…my nose in a bookFood, research, yoga and music. . . is there anything else?

Oahu is the third largest of the Hawaiian islands, and known as being one of the busiest vacation spots. I personally prefer Kaua’i for its lush tropical greenery and quiet solitude, but when planning a vacation on a budget I can’t be too picky.  Finding a decently priced vacation with flight and accommodations included can be quite easy when searching in the Waikiki area.

So this February is the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in our wonderful city of Vancouver, BC.  While I am extremely excited over the 2010 Olympics, I would much rather watch the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, though that won’t be happening. Okay, so in Vancouver it is a HUGE deal that the Olympics are here.  You cannot go anywhere recently without finding road closures, Olympic signs, and notifications about all the lovely road and parking closures to accommodate the large influx of travelers from all over the world.  While I think it is a wonderful thing for vacationers, tourists and sports fans to come to our fantastic city to witness the 2010 Olympics, I personally cannot handle the crowds.

As I do not want to brave the vast amounts of tourists which will incite a claustrophobic frenzy on my part, and @nachoman does not want to wake up at 3AM each morning to get to work on time, we have made an executive decision – get out of town!  Now while I considered speaking at some conferences I was invited to in Florida and Cincinnati, my health just hasn’t been up for it, so I started researching vacations.  (Yes! A REAL Vacation, where I wont be on a laptop – too much).

In researching vacations, I considered Air Canada’s Japan Flight Sale that was going on for the first couple weeks of January, though after much thought I felt that 2 weeks in Japan would not be enough.  I then found Jubilee Travel (a.k.a. Travel Best Bets) had a wonderful 12 night Bali trip including sightseeing for $1499 each from Vancouver. While that sounded great, I had to consider that @nachoman and I both have allergies, and that pork and MSG will run rampant in most Asian countries we go to.  Hmm. . . what oh what to do. I know! Hawaii! I just had to find a cheap hotel with a kitchen to cook our food.

O’ahu, Hawai’i has been a longtime favorite of mine.  I prefer some of the smaller islands for the quiet and calm, but O’ahu not only has the hustle and bustle of Japanese and American tourists, it has small secluded areas of peace and fantastic uncrowded surfing.  Waikiki is synonymous with busy, noisy and touristy, yet that is part of its appeal. So how does one find a hotel, motel, condo or accommodation that won’t break the bank, but won’t leave you itching with bed bugs or insomnia-tic from the noisy neighbors. Well, you research REALLY well. (Knowing the neighborhoods helps too – which luckily I have a bit of an idea of where I want to find a hotel).

Finding a cheap hotel in Honolulu with direct beach access and chairs is pretty much impossible.  From my experience (and snooping), the best mid-range beachfront hotels (for your $$$) are the Aston Waikiki Beach, the Outrigger Waikiki & the Hilton Hawaiian Village Rainbow Tower (Of course I don’t suggest booking directly from them unless you want to pay double what a travel agency, tour operator or online travel website will charge you).  Now of course I personally don’t care about being directly on the beach, since how much time do I really spend in the hotel when you’re that close to the surf. It is worth your while to book at a hotel that is 2 or so blocks away from the beach, book yourself in a room on the higher floors to get a view, and then go to the beach when you want the ocean!

In the end, I used Travelocity (the US version) and West Jet Vacations (Canadian) to finalize my flights and accommodations.  After much deliberation of hotels in Waikiki, I needed ones that had a FULL kitchen (not just a kitchenette with a microwave and mini-fridge).  Be careful when booking a hotel that states that it has a kitchen.  I considered several hotels in Waikiki that on their websites said they had kitchens, only to find out that a “kitchen” meant a hot plate, mini-fridge and rice cooker.  If you are on a budget, working with allergies, or just trying to feed a family, you want a FULL kitchen with utensils, plates, fridge, stove and potentially luxuries such as a can opener.

I finally decided on a condominium-style property called the Aston Waikiki Sunset (3+ Star) that has been recently renovated (it has 1 or 2 bedroom suites that have a full kitchen and a furnished lanai).  While I found a couple bad reviews about the hotel, they typically were pre-renovation and were calling for an updated feel.  A interesting side note to remember when booking at Condominium-style hotels is that some of the suites may be privately owned, so you will want to make sure that the suite you are booking is owned by the hotel itself.  By doing this, you will assure that there is some level of cleanliness and amenities to your room.

The room that I have booked is the 1-Bedroom Superior, which has been renovated with new fixtures, furniture and a new tv.  It is a roomy 560 square feet, with its own separate bedroom.  While I cannot tell you what it is like yet, I have my fingers crossed that it is clean and that the service at the hotel is above average.  I will keep you posted on whether it meets my expectations.  My advice for finding the best deal is to hop from site to site, and then call a travel agent to match or beat the price you found online.

I found an amazing deal for 12 nights accommodation, flights between Vancouver and Honolulu, and was able to book it all from the comfort of home.  I simply called the travel agent at Carlson Wagonlit Travel, and told them the deals I had found on West Jet Vacations and on Travelocity.ca.  The helpful travel agent answered my questions about the hotel, noting that one of her colleagues had happily stayed there. Upon hearing this, I told the agent to book the trip ASAP.  She took down my info, navigated through the travel sites I’d told her about, and booked me for 2 return tickets to Oahu and our accommodations, in a matter of minutes. Within seconds I had my itinerary in my Inbox!

We leave in a few weeks, so I when we get back, I will tell you how it was.

Mahalo for reading today,

~Deanna