ALOHA!
So you’ve decided to make the journey to visit Hawaii!
It’s no cheap endeavor, but there’s a good chance you’ll find it to be worth it. 😉
The cost of a trip to Hawaii can be expensive no matter where you’re flying from.
Flights can be an area that you can save some money on your Hawaii vacation, especially when you’re buying tickets for several people.
Generally speaking, the off season will be the cheapest time to fly to Hawaii, as that’s when the demand is lower.
Sometimes it can be about luck too.
These free newsletters can help you find the cheapest flights to Hawaii.
Here’s the worst time to go to Hawaii, if Waikiki Beach is on your itinerary!
So, when is Hawaii’s off season?
Again, generally speaking, you could say it’s the spring months and the fall months.
The exception to this would be dates that fall over the Easter holiday and any school breaks in March and April, or even mid-winter break in February.
Once again (again ;)) generally, an easy way of thinking about when Hawaii might be particularly busy would be to think about when school vacations are and aren’t.
Of course, Hawaii is a popular destination for couples without kids which makes school vacation timing mostly irrelevant for when many decide to go to Hawaii.
But Hawaii is also a popular family destination which can make it relevant for others.
Another holiday to keep in mind is Japan’s Golden Week, which is either late April or early May. (There are lots of Japanese tourists in Hawaii.)
This may not affect airline ticket prices from the United States, but it may affect hotel prices and activities in Hawaii.
In 2019, Golden Week will be around April 29 to May 7.
That said, you’ll find different people defining low season as different times!
And, you might be able to find cheap flights on random days!
So, what to do?!
Side note!
See about the best shoes for hiking in Hawaii and what to wear snorkeling in Hawaii! And for Hawaii vacation ideas, see the best things to do in Waikiki that will give you Hawaii vibes!
So here on this page will be tips on the best ways to search for the cheapest time to fly to Hawaii from your home airport!
And there are also plenty of cheap things to do in Hawaii to save more money on your vacation… like hiking in Hawaii!
These are the best short hikes on Oahu with scenic views.
Here’s how to get a free Hawaii travel guide from the Hawaii tourism department to figure out which Hawaiian islands to visit.
Here’s the quick list of how to find the cheapest time to fly to Hawaii – the best dates!
- Step 1: Search the price calendar from any west coast airport to get an idea of best dates
- Step 2: Search these dates (and more!) on flight search engines that combine a bunch of different airlines
- Step 3: Search these dates (and more!) on another flight search engine for further cheap flight offerings
- Step 4: Monitor the prices of the airline tickets
- Step 5: Book your flight to Hawaii!!!
Things you just may want for your trip to Hawaii!
And here are some other things to take a look at for your Hawaii vacation, because it’s never too early to start planning! 😉
- Air travel: These types of suitcases so you can pack light, travel in comfort, and save money!
- Walking + Hiking: These types of sandals that’ll be less hot than shoes while still giving you comfort and traction on the trails
- Beach + Snorkeling: These beach outfits – These types of UV protection shirts – These types of beach shoes to protect your feet from coral reef and hidden rocks!
- Out and about in style: Matching Hawaiian outfits because… why not ?
what to wear in hawaii >> what to wear hiking – what to wear snorkeling
What airports are there in Hawaii?
Flying into Honolulu HNL
The Honolulu Aiport is the busiest airport in Hawaii, located on the most populated Hawaiian island of Oahu.
If you’re flying from an airport that’s further east in the United States, non-stop flights between your home airport and Honolulu may not exist. This means that you will have at least one layover.
As you are searching for flights, you’ll want to check for the length of the layover to see if it’s an amount of time that’s bearable for you. 😉
You might be willing to spend a little extra money on a shorter layover time, as well as to arrive at a reasonable hour into Honolulu or other Hawaiian airport.
Flying into other Hawaiian islands: OGG -LIH – KOA – ITO
Other major airports in Hawaii include:
- Maui: OGG Kahului
- Kauai: LIH Lihue
- Big Island: KOA Kona – ITO Hilo
Some airports on the west side of the U.S. do offer direct flights into Maui. So if that’s your Hawaiian island of choice, it can be possible to manage a flight from your home airport to Hawaii with just one layover.
