Hawaii??? First time going to HI so any advice would be helpful.

Heading to Oahu, Waikiki next week and need some advice on where to snorkel and hang out. I hear Waikiki isn’t the best but I do have a car for the entire vacation. Any advice on what where I should go or do? I'll likely stick to one island.

So far I know I’ll be spending at least one day scuba diving so I have 4 other days with absolutely no plans.

 

I spent a week on the big island, which is a lot cheaper than the other more exotic islands. If you ever go there, try Captain cook. Cheap hotels and great snorkeling. We paid $60 a night for our room and it had a restaurant below. $9 a meal per person. Had the best time in my life. If it were up to me, I'd live in Hawaii. Some people say you go nuts since its so small. I think I'd be ok with it.

 

Waikiki is nice but it's like saying you're going to Las Vegas to see the desert. It's very touristy. Check out the Yard House. Over 100 beers on tap. Mmmmmm, beer.

Hanauma Bay
http://www.honolulu.gov/parks/facility/hanaumabay/welcome.htm

 

Don't try to drive its worth it to just fly!

 

If you plan to stay only on Oahu.
A good place to stay is at Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore.
Places to visit: Polynesion Cultural Center (take the full tour with Luau), Hanauma Bay (diving), Arizona Memorial, USS Missouri (start and end of the war), a sunset dinner cruise, Air Tours, Lots of things to do here on the island check out the links.
Dont buy your souvenirs in Waikiki, go to the flea market at Aloha Stadium open Wed, Sat, Sun.

http://www.polynesia.com/
http://www.turtlebayresort.com/
http://www.hawaiiweb.com/oahu/activities/island_seaplane_service.htm
http://www.starofhonolulu.com/
http://oahu.aloha-hawaii.com/tours/dinner+cruise/
http://oahu.aloha-hawaii.com/hawaii/hanauma+bay/
http://www.aloha-hawaii.com/tours/arizona+memorial/
http://oahu.aloha-hawaii.com/tours/uss+battleship+missouri/
http://www.atlantisadventures.com/hawaii.cfm

 

I got a package that includes flight, hotel, and car rental. I'm really looking for advice on what to do and where to go while I'm there. Mainly looking for good maybe less populated beach good for snorkeling.

 

Welcome to Hawaii! Is this a family trip or a friends trip?
Anyways, here's some "safe" tips..
1) DONT get a Dodge Charger as your rental car. There has been a recent surge of those cars getting broken into. (I'm a LEO in Waikiki)

2) At the beach, NEVER turn your back on the water. People get POUNDED all the time from shorebreaks that look "harmless".

3) Sure this is paradise (I am lucky enough to be born and raised here) but there IS crime here, even against tourists. Car break-ins (your rental car is easy to spot)/ assaults/ pickpocketing/ theft of bags at the beach while you are swimming....

Dont get me wrong, you will love it here! Its just that some people are naive about "paradise" and dont take common sense precautions.
Makana has some good suggestions..

 

i was there not too long ago will be stopping by again in aug i enjoyed myself. don't rent one of those scooter things they have alot of trouble on hill saw alot of ppl pushing lol. if you have one of those water proof olympus cameras IT'S NOT SAND PROOF i made that mistake carfull at the beach if you're not a strong swimmer those waves even the small one can pound you pretty good.

if your looking for a less populated beach dont go to the east side of the island decent beaches and not as many ppl go there cause they all want to see the north shore.

anyways have fun take lots of pictures hawaii is a good time.

 

It’s just my wife and I and I'm a scuba diver so I'll do ok. My wife isn't a great swimmer so I’ll have to find a spot that isn't to rough for her.

 

Well the HI trip was good... I'll have to try a differnt island next time but one thing I'd like to point out... Man was there a lot of Tacomas on that little island many of them lifted too!!

 

Nice to hear you had a good time. Yeah theres a lot of taco's here...