Curious about Hawaii!

My husband Wes and I have been curious about doing a contract in Hawaii.  If you have done a contract there or are there now I would love to hear your input!  The good and the bad....I have heard a little bit of both!  What has your experience been?  Anyone else interested in a contract there??

I am totally interested in going to Hawaii!!!!!!! I wonder how the job market is and the rates.....

Aloha,
I did a year of contract on the Big Island of Hawaii, as a new graduate, so here is some insight for you both.
From some US statistical data;  cost of living in Hawaii is 20-30% HIGHER than the mainland, while the pay rate is