r/MovingtoHawaii

My husband (33) and I (32 F) are potentially relocating to O’ahu near the Joint Base Pearl Harbor - Hickam. We are moving from southern Alabama. What are some things we wouldn’t know that would be helpful? Things like what roadways to avoid bc it’s always involved with heavy traffic? Is it easy to add a window unit to most buildings? I assume we will need AC, bc we are used to it. Areas to avoid bc of high noise level - our work schedules will start at 4 AM? What is a reasonable drive time - is it impossible to keep it 30 minutes or less?

Hey there- Hope everyone is safe after the Hurricane.

Is this an actual company? They have a nice looking website and got back to me quickly with a quote last week for moving our EV from Washington to Hilo.

Buuuut, I cannot find any mention of them on forums like this. Just nervous to hand over that amount of money to a company I found by Googling "ship an EV to Hawaii"

Thanks, all.

I'm in the academy to become an Air Traffic Controller and I'm just thinking about my options of where to go once I'm out. Something that my instructor told me felt... off.

He made a comment that mainlanders aren't welcomed in Hawaii and tend to leave due to clashes with locals.

In my head this felt kind of odd. The way he said it rubbed me the wrong way, it had the same tone as someone who gets mad when they visit a different culture and gets confused when they do something disrespectful.

I wanted to know, truthfully, if I were to pick Hawaii as my center would I have this issue or am I right to think as long as respect and interest in learning is shown everything will be fine.

(I'm not looking for ATC related advice. This is purely me wanting to get an actual picture of life there from a social/culture perspective.)

My wife and I are planning on moving to Hawaii after I finish my education. My wife is a local, and after many conversations, we both decided that it was best for us to move to Hawaii rather than Florida, where I am from—I think the biggest reason for our decision was the sense of community that couldn't realistically be replicated in Florida. I'm from the Caribbean myself, and island culture isn't very easily replicated on any "mainland."

That said, I'm currently going to school for English. I'm planning on being an English teacher (and likely branching into cinema, philosophy, theatre, or some of the other electives you'd usually expect out of an English teacher). It's fair to say teaching is my passion, and it was the one thing I genuinely enjoyed during military service—you know, teaching and mentoring others who may not see anything of value in themselves. My plan B is law enforcement or federal positions, but my real passion really is the mentoring of youth.

This brings me to my question on perspective: what should I expect out of being a haole teacher on Oahu? My wife is completely supportive, but she has told me "good luck," before promptly mentioning stories of them forcing their teacher into quitting, consistent fights in schools, lack of care from both parents and kids, no funding, and just a general lack of real institutional education. Being from Florida, I've experienced all of this myself as a student and as an NCO, so I've been trying to find similarities and say of me being able to relate. My wife still said my experiences wouldn't be enough.

But am I overthinking my own confidence? I acknowledge that my understanding of Hawaiian island culture is rudimentary and that I would need to learn. But am I over my head?

Are there things that I need to understand before I move to Hawaii and take on teaching? Thoughts? What do I need in my toolbox? What does the job market look like? Is education a lost cause for one trying to teaching secondary and possibly higher education at the community college level? Is it difficult to get a position?

PS. Oahu

Hey everyone! I’m a 91A Army Reserve officer looking to transfer units soon. My wife and I will be PCSing to Hawaii, so I’m trying to get a head start on what opportunities are out there.

Does anyone know of any Reserve units in Hawaii with 90A/logistics opportunities or who I should reach out to about vacancies/transferring?

Also, does anyone have recommendations for civilian job opportunities for military spouses or Reservists in Hawaii? Any resources, companies, federal jobs, or programs worth looking into would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance!

Hi,

I am contemplating a future move to live and work in Maui. To work specifically at Fairmont or maybe even in Hawaii Main Island.

To give you some background, I am 32M working as an accountant. I am a Canadian citizen who lives in Montréal (big metropolis in Quebec).

I wanted to evaluate what are the pros and cons if anyone has insight on how life is over there in Hawaii.

Their salary range is 30USD an hour. Would that be enough to live decently ?

