Moving to Hawaii, What island suits us best? (Kapaa, Waimea: chapel, house)

[SurfDad]

Aloha!!!

My wife and I are moving out of Orange County, California and relocating to either Hawaii(The Big Island), Maui or Kauai at the beginning of the school year in 2010. We specifically left off Oahu for a reason, that being the amount of people in the area. I have had the privilege of visiting Maui and Kauai, but never to the Big Island. We have two lovely girls, both of whom are straight A students, and have attended Calvary Chapel Christian Schools here. We would love for them to remain in a christian environment that is also stellar academically, but right now, the importance of finding a rigorous program academically is at the forefront of our search. Thankfully, we have been very blessed financially so money is not an issue when it comes to the school and when it comes to where we live. Which island would suit our family best

- Our financial situation is not an issue in regards to where we reside/education of our daughters
- We would love to find a house that is on a great swimming beach(Beachfront)
- We are very connected to our church(Calvary Chapel) so being able to fellowship with other believers is important and finding a Calvary Chapel nearby is paramount.
- Safety- This is another TOP CONCERN.
-My wife and I are avid golfers
-My wife does like to "window shop" and go into various stores, so shopping would be nice to have close by.
-Education- We are donors for many Arts programs throughout OC, so finding a good school with an emphasis on Music and Art would be very appealing to us.
-Traffic- We are use to LA traffic, so no Oahu. SWe are looking for slower paced way of life, but with a bit of stuff going on, if that makes any sense.

We were told that the Wailea/Makena area on Maui might be a good area for our family. Any thoughts/suggestions for us would be most appreciated.

Mahalo,
Andrew

[hotzcatz]

Call the Calvary Chapel churches in Hawaii and ask them. There aren't that many of them so that would limit your area of search right there.

You could look at Hawaii Preparatory Academy in Waimea on the Big Island, but that might be one of the only schools on this island academically rigorous enough to meet your requirements. There is some limited shopping in Kona, but not enough to really keep anyone happy who likes to window shop. Your wife would probably have to schedule shopping trips to Oahu to get her shopping jones handled.

Maybe Maui or Kauai has a better fit?

[surfscuba]

reminds me of green acres.
she would love living above the ala moana mall and visiting the kahala mall and pearlridge center and ward center and the galleria and...
gotta go!
so many cute japanese tourists at the starbucks in the galleria to become friends with!

[Lisa From Maui]

Surfdad wrote: the importance of finding a rigorous program academically is at the forefront of our search. Thankfully, we have been very blessed financially so money is not an issue

Can I be adopted into your family? Please?


I don't know about K or BI, but I'll answer about Maui.

- Our financial situation is not an issue in regards to where we reside/education of our daughters. GOOD, because Maui is expensive.

- We would love to find a house that is on a great swimming beach(Beachfront) OK, really expensive. Are you really that financially well off? If not, another option: You could find a house right next to a public pool, or the YMCA, and you can walk to the pool, and swim laps in a safe place. It's easy to find a place to live where a beach is 5-15 minutes away.

- We are very connected to our church (Calvary Chapel) so being able to fellowship with other believers is important and finding a Calvary Chapel nearby is paramount. GOOD LUCK finding a church on Maui that fits you. It might take some time. Don't limit yourself to Calvary. There are other churches here that are similar. I never did find one that fit me, and I finally gave up looking.

- Safety- This is another TOP CONCERN. I feel unsafe snorkeling in the water sometimes. So, I just go out another day. In general, learn the ocean, and be careful. Things can get unsafe, fast.

I know a lady who was tandem kayaking w/ a girlfriend near sugar beach (1 mile east of Ma'alaea Harbor), got swept into the current, tide was going out, husband didn't realize what was wrong. Husband finally called coast guard. Shark followed the the 2-person kayak the entire time. Picked them up over half-way to Kaho'olave. That's 4-5 miles out to sea. On a kayak! True story. Her husband was sitting next to her as she told the story. Never had a problem with another human trying to attack us. I am more scared of the ocean than I am of another human. Just learn the ocean, and be safe.

My wife and I are avid golfers Plenty of golf on Maui

-My wife does like to "window shop" and go into various stores, so shopping would be nice to have close by. Plenty of shopping on different towns in Maui.

-Education- We are donors for many Arts programs throughout OC, so finding a good school with an emphasis on Music and Art would be very appealing to us. Don't know anything about that. Good luck. Call the MACC. Maui Arts & Cultural Center Also, google music stores and art galleries on Maui. Call them. They might know.

-Traffic- We are use to LA traffic, so no Oahu. We are looking for slower paced way of life, but with a bit of stuff going on, if that makes any sense. Maui will work.

