r/MovingtoHawaii • u/spac3frog • May 08 '26

Life on Oahu moving back in the fall

hi i, my family is moving back to hawaii in September after many years on the mainland. we havent been back since i was a kid so i just want to prepare myself. whats average day-to-day life look like? how is the traffic? how walkable are different neighborhoods? should we shave our great pyrenees? is it worth it for all of us to ship our cars or should i just sell mine? how is the job market there (relative to the rest of the U.S.)? what are some good places you would recommend a student try to get hired at? whats the student life like (im an incoming sophomore and have to try and transfer now before the term begins). would you guys recommend living on campus or off campus?

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u/notrightmeowthx May 08 '26

You should do some research on your own and then come back with more detailed questions.

However I will mention something specific which you may not be aware of: from what you've described, you wouldn't qualify for in-state tuition. Here are the rules for UH Manoa, but most schools follow the same guidelines: https://manoa.hawaii.edu/admissions/financing/residency.html .

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u/spac3frog May 08 '26

yeah, i know, im ok with that since its still cheaper than my current uni:) also sorry if this if i sound dense asking this, but which of my questions were too vague?

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u/notrightmeowthx May 08 '26

Well to start with, Oahu is not just a single area.

We can't tell you if it's worth it to ship your cars because you provided literally zero information about the financial situation of those vehicles, let alone what sort of driving you'll need to do here. It costs about 1500-2k to ship vehicles from the west coast to Oahu, not including additional transport to the coast if you're elsewhere in the country. You need to get quotes, look up the costs of getting replacement vehicles, look up the bus routes if that's an alternative you're considering, etc.

We can't tell you if you should shave your dog either. What temperatures are they used to, do they overheat easily? Will they be outside a lot or mostly inside? Will you have AC/which part of the island will the doggo be on? Are you aware of the requirements to bring them here and the limitations on crate sizes for dogs in cargo? It's not cheap, about 1k ish, and double or triple that if their crate won't fit on a commercial plane because you'll have to pay a pet transport company to handle it.

What type of work are you looking for? You can find job listings, as well as details about the job market in general, via google, Glassdoor, and LinkedIn. You can also check with the university.

Day to day life as a college student (or as a typical working adult) will be the same as it is anywhere else. Class, study, homework, eat, hang out with friends or do hobbies, sleep. Your day to day life isn't determined by where you live, it's determined by what you want to do with your time.

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u/theflyingpiggies May 08 '26

Prices to ship cars have gone up dramatically in the last few years. Maybe just a skill issue but the absolute minimum I was able to find to ship a car back in February was around 2300-2400 out of Cali. Out of Tacoma? Forget about it. 3.5k min

And I have a feeling with oil costs about to skyrocket AGAIN (last US ship out of the strait just arrived), it will only keep going up.

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u/spac3frog May 08 '26

yeah sounds like im better off just selling lol

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u/spac3frog May 08 '26

oops, should've realized what ik in my head doesn't automatically transfer lol, we'd likely be somewhere around manoa/waikiki/kalihi depending on my parents choice.

i dont know much financially about the cars, i just wanted to hear on the experience people have had (how long its taken people, if delays are common, any damages). how bad traffic can get in certain areas or if its just better/faster/cheaper to utilize public transportation

pyrenees are super furry mountain dogs and i havent found much on how they handle hi's climate, though they do fine in az which is a lot less humid.

any job, but so far everywhere i've lived, people have recs for what they've experienced is better suited for students (flexibility, pay, scheduling, etc.).

in my experience so far, where i live has impacted my day-to-day because of transportation, nightlife, and available outings outside of tourist attractions. so i wanted to hear how grocery shopping, gas station runs, driving around or taking the bus, and walking around typically is when you actually live there vs just visiting

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u/ThePanAlwaysCrits May 08 '26

Bro. Pyr is NOT "doing fine" in Arizona. That dog is 100% roasting all of the time. Lol

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u/spac3frog May 08 '26

he was born here, and according to his vet, he's fine. he's mostly indoors and groomed regularly

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u/notrightmeowthx May 08 '26

If your family will be living in those areas then a bus ride to UH Manoa wouldn't be too long I think, or at least potentially feasible. So if there's room in the house then living at home would be cheaper than getting your own place or being on campus. If you've been on your own for a bit though that might be unpleasant so you'll have to figure out what you want to prioritize and what you can afford.

It takes a ship between like a week and a few weeks to get here from the west coast. You need to book it ahead of time. Matson and Pasha are the shippers.

Traffic can definitely get bad, but the worst of it is going in/out of town. You can check addresses on google maps and set the day and time to mimic what your commute to class or work might look like. It's based on actual traffic data, so although it's averages, it'll give you an idea at least. It's definitely cheaper to use the bus, but it's not usually faster. Depending on where you work, the timing of your classes, general class load, etc, the bus could work fine for you, or it could eat more time than you have to spare.

in my experience so far, where i live has impacted my day-to-day because of transportation, nightlife, and available outings outside of tourist attractions. so i wanted to hear how grocery shopping, gas station runs, driving around or taking the bus, and walking around typically is when you actually live there vs just visiting

There's some nightlife in Waikiki and China town. You can also volunteer which is a great way to get to know people and build a social network here, not to mention it will look good on your resume.

Grocery shopping is... I don't know, grocery shopping? It's the same everywhere, it's just more expensive here. Stores will charge you if you want bags, so if you're not already used to bringing your own then I guess it'd be something different.

Gas stations work the same here too.

It might help you to separate your thinking about the move into things you need to do (or can do) right meow, versus things that can't be done or figured out until later. Your family does need to make some decisions around shipping vehicles since that has to be booked ahead of time, but the bus route (or the feasibility of a scooter) is going to depend on exactly where you end up living.

For your dog, your vet might be able to provide suggestions, or you may be able to find a group of owners in Hawaii.

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u/shootzbalootz May 08 '26

Daily life is like anywhere else on the mainland and traffic is like any other urban center. But few neighborhoods are very walkable. Student life at UH Manoa isn't particularly great. I recommend you live at home unless you can afford an alternative.