Wanted to know what it’s like living on the Island ? How expensive is it ?

How is the social life ?
What is the rent situation ?

I want to study to prospect of a potential move there well, before leaning forward to any decision in the future.
Anything to consider or to watch out for ?

Any feedback or input is greatly appreciated.
Thanks.

Thinking of going with four of these from Washington to Pahoa. I’ve got quotes from both matson and Royal Hawaiian, and weight is a concern for us, as we are moving a large ceramics studio with clay and glazes.

Four U-boxes will allow us to move much more weight than both matson or RH. The 15k door to door they are quoting us is steep, but RH quoted $3.85/lb and honestly I’m guessing we are looking at closer to 20k with them.

Experiences with using Ubox is appreciated.

I’m moving to the North Shore of Oʻahu for work soon. I’ve never lived in Hawaii before and want to be respectful of the local culture and community.
What customs, etiquette, or unwritten rules would be good to know? Also interested in any general advice about island life, things newcomers should avoid doing, and anything you wish people knew before moving to Hawaii.

Thanks!

Hi all! I’m a single 28F with two cats, for context. I currently live on the SE coast and have an interview with a resort for a salaried position.

I’ve heard conflicting things about the island regarding COL, quality of life, etc. and would really appreciate some info or advice. This would be my second time leaving home completely on my own, but farther than before. The position I’m interviewing for ranges pay from 75-79k.

My questions:

• is that salary realistic to rent somewhere pet-friendly?
• where do most people find rentals? Zillow showed very few around where I’d work
• is a car really necessary?
• is that salary enough to live on?
• pros and cons of living on BI?

TIA!

Hey everyone! I'm moving to Kaneʻohe at the end of August for a 13 week travel healthcare contract and realized I'll be arriving knowing basically nobody on the island....

I'm not really looking for a party every night crowd. I'm trying to spend these few months exploring, getting outside, biking basically everywhere, hitting beaches, hiking, trying local food, grabbing the occasional drink, and generally making the most of living somewhere completely new.

I'll be working evenings 2-10PM, so I'll have a lot of mornings and early afternoons free. I'm completely fine doing things alone, but it'd also be nice to meet a few people around Kaneʻohe/Kailua who'd be down for beach days, hikes, food, biking, coffee or just exploring.

I'm coming from Washington and I've never lived in Hawaii, so recommendations are welcome too. Feel free to message me!

Hey everyone! I currently live in New Jersey and i work for the United States Postal Service, which allows me to transfer anywhere in the United States if there is a job opening. My wife will be finishing up nursing school soon and we would like to move somewhere else. She has visited Hawaii and loved it there, and we did live in Florida for a few years. Florida was much cheaper thank New Jersey, but I was not a fan of all the alligators while i was kayak fishing. We moved back to New Jersey after a few years in Florida to help some family out. New Jersey’s rent rates are about double the price of most Florida and we’re getting about half the living space. If we do make the move to Hawaii it’s looking like the best chance for us both to find jobs would be on the island of Oahu. I looked on some realty websites and it looks like we afford to buy a condo which is fine for us as we don’t have children. My main concern is the pricing of daily life. I wanted to see if anyone can help me figure out if we can make this move work. If i buy a 2 bedroom condo, roughly 800-1000 square feet, what can i expect the monthly utilities costs to be? Electric, water, internet, gas (if there is a propane stove) what are fuel prices like per gallon right now? How much should I expect to spend a week on groceries for 2 people? How much is an average night out, nothing fancy, just a few beers and dinner for 2? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Hi all! My husband and I are thinking of moving to Hawaii/Oahu within the next year or so. I currently sell property & casualty insurance (home, auto, etc.) and my husband works in residential HVAC. Are these semi-decent careers on the island? What websites do employers use for hiring? Where we live, most employers use Indeed for our job fields.

Hafa Adai and Aloha! I will be moving from Guam to Maui for work (NOAA). I was wondering for those who have done this move or similar what was the biggest surprise for you? Right now I expect rent to the biggest adjustment for my family, but grocery-wise, Guam is one of the few locations that rivals Hawaii in this case ($8 for a half gallon of milk here). Any advice for the best places to buy a car? Also for renting, do folks work with a realtor in Maui? That was something new I experienced in Guam, but it ended up being a big help!

