BEAT OF HAWAII AND BEYOND

If our recent warning about Hawaii car rental availability and costs wasn’t bad enough, this is sure to add insult to injury at a most inopportune time.

New facility fee.

A facility charge of $4.50/day for all Hawaii airport car rentals is expected to go into effect starting September 1. The current charge is $1/day.  The fee is being proposed as a way of improving Hawaii’s aging car rental facility infrastructure.

The only way to avoid the charge is to rent off-airport. Unfortunately, in Hawaii, that isn’t all that easy or convenient. At Honolulu Airport however, it is possible to rent from two companies which are nearby, but off-airport.  They are Alamo and Thrifty.

Neighbor islands.

On the neighbor islands, it is more unclear as to how the charge will be applied. At Kona for example, all of the car rentals are a distance from the airport, but may still be technically considered on-airport.  At Hilo, all car rentals are on the Airport Road loop, but some are on-airport while others are not.  At Lihue, Thrifty and Alamo/National are clearly off-airport.

Fee likely unavoidable.

Unless current legislative plans change, off-airport locations will not be subject to the fee.  At other airports that have implemented similar fees, like Seattle for example, it is not possible for off-airport car rental locations to provide pick-up and drop-off at the airport.  I suspect that before it is all said and done, that will be Hawaii’s implementation plan as well.  Therefore, simply prepare to pay $4.50/day.

What are your thoughts?

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While banking online this morning, I stumbled upon a new source for Hawaii coupons. These are designed to help Bank of Hawaii customers, and are usable by anyone who chooses to print them.  There are quite a few already and I suspect that if you check back there will be more soon.

Here are just a few examples of the many coupons that might be of interest to visitors and locals:

Oahu

• Baskin-Robbins. Buy one get one free.
• Big City Diner. Free dessert.
• Wahoo Fish Tacos. Free taco.
• Iolani Palace. Two video tours for price of one.

Kauai

• Hanalei Dolphin restaurant.  10% off.
• Kalapaki Joe’s restaurant.  10% off.

Maui

• Cilantro Mexican restaurant.  $2.00 off.
• CJ’s Deli.  50% off second entree.
• Kobe Japanese Steak House.  20% off.
• Pizza Madness.  $5 off.

Big Island

• Taco Bell.  Free taco.
• Drysdale’s Two.  $1.50 off and free coffee or soft drink.
• Lulu’s restaurant.  50% off second entree.
• Captain Zodiac.  15% off dolphin/snorkel adventure.

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Travel reviews are something I’m very interested in.  So when something comes along that has the potential to change the review playing field, I take notice. Such is the case with the new location sharing applications.

If you’re already a Foursquare user, you know that one of the most interesting and useful aspects isn’t people checking in at various locations, but rather the comments they leave.  Taking this to a new level is the just released FourWhere, which is showing great potential to enrich your next Hawaii (or other) vacation.  If you’re not already familiar with Foursquare, read this.

FourWhere is basic in design and ease of use, overlaying venues and comments from Foursquare onto Google Maps.  Right-clicking on the map brings up options, so for example you can omit venues that don’t have comments.  You can choose a city, like Honolulu, or perhaps more useful, a specific street or neighborhood to which you’re headed.

Foursquare, FourWhere, and other Geo location products represent a whole different take on comments and reviews, which are paramount to travelers.  If you haven’t tried them, I suggest you do. They are evolving very rapidly and formidably.  Next to join will be mammoth Facebook, with yesterday’s announcement of their intention to release new location-based tools and features.

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I was awakened before 5:45 am on “Tsunami Saturday” by government text messages and recorded phone calls warning of an impending tidal wave.  That was followed at 6am by air raid sirens.

I was concerned until 8am; here’s what changed my mind:

On-line maps of wave heights arriving in French Polynesia clearly indicated even to a lay person that a significant tsunami was not possible in Hawaii. At 2,500 miles closer proximity to the event epicenter, French Polynesia reported only a 6 foot wave in the Marquesas Islands followed by a half foot in Tahiti.  It isn’t possible for a tsunami to suddenly pick up strength as it moves; all models indicate the reverse happens as it loses power over time and distance.

Look at the chart below and think how you would react.

The is a screen-shot of the report I found on-line early Saturday morning.  Why didn’t NOAA explain this and curtail the panic?

Even without any serious threat, NOAA’s Hawaii Tsunami Center scientists continued, based on unsubstantiated assumptions, to create unnecessary panic including hourly air raid  siren blasts.

• The event fueled incessant, irrational and non-investigative traditional media fervor that went unabated well past mid-day.
• Social Media, otherwise extremely helpful in disasters such as Haiti and with this earthquake in Chile, served to only exacerbate the false alarm here in Hawaii.
• Before the bewitching hour, stores closed, and many did not reopen again.  People had been so frightened by the incorrect information that many simply did not want to leave home.
• Many roads throughout Hawaii were roadblocked making transportation difficult to impossible.  Statewide, police department ordered to work all officers on their day off to stop traffic.