The same goes for Kauai and the Big Island, although direct flights are more limited.
Note that even if there is a direct flight from the U.S. mainland to another Hawaiian island, it still might mean flying through Honolulu airport to get the cheapest flight.
This means 2 layovers.
Okay, so now for a more in-depth look into finding the cheapest time to fly…
How to get the cheapest flights to Hawaii
Step 1: Search the price calendar from any west coast airport to get an idea of the cheapest time to fly to Hawaii
Now, the first thing you want to do is to find out what the cheapest dates to fly to Hawaii are.
One of the best tools for this is the Hawaiian Airlines price calendar and price chart.
This can be useful even if Hawaiian Airlines doesn’t operate from your home airport.
And if it doesn’t, you won’t be able to search specifically from the airport nearest you.
But that’s okay!
Because it can start to give you a good idea of the cheapest dates to fly, based on one segment of your flight to Hawaii.
So to get an idea of some of the cheapest time to fly, go to the Hawaiian Airlines website here.
If Hawaiian Airlines flies from your airport, enter that airport.
In the United States, airports that are designated as a Hawaiian Airlines city includes:
- Arizona: Phoenix PHX
- California: Los Angeles LAX, Sacramento SMF, San Diego SAN, Oakland OAK, San Francisco SFO, San Jose SJC
- Nevada: Las Vegas LAS
- New York JFK
- Oregon: Portland PDX
- Washington: Seattle SEA
In the South Pacific, this includes:
- Australia: Brisbane BNE, Sydney SYD
- New Zealand: Auckland AKL
- American Samoa: Pago Pago PPG
- Tahiti: Papeete PPT
If your airport isn’t one of these cities, enter any of the listed airports as the departure airport.
West coast cities can work well.
It doesn’t really matter which city you use, because this is just to help you get a general idea.
Enter the dates you are thinking about flying to Hawaii.
If you truly have no idea when you want to fly and are flexible with your dates, another way to search for cheap flights is coming up in step 2 and step 3!
In the meantime, for the purpose of this exercise 😉 choose a date that’s 2-3 months from today, and make it a one week trip.
Now, just below the “Search Flights” and “Search Flights and Hotels” button, there are 2 more buttons of interest:
- Price Calendar
- Price Chart
Choose one!
And play around with it!
Then go back and choose the other!
And play around with it!
This only allows you to search within a time frame around the dates you selected, so you may want to go back and adjust your dates so you can search for dates that are closer to today’s date or further out.
Okay, so now you have an idea of some of the cheapest dates to fly to Hawaii.
If you find several, you might want to make a note of it by writing it down on a sheet of paper.
Next…
Step 2: Search these dates on a flight search engine that combines a bunch of different airlines
In reality, you can completely skip step 1 at the Hawaiian Airlines site and start with step 2 or step 3! That’s because in steps 2 and 3 you’ll find ways to find flights with flexible dates.
But still, the price calendar and price chart can be handy resources, especially if Hawaiian Airlines does fly out of an airport near you.
So now, if you have a favorite flight search engine, use that one.
Otherwise, again for the purpose of this exercise head on over to a flight search engine to get an idea of how much the cheapest flights to Hawaii are from your city… and to decide what airline you will take to fly to Hawaii!
This time, you can enter your home airport for your departure if you did not do so when searching the Hawaiian Airlines flight schedule.
Then enter your dates. Sometimes, as you enter your dates, it might also show you the cheapest dates this flight search engine has found for any given dates.
This is another way you can find the cheapest dates to fly to Hawaii!
It’s perfect if you have flexible dates.
Do you see how on one date it will cost you up to nearly $1,200 while on another it is in the $600 range? Very useful!
SEARCH!
You will get a list of flight options.
There is also an option at the top that says “alternate dates from $xxx.” You can click on this to get more dates and flight options that can be the best time to fly to Hawaii.
Once again, very helpful!
This type of search combines different airlines in order to find you the cheapest flights to Hawaii.
