10 Days in Hawaii: Oahu Plus One Island

Every island hop costs most of half a day. The flight itself is short, about 30 minutes from Honolulu to Maui and 45 to 50 to the Big Island, but the state’s visitor site says to arrive 90 minutes early, and there is the checkout, the drive and the rental car at the other end (gohawaii). Two islands in 10 days means one of those days. Three means two, and no island gets enough time.

You also do not have to backtrack. Kahului on Maui and Kona on the Big Island both take nonstop flights from the mainland (Alaska Airlines, National Park Service), so fly into Honolulu and home from the second island. The only inter-island flight is the one in the middle.

We would start on Oahu. It is our recommendation rather than a rule: the Oahu sights with timed entry fit the early wake-ups of your first days, and the second island becomes the slower half of the trip. Base in Waikiki, where a car is optional; our guide to where to stay on Oahu compares the alternatives, and getting around Oahu covers the bus and when to rent.

Three Oahu bookings need lead time, so lock them before you place the flight to the second island:

• Pearl Harbor: the USS Arizona program is free but booked only on Recreation.gov, released 8 weeks and 24 hours ahead at 3 p.m. HST. See Pearl Harbor tickets.
• Hanauma Bay: closed Monday and Tuesday, and reservations open just 2 days ahead at 7 a.m. HST. See Hanauma Bay reservations.
• Diamond Head: out-of-state visitors need a reservation, bookable up to 30 days ahead. See Diamond Head reservations.

Then build the four days in the Oahu Itinerary Builder. It turns what you want to see into a day-by-day plan, so the Oahu days live there, not here.

Maui is the resort-and-scenery half. Give it five or six nights, based in Wailea or Kāʻanapali. From Wailea the Haleakalā summit is 3 hours’ drive, against 3.5 from Lahaina (National Park Service).

Haleakalā at Sunrise

Sunrise needs a reservation: $1 per vehicle for entry between 3 and 7 a.m., released on Recreation.gov 60 days ahead at 7 a.m. HST, with a second batch 2 days ahead. The 60-day release often sells out within fifteen minutes, and none are sold at the gate (National Park Service). Entry is $30 per car on top, valid three days for both the summit and the Kīpahulu district, card only (fees). Sunset needs no reservation. A guided sunrise tour gets you up the mountain without the reservation scramble.

The Hāna Highway

The road to Hāna runs 52 miles along Maui’s north coast, and gohawaii says it takes anywhere from 3 hours to all day (gohawaii). Start early, park only in marked stalls, and book Waiʻānapanapa State Park, the state park on the way: reservations open 30 days ahead at midnight HST, $5 per person plus $10 parking for nonresidents (Hawaii State Parks). Kīpahulu, past Hāna, is on the same Haleakalā pass if it falls within three days of the summit.

West Maui and a Slow Day

Give one day to West Maui’s resort coast at Kāʻanapali and Kapalua, and keep one open for the beach. Much of Lahaina is still rebuilding after the 2023 fire: visit with a purpose, stay out of fenced areas and off private property, and check the county’s Maui Recovers site before you go.

The Big Island is the one with the volcano. Give it five or six nights, based in sunny Kona, where the mainland flights land, and plan one or two of those nights near the park or in Hilo. Kona to Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park is 2 to 2.5 hours each way on Highway 11; Hilo is 45 minutes (National Park Service).

Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park

Entry is $30 per car with no reservation, and the park takes cards only (fees). Parking lots can be full by 10 a.m. Kīlauea has been erupting in episodes since December 2024: lava fountaining lasts hours and the pauses between can last weeks, so lava is a maybe on any given day (National Park Service). Check the USGS Kīlauea update and the park webcams the night before, and go for the caldera rim, the Kīlauea Iki crater and the Nāhuku lava tube either way.

Kona, Hilo and Maunakea

Split the rest between the Kona side, with its calm west-facing water and Kailua Village, and the rainforest and waterfalls around Hilo. Maunakea’s summit needs a true four-wheel-drive vehicle above the visitor station at 9,200 feet, and your rental contract has to allow it (University of Hawaii). For most visitors that makes it a guided tour or a skip.

As of October 2026: Kauai pairs well with Oahu in a normal year, but after Hurricane Lowell in September 2026 the state closed the parks that anchor a Kauai visit, including Hāʻena and the Kalalau Trail, the Nāpali Coast, Waimea Canyon and Kōkeʻe, with no reopening date announced. Check DLNR’s Kauai parks page. We will add a Kauai version when they reopen.

Still choosing between islands? Our comparison of Oahu, Maui, Kauai and the Big Island lines them up on hotel rates, crowds and driving.

The windows stack up across both islands. Book in this order, starting with the longest lead times:

Then the flights and hotels. For the Oahu nights, the how many days in Oahu guide helps if you want to shift the split.

Is 10 days enough for two Hawaiian islands?

Yes. Ten days is the shortest trip where two islands work well: four nights on Oahu, five or six on the second island, and one short flight between. Three islands in 10 days means two travel days and not much time anywhere.

Which island should I pair with Oahu?

Maui for resorts, Haleakalā and the Road to Hāna. The Big Island for volcanoes and the widest range of landscape. Kauai pairs well too, but its biggest state parks closed after Hurricane Lowell in September 2026, so check DLNR before you plan around it.

How long is the flight between islands?

About 30 minutes from Honolulu to Maui and 45 to 50 minutes to the Big Island, in the air. The state’s visitor site says to arrive 90 minutes early, so plan on losing most of half a day.

Should I fly into Oahu or the other island first?

We would start on Oahu, where the bookings with timed windows fit the early wake-ups of your first days, and wind down on the second island. Kahului, Kona and Līhuʻe all have nonstop flights from the mainland, so you can fly home from the second island without going back through Honolulu.

Do I need a rental car on each island?

On Oahu, only for the days you leave Waikiki. On Maui and the Big Island, yes: Haleakalā, the Hāna Highway and Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park are long drives from the resort areas.