Car Seats for small 3yo and avg 7yo

Calling all families who have traveled to Hawaii with young kids! :) We have a small sized 3yr old and an average/slender sized 7yr...

My sister's family and I will be sailing on the POA in June, and we are trying to figure out car rentals and excursions. As I've never traveled with young children outside of our California road trips in a minivan, so I'm not familiar on how these things work.

Does anyone have any experience renting cars/minivans or going on shore excursions with young children in Hawaii -- namely do we have to bring their car seats on the plane for any days we may rent a car... or do we have to bring them on any tours of any kind... do car rental places rent them at all??? How does this all work? :confused:

I know it may seem like a dumb question, but we really have no clue what people do in these situations, so any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for any help you can give us!

scrappydoo

Calling all families who have traveled to Hawaii with young kids! :) We have a small sized 3yr old and an average/slender sized 7yr...

 

My sister's family and I will be sailing on the POA in June, and we are trying to figure out car rentals and excursions. As I've never traveled with young children outside of our California road trips in a minivan, so I'm not familiar on how these things work.

 

Does anyone have any experience renting cars/minivans or going on shore excursions with young children in Hawaii -- namely do we have to bring their car seats on the plane for any days we may rent a car... or do we have to bring them on any tours of any kind... do car rental places rent them at all??? How does this all work? :confused:

 

I know it may seem like a dumb question, but we really have no clue what people do in these situations, so any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

Thanks in advance for any help you can give us!

 

scrappydoo

You can request add-ons when making reservations for your rental cars... such as car seats, GPS units, etc. Can't tell you what the cost is; no kids & we brought our own GPS.

I have been informed by many private tour guides in Hawaii that kids over 6 do not legally require a booster seat. Not sure I'm 100% comfortable with that for my 7 year old, so may just bring our own as we are doing tours rather than renting a car!

Thank you for your help so far!! I appreciate it. :)

Does anyone else have any first hand experience with young children and taking tours or renting cars in Hawaii??

Here's a link to the highway safety laws in Hawaii; child safety, cell phone use/texting, driving under the influence, motorcycles, etc.

Its way too expensive to rent the car rental car seats. I usually just bring one.

Thank you for your help so far!! I appreciate it. :)

 

Does anyone else have any first hand experience with young children and taking tours or renting cars in Hawaii??

My experience with tours is that they do not have the necessary car seats, but perhaps is you ask ahead of time they could accommodate the request??

Better to be safe then sorry, buy a cheapie one at home or bring one from home

I have an 11y old who, heightwise still requires a booster seat. We got our kids the boostapak backpacks that double as a booster seat. Been travelling with them for years and they are super handy.

Thank you all for taking time out to reply! :)

Keep any suggestions and thoughts coming... traveling with the kiddos (my niece and nephew) in Hawaii is new territory for me, so any advice is greatly appreciated.

Mahalo!

scrappydoo

Tours with 3 and 7 yr olds might be a challenge, so I would opt for renting a car and exploring independently as much as possible, if you're comfortable with that. At that age, they are usually happiest playing in the sand and shallow water at the beach.

Discount Hawaii Car Rental is a reputable and often recommended rental broker in Hawaii that deals with the major rental agencies. You can get quotes for vehicles here.

The rates quoted for child seats on their website are $12 - $13/day each with a maximum of $65./rental period (the max. won't help you with daily rentals in different locations, but for those doing land trips, it's worth knowing that info.)

We travel often with our kids/grandkids and car seats are usually checked for free, but you'd want to check the policy of the airline that you're travelling with. I don't think I'd bother bringing them if you're not renting a car in several ports.

Every tour operator I have spoken with so far has said that they will supply a car seat for the 3 year old, but the 7 year old doesn't need one (Hawaii law). This has been for private tour guides, not sure about group tours. I'm sure in the bigger buses, etc, they would be exempt from needing seats at all!

Good luck!

Thank you so much for all your input, it's really so helpful in trying to sort this all out. :) Please keep any advice or suggestions coming!

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

scrappydoo

We are on POA in March and will be bringing a booster for our 7yo. Regardless of the law, I know he needs the booster to be safe in a seatbelt. I'm a former car seat safety technician in Canada, and I know the group I used to volunteer with always advised against checking car/booster seats, as airlines are notorious for tossing them around, causing damage equivalent to a collision. Ds2 will be bringing his booster onboard the flight as a carry on, as it fits the requisite dimensions and ergo they can't stop me :).

Personally, I've travelled enough to know that tour operators will promise you the world to get your booking, but what they promise isn't always what you get. There are many different kids of car seats, even as a former tech I wouldn't be comfortable booking a seat without knowing exactly what I was getting. The seat might be damaged, recalled, dirty, or not fit your child. If a seat is important to you, bring one you know will fit your child and that you know how to install.

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I have been informed by many private tour guides in Hawaii that kids over 6 do not legally require a booster seat. Not sure I'm 100% comfortable with that for my 7 year old, so may just bring our own as we are doing tours rather than renting a car!

Every tour operator I have spoken with so far has said that they will supply a car seat for the 3 year old, but the 7 year old doesn't need one (Hawaii law). This has been for private tour guides, not sure about group tours. I'm sure in the bigger buses, etc, they would be exempt from needing seats at all!

 

Good luck!

This is incorrect information. Children under 8 years old are required to be in a booster seat according to the laws of Hawaii.

I always just brought my own car seats. They can be checked for free with the airlines as they are required equipment. You can either check them with the luggage or at the gate.