Is the grass greener in Maui? Contemplating relocating from Saint Paul. (house, neighborhood)

[maui-intoxicated]

Originally Posted by TwoByFour

We are going around in circles here. The cost of shipping a dog on Alaska Airlines vs. Hawaiian was discussed in this very thread, back at post #55. Kind of pointless to respond if the OP does not read those. Sheesh....

https://www.city-data.com/forum/28756205-post55.html

We are going in circles. I advise anyone shipping pets to check multiple airlines and actually talk to an airline representative on the phone. Read the posts as a guideline, but all of the resources should be available via airline websites on what pet requirements exist for what airlines, how much they cost etc.

Here are links to policies described in this thread in case its relevant to the user browsing.

Alaska:

Traveling with Pets to Hawaii - Alaska Airlines

Hawaiian
Pets - Cargo Special Handling - Hawaiian Airlines
Delta

Pet Travel Options

[maui-intoxicated]

OVERALL THOUGHTS

Let me frame this up by saying, I am a suburbanite, used to an insane amount of options anywhere I go at the "Big Box" stores. With that said, the Wal-Mart and Home Depot you are used to in your Metropolitan areas are not going to compare to what is on Maui. Is that the end of the world, certainly not.

Understand certain items will be completely missing from there spot on the shelf (Unless you dig around and look for that last one).

SELECTION -

The selection is fine, they had MOST of the name brands I was used to at Wal-Mart. Home Depot not so much, but again I think this is relevent to the Geography. It's not that these stores have less, they just have different and it might not be available one day, but is the next.

So be willing to compromise on the BRAND of the item you are getting, or getting a close alternative.

If there is no Kleenex, buy toilet paper as an alternative. That is just an example and far from a relevant example.

For instance I wanted a Craftsman toolset, that didn't exist at Home Depot. Now I know that, and knowledge is power. Is it the end of the world, heck no. I will run over to Lowe's as the Big Box alternative and check there. If they don't have it, I will run to a local store like a Mom and Pops Auto Store and see if THEY have Craftsman.

The huge positive for me, is that there are tons more OPTIONS in terms of Brick and Mortar and specialty stores. If you've ever been to LA its comparable in a sense there seems to be a small business for just about anything a consumer would need. Tons of transients come over here with a dream, and a business idea and that creates some nice free-market options for consumers in my opinion.

It also WIDENS the spectrum of pricing, and what this could POTENTIALLY translate to is a VERY high cost of living, or a VERY LOW cost of living.

My roommate lives cheaper than anyone I've met in the US...and I think it is just her nature...she is very frugal and has no desire to spend more for something than she has to. She breaks down chickens, fish, pre-packages stuff all to make it super affordable for her to live. Does she NEED to do this, no she is well off and actually drives a pretty pricey vehicle but when it comes to the essentials, she takes the wise path of frugality.

Feel free to IM me with specific item questions and I will ATTEMPT to give you valuable info on if it exists etc. If you cannot get it here on the island, you could always take a trip to Honolulu and ship it over on a pallet for $50. Another thing people do here apparently with the bigger item stuff.

COST -
I went to Wal-mart and I was able to get a surprising amount of stuff for only $50.

ALTERNATIVES -
Use the local markets, growers, resources. Obviously a Gold-n-plump chicken will cost more than Johnny Rockets home raised chicken, and which one do you think is more fresh, and therefore ultimately healthier for you? The locally raised one.

[maui-intoxicated]

I had a super easy process getting my vehicle inspected and registered. I went to the 76 in Kihei and the Kihei DMV and they took care of everything. The key is to know WHAT on your vehicle did not pass, if its anything OTHER THAN registration that is out of compliance you will need to get it corrected before you can go to DMV and register.

If not, go to DMV and register. Bring your If you shipped a vehicle, bring your Bill of Lading or Delivery Receipt that MATSON gives you, along with your Blue Safety Inspection Card and a Valid DL and your EXISTING STATE's Registration. I had to get a replacement in my state before I came here because I never hang onto that registration stuff... the cops in MN never need it, they do ask for it at traffic stops but I've never had it in my vehicle and they just look it up on there PC in the car. You can go online if MATSON for whatever reason didn't give you a delivery receipt / bill of lading.

Registration cost me $23 and I will pay roughly $350 based on my vehicles weight to renew my tabs when they come due in a few months.

The ladies at the Kihei DMV were wonderful and it was the most fun I've ever had at a DMV...granted that is not hard to top. If you go in there as a condescending a$$ you will be treated appropriately. If you go into the DMV with Aloha, you will be treated with Aloha. That statement is true at ANY DMV operation. When you walk into the DMV, ask yourself what am I doing here. I am taking care of a very important responsibility in registering a vehicle which is a privilege, not a right.

