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When I visited Hawaii last year I noticed that something was different at all the hotels compared to hotels at similar locations elsewhere; Thailand, Indonesia,

When I visited Hawaii last year I noticed that something was different at all the hotels compared to hotels at similar locations elsewhere; Thailand, Indonesia, the Dominican Republic. In Hawaii, all hotels had huge parking garages and a large valet parking staff. Similar-sized hotels in the other locations never had parking garages, hotels with hundreds of rooms might have a tiny parking-lot somewhere, on which a few rental cars would be parked. But in Hawaii, everyone rents a car, drives it the ten minutes from the airport to the hotel, parks it at the hotel, leaves it there for a week, then drives it back to the airport to get home. It's a pretty funny and stark reminder of the completely different mindset and attitude towards cars that most americans have. Having a car is so deeply ingrained that the alternatives don't have a chance.

ljf 15y ago
People looked at us as though we were insane getting the bus from the Airport to our hotel - it took 15 mins, and cost about $2 each - a taxi would have been a shade quicker, but would have been $20 to $30. A few couples even came over to see if we'd made a mistake, or offering a lift in their hire-car. In the hotel we were asked a few time how on earth we could travel around the island without a hire-car.
- vidarh 15y ago
  I don't have a drivers license. Never needed one. Imagine the reactions that gets me when I go to the US.
  - drostie 15y ago
    I don't have a drivers license either, and in the US I find myself cycling a bit. Cars don't really know what to do with you there. ^_^ When I mention that I'm not cycling to work and it takes me 30 minutes to walk, even my fellow Nederlanders look at me in shock and disbelief. 30 minutes, for reference, is about the duration of a typical podcast, and is also pretty standard for downloadable audio lectures, so it's not like I lose productivity -- and even without those, it really does clear my head to spend half an hour with my own mind and no internet to distract me. When I had a bike, I lived further away and spent 50 minutes cycling to work. The thing is, that was only maybe 5 minutes longer than my next-best option, public transport (bus-to-train-to-bus). A car would have been a tremendous, polluting investment, and I lost something like 35 kg just because I got my daily exercise in. So yeah. If you live in an urban environment, driving works but seems lazy.
    - JoshTriplett 15y ago
      While I agree with what you've said about cars, I'd consider it just as crazy to have a 30-minute or 50-minute commute by alternative transportation as an equally long commute by car. Either way, you waste a significant portion of your life going back and forth to work. If you have a commute longer than 5-10 minutes, and you don't work from home on the vast majority of days, consider changing either your work location or your home location. That holds regardless of your preferred mode of transport.
      - adrianN 15y ago
        That is doable if you're single and live alone. When you and your preferred room mate work at different locations, it becomes impossible for both of you to live within 5-10 minutes of your workplace.
      - merraksh 15y ago
        True, you spend a lot of time going back and forth, but while commuting by car requires that you focus 100% on driving (and the same goes for biking or walking), doing it by train or bus lets you do actual work if all you need is a laptop.
        JoshTriplett 15y ago
        True enough. While you'll still have some overhead due to the walking in between, you'll probably end up with something comparable to a 5-10 minute commute. Still not ideal (due to the working conditions), but not a complete waste of time.
        secoif 15y ago
        I take public transport for exactly this reason. I have also found being on public transport somehow makes me feel incredibly focused and productive.
      - techdmn 15y ago
        I think that a 30 minute walk or bike ride is not "wasted" the same way 30 minutes driving would be. Driving can be a huge stress, especially in rush-hour commuting traffic. A walk or a bike ride is a chance to unwind.
  - saraid216 15y ago
    As an American, I've been explicitly called childish by several people for not desiring a driver's license. Because you only grow up when you have a car. -_-
vital101 15y ago
When my wife and I went to Oahu for out honeymoon, we thought it was absolutely insane that anyone would rent a car while visiting the place. They have a free bus system that shuttles you around the down town area, and there are loads of tours that can get you to the regular hots spots that everyone wants to visit.
- dereg 15y ago
  This is okay if you're a tourist traveling between popular tourist spots. As a local, taking the bus 10 miles from home to work would take me at least an hour and half to two hours, verus 40 minutes in a car.
  - benjiweber 15y ago
    Or 30 minutes on a bike (once you're fit)
- icehawk 15y ago
  The first time I visited Hawaii, I think I might have gotten away with not renting a car. However, the more I visit, the more I find myself driving places. Visiting relatives while I am there also requires a car.
bwh2 15y ago
True for Oahu, but certainly not Maui or Kauai.
- lutorm 15y ago
  Or the Big island. I was going to say the same thing: if you want to do something interesting, like go to Haleakala or O'heo on Maui or various volcanic excursions on the Big island, you'll get nowhere without a car. Granted, that's probably a minority (thankfully) of the people...
- tpowell 15y ago
  Driving the road to Hana was one of the coolest things I've ever done. Cars have ruined where I grew up in Dallas, though — so much sprawl. I live in Austin, which is sort of fighting it, but establishing the infrastructure after the fact is so difficult.
haberman 15y ago
> But in Hawaii, everyone rents a car, drives it the ten minutes from the airport to the hotel, parks it at the hotel, leaves it there for a week, then drives it back to the airport to get home. When I was in Hawaii I took shuttles but my friends rented a car. One day I hitched a ride with them to a trailhead and we took a tropical hike that ended up being the absolute high point of the trip for me. It was remote and I'm pretty sure no public transportation went there.
- Retric 15y ago
  You can easily rent a car for 1-2 days on a week long vacation, you just don't end up parking it at the hotel.
bostonvaulter2 15y ago
If you want to travel outside of Waikiki (which doesn't really count as Hawaii IMHO) and a few popular tourist destinations I think you're going to want to rent a car. Of course I'm not saying that the majority of tourists should rent a car. Additionally the bus has restrictions on how much luggage you can carry, typically you can only bring a mid-size suitcase each (it has to fit on or under your seat).

