Few actions provide more giddy anticipation than uncapping a Sharpie and scrawling “O N V A C A T I O N” across an entire week of your wall calendar. Having a tropical getaway to look forward to puts a spring in your step and fun visions in your head because soon you’ll get to switch to auto-reply on your work email, relax with your family and enjoy a beautiful locale — preferably with a Mai Tai in hand. But travel is expensive, so you probably have to budget unless you’re Jeff Besos.

So how do we get a little more bang for our buck, have just as much fun and maybe even save enough cash to hasten saving for our next trip? Packages are one way to go, but when to book vacation packages in Kauai? Booking your hotel and adding a flight together through a reputable online travel service like Orbitz, Travelocity, or Expedia can keep the costs down — but it is not right for every trip. Pros and cons exist in almost every travel bundle, so here are some basic tips to help you decide when to seek out a Kauai travel package and when to stick with a la carte.

 

 

Booking a Kauai vacation package could be beneficial when:

1. Spending less is your top priority. Depending on your current budget, sometimes the “How much?” is even more important than the “Where to?” Sometimes price can be the difference between going and not going. Maybe it’s been an extra tight year for you otherwise, or you’ve had to pay for a big event recently. (Perhaps it’s your honeymoon.) A well-designed travel package can get you the same flights and hotel experiences for a lot less money than purchasing them separately. You may have to concede on certain details, however. For example: stay on a different shore of the garden island or use travel dates that are less convenient, but with a little comparison shopping, you can determine if it is, in fact, a better deal and if so, it might be well worth these concessions.

2. You are taking a last-minute Kauai getaway: Sometimes you get lucky and score a cheap last-minute flight price, but more often than not a fare will spike in the final days and you end up paying a frustratingly elevated price. This is a good time to check to see if bundling your flight and Kauai hotels could save you some cash. You might be pleasantly surprised. Many sites specialize in last-minute travel, and it’s not unheard of for customers to save as much as 70 percent by booking a last-minute package vs a la carte. Anywhere from 14 days to three hours before departure, these last-minute bundling companies will snatch up unsold airline seats and hotel rooms at everything-must-go prices. If you can find these bundles, you will often see pretty big price differentials than if you’d last-minute booked separately.

 

 

3. You’re happy to let the experts do some of the planning for you: Enter the romantic vacation package. And by romance, we don’t mean the falling-in-love kind of romantic romance (though we never rule that out!) We are referring to the perfect place for romance. Resorts create a full range of packages that include goods, services and fun that broaden the experience of the locale. For example, Koloa Landing Resort on Kauai’s sunny South Shore has several vacation package deals to choose from. Their Exactly Like Nothing Else package offers a dizzying array of adventures that include a NaPali Coast tour, a helicopter excursion, a ziplining experience and more! (Airfare does not factor in here.) Just by staying at the resort, you’re already going to enjoy the largest villas on the garden isle, a world-class day resort spa and a spectacular 350-gallon, multi-level outdoor pool (hailed as one of “Hawaii’s best” by the Los Angeles Times), but now you will also be whisked away on multiple pre-booked adventures for less than you’d pay to book it all separately yourself.

4. You are hitting a popular place at its peak season: Peak season is always going to be more expensive; it’s just supply-and-demand economics. If you are not willing to pay $800 for that ocean-view resort room over the 4th of July, plenty of folks are happy to. With a package, you can book a predetermined fee for airfare and hotel together and free yourself from the hassle of tracking rising-and-falling airfare prices or trying to figure out how and when to nab the best hotel rates.

 

 

Booking a la carte travel to Hawaii makes more sense when:

1. Your trip requires more flexibility: Perhaps you have friends you’d like to visit on Maui for a few days before you hit your resort in Kauai, Hawaii. Or perhaps you’d prefer to split your time between one Poipu Beach resort and one Princeville resort. Even though vacation packages can often reduce your travel costs, by the time you make adjustments to your itinerary, you can find yourself bumping up the price anyhow. Also, if you love to stay in that tiny plantation inn or in that off-the-beaten-path Bed and Breakfast, they will likely not be part of a mainstream travel package that usually last-minute hotel deals in Kauai with the big-name resorts.

2. You’re a spontaneous traveler: If, for example, you arrive in Paris and now are suddenly overcome with the desire to get down to Provence for a fabulous week-long rosé festival, you will obviously need to make adjustments. Once you’re locked into a hotel as part of a package deal, switching up your dates or the number of nights in any given city can be nearly impossible. Spontaneous folks are likely best served to book a la carte (and with cancellation insurance to boot!)

Get Kauai Vacation Packages at Our Kauai Beach Resort

You can discover great Kauai vacation deals with creative research and price comparison. Whatever you choose, we hope your travels bring you to our Kauai resort and spa, where we are always ready to welcome you in the spirit of aloha. Click here for more info on booking a gorgeous villa or guest room — with or without a fabulous vacation resort package. Visit Kauai and happy adventuring!

Erica Karlin — Koloa Landing Resort