NOAA has been apologizing, not for the panic, but for how incorrect they were. Other reports indicate that tsunami forecasting will now need to be completely reassessed.

The whole state seemed simply worn out from Saturday’s drill. One Facebook friend lamented that he wanted his Saturday back. Some say that it was a good preparatory drill while others believe say it will backfire and that next time there’s a warning, people won’t heed it.

Charles McCreery, NOAA’s Pacific Tsunami Warning Center head admitted, “we’re still in the incipient stages of using these models to constrain our forecasts. There are still lots of improvements we need to make before we can rely on them totally for our decision making.”

One of the most frightening aspects of this erroneous reporting and seriously flawed modeling is that it would seem to indicate that an error in the opposite direction could be made just as easily.

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We rarely feature hotel deals, but this Maui one stands out as worthy of consideration.  It has generally received good reviews, if you can trust them.  And while I haven’t stayed here yet, I’d love to have your feedback if you have, or if you plan to vacation here.

• Kapalua Villas Maui.
• One bedroom, 1022-square-foot Fairway View villa with full kitchen, in-unit washer/dryer, and sleeps up to four guests.
• Availability:  through December 21; 4-night stay required.
• Bonus:  $150 resort credit (which will just pay for the exorbitant $25/night resort fee).
• This offer is in conjunction with Travelzoo.

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An article in NY Times comparing several meta-search sites got me thinking about how each might or might not find the unadvertised Spring deals we reported last week between the West Coast and Hawaii.

Meta Sites like Bing Travel, FareCompare, Fly and Kayak are designed to save you time in finding the best deals.

Searching hundreds of other sites, they present pricing to you, before directing you to the site of your choice for purchase.  They make money through referring you to the purchase site and through advertising.

Not one of the Meta Sites found my $336 airfare between LAX and HNL.

They couldn’t see all of the dates for the lower-priced, non advertised deals which I found on the Hawaiian Airlines site.

FareCompare missed the lower airfares in terms of the initial pricing presented, but found the deals when I clicked specific dates. It also uncovered a $329 Delta fare, that was more difficult to find.

I talked recently about how sites use backward and forward looking pricing and what that means to you while shopping online.

The examples below are screen shots of my meta flexible date search.

Bing and Kayak came closest to my $336 fare with their $352 offering.  FareCompare was higher at $381 and Fly was a dollar more. I  was also able to get an additional 5 percent discount using an Affiliate Code which lowered my fare to $320.

What does this mean? No one is perfect. All of these sites have a place and strive to be as accurate as possible.  We’ll also keep reporting the best deals we find.

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Also available from Los Angeles on American, Continental and Hawaiian Airlines.

Right in time for upcoming school holidays, Continental has a great price on their new route.  The best news is that with the exception of the days listed below, it is currently available from now through the end of May.

• Airline:  Continental Airlines.
• Price: $386 round trip (all-inclusive).
• Availability:  Through May.  Not available at this time from Orange County on March 1-6, 18-22, and 25-28.

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Thanks to volunteer efforts, the access road to Polihale Beach on Kauai’s West Side reopened last year. We drove our not recalled Toyota Highlander SUV on the road last weekend for the first time in years. Fasten your seat belts for this ride; it’s going to get bumpy.

The five mile dirt road takes at least 30 minutes to navigate. Go slow and don’t start too late in the day. Your back is going to take a beating so keep that in mind.

Pack your own food and remember there’s no cell phone service or GPS. You’re out of touch with the rest of the world which may be a good thing. There’s no lifeguard and even if there was, this is not a beach for swimming (well almost never).

The ocean conditions at Polihale are among the most unpredictable.  Currents, rogue waves and undertow can take the lives of even very experienced ocean goers.

Its seven miles of white sandy beach touch the cliffs of the Na Pali, making this one of the most spectacular places on Kauai, and in all of Hawaii.

Polihale is very sacred. According to the book, Kaua’i Trails by Kathy Morey, “In Kaua’i mythology, the souls of the dead leave the world of the living at Polihale to dwell in the depths of the ocean in Milu, the land of the dead.”

As long as you stay out of the water, you’ll leave Polihale to live another day with renewed sense of peace and energy.

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Good News For Hawaii Visitors – Bad News For Hotels

Hawaii hotel revenues dropped nearly 20 percent in 2009 to $3.6 billion.  That’s a decrease of $741 million from the prior year, primarily due to lower occupancy and reduced room rates. The 2009 occupancy rate by island was:

• Oahu 73%
• Maui 62%
• Kauai 60%
• Big Island 55%

With no sign of any amelioration in sight, here’s how that works in favor of visitors.

Reasonable hotel rates will be easy to find.

Even during most of our peak seasons, expect to pay less. Use the methods we’ve been writing about to find the best Hawaii hotel deals for you.

Your Hawaii vacation should cost less overall.

Even more economical than prior periods of abounding fare wars. Even though airfare has increased your land costs are down.

