Michigan to Hawaii

[Disney st8 of mind]

I am going way outside my comfort zone with this trip so Im looking to see what others have done. We'll be flying from Detroit to Hawaii but would like to do a few day stop to Disneyland.

Would we be better off to do Disneyland on the way to Hawaii or on the way home?

Which airlines do you recommend? Would I basically be booking three ticket segments?

Any other advice???

 

[jtkboston]

See the discussion in this thread, there is a variety of opinions on before vs. after:

We are planning on going to Aulani and Disneyland in the summer of 2020.

We live near the east coast.

We are trying to decide to which to go to first.

Do we fly to California and do Disneyland.for 6 nights then fly to Hawaii and do Aulani for 6 nights?

Or fly to Hawaii then do Disneyland on our way back?

Flights both ways are about the same cost.

Originally, we were thinking Hawaii first, now maybe California first.

We started thinking about adjusting to the time change.

We would love to hear everyone’s thoughts...pros and cons

Thanks

 

[abdgeek]

I am going way outside my comfort zone with this trip so Im looking to see what others have done. We'll be flying from Detroit to Hawaii but would like to do a few day stop to Disneyland.

Would we be better off to do Disneyland on the way to Hawaii or on the way home?

Which airlines do you recommend? Would I basically be booking three ticket segments?

Any other advice???

Whether you do Disneyland on your way to Hawaii or on your return really depends on whether you want that experience at the beginning or end of your trip. Whenever I go through LAX to another destination I usually do Disneyland on the way out. That way I can break up the trip and adjust to the time change from the East coast before I do another time change. When I’m on my way home, my only thought is of getting home.

Keep in mind that Disneyland can be done easily in two days if you do both parks (1 day for each park). You can easily stay at a hotel within walking distance of the park and unless you want to see other things, you don’t have to rent a car. There is a DL shuttle bus from LAX, but you need to check the hours it runs online to make sure it will be running when your flight arrives. If I remember correctly, it only leaves on the hour. You can also take SuperShuttle, Uber, or Lyft.

If you plan to go to Disneyland, it will probably be most cost effective to book a multi-city ticket. You would need to book DTW-LAX, LAX-HNL, and HNL-DTW all on the same ticket. Online, click the arrow next to round trip and you should see the multi-city option. The airline you choose depends on which one has the itinerary you want for the price you want to pay.

 

[nkereina]

I could go either way on whether it makes sense to do DL at the start or end of the trip.

I like the idea of doing it at the end because it eases the blow of leaving paradise, and it helps break up that long, long depressing flight home.

But doing the parks at the start of the trip when you're fresh and excited may be better for touring. It also helps you ease into the time adjustment. We had to adjust to a six hour time difference in Hawaii coming from the east coast which meant we were up at 4-5am the first couple of days. We found it easier acclimating to the time change on the way home.

 

[Disney st8 of mind]

Whether you do Disneyland on your way to Hawaii or on your return really depends on whether you want that experience at the beginning or end of your trip. Whenever I go through LAX to another destination I usually do Disneyland on the way out. That way I can break up the trip and adjust to the time change from the East coast before I do another time change. When I’m on my way home, my only thought is of getting home.

Keep in mind that Disneyland can be done easily in two days if you do both parks (1 day for each park). You can easily stay at a hotel within walking distance of the park and unless you want to see other things, you don’t have to rent a car. There is a DL shuttle bus from LAX, but you need to check the hours it runs online to make sure it will be running when your flight arrives. If I remember correctly, it only leaves on the hour. You can also take SuperShuttle, Uber, or Lyft.

If you plan to go to Disneyland, it will probably be most cost effective to book a multi-city ticket. You would need to book DTW-LAX, LAX-HNL, and HNL-DTW all on the same ticket. Online, click the arrow next to round trip and you should see the multi-city option. The airline you choose depends on which one has the itinerary you want for the price you want to pay.

Thank you... this is the type of feedback I was looking for. I didn't know you could book an airline ticket like that!!

 

[Disney st8 of mind]

I could go either way on whether it makes sense to do DL at the start or end of the trip.

I like the idea of doing it at the end because it eases the blow of leaving paradise, and it helps break up that long, long depressing flight home.

But doing the parks at the start of the trip when you're fresh and excited may be better for touring. It also helps you ease into the time adjustment. We had to adjust to a six hour time difference in Hawaii coming from the east coast which meant we were up at 4-5am the first couple of days. We found it easier acclimating to the time change on the way home.

That's why I was looking for feedback from those who have maybe done this trip... is it easier to adjust to the time change at the beginning or end? I was thinking of stopping at the land at the beginning

 

[FredPinsocket]

I can’t chime in as to the Disneyland part of your question (I’ve never been to Disneyland ), but I cannot stress how much I recommend flying Delta. I’ve flown from Detroit -> Honolulu twice (layovers both trips), once with American and once with Delta. American was a horrific experience. Delta is wonderful. They are the only carrier I fly with these days and it’s because of the service I get with them. New planes, great staff and I’ve never had an issue with bags getting lost. Plus, Detroit is one of the main hubs for Delta, so you’ll have lots of flight options.

 

[cedricandsophie]

Personally I would recommend visiting DL at the end. We are from chicago and that 10 hour flight back that gets in at 5 am is a killer, even if in business class. We did this last year. The flight took 5 hours from Oahu and LAx. It arrived late afternoon. Then we stayed 3 nights at DL and went to parks one day. It was much easier to leave LAX in early afternoon and get into Chicago in the early PM. We have been to aulani six years in a row and this is the first time we have stopped on the way back. Also we always fly united out of chicago.