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We have friends coming Dec.-Jan., flying United. They had a weird itinerary flying from Hilo to Maui to Honolulu so I tried to find a more expedient route but when I did a search there were no direct flights from Hilo to HNL. None. I know that they're ending the ITO to LAX route but have they also stopped flying ITO to HNL? I can book them on Southwest for that first leg but I'm wondering if anyone knows what's up with the lack of direct flights to HNL.
Certainty will be the death of us.
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United doesn't fly from Hilo to Honolulu. They would be on Hawaiian and United can only sell a limited number of seats. they have either sold their limit or Hawaiian is full.
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Thanks, Obie. I didn't know that. Always went ITO to LAX. RIP.
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12-07-2022, 11:01 PM
(This post was last modified: 12-07-2022, 11:04 PM by Obie.)
They would need to look for another flight from the United Ap or website.
If you book them on Southwest or Hawaiian , they will have to claim their bags in HNL, check with United and go back through security .
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Right. I'm grumpily resigning myself to taking people to and from Kona. Found a Kona to Raleigh one-stop flight that knocks off 10 hrs. of travel time for my friends.
Certainty will be the death of us.
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(12-07-2022, 11:01 PM)Obie Wrote: They would need to look for another flight from the United Ap or website.
If you book them on Southwest or Hawaiian , they will have to claim their bags in HNL, check with United and go back through security .
I do this quite often, at least I did before the pandemic. Book interisland flights and then book the mainland flight separately from HNL - it used to save quite a lot of money. It's a hassle but there is a wiki-wiki shuttle outside baggage claim that will take you between terminals and drop you near the airline check-in desks. I doubt it's a good option for a group but for a single traveler it's worth looking into.
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If your friends do fly via Kona, kalianna, you might suggest they take the Hele-On bus to Hilo. I did this recently flying with Alaska Airlines and it was great. There are now at least 8 buses to Hilo each day that stop right at the Kona airport terminal, some go via the Saddle, others via Waimea. I watched the scenery over Saddle Road on a former Roberts Hawaii tour bus, big windows and big seats. Maybe 10 other passengers. Lots of room for luggage. It was on time and best of all, 100% free. You could pick them up in Hilo or have them transfer there to the Pahoa bus. Schedules are here:
http://www.heleonbus.org/sandbox/Route%202.pdf and here:
http://www.heleonbus.org/sandbox/Route%2080.pdf .
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(12-07-2022, 11:08 PM)kalianna Wrote: Right. I'm grumpily resigning myself to taking people to and from Kona. Found a Kona to Raleigh one-stop flight that knocks off 10 hrs. of travel time for my friends.
I've done that Kona trip to pick up and then later drop off visitors several times. I finally put my foot down a few years ago and started telling people no. The only exception is my parents. They are too old to figure out changing planes and taking a bus or whatever. Now that Southwest pricing in in effect there is no reason for me to waste nearly 10 hours driving back and forth twice for anybody else. (The costco trip doesn't make it worth it).
The last time I picked them up the parking at Kona was insane. There were no spots anywhere, the only one I could find was a mile away from baggage claim and there was no shuttle. Because it took so long to find a spot I had to jog to the airport under the intense Kona summer sun, barely got there in time to meet up with the parents me all sweaty just to explain to them that I needed to go fetch my car and their luggage would come out before I could meet them at the curb.
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(12-08-2022, 07:07 PM)terracore Wrote: (12-07-2022, 11:08 PM)kalianna Wrote: Right. I'm grumpily resigning myself to taking people to and from Kona. Found a Kona to Raleigh one-stop flight that knocks off 10 hrs. of travel time for my friends.
I've done that Kona trip to pick up and then later drop off visitors several times. I finally put my foot down a few years ago and started telling people no. The only exception is my parents. They are too old to figure out changing planes and taking a bus or whatever. Now that Southwest pricing in in effect there is no reason for me to waste nearly 10 hours driving back and forth twice for anybody else. (The costco trip doesn't make it worth it).
The last time I picked them up the parking at Kona was insane. There were no spots anywhere, the only one I could find was a mile away from baggage claim and there was no shuttle. Because it took so long to find a spot I had to jog to the airport under the intense Kona summer sun, barely got there in time to meet up with the parents me all sweaty just to explain to them that I needed to go fetch my car and their luggage would come out before I could meet them at the curb.
You could arrange with Hawaiian to transfer your parents in Honolulu. They wouldn’t have to walk or figure anything out for themselves.
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[quote pid='340864' dateline='1670527172']
You could arrange with Hawaiian to transfer your parents in Honolulu. They wouldn’t have to walk or figure anything out for themselves.
[/quote]
Maybe in the future. So far they've only been willing to fly on Alaska to use up miles.
