Hawaii with 3 teens- any suggestions in terms of area to stay?

[Anonymous]

Thinking Hawaii for Spring Break this year. The kids (3 teens) have never been.

Where would be good to stay for a week?

I’m seeing a lot of reasonably priced rentals in Kaanapali Beach area of Maui- any thoughts? We would definitely have a car.

I think the kids would love Waikiki Beach area but DH and I have been previously & would rather not…but I don’t want the kids to be bored either! If we did Oahu I think we’d more likely to stay elsewhere- maybe Turtle Bay?

Any suggestions with teens?

[Anonymous]

Maui or Kauai or both. You could transit through Oahu for a night there or back to see Waikiki and Pearl Harbor.

So much to do in Kauai with teens.

[Anonymous]

Really depends on what your teens want to do. Some shopping, nice restaurants, lounge at the beach? Hiking? Volcano? snorkeling?

[Anonymous]

Turtle Bay for teens will get boring quickly unless you are planning to spend a ridiculous amount of money.

Kaanapali beach is a little better but still less exciting and less diverse than Waikiki. I think for teens, giving them freedom to roam around Waikiki can be a lot of fun.

Could you split time and have some time in Waikiki and some at Turtle Bay?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Really depends on what your teens want to do. Some shopping, nice restaurants, lounge at the beach? Hiking? Volcano? snorkeling?

They would enjoy all of those things, for sure. They love snorkeling. Hiking less so. They really enjoy being in the mix of things, people watching etc which tends to lead me to Oahu/Waikiki- but am wondering if Maui might be generally busy enough to keep them happy.

If we were not bringing the kids I would do Kauai.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Turtle Bay for teens will get boring quickly unless you are planning to spend a ridiculous amount of money.

Kaanapali beach is a little better but still less exciting and less diverse than Waikiki. I think for teens, giving them freedom to roam around Waikiki can be a lot of fun.

Could you split time and have some time in Waikiki and some at Turtle Bay?

This is my general thought but is a conclusion I was somewhat trying to avoid. I think they would love it. Wondering if there is a quieter resort on Waikiki that DH and I might find more enjoyable for ourselves (am also following the other thread about Oahu). Splitting time and moving to a different resort like Turtle Bay seems like it could be an option…

[Anonymous]

You could look a the Kahala resort on the other side of Leahi (diamond head). But that won’t really give your teens easy access to Waikiki. I’d book something closer to Leahi, on the east end of Waikiki. If you have Costco, check their deals. You can book a package with just hotel and car if you want to do the flights on your own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Really depends on what your teens want to do. Some shopping, nice restaurants, lounge at the beach? Hiking? Volcano? snorkeling?

They would enjoy all of those things, for sure. They love snorkeling. Hiking less so. They really enjoy being in the mix of things, people watching etc which tends to lead me to Oahu/Waikiki- but am wondering if Maui might be generally busy enough to keep them happy.

If we were not bringing the kids I would do Kauai.

Kauai is the best island for kids/teens, not sure why you would think otherwise.

Also not sure of the recent obsession in this forum on Waikiki - has the vibe of Vegas on the beach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thinking Hawaii for Spring Break this year. The kids (3 teens) have never been.

Where would be good to stay for a week?

I’m seeing a lot of reasonably priced rentals in Kaanapali Beach area of Maui- any thoughts? We would definitely have a car.

I think the kids would love Waikiki Beach area but DH and I have been previously & would rather not…but I don’t want the kids to be bored either! If we did Oahu I think we’d more likely to stay elsewhere- maybe Turtle Bay?

Any suggestions with teens?

Kaanapali Beach would be a good area. My kids loved jumping off the black rocks and there is a lot of great snorkeling just north of there at Honolua Bay.
If we were to go back I know my teems would want to spend the time surfing and cliff jumping.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thinking Hawaii for Spring Break this year. The kids (3 teens) have never been.

Where would be good to stay for a week?

I’m seeing a lot of reasonably priced rentals in Kaanapali Beach area of Maui- any thoughts? We would definitely have a car.

I think the kids would love Waikiki Beach area but DH and I have been previously & would rather not…but I don’t want the kids to be bored either! If we did Oahu I think we’d more likely to stay elsewhere- maybe Turtle Bay?

Any suggestions with teens?

Kaanapali Beach would be a good area. My kids loved jumping off the black rocks and there is a lot of great snorkeling just north of there at Honolua Bay.
If we were to go back I know my teems would want to spend the time surfing and cliff jumping.

I agree with this. We love the Kaanapali area. Black Rock is fun for jumping and at the opposite end of the path there is jet ski rentals. There are always parasailing boats in the area too which is fun for teens. Just up the street at Ironwood Ranch is horseback riding with great views on the trails. The walking path connects all of the resorts and Whaler’s Village is in the middle. There are also snorkeling boat trips that are once again going out of Lahaina Harbor.

[Anonymous]

We have been to Ka'anapali with teens and they loved it. They'd walk to Whaler's Village to get a snack and shop. Mine are pretty happy to spend a lot of their time on the beach, too, so they don't need all that much to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thinking Hawaii for Spring Break this year. The kids (3 teens) have never been.

Where would be good to stay for a week?

I’m seeing a lot of reasonably priced rentals in Kaanapali Beach area of Maui- any thoughts? We would definitely have a car.

I think the kids would love Waikiki Beach area but DH and I have been previously & would rather not…but I don’t want the kids to be bored either! If we did Oahu I think we’d more likely to stay elsewhere- maybe Turtle Bay?

Any suggestions with teens?

Kaanapali Beach would be a good area. My kids loved jumping off the black rocks and there is a lot of great snorkeling just north of there at Honolua Bay.
If we were to go back I know my teems would want to spend the time surfing and cliff jumping.

I agree with this. We love the Kaanapali area. Black Rock is fun for jumping and at the opposite end of the path there is jet ski rentals. There are always parasailing boats in the area too which is fun for teens. Just up the street at Ironwood Ranch is horseback riding with great views on the trails. The walking path connects all of the resorts and Whaler’s Village is in the middle. There are also snorkeling boat trips that are once again going out of Lahaina Harbor.

Snorkeling boats also leave right from Whaler's Village.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Really depends on what your teens want to do. Some shopping, nice restaurants, lounge at the beach? Hiking? Volcano? snorkeling?

They would enjoy all of those things, for sure. They love snorkeling. Hiking less so. They really enjoy being in the mix of things, people watching etc which tends to lead me to Oahu/Waikiki- but am wondering if Maui might be generally busy enough to keep them happy.

If we were not bringing the kids I would do Kauai.

Kauai is the best island for kids/teens, not sure why you would think otherwise.

Also not sure of the recent obsession in this forum on Waikiki - has the vibe of Vegas on the beach.

No way, too sleepy and small! The Big Island is best for kids, so many activities.

[Anonymous]

Ha I was going to say Waikiki. In terms of something a little quieter on Waikiki, Hilton Village is its own thing set aside a little, and the Prince is also set away by the marina but still a short walk from the heart of the action. We like the club level, which has a nice pool higher up and might be a good teen hangout. Total change of tack, but also maybe your kids might enjoy free range North Shore? Also the mega resorts going the other direction from the airport might be what you’re looking for. There are a few of them together, can’t remember the name but you’ll be able to find the general area by searching for the Disney mega resort

[Anonymous]

^big Island you’ll probably want one of the resorts on the Kona side