Read the last year of posts on this forum. You'll find lots of helpful info is already here.

[hothulamaui]

the link to calvary on maui, seems there are 3
Calvary Chapel South Maui

there really is no "shopping" on any osland other than oahu and even there it is limited. the shopping Maui has as well as BI and Kauai is limited to macy's a few dress shops and then tourist places and the swap meet. which is you are a real shopper would not do the trick

ps. you may want to consider oahu, you can get away from the traffic by going to the other side. maui has traffic as well. during the season it can take 1/2 hour to 45 mins to get from so. kihei to north, when it should take ten minutes tops. so even maui has bad traffic

[SurfDad]

My wife LOVED "The Shops at Wailea" and that was enough shopping for her. Is there any "upscale shopping" that is similar to this on the Big Island? We have looked into Maui Preparatory Academy and Seabury Hall in Makawao. Could someone tell me how Seabury Hall compares academically to Hawaii Prepatory Academy? I am been researching HPA and I'm very impressed. My wife and I saw another school we very much loved called the Punahou School that looked to be very academically rigorous, sadly that was located on Oahu. That school, after doing some research, along with HPA are probably the two that I am most impressed with so far.
We went during July and August a few years back, and many of the locals apologized to us for the abundant amount of traffic. If you are at all fasmilar with the 101 Freeway in Los Angeles, you will then know what traffic really is. I thought it still was peaceful and quiet, but maybe because I'm so use to the LA/OC hustle and bustle of things.
Thank you for that link. We visited Calvary Chapel South Maui, and we instantly connected with it and the people. Lots of programs for kids to get involved with, and very knowledgable pastor. I loved the church, and always attend when I am in the Maui area.

[KoaKine]

I recommend Maui!

Macy's and walmart on the Big Island your wife will not like it.
If you move to any of the outer Islands just reassure her theres a Nordies on Oahu you can get a cheap flight for the day.... oh wait you don't need cheap just tell to go th Ohau for the day shopping if she must.

[Sweetbeet]

Sounds like Maui would be best, with occasional trips to Oahu for more serious shopping. But I don't know about schools on Maui. About Kauai (which I think would be too rural for you):

There are 3 Calvary Chapels on Kauai, I'm not religious so don't know about that.

You could find nice beachfront property here, for a very steep price (though now would be the time to buy for a deal).

It's pretty safe most places.

On Kauai, the only school would be Island School. No parochial schools (I don't think) past 8th grade (St. Catherine's is up to 8th, I think, it's Catholic). Island is not in a class with Punahou, but there are good teachers and bright kids can go far. They do work very hard to help their students get into the best colleges. The music and art programs are good, but not in a class with the top prep schools.

NO SHOPPING here on Kauai. Very little by way of cultural events (they exist but are occasional, for good theater, symphony, etc. you would go to Oahu).

There are a few good golf courses, I don't play so ???.

Not too bad traffic, but sometimes around Kapaa it's hell.

[nhzero]

There are three Calvary Chapels in Kaua'i that I'm aware of: The main one on the Kapa'a Bypass, one in Kalaheo, and one in Kilauea. My kids go to Island School, and I have never experienced a school with the level of interaction between parents and teachers, however, I have never had my kids in a private school before this one, although I attended private my entire K-12 education. Island School is the ONLY private school on island with High School, unless you count Kahili Adventist School, which is more like homeschooling outside your home. Their major draw, Surfing PE, was discontinued because their enrollment was too low - about 30 students from K-12.

There isn't very much beachfront property on Kaua'i, and it's all expensive. On the south shore, Po'ipu is your best shot, and Princeville on the North Shore. Both are fairly far from Island School, and both would be "death by Homeowners' Association."

I can't stand Kapa'a traffic personally, and Li'hue isn't much better.

For cultural events, it depends. I prefer the kind of cultural events that exist on Kaua'i to that of Oahu - much more "real Hawai'i" vs. "tourist Hawai'i." I came to Hawai'i for HAWAI'I - not to replicate the Mainland in the Pacific. That being said, 90% of cultural events on Kaua'i are in Li'hue and Kapa'a.

To be honest, I seriously think that Hale'iwa, Makapu'u, or some other part of the outer reaches of Oahu might be a better consideration since (hopefully you don't take this the wrong way) it seems like you haven't decided to come to Hawai'i for Hawai'i, but you wan't Mainland in the Pacific instead, and Oahu fits that description much more closely than any other island.

[cynmkolohe]

Originally Posted by SurfDad

Is there any "upscale shopping" that is similar to this on the Big Island?

There are some nice small boutiques on the Big Island and there are the shops at Waikoloa Beach Resort. But, major shopping for Big Islanders usually means a trip to Oahu!