If your the kind of person that fills up the tow-companies swear jar with $20 bills you will have a tough time getting through the registration process efficiently.

The longer you drive with out of state plates, the longer you are a target. The longer you wait to get a Hawaii DL, the longer you are a target if you get stopped.

Maui County gives you 30days to complete both the Registration and Out of State DL transfer. I am not the kind of person that waits around to see what happens if I don't play by the governments rules. We all know they don't bend.

For out of state DL, bring your SSN card and document proving legal presence. More info here:
http://www.co.maui.hi.us/index.aspx?nid=1517

I arrived here Sunday, MATSON drove my truck off the Ship Monday and notified me Monday afternoon, by Tuesday I had my Hawaii Plates, and by Wednesday I had my Hawaii Drivers License. I got it done within 3 business days.

I wanted to drop this on the end of the post, you can check the DMV wait times online if you are in that much of a hurry, not too sure how accurate they are:
http://countysurvey.co.maui.hi.us/Wait_Time/

[maui-intoxicated]

Oh, by the way, (As Mitt always says) let me know if this thread is not useful for you...actually do not let me know...only let me know when I am giving incorrect information. I will misspell words but I am typing a fricken book out here on this forum and I have no editor to help me out.

[maui-intoxicated]

Originally Posted by Dthraco

All said and done, it cost $2,000 to get 3 cats from the Seattle airport to Oahu in the beginning of 2011.

This counts the vet visits, tests, carriers, and cat flights. Each cat had to be in it's own container, and the route/plane had a 4 pet limit, so we made sure to book in advance. (Hawaiian Airlines) By the time we got our bags and walked over to the pet area of the airport, the cats were ready to go.

Not sure if I would have spent the money for the cats to come over...you can just domesticate the one living in your backyard TOTALLY KIDDING OF COURSE...but seriously, whats with all the stray cats, chickens, and roosters running around LOL!

Unfortunately Cats are usually the epitome of all IT Office humor so forgive me if I offended but I wanna have some fun and laugh a bit in an otherwise fairly serious conversation here!

[MauiOlya]

Thank you for the information, maui-intoxicated, that's very interesting and helpful.
It was also nice to know more about pets' transportation, too. I brought my cat to Dallas when I moved there in 2009 and I remember making a special passport and all those kinds of stuff, he is in Russia with me now and I decided not to bring him to Hawaii this time to avoid additional difficulties. So he is having fun in the dacha (Russian summer house) with my parents now

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by maui-intoxicated

If there is no Kleenex, buy toilet paper as an alternative. That is just an example and far from a relevant example.

But when they are out of Kleenex AND toilet paper, and this is not a hypothetical case, you will know that a hurricane is coming.

For instance I wanted a Craftsman toolset, that didn't exist at Home Depot. Now I know that, and knowledge is power. Is it the end of the world, heck no. I will run over to Lowe's as the Big Box alternative and check there. If they don't have it, I will run to a local store like a Mom and Pops Auto Store and see if THEY have Craftsman.

Since knowledge is power, this should make you more powerful... Craftsman is a Sears brand. Their tools are sold at Sears. You can also find a few at stores owned by Sears, like KMart, and also at Ace Hardware.

Re: cats. Cats hate, hate, hate the move to Hawai'i. I can't tell you how many people I've heard tell some version of this story... they spent a thousand bucks getting their cat here, but it disappeared the first week (sometimes day) and hasn't been seen since.

[Dthraco]

Originally Posted by maui-intoxicated

Not sure if I would have spent the money for the cats to come over...you can just domesticate the one living in your backyard TOTALLY KIDDING OF COURSE...but seriously, whats with all the stray cats, chickens, and roosters running around LOL!

I can appreciate the humor, no offense intended. Living in Waikiki and spending most of my time in town, I hardly ever see or hear chickens. I kinda like the sound, reminds me of vacationing on Maui. You think Maui has alot of ferral chickens, try Kauai!

+1 on how efficient Hawaii is when ou go to transfer your plates and DL.

[Dthraco]

Originally Posted by OpenD

Re: cats. Cats hate, hate, hate the move to Hawai'i. I can't tell you how many people I've heard tell some version of this story... they spent a thousand bucks getting their cat here, but it disappeared the first week (sometimes day) and hasn't been seen since.

That's like a darwin award or something. Who spends that kind of money only to let a cat roam free in a completely different environment?

[MauiOlya]

Originally Posted by OpenD

Re: cats. Cats hate, hate, hate the move to Hawai'i. I can't tell you how many people I've heard tell some version of this story... they spent a thousand bucks getting their cat here, but it disappeared the first week (sometimes day) and hasn't been seen since.

Well, so far it sounds like the cats love Hawaii, they are probably enjoying their freedom playing in the jungle right now unless they got on the plane and flew back home.