For my ates and kuyas, where are the go to places? Are there any restaurants that sell pork blood soup or chicken/pork liver, these are staples for my asawa (which she can prepare herself, but sometimes it's nice to have a place to grab it). Which place has the best lumpia Shanghai, sisig, siningang?

Finally, a little bit more personal. If you had a difficult week/month, what's your go-to comfort restaurant? When you have a long weekend, what's your favorite spot on the island? Of the night markets and farmer's markets, do you have a favorite?

Thanl you for any advice that comes my way! I look forward to life on Maui and getting involved with the community!

I would like the opinion and perspectives from Hawaii born people who left or the mainland (anywhere) and then moved back later in life. Sorry if the word "mainland" is not acceptable anymore, i dont know truely, if the preferred word is now "the continent" that is what I meant, apologies in advance.

For context:

I'm a 5th generation Japanese American guy from Oahu. Moved to the PNW for college, and build a successful life and career over 18 years away. I married a haole girl, and we are seriously considering making a move to Oahu (Kailua, Hawaii Kai, maybe Manoa) so our kids can grow up in Hawaii. I have filled in my wife (who is from Eastern Washington) on the realities of living on Oahu, so she is not one of those starry eyed mainlanders who have a 'dream' of living in Hawaii and gonna be shocked or dissapointed people. She is very kind and respectful, and not someone I would think would draw the ire of locals.

I am lucky enough to have become financially independent through the career I built in the mainland and I do hobby work for social reasons, and my wife does the same and would like to work in a plant nursery, so where we live is not really a big factor, other than wanting to be on Oahu where I am from.

I am primarily curious about how a local Japanese (or any non haole local) coming back with a haole spouse feels, and how your haole spouse felt, and what your experiences were in building a social circle from scratch.

We will get hobby jobs that we enjoy, so my first thought is that we would try making friends at work. Outside of work, is Oahu somewhere you can make friends through social events?

I also have about 5 friends from childhood and high school I still kept in touch with so I'll probably lean into being with them or expanding my circle through them...but they are local Polynesian, asian and haole people...I am just concerned how my wife is gonna fit in, cus I already know that a very kind and quiet, articulate blonde haole woman will NOT fit in with my childhood friends who speak pidgin.

I guess I'm just thinking out loud and pondering, but if anybody wants to share their experience moving back to Hawaii with a haole spouse, and your time acclimating and making friends/ observations about raising kids here vs mainland, id love to hear your thoughts!

I’m getting ready to PCS to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii next week, and was wondering where the best places to live would be close to the ford island area, since that is where I’ll be working. I plan on looking at 2-bedroom / 2-bath units within 30 minutes or less preferably, for commuting to the base. Along with any sight seeing places, suggested things to do and checkout while I’m there, etc. If anyone has any recommendations or insight I’d greatly appreciate it!

I'm getting a long-term plan in place. I've been to Oahu. I hated the tourist feel of it but loved the environment, people, and culture once I had gotten out of the city. I just finished my bachelor's degree and was looking to go to med school on the mainland. Was maybe looking to move to the Big Island because I loved the more rural island feel. I will be visiting the Big Island before my final decision, but I was hoping to be a doctor down there. Right now I am just doing my due diligence and hoping to ask locals some questions. Please feel free to answer whatever you can.

1. What specialties are most needed on the Big Island? I'd like to make sure I am doing whatever good I can there.

2. Why does Hawaii have such an issue retaining doctors? I keep getting a variety of answers, and I just want to know from a local perspective what I will be getting myself into.

3. Will I be able to have a family on the Big Island? I would like to just know how feasible it would be to start a family there. How are the schools?

4. What towns would you recommend to live on the Big Island? I don't mind a drive. In fact, like stated above, I love the quieter and more rural regions!

I may have more questions in the future, but this is all I could think of right now.

Thanks!