Bay and The Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas.

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Smaller islands: Lanai and Molokai

Good for:

• Returning Hawaii guests searching for new experiences

Though the overwhelming majority of vacationers to Hawaii go to Oahu, Maui, the Massive Island and Kauai, there are two smaller islands that vacationers can go to as nicely. Attending to each of them requires somewhat additional effort, as neither has air service from the mainland.

Lanai, the island owned by Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, is accessible by a ferry experience from Maui that takes simply over an hour. You may also take a 50-minute flight from HNL or a 35-minute flight from Maui’s Kahului Airport (OGG) to Lanai Airport (LNY) on regional provider Mokulele Airways. Lanai has two luxurious and expensive 4 Seasons resorts on the island — the adults-only Sensai Lenai and the 4 Seasons Resort Lanai.

Molokai, against this, has no name-brand lodging, making it a spot of refuge for native residents and vacationers searching for genuine Hawaii journey experiences. Mokulele Airways additionally serves Molokai Airport (MKK) from HNL (45 minutes) and OGG (35 minutes).

I would not suggest that vacationers head to both of those locations till they’ve visited a number of of the bigger Hawaiian islands first. You may possible get extra out of them (and know which one is the precise match for you) upon getting extra context to understand them.

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