BEAT OF HAWAII AND BEYOND

Updated:  Superferry is now out of business.

Hawaii Superferry is out of annual drydock and has just announced a price reduction that will be available starting Monday and is effective through the end of the year.

The new walk-up rate is $39, but if you purchase your ticket at least 14 days in advance, it comes down to $34 one way.  Additional taxes and fees come in at just under $10.

Check their website for a list of (not too many) specific dates which have higher rates.

Tip:  The Hawaii ocean conditions will be far smoother starting in about 60 days.  I suggest sailing when it is calm, during the summer months.  If you want to see why, watch the video here.

NOAA’s National Weather Service has some new features available only for Hawaii.  I really like the ease and functionality they add and think you might too.  Launched in the past couple of weeks, they provide:

• A statewide weather view from which you can easily drill down to any region of interest.  No need to put in city, state or zip code.
• Customizable forecast bar graphs for any and all regions of the state depicting wind, rain, sky and temperatures.

Have a look at them and let me know what you think.

Pre-paid discounted flight coupon books have been a tradition in Hawaii inter-island air transportation.  They had been waning and pretty much disappeared several years ago.

Now in a return to a travel era gone by, Mokulele Airlines announced they will be reviving inter-island flight coupons.  The way these work is that you buy a book of 5 flight segment coupons for $267 ($53 a flight). These coupons can be shared, include all taxes/fees, and are valid for six months from purchase.  There is no charge for changing flights, which is great.

Hawaiian fired back by introducing a similar but more limited coupon-less offer, which amounts to $43 per flight segment.  In their offer, however, travel must be completed by May 15, taxes/fees are not included, and standard change fees apply.  To take advantage of the HA offer, you need to go to their site and register by March 11.

Both airline offers earn partner frequent flier miles.

Are these offers a good deal?

While these prices don’t at first glance appear great in comparison with the $38 price currently available, they might still work well for you.

Flights at peak times, those which feed flights to and from the mainland, are rarely available at $38 on Hawaiian.  In fact they are often priced at $84.  So in such instances, the $43 offer, which is valid on all flights, can save you money and keep you from hanging around in airports waiting for a cheaper flight time.

PS:  Mahalo to reader Bill, for pointing out that the correct price is $267 for the Mokulele coupon book.  The $220 price I’d originally quoted was pre-tax.

Here’s yet another great Waikiki hotel deal to pair with the existing Hawaii air fare sales.  By the way, I still expect to see many more airfare deals coming up for Spring and even Summer travel.  So stay tuned.

Waikiki’s Doubletree Alana is offering ocean view rooms for only $99 through June 30.  That’s a great deal anytime, and reaching clear into June, it is even more unusual.

The hotel is located across the street from Fort DeRussy and a ten minute walk to the beach.  Your ocean view will be from a distance.  All rooms are quite large (375 sq. ft) and have nice lanais.  The two-queen or one king bedded rooms are nice, though not elegantly furnished or inspired.  They feature free safes and coffee makers.

Cautions:  Parking by valet only is $25 per day, though we suggest you park free along the Ala Wai canal and take the 10 minute walk.

Have you stayed at Doubletree Alana?  If so, let us know your thoughts about the hotel.

Late last week, I had quite a surprise instead of an intended swim, when I found Kauai’s Salt Pond Beach closed due to jellyfish.  This is the first time I can ever remember Salt Pond being impacted by jellyfish.  The lifeguard told me that he had counted over 500 of them that day.

Jellyfish are prominent on Oahu’s Waikiki and Ala Moana beaches, among others, but are far less often seen on Kauai, Maui and the Big Island.

I went for a walk instead.

If you find yourself with time to spare at Kahului (OGG), have we got a gem for you: Kanaha Beach Park.

This park, which has recently undergone much work and renovation, is great.

The water is often calm in the morning, and is great for kids. Afternoons can be windy, but often still swimmable.

Getting there on foot from the airport:

It is an easy 5-10 minute walk from the airport. Just walk out the airport terminal and continue straight forward, towards the car rentals. There’s a fence with an open gate (near Dollar) and when you go through that gate, you are at the park.

Mesa Airlines (Go!’s parent) and Hawaii’s Island Air have just announced a new partnership.

Taking the lead from Republic Airlines, which partnered with Hawaii’s Mokulele Airlines last fall, Mesa announced a tentative code share agreement in which Go! will market Island Air services between Kahului, Hilo and Lihue. They expect to extend that code share agreement once Go!’s prior agreement with Mokulele expires in April.

Mesa CEO Jon Ornstein said “We are delighted to be working with Island Air which has a long tradition of high quality service in the islands…”

From my viewpoint:

Mesa needed a new partner to extend its service into locations not viable with their existing jet service. They also need some local kine credibility, which they have sorely lacked.

Island Air has been unable to compete in the cut-throat Hawaiian inter-island market and needs the support of a larger player that can better feed them passenger traffic.

Both companies are looking at the recent Mokulele and Republic deal and trying to learn what works and what doesn’t in a Hawaii/Mainland business partnership.

Back on January 25, I mentioned the Pleasant Holidays Hawaii deals of air plus car or air plus hotel. At the time those deals were good.  Now what is left of them is great, with a caveat.

The deal.

This $299 air plus hotel offer has the best availability from San Francisco at this point.  It has been extended through May 18, meaning that the entire long-lasting and meandering Spring Break period is now included.  Los Angeles departures are also available starting April 20.

The catch.

At the base price of $299, the hotels offered (Maile Skycourt or Ocean Resort) are among my very least favorite, but they are cheap.

Laura Bly at USA Today told me today she’d recently stayed at Maile Skycourt and didn’t hate it.  So I guess beauty (or a hotel) is in the eye of the beholder.

