Ibn Warraq

After lingering in this forum for a while , so far I have yet to rub up against anyone settling in Hawaii. From my traveling experience, Hawaii is definitely among the top-notch state in US. Friendly and beautiful native Hawaiian culture, great diversity of food, wonderful nature scenery,loads of water activity, great night life especially near Waikiki Beach, comfortable, clean and laid back atmosphere, all year sunny weather with abundant palm tree and clear blue sea, low crime (many people especially the gals just wandering in the street in the midnight with nothing but tank top and skirt which something you rarely see in US mainland and No, they are not prostitutes ), no extreme impoverished dangerous ghetto like you see in many other US cities, has the highest life expectancy in US , what else can you dream of? Surely the cost of living is higher, but it is worth it if you factor in all the benefits mentioned above. There are plenty of job resources if you are into tourism industry. Not to mention it is the only state still having Union Jack in its state flag.

Kaffy Mintcake

Also very isolating and expensive. Tourism industry jobs = timeshare sales in many cases, and tourism is down right now. I know someone whose brother has had to move away due to the decline in the tourism industry.

And yes, some of the girls you may have spotted near Waikiki are most definitely prostitutes!

That being said, I like Hawaii too.

Ibn Warraq

No, the girls are mostly tourists from Japan or party girls from US mainland but I wouldn't rule out there are a handful of prostitutes. Even many Japanese girls I know said they feel safer in Hawaii than being in Japan, which is known to be the safest nation in the world.

Kaffy Mintcake

It's a nice place for sure. My parents used to live there, but found it a bit of a frustrating place to break into, and very isolating unless you have the money to fly to the mainland when you want. (They were in their 20's and just couldn't do that.)

There's a part of Honolulu where you do have to watch out for prostitutes (if you look at hotel reviews you'll see some warnings) but that doesn't mean that the place is crawling with them. Only that *some* of the girls you saw may have been.

Ray

Go see the Dog ....

fatbrit

Thrtr you go! There is at least one ho in Hawaii.

penguinsix

There are plenty of prostitutes in Waikiki, but they generally go after the better paying Japanese tourists than the Haole boys.

Hawaii is a nice place to visit, but to live there you have to deal with a few other things, like it being quite insular and the extended 'old boys' network that can be a tough nut to crack socially. There are more run down areas here and there if you know where to look, and Crystal Meth (ice) got its first foothold in the the US in the islands (and hasn't let go). The public education system is a bit behind the national average, as 'brain drain' to the mainland takes many of the top students away permanently. And despite the 'melting pot' talk there are still racial issues aplenty out there. When you are not a tourist but kamaaina you'll start to see and hear more about the things tourists don't usually see.

Bob

Tiny place that gets very isolating and boring, bloody miles away from anywhere, bugger expensive to travel out of, especially if you have a family emergency....bugger all jobs if your not in tourism, and even then that's seasonal and probably not that stable right now...bloody expensive housing, because everyone wants to live in a trailer in someone elses back garden...

scrubbedexpat097

So it's safe to say that Hawaii is not your most favourite place then Bob

Jerseygirl

I got that impression too.

Well it's mine...but I'd have to have the means to escape to the UK every couple of months.

digbydog

Well Hawaii gets my vote all day long. We keep a house there and use it 3 to 4 times a year. The place is safe, super kid friendly, the beaches excellent and the locals friendly.

There is nothing better than hanging out on Kailua Beach and remembering you are in the most remote place on earth. Kind of puts everything in perspective.

The main reason most people don't like Hawaii is because it is very expensive and that is why Florida exists.....

Aloha

P.S. If you want to see The Dog he hangs out at the gym most days in Hawaii Kai when he is not chasing the bad guys!!!

hobbes79

Very expensive and so I've been told by a local, the education system there is pretty lacking.

I have a friend who was born there and loved it, but moved to California because it was the only way she could afford a house with her husband and baby. When you start saying "California" and "affordable" in the same sentence, that gives some perspective to how expensive Hawaii is!

Great place to visit (went about 2 years ago) but wouldn't want to live there.

Saw a show with Stephen Fry traveling through the US. They said that in Hawaii they have a surprisingly large homeless problem since some other US states, in a quick effort to reduce homeless, would give one-way tickets to Hawaii to guys on the street!? How much truth there is a behind that, I don't know, but thought it was quite interesting! I know I'd rather be homeless on a beach in Hawaii than on the streets of Boston in January!

Bob

For a holiday, I'd think it would be great, but I'd rather chew my leg off than have to live there permanently...

Bob

that is not a selling point....

scrubbedexpat097

It is for me and Ray