So how pricey is a visit to Hawaii? That depends on how pricey you want to make it but, in a nutshell, the answer is not as pricey as you think. In particular if you follow a few of these Hawaiirama budget vacation trips. Some are intuitive. Others less so.

Book a package trip: I personally hate the idea of a package. It just seems so...institutional. But there's no denying that package offer huge savings. Witness this package from Hawaii.com -- $811 per person covers four nights at the Sheraton Moana Surfrider and air fare from the West Coast. The package also throws in complimentary parking and free buffet meals for one child age 12 and under. Let's do the math. You're spending $1622 for the package for two. Airfare for two from the West Coast is, at a minimum $500 in a best case scenario (more realistic is a $600 price for airfare for two). That leaves $1122 for the four nights, which averages out to less than $300 per night. Add in the complimentary parking, which usually runs around $20 per day, and your are close to $1050. Now you are down to about $250 per night for the room, which is a partial ocean view so not a bad bargain. According to TripAdvisor the average room price for this hotels is $309 per night. The Moana Surfrider is a lovely hotel (it's not really a resort, since its jammed into the Waikiki strip), a Victorian dream castle that is the oldest hotel in Waikiki. It's one of the world's classic hotels, for sure. True, your room in this package is in the modern tower wing, which is not as elegant although certainly more comfortable than the historic rooms. In any case, you're mileage always varies but, rest assured, in Hawaii it almost always pays to book a package of some sort.

—Alex, 12/27/06