In my mind, however, flying across the ocean to Hawaii only to stay at these completely lackluster, minimal accommodations, could only be a disappointment.  If you decide to go with this deal and those basic hotels, be sure you are someone who only wants a place to sleep, and isn’t concerned about location, amenities, or any semblance of quality.

Having said all that…

The reason I still find this offer so good right now, is because of the dates and good availability from SFO I found as of today, which included March, April and May.

As for value, the $250 round trip from San Francisco I wrote about earlier this week is only available through early April at this time.  This offer, however,  is valid for an additional month plus gives you three nights hotel for two people, all for about $100 total.

If you don’t care for the hotels offered, check back again, as I expect we are about to see more California to Hawaii air-only deals.

Updated 2/18:  Mokulele president Bill Boyer indicated this morning that the $300K payment due Republic was being made today.

Republic Airways announced in an earnings statement this morning that their Hawaii partner Mokulele Airlines has drawn down its entire $8 Million line of credit and is in default on payments thereon.  If the matter isn’t rectified, Republic indicated that they could seize their planes and other assets as soon as tomorrow.

Later today I learned that Mokulele employees, who seem more like family than employees, have agreed to defer salary until next week in order for Mokulele to meet their debt service obligation to Republic.

Lastly, an email I just received from Mokulele’s PR firm, which originated from Scott Durgin, VP at Republic, said:

“…We hope the current owners will be successful in their efforts to recapitalize the airline but if not Republic will assume responsibility for the continuation of jet service.

The resolution of the financial arrangements of the agreement between Republic and Mokulele will in no way impact scheduled services.

Republic is pleased at the high marks Mokulele has earned from those who have flown the jet services since its introduction in November 2008. Continued and increased support from the local community will help ensure Mokulele’s continuing success and the preservation of what we believe to be an indispensable option for inter-island travel.”

We wish Mokulele and its employees, as well as Republic, the very best as this matter is hopefully resolved to everyone’s benefit.

Here is yet another excellent Waikiki hotel deal.  Paired with any of the fantastic airfare deals that are still in effect, you’ll have a Hawaii vacation at a small fraction of the normal cost.

The Ohana Waikiki Beachcomber has just completed a $12 Million makeover which included all of its 495 guest rooms. These now feature flat screen TV’s, new furnishings, granite countered bathrooms, refrigerators and coffee makers.  All rooms have private lanais.

The property is located directly on Kalakaua Avenue, and is just across the street from the beach.

We plan to try it ourselves soon, and give you a trip report.  In the meanwhile, if you get a chance to stay there (or already have), please give us your feedback.  The reviews I read are quite good, but as always, there are a lot of apparently fake ones to contend with.

If you work in the travel industry or live in Hawaii (as many of our readers do), rates are even less.

What’s the eyesore of Kauai?  If you guessed Coco Palms you’re right.

Gone are the days when Elvis sang Blue Hawaii here and Queen Deborah Kapule, the last reigning queen of Kauai, had her home.  Ever since Hurrican Inkiki swept through Kauai in 1992, this 19 acre property has sat in ghost town condition.

The plans for rebuilding the legendary Coco Palms appear to be doomed.  This project has been on-again, off-again for years.  The only thing about the hotel plans which is still intact is the developer’s marketing website.

Brief history.

The hotel has been unoccupied, except for occasional vagrants, for seventeen years.

Developers had been planning to recreate the Wailua Bay hotel made famous in part by its 1961 filming of Elvis Presley’s movie.  The original Coco Palms consisted of thatched-roof bungalows scattered among royal ponds and coconut trees. The grounds also include an unmaintained yet beautiful, leased 17 acre coconut grove.

What went wrong with the redevelopment plan?

In early 2005, Kauai County approved permits for the resort, which was scheduled to include 48 bungalows and 200 condos at a cost of a quarter billion dollars.  Reopening of the abandoned beach side Seashell restaurant and a pedestrian overpass, along with a spa, were also at times planned.  The project, which was soon to commence with demolition of the dilapidated buildings, however, never even got started.

Now four years and much trouble later, the building permits are set to expire within 90 days.  The developers have asked the County for 3 more years to commence work.  They want the extension due to the current unfavorable economic conditions.  The County, however, appears unlikely to provide such a permit extension.  While one cannot contest the developers issue regarding the economy, that certainly was not the case at the time when construction was to have occurred.  At this point, it is unclear whether the developers can actually go forward with their project in any event.  They have indicated that their plans for the condominiums have now been scrapped, and that they are thinking instead of a 200 to 300 room hotel only.  Demolition of the existing buildings would also not now occur, with the old remaining concrete building structures likely reused.  In order to proceed, the developers first need to enlist a new investor and then determine whether any part of the project remains feasible.  Even if all that works out, the County will likely require a new and complicated permitting process due to the significant changes envisioned in the plan.

What might happen now.

It certainly seems unlikely that Coco Palms will be redeveloped for a long time, if ever.  There has also been talk about the State buying the land and converting it into a park.  Hopefully something can be done to remove the broken down remains from the Wailua Bay landscape.

What do you think should be done with Coco Palms?

Updated 2/17/09:  Hawaiian has some dates through mid-April now and these deals may extend through May or beyond. We’ll have another great SFO deal available later tonight, which we’ll gladly email to you.

Just in time for (many people’s) Spring Break, the airlines have dropped fares from San Francisco to an incredible low.  Take advantage of these right away as they will definitely be gone soon.

• Price:  Approximately $250 round trip (all-inclusive), with some dates about $30 high
• Airlines:  Hawaiian, Northwest and United
• Availability:  Spotty dates, through April 7
• Advance purchase:  None
• Minimum/Maximum days:  None/60
• This fare works starting in Hawaii too