tourists coming next wk;Car rental outside of airport? (Kailua: rental car, rentals)

[OTstudent]

hey everyone, me and my boyfriend will be visiting Waikiki. (June 1st to June 5th) 4 night, 5 days. We have activities planned out such as Hanauma Bay, ATV ride, Jet Ski, Pearl Harbor etc....

I'm concerned about car rental. We only want it for ONE day. (we want to drive to north shore--shrimp trucks, shaved ice) and I know we can rent one at the airport, but we were not going to rent one until Thursday. Going all the way back to the airport seems like a waste of time. Are there any Car rentals somewhere along the island at an ok price? (30-40 dollars; you can get this price at the airport)

2. ATV rides/Jet Ski; Does any company have a combo on this? meaning, ride ATV for an hour or so, and afterward, they will take you to ride the jet skis?

3. Luaus; The popular ones: Polynesian, and Germaine's luau. What are your advice/opinons on this? I'm not expecting something GREAT, but more for the experience.

4. Manoa waterfall; I'm excited about this activity b/c I love doing outdoor stuff and I'm ready to see a waterfall. There's a company that does a tour on this. $45, picks you up, and takes about 2 hrs. Are these tours worth it or is this something I can take a cab and go there myself?

any inside advice would be great i'm sure. 4 night/5days just doesn't seem long enough for hawaii! =) so much stuff we would like to do. hopefully we will have enough time. THANKS EVERYONE!

[mdand3boys]

Try Enterprise Rental Car. They usually have much cheaper rates.

Enterprise Rental

[whynot?]

You didn't say where you're staying in Waikiki, but most hotel concierges can get you a rental car. We often stay at the Royal Hawaiian, but pick up a rental car at the Hyatt (about 3 blocks walk) reserved by the RH concierge. It's, like, $29 for the partial day plus tax for a subcompact -- no overnight parking fees (usually $20 in Waikiki). We walk to the Hyatt, sign the papers, pick up the car in the garage there, then return it there and walk back at the end of the day. No shuttles, no hassles.

BTW, I rented a car last week on Oahu when I was there for four days for a wedding, and it ended up costing about $45/day w/o taking the insurance, not including parking fees. Just for comparison's sake, I thought that might be helpful.

Best of luck. Enjoy your stay!

[OTstudent]

I'm staying at Aloha Surf. I'll ask them about car rentals. I didn't know that you can rent from other hotels. That's good to know. $45/day is not too bad considering it seems hassle-free; pickup/drop off/walk back to hotel. just what I wanted. Thanks for the tip!

Originally Posted by whynot?

You didn't say where you're staying in Waikiki, but most hotel concierges can get you a rental car. We often stay at the Royal Hawaiian, but pick up a rental car at the Hyatt (about 3 blocks walk) reserved by the RH concierge. It's, like, $29 for the partial day plus tax for a subcompact -- no overnight parking fees (usually $20 in Waikiki). We walk to the Hyatt, sign the papers, pick up the car in the garage there, then return it there and walk back at the end of the day. No shuttles, no hassles.

BTW, I rented a car last week on Oahu when I was there for four days for a wedding, and it ended up costing about $45/day w/o taking the insurance, not including parking fees. Just for comparison's sake, I thought that might be helpful.

Best of luck. Enjoy your stay!

[hotzcatz]

You could always ride The Bus out there and back. It would give you a slice of "everyday Hawaii" and be a lot less expensive.

Most of the luaus and excursions have tour buses which pick up folks in Waikiki and bring them to the events.

[newUHprof]

Originally Posted by OTstudent

4. Manoa waterfall; I'm excited about this activity b/c I love doing outdoor stuff and I'm ready to see a waterfall. There's a company that does a tour on this. $45, picks you up, and takes about 2 hrs. Are these tours worth it or is this something I can take a cab and go there myself?

I haven't taken a tour, but I can't imagine what they could do that would be worth $45. I would either keep the car rental an extra day or hop the #5 bus (I think that's it... easy to check) to get there. The hike is very easy and scenic. One thing a guide might do is tell you about all of the plants you're seeing. But if you're doing it on your own time, you can go up to the Lyon Arboretum right next door. All the plants are labeled and folks can answer your questions.

[HankDfrmSD]

Originally Posted by newUHprof

I haven't taken a tour, but I can't imagine what they could do that would be worth $45. I would either keep the car rental an extra day or hop the #5 bus (I think that's it... easy to check) to get there. The hike is very easy and scenic. One thing a guide might do is tell you about all of the plants you're seeing. But if you're doing it on your own time, you can go up to the Lyon Arboretum right next door. All the plants are labeled and folks can answer your questions.

Here's what you'll see at Manoa Falls:

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...anorama755.jpg

Hank

[KAILANI]

The bus is fun, but takes quite a bit of time to stop at all of the stops.

I know they had an ATV adventure tour at the Waimea Valley park. No jet skis though, but the park is SO pretty, has nice birds, plants, a butterfly garden and a beautiful waterfall. Waimea Bay has beautiful reefs to go snorkeling at!