What to wear in Hawaii?

[karina]

So, I'm going to Hawaii in like, 2 months. I need to start planning what I'm going to bring and wear. We will be in Oahu for 1 week, and Maui for another week. We will be doing day excursions, hiking, going to the beach, fancy dinners, shopping, etc. I want comfortable things, but I also want to look fashionable, and not frumpy. Also, I heard that many of the Japanese tourists are dressed to kill, and I don't want to look like that "I'm that casual dressed tourist from Jersey". :rolleyes: Any help?

[TriSigmaNC]

Here's a great little local store we have in Wilmington, NC :) http://www.alohagiftsnc.com

Few cute things:
http://www.alohagiftsnc.com/productimages/Maleka_HalterTop_blackblue_lg_1.jpg
http://www.alohagiftsnc.com/productimages/Maleka_Sundress_lg_2.jpg

[wendalah]

When I go to Hawaii, I pack tanks and shorts and yoga pants for the day excursions (very casual during the day). Flip-flops or sneakers are fine. For night, I always wear a cute little sundress and sandals for dinner--or, sometimes, capri pants and a dressier light top.

I also pack a couple cute cover-ups for the pool, and a pair of metallic silver or gold flat sandals to boost my look a little.

I'll be honest: The Japanese tourists DO dress up like crazy, but more often than not, they just look odd. Hawaii is hot and humid, and the locals dress simply and casually for the weather. To see a bunch of made-up, hair-done, Japanese women in Gucci and Ferragamo sweating in the sun is bizarre at best! So don't worry about comparing yourself to them. (When I went to Tahiti, it was even worse--it was tons of "rocker alternative" type Japanese tourists, dressed theatrically and looking highly uncomfortable in the scorching heat.)

[wendalah]

I'm going to Oahu for a week in Sept--I'll post some of the things I'm planning on taking. :)

[MLA]

I agree w/Wendalah. Casual. Casual. Casual. I'd bring one cute sun dress and stick to shorts and tanktops for everything else. Oh, and of course a couple of bathing suits!

ETA: If you dress casually, you won't stick out. Over-dressed tourists are the ones who stick out. The locals are *very* laid back in their dress.

[linekelei]

Definitely go casual. Even the fanciest of restaurants assumes that men will wear shorts. It is too hot and humid for anything else! And like wendalah said, the Japanese tourists look uncomfortable-the locals are always dressed very casual. You can wear flip flops everwhere.

I don't know if I'd wear a bunch of Hawaiian print stuff. You'll see a lot of men in Hawaiian shirts (locals & tourists), but you don't see many local women wearing Hawaiian print clothing unless they are working in hotels or in tourist areas or are wearing the traditional Hawaiian garb (like muu muus).

In addition to wendalah's suggestions, you might also want to bring a beach hat and running or hiking shoes if you plan to climb Diamondhead.

If I were going to Hawaii and looking to buy some new clothes, I'd buy a few things from Anthropologie:

http://s7ondemand1.scene7.com/is/image/Anthropologie/630075_nav_frt?$main220x340$

http://s7ondemand1.scene7.com/is/image/Anthropologie/63123_frt?$main220x340$

And a few cheapo, trendy things from Forever 21 (if you have an H&M, try them-we don't have them in So Cal yet), like a cargo skirt, some cotton dresses, and some light and dressier tees.

[MLA]

Oh yeah -- a sun hat, definitely a sun hat. One caveat, though: I remember Maui being VERY windy. My hats tended to fly off of my head. A lot of the local women seemed to be wearing hats with strings/scarves that they could tie around their chins. Not necessarily the most attractive look, but practical!

[Sposa06]

I agree w/Wendalah. Casual. Casual. Casual. I'd bring one cute sun dress and stick to shorts and tanktops for everything else. Oh, and of course a couple of bathing suits!

ETA: If you dress casually, you won't stick out. Over-dressed tourists are the ones who stick out. The locals are *very* laid back in their dress.

I couldn't have said it better myself! I usually err on the side of overdressed rather than underdressed, but that rule doesn't apply to Hawaii. If you take a couple cute sundresses (I agree with a PP, though--don't wear Hawaiian print stuff) and a dressy pair of sandals, you'll be able to look cute and avoid looking overdone.

[Shapsgrl]

I just returned from a week in Maui and I basically packed:

tanks - some more casual, some a little nicer
shorts
skirts - again, some casual daytime some a little nicer for evenings
sundresses
swimsuits
cover ups

I also brought WARM clothes and closed-toed shoes as we did the bike ride down Haleakala and it's COLD up there!

I would say daytime you're safe in tanks/tees and shorts or a skirt. And nighttime a skirt & tank or sundress is great. and definitely bring a couple of pairs of flipflops. Some casual daytime, and perhaps some metallic ones as Wendalah suggested for the evenings.

[laura]

I agree w/ everyone else - casual. And I don't wear anything Hawaiian print really ever, so that's not in my wardrobe. I take:

- tank tops
- Tshirts
- shorts
- capris
- skirts
- swimsuit
- sarong
- flip flops
- nicer sandals / metallic flip flops

My husband always brings a pair of khakis, but it's so hot that he ended up wearing shorts & flip flops to all of our dinners - even the really nice ones, since they are 90% of the time outside or open-air restaurants. We didn't look out of place anywhere. You could wear a casual dress (I just prefer skirts), but I wouldn't plan on anything more formal than that.

[Chimichanga]

I don't think I wore half of the clothes I packed when we went to Hawaii. We did not intend to go out for nicer dinners (had a condo and preferred to do excursions rather than go out for nice dinners) so I had one sundress for the luau. My family and I ended up getting matching outfits (yeah, we were the cheesey tourists, but it was fun) for that so I didn't even wear it.

I just normally wore workout shorts and a tank top over my swimsuit. We did pack jeans and sneakers for Haleakala but that was about it. I didn't do my make-up once while I was there - it was way too warm.

[Smittenk]

When we lived in Hawaii I basically lived in shorts and tanks. Dressed up in Hawaii is totally different from everywhere else. Aloha formal is cute, flowy skirt with cute tank and flip flops or strappy heels. I think I had 18 pairs of flip flops..basically every colour because I wore them every day. :o

For fancy dinners I would bring a couple of nice summer dresses and strappy heels. Also bring a nice cardigan because most places have AC and if you are like me I get cold.

You might want to bring a pair of jeans and maybe a long sleeved shirt for cool nights.

Hope that helps! Thinking about that has made me homesick for Hawaii now...I love the casual island life!

[jennylou]

I agree with the others - casual is best!

[wendalah]

If you are jonesing for a bit of Hawaiian print to wear, I would wait until you get to the islands so you can have the fun of buying a pareo or tank out there. There's a huuuuge selection and it's kinda fun to get one "from Hawaii."

[la_bride_2004]

Agree with everyone else- casual is just fine.

When I visit, I wear flip-flops during the day (I found ones I really liked for cheap there at the ABC store) with coverups and a swimsuit, or yoga pants and t-shirts, a hat (and flower pins to hold it on!) and sundresses and gold metallic sandals for evening. A light cardigan is good, especially for Maui if you are out in the evening- it can get breezy.

[camberne]

My suggestion - take just a couple of outfits and go to the outdoor market and get some stuff there. They have some dresses that are gorgeous and cheap and comfortable!! A dress that you can get (I swear) for $15 at the outdoor market will cost you four times as much here.