Yes, smart does count. Not brilliant or genius, but being smart as to when to buy those tickets for the Holidays, and especially to Hawaii.

Samantha Bomkamp of the Associated Press writes:

…. You’ll have to know the right time to look. There are "sweet spots" in which to get the best deals this year…

Actually this week is the best time to start. If your flying from the Mainland to Hawaii around Thanksgiving it would pay to do some intense price checking NOW. Why? Because within a couple weeks of Thanksgiving fares on the Mainland are going to start going up, up. Everybody’s going "across the river and through the woods to Grandma’s house."   If you’re coming to Hawaii, you’re probably not going to Grandma’s house, but if you wait too long to purchase tickets you might get caught in the airfare cross-fire of mainlanders that are.

Buy Your Cheap Tickets Now

The consensus among experts at Expedia and Travelocity is to buy now rather than later; especially if you don’t have flexibility on travel dates. But even if you are flexible don’t expect the airlines to post a "desperation" sale at the last minute. Flight reservations are getting a lot of pressure, so although the complicated matrix used by the airlines may squeak out a few bargain seats at the last moment, don’t expect a big drumroll about it.

 What a little Research for Cheap Airfares will do

It took me about 5 minutes to look up the following fares. All are for round trip single passenger coach, Denver to Kahului, Maui, and don’t include taxes, etc.

Dep 10/19—Rtn 10/26  $621.00

       11/30           12/7    $542.00 (going down, down!)

       12/15           12/22  $683.00 (Going up,up!)

But, here’s one right off Alaska Airlines website:

       12/1            12/8    $557.20    (Not too bad! Connections weren’t too bad, either. Leave Denver 12:05 pm, Arrive Kahului, Maui 4:40 pm)

So What’s the Bottom Line for Hawaii Airfares During the Holiday Season?

If you have ironclad travel dates, don’t take a chance, buy now. If you’re really flexible, let the dice roll.

Off subject, but will Make Nevadans Happy

Hawaiian Airlines just announced a non-stop schedule from Las Vegas to Maui. Flight 31 departs Las Vegas on Sundays and Wednesdays at 6:25 pm, arriving Kahului, Maui 9:25 pm. Return Flight 32 departs Kahului on Mondays and Thursdays at 8:00 am, arriving Las Vegas 4:35 pm. Way to go, Hawaiian Airlines

Keep your sights on this site. More good stuff coming soon. a hui hou

Maui Chefs Present… The 2008 Culinary Olympics

This event takes place Friday, September 5, 2008 (Ok, OK, so I’m little late with the news.) It’s all about gourmet prepared food and spirits. And, although the event is widely touted by the Lahaina Town Action Committee, it’s actually located in Kapalua, Maui at the Ritz Carlton Pavilion

This is not "pupus and go" beer bust. No indeed. Featured are 24 gourmet dishes from the leading chefs on Maui. The entire event is very high class, and is geared towards perpetuating and enhancing the culinary arts on Maui. This is the 16th year for this gastronomic get-together, so they must be doing something right. I’ve attended twice and was much impressed.

Oh, and did I mention there’s live music and an opening ceremony featuring Raiatea Helm? Holy Gopher, I’d go just to hear her sing (I’m going to do an entire post on her soon, but in the meantime check out this Hawaiian Blossom right here).

OK, this is what makes me wince slightly about this event. The price. $150 each. But, a percentage of the proceeds does benefit Maui Community College Culinary Arts Scholarship Program.

For more details, go to this site.

Halloween in Lahaina

Unless they’ve upgraded since I talked to them on 8/22/08, disregard most of the info on the Lahaina Town Action Committee website concerning Halloween in Lahaina, 10/31/08. There will be a children’s costume parade, but no food booths or live bands on the streets. And the streets will be open to traffic for much of the event.

All I can say is a big "BOO" on all that. Dang, most of that stuff is what made this event so great. To quote from a post I made about this last year, "It’s the most outrageous party you can imagine."

Rant over, I think there will still be boatloads of people and great costumes.

OK, let’s say you trashed my rant and booked a flight to Maui for Halloween, Now, imagine it’s actually Halloween, and you’re ready to take in the big event. You and your party jump in the red convertible you’ve rented, and, top down, you buzz off to Lahaina. You arrive at the outskirts and, after driving up and down Lahaina’s narrow streets for about 20 minutes, you realize, HOLY CRUD! there’s no place to park!

First, forget the red convertible and, a couple of days in advance if possible, or right now, call the hotel or resort you’re staying at, and ask them about free or paid transportation to Halloween in Lahaina.

Let me sum up by saying, I’ve attended this event many times, and have never felt threatened in any way. OK, OK, it does get a little noisy towards closing time, but for the most part it’s a family affair …

AND HERE’S SOME OF THE FAMILY!

Aloha  a hui hou

If your connection to Hawaii wasn’t very strong, the announcement of Aloha Airline’s demise probably didn’t arouse your radar, or at the most only raised a “oh well, another airline bites the dust” thought.