Here’s a comparison of 2008 and 2010 estimated costs for a 7-night trip from Los Angeles to Honolulu:

2008 costs:  $1,900 total air and lodging

• Airfare for two at $250 total per person: $500
• Four star hotel for two, seven nights at $200/night $1,400

2010 costs:  $1,500 total air and lodging

• Airfare for two at $400 total per person: $800
• Four star hotel for two, seven nights at $100/night: $700

Suggestion:

Don’t wait for low summer airfares that may well not materialize this year.  Instead, I suggest you use this strategy to find great accommodation deals.

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Several websites have been discussing whether clearing your browser’s cookies might help you find better travel bargains.  Is there any truth to it?

What kind of cookie am I talking about?

This cookie, unlike the one I’m eating here at a the Eveleigh Farmers Market in Sydney,  is a small piece of code that is sent by the website you visit, and stored by your browser on your computer. Among other things, cookies identify you to a website on subsequent visits.

Could cookies be hurting your deals?

A post on Airfarewatchdog recently so theorizes.  It further suggest the practice of clearing your cookies so that websites you go to for deals are unaware of your prior visits.  Originally brought to their attention by a reader, the editor concurs with the practice.  They conclude that when you return to look for the same deal on a subsequent visit, it may no longer be available.  And that when you clear the cookies and appear to be a “new” visitor, the deals magically reappear.

My thoughts: It’s highly unlikely.

Obviously airfares vary, seemingly from moment to moment.  And certainly the fact that you repeatedly look for airfares, say from Los Angeles to Honolulu, does have an substantive effect on future ticket pricing.

Here’s how that works.  Feedback to the airlines from searches we do indicate likely interest in purchasing tickets between locations at any point in time.  It’s all about supply and demand.  That feeds into their pricing models such that higher demand (in relation to availability) essentially yields higher potential prices.

Personally I use three different browsers (Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer).  I store no cookies in two of the three, and have never found any difference in availability with cookies or without.  And I’m looking at airfare deals across multiple sites numerous times each day.

Still want to give it a try?  Here’s what I suggest:

Don’t wreck the usefulness of your browser saving cookies for those sites you visit often.  Try doing one of these two things instead.

1.  Use a different browser.  If you normally use Internet Explorer for example, on that return visit try using Firefox.

2.  Surf anonymously using a proxy.  On subsequent site visits when looking for a deal, simply enter the site you wish to visit at a free anonymous surfing proxy site, and the page you want will be presented to you.  Here are a few such sites to try (although you can search and find an unlimited number of them):  Anonymouse,  Proxify,  The Cloak.

Please tell me your experiences.

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If you’re looking to spend Valentine’s Day in Hawaii, here’s a deal from Pleasant Holidays that’s too good to pass up to Honolulu, Maui or Kauai.

• $189 per person, fly round-trip to Hawaii, including Hertz rental car for 3 days (hotel not included).
• $225 per person, fly round-trip to Hawaii and stay 3 nights at one of their partner hotels (car rental not included).
• Valid for travel between San Francisco/ Los Angeles and Honolulu/Maui, and between San Francisco and Kauai.
• Travel can also commence in Hawaii for California bound locals.

Otherwise, Hawaii airfare deals aren’t as plentiful as we’d like to see. For a vacation of a week or longer, the amazingly cheap hotel deals you can find will likely more than make up for expensive airfares.

Pleasant Holidays continues to stand out in this lull between deals.

They are selling their seats purchased in bulk from United Airlines.  When they aren’t able to sell all of them, and departure time is fast approaching, they successfully use Social Media (Facebook and Twitter) to push those seats into our willing hands.

I do expect to see more airfare deals announced soon, for the mid-April through mid-June shoulder season.

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If you didn’t hear the live broadcast, we were featured on Frommers Travel show Sunday. You can listen to the interview here or on the show’s site. It’s at the beginning of the broadcast.  Arthur and Pauline produce a savvy two-hour national weekly radio show heard in 100 markets.

Arthur and I discussed:

• Summer and Christmas vacation strategies.
• Finding the cheapest airfares.
• Getting the best accommodation deals.
• Where car rentals fit into your planning.

Extended interview on Frommers website:

After recording the interview, Arthur asked me to provide their listeners and readers with our best Hawaii tips which we did not have time to cover on the show.  This can be viewed on Arthur’s blog and includes:

• Negotiating your hotel deal.
• Ancillary accommodation fees.  These can quickly ruin your good deal, so make sure you check in advance about things like resort and gym fees, late check-out charges, wi-fi, cleaning fees (vacation rentals), and more. One Hawaii 4-star hotel told me they charged higher fees for Priceline guests.
• Important car rental tips.  Be careful about lack of availability at peak times.
• Packing to save money.

Lastly, Arthur’s recent book, Ask Arthur Frommer: And Travel Better, Cheaper, Smarter, is one I thoroughly enjoyed. It covers multiple destinations and reflects his 50+ years as the travel guru.  Here’s the Amazon link.

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