STEP 3: Search another flight search engine for comparison to get the cheapest flights to Hawaii
Since different flight search engines have different methods of bringing together the cheapest flights for you, try another search engine to see what price results it give you!
This is another search engine that can be very helpful if you don’t know your specific dates or are flexible with your dates to fly to Hawaii… or if you’re just trying to figure out the best time to fly to Hawaii!
Why?
Because you can search without inputting any specific dates at all!
All you need is your departure airport and arrival airport, and then you can search based on any of the following:
- Specific date
- Date range
- Anytime
Very useful tools if you are in the early planning stages of Hawaii vacation and haven’t figured out specific dates!
You can do this for both your departure and your arrival. And similar to the previous flight search engine, if you go to click on a certain date, it may show you the cheapest time to fly to Hawaii around that date.
When you book directly through this search engine you can get guarantees to help you with the following unforeseen circumstances for connecting flights:
- Flight delays
- Flight cancellations
- Schedule changes
These guarantees come with your booking. You can read more about it here.
With this search engine, they basically do the travel hacking for you.
The ultimate goal is for you to have the cheapest flight possible combining different airlines.
So keep in mind that this may mean you have to check in twice during a flight. So just make sure you look at the finer details!
And if the situation arises that you need to take advantage of their guarantees, make sure you contact them directly as soon as possible! (Don’t go through the airline or think that you will just contact them after the flight.)
But this can be one of the best ways to get the cheapest flight!
STEP 4: Hone down on some specific dates you want to fly to Hawaii, and monitor the prices of airline tickets
So, how long to wait before buying your airline ticket, and when is the best time to book your tickets to Hawaii?!
It’s entirely up to you.
How helpful. 😉
Depending on how much time you have, you might want to keep checking back to see if the prices change significantly.
And, if you do end up buying your plane ticket and later discover a cheaper price, don’t beat yourself up over it! In fact, after you buy your ticket, stop looking at flights to Hawaii. 😉
If you’ve already decided that you are for sure going to visit Hawaii, until you buy your airline tickets, it’s going to keep nagging at you at the back of your mind. (Should you buy now, shouldn’t you, is the price going to change, is it not!?) Consider that you paid the extra to ease that stress, knowing that one part of the vacation is booked!
Sure, there are all those studies that say when the best day to buy a plane ticket is (Tuesday, Wednesday, or Sunday, but even this is in dispute), but price fluctuation of flights are largely unpredictable for the average flyer.
The most predictable thing about buying plane tickets is that ticket prices are unpredictable! 😀
STEP 5: Book your flight to Hawaii!!!
Just get it over with already! Hawaii awaits you. 😉
HAPPY FLYING TO HAWAII!
things to do in oahu | map >> best hikes – best snorkeling || waikiki – north shore – east oahu
what to wear in hawaii >> what to wear hiking – what to wear snorkeling
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🐠 Here are things you must consider packing!
- Swimsuit or swimming shirt aka rash guard
- rash guard: swim set for women and swim shirt for men
- Water shoes
- Waterproof phone case (so you can capture pictures of fishies underwater!)
- cheapo phone case OR waterproof camera
- I also have this "camera" wrist float to attach to my cheapo waterproof phone case so my phone won't sink to the bottom of the ocean in case I somehow let go of it. (Mine does stay afloat - test this for yourself before completely trusting it!)
- Swimming goggles or snorkeling mask set
- Reef-safe(r) sunscreen
- lightweight travel towel:
- walking sandals:
I also don't go snorkeling without a personal swim float buoy. Not only does it help to keep me visible, but it makes for a perfect way to rest out in deeper water! Oh, and it also serves as a dry bag so I can take stuff into the water with me.
Another way I have taken valuables into the water with me is to wear a travel money belt that I don't mind getting wet with salt water (it's not waterproof but I have several so I just use one of them) and then I put things in a ziplock freezer bag, and put that freezer bag in the money belt.
There are also designated waterproof waist pouches that you can store your valuables and take into the water with you.
see more:
- What to wear hiking
- What to wear snorkeling
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