For many citizens of the State of Hawaii, and expatriates, it was a sad day. Aloha Airlines and bankruptcy had been flirting with each other for several years, so it wasn’t any big surprise locally when the final flight was announced. But that didn’t make it any easier for the airline’s employee’s and their families. Of the 3,482 employees an estimated 1,900 retained employment to continue the cargo and ground services divisions … which are up for sale.

Aloha Airlines was founded by publisher Ruddy Tongg and his partners as Trans-Pacific Airlines. According to aviation historian Peter Forman:

“When Aloha first came in, they were responding to the prejudices of the time. They created an airlines that a person of any ethnicity could fly on and feel equally welcome. There are many old timers who still support Aloha for this reason.”

In the old days of Aloha Airlines, it was known as “the Peoples Airline,” and that feeling pretty much stuck through it’s history. Old timers tell of good times on the flights, with Flight Attendants (they were called Stewardesses in those days) serving pineapple juice, singing Hawaiian songs, even dancing the hula and playing the ‘ukulele.

And the equipment got improvised, too. When the airline still flew the unpressurized DC-3s, holes were put in the fuselage so that passengers could poke a camera through and take photographs. That’s called “island ingenuity.”

Bruddah, I’m going to miss Aloha Airlines. It always seemed they took off and landed a little faster. Kind of a hot express; didn’t fool around much taxiing to the terminal. I think when all the security measures hit the terminals and airlines there were a few folks who “make grumble,” but that was kind of universal.

So, if there’s any good stories out there, and you care to share them, we’ll do a little post with snippets of your stories. Be patient with me, ’cause I’m not the swiftest of formatters. We’ll call it Aloha Airlines history II.

Mahalo nui loa Aloha Airlines for all the great years of service. Tanks, eh.

If it looks like there’s a little raindrop sized puddle on your screen, it’s just me.

Aloha a hui hou

Many of you are probably old hands at going online and working out the cheapest airline ticket, but, again, it’s surprising how many travelers don’t. Where that shows up is when you do a little shopping online.

Here’s an example I looked up on 4/21/08: San Francisco (SFO) to Kahului, Maui (OGG). Rack price for major airline was $1561.46; best price through Orbitz was $634.00. All other details were approximately the same, elapsed travel time, number of stops (one in this case), departure date and day of the week, roundtrip, etc. The major airline sites wouldn’t keep those prices listed unless somebody was buying.

Whew! The difference could pay for several dive trips to Molokini Island (technically, Islet).

Look, if you’re new at this, remember airfares are determined by a rapidly changing mix of three elements: Competition (between airlines), Inventory (how many seats are available), and Demand (people seeking those seats). Figuring this all out would make an MIT whiz return to Remedial Arithmetic.

Fortunately, you don’t have to do the math. There are excellent online sources available that use powerful computer programs to sort this all out … and present you with cheap airplane tickets to Hawaii. It’s knowing where to click that counts! The process is really not that hard. But, before you start viewing the sites, get organized.

• Make a list of what you need from a "flight site"(ex: flight availability, special services, handicap avail., how to contact, method of payment).
• I should have put this first. Don’t be afraid to scroll and browse around in these sites. There’s no commitment until the site actually asks you for payment. Until then, you’re pretty much incognito.
• Be flexible as possible on departure and return dates. Here’s why:
  • –Fly mid-week. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are best. Why? Less demand. Airlines, by offering cheaper fares on those days, try to encourage you to plunk your money down and fill up those seats.
  • –Stay overnight Saturday (well, that’s a no-brainer if you’re flying to Hawaii.) But,why? Because that puts you into an excursion class which receives a greater discount.
  • –Travel on the actual holiday day (ex: Christmas [well, Christmas has been a good choice in recent years], Easter, Mother’s Day). Hey, why not?
  • Airlines often put time restrictions on discounts. That is, you have to purchase 7, 14 or even 21 days BEFORE you travel. If you’ve missed the cut-off date, don’t panic. Look for other possibilities, but keep checking that original flight you wanted. The airline might just open the discount again closer to flight time.
  • Can’t emphasize this enough. If you’re on a very tight budget, being flexible is absolutely essential…Save your money to have fun on the beaches of the Big Island or Maui.

Here is a partial list of online sites where you can apply the above suggestions:

• Orbitz.com—This site was originated by several large airline companies. The site is fast and powerful.
• Expedia.com—One of the pioneers in the online travel business
• Travelocity.com— One of the big hitters in the travel business.
• Priceline.com—This may be your best bet for low airfares to Hawaii. You can make an offer or bid on
• And, don’t forget your local, friendly Travel Agent for cheap airplane tickets; especially if you’ve had a good money-saving relationship with them. Even then, check your online sources for comparison.

And, just for your convenience, here are the Airport Codes for all the major airports in Hawaii:

• Lihue (Kauai)=LIH
• Honolulu (Oahu)=HNL
• Kahului (Maui)=OGG
• Hilo (Island of Hawaii, Big Island)=ITO
• Kailua-Kona (Island of Hawaii, Big Island)=KOA

OK, get online and find those cheap flights to Hawaii! Aloha A hui hou