ljf 15y ago

People looked at us as though we were insane getting the bus from the Airport to our hotel - it took 15 mins, and cost about $2 each - a taxi would have been a shade quicker, but would have been $20 to $30. A few couples even came over to see if we'd made a mistake, or offering a lift in their hire-car. In the hotel we were asked a few time how on earth we could travel around the island without a hire-car.

vidarh 15y ago
I don't have a drivers license. Never needed one. Imagine the reactions that gets me when I go to the US.
- drostie 15y ago
  I don't have a drivers license either, and in the US I find myself cycling a bit. Cars don't really know what to do with you there. ^_^ When I mention that I'm not cycling to work and it takes me 30 minutes to walk, even my fellow Nederlanders look at me in shock and disbelief. 30 minutes, for reference, is about the duration of a typical podcast, and is also pretty standard for downloadable audio lectures, so it's not like I lose productivity -- and even without those, it really does clear my head to spend half an hour with my own mind and no internet to distract me. When I had a bike, I lived further away and spent 50 minutes cycling to work. The thing is, that was only maybe 5 minutes longer than my next-best option, public transport (bus-to-train-to-bus). A car would have been a tremendous, polluting investment, and I lost something like 35 kg just because I got my daily exercise in. So yeah. If you live in an urban environment, driving works but seems lazy.
  - JoshTriplett 15y ago
    While I agree with what you've said about cars, I'd consider it just as crazy to have a 30-minute or 50-minute commute by alternative transportation as an equally long commute by car. Either way, you waste a significant portion of your life going back and forth to work. If you have a commute longer than 5-10 minutes, and you don't work from home on the vast majority of days, consider changing either your work location or your home location. That holds regardless of your preferred mode of transport.
    - adrianN 15y ago
      That is doable if you're single and live alone. When you and your preferred room mate work at different locations, it becomes impossible for both of you to live within 5-10 minutes of your workplace.
    - merraksh 15y ago
      True, you spend a lot of time going back and forth, but while commuting by car requires that you focus 100% on driving (and the same goes for biking or walking), doing it by train or bus lets you do actual work if all you need is a laptop.
      - JoshTriplett 15y ago
        True enough. While you'll still have some overhead due to the walking in between, you'll probably end up with something comparable to a 5-10 minute commute. Still not ideal (due to the working conditions), but not a complete waste of time.
      - secoif 15y ago
        I take public transport for exactly this reason. I have also found being on public transport somehow makes me feel incredibly focused and productive.
    - techdmn 15y ago
      I think that a 30 minute walk or bike ride is not "wasted" the same way 30 minutes driving would be. Driving can be a huge stress, especially in rush-hour commuting traffic. A walk or a bike ride is a chance to unwind.
- saraid216 15y ago
  As an American, I've been explicitly called childish by several people for not desiring a driver's license. Because you only grow up when you have a car. -_-

vital101 15y ago

When my wife and I went to Oahu for out honeymoon, we thought it was absolutely insane that anyone would rent a car while visiting the place. They have a free bus system that shuttles you around the down town area, and there are loads of tours that can get you to the regular hots spots that everyone wants to visit.

dereg 15y ago
This is okay if you're a tourist traveling between popular tourist spots. As a local, taking the bus 10 miles from home to work would take me at least an hour and half to two hours, verus 40 minutes in a car.
- benjiweber 15y ago
  Or 30 minutes on a bike (once you're fit)
icehawk 15y ago
The first time I visited Hawaii, I think I might have gotten away with not renting a car. However, the more I visit, the more I find myself driving places. Visiting relatives while I am there also requires a car.

bwh2 15y ago

True for Oahu, but certainly not Maui or Kauai.

lutorm 15y ago
Or the Big island. I was going to say the same thing: if you want to do something interesting, like go to Haleakala or O'heo on Maui or various volcanic excursions on the Big island, you'll get nowhere without a car. Granted, that's probably a minority (thankfully) of the people...
tpowell 15y ago
Driving the road to Hana was one of the coolest things I've ever done. Cars have ruined where I grew up in Dallas, though — so much sprawl. I live in Austin, which is sort of fighting it, but establishing the infrastructure after the fact is so difficult.

haberman 15y ago

> But in Hawaii, everyone rents a car, drives it the ten minutes from the airport to the hotel, parks it at the hotel, leaves it there for a week, then drives it back to the airport to get home. When I was in Hawaii I took shuttles but my friends rented a car. One day I hitched a ride with them to a trailhead and we took a tropical hike that ended up being the absolute high point of the trip for me. It was remote and I'm pretty sure no public transportation went there.

Retric 15y ago
You can easily rent a car for 1-2 days on a week long vacation, you just don't end up parking it at the hotel.

bostonvaulter2 15y ago

If you want to travel outside of Waikiki (which doesn't really count as Hawaii IMHO) and a few popular tourist destinations I think you're going to want to rent a car. Of course I'm not saying that the majority of tourists should rent a car. Additionally the bus has restrictions on how much luggage you can carry, typically you can only bring a mid-size suitcase each (it has to fit on or under your seat).