Best time to travel from the West Coast to Hawaii

[vtwgalmm]

We would like to plan a trip from the west coast to Hawaii and would like to know when the best time to go would be and why. Thanks for any help you can give us. :)

[CruiserBruce]

A little reading on the board would give you lots of info to base your decision on.

 

If we are talking a cruise from the West Coast, they run from very late September to later April, perhaps the first weeks of May. So that narrows the "best" window to about 9 months.

 

(Note: NCL sails within Hawaii all year.)

 

If we are talking weather wise, the weather in Hawaii varies little. The West Coast weather, which affects your first and last 24-48 hours out to sea, plus your time in your starting port before and after your cruise, is coldest in December and January.

 

Whales- a very popular attraction in Hawaii, are there December into early April.

 

All this things are discussed here frequently. But we don't know what you define as "best", so that is why some research on your part is important. Less crowds? Lower prices? (Note- those things are a little hard to define in Hawaii.) We go to Hawaii on average at least once a year, at just about all times of the year. every time we go is great- never had a bad experience in over 24 visits.

Edited July 16, 2015 by CruiserBruce

[Budget Queen]

I consider "best" anytime I'm there. :)

 

I am an avid whale watcher, so really like February.

 

But, I also really enjoy the snorkeling and prefer the warmer water of the summer. I have not been to Hawaii in April, May or July, but all the rest of the months.

[Keith1010]

CruiserBruce has it right.

 

Take a look when the cruises are available and then see what works well for your schedule.

 

We have enjoyed sailing in mid to late January and it was a nice time to see several whales during our voyage.

 

Keith

[Cruisin' Chick]

Our three RTs LA to Hawaii have all been during the holidays (Dec 22, Dec 22, and Dec 19 sailaways) and the sea conditions and weather have been different among the two...in fact, the first time was so different -- we actually had smooth seas and warm weather from Hawaii to the west coast.

 

The similarity was that on all three times we easily saw whales while on Maui. We had returned to the Golden Princess on the last of those cruises on Christmas Day, and there were several whales swimming about our ship.

[rakuroda]

We would like to plan a trip from the west coast to Hawaii and would like to know when the best time to go would be and why. Thanks for any help you can give us. :)

Aloha vtwgalmm :D

 

If you are looking for the "at sea" days, figure on the weather on the west coast.

 

If you are looking for the days in Hawaii, I would fly to Hawaii and save the cruise money for the hotels and outstanding meals (cruise food all tastes the same after a while). Food in Hawaii is year around (many different cultures mean many different foods and flavors), and most people don't realize that "Chinese" food has many different styles, Hong Kong, Cantonese, Sichuan, Mongolian, Taiwanese, etc. and all have different flavors (chop-suey is a made up American dish). Since the weather is almost the same all year around, anytime is the "best" time depending on what you want to do. If you think you will get a feel for Hawaii at the port stops, they are too short for you to experience Hawaii. Each island is different and has its own personality. For example, winter if you are looking for the big surf (but no guarantee that there will be a winter storm in the artic to generate waves) or whales, summer for beach or snorkeling (actually anytime for beach or snorkeling, but summer has better sun). Hiking is summer (not as wet maybe?), driving to watch the sunrise is winter because you don't have to wake up as early. Snow in Hawaii is winter. Hula at the Merry Monarch Festival is April, just hula is year around. RELAXING, ALWAYS I only travel because my wife tell me that I want to travel (otherwise I'd just stay in Hawaii, where would you go if you lived here?).

 

So as you can see, best time in Hawaii is whenever you can be here with enough money to enjoy yourself. We do have McDonalds, Wendy's, Burger King, Kentucky Fried, Denny's, etc. so you can eat on the cheap, but only in Hawaii will you find a McD's big breakfast with scrambled eggs, white rice, portuguese sausage, and fried Spam! Or you can have banana hot cakes with lilikoi syrup, Zippy's chili spaghetti or oxtail soup. So many good different foods! (Can you tell I'm a foodie?)

 

Aloha :D

[vtwgalmm]

Thanks for the input. I plan on spending many hours reading before I make a decision. Thank all of you that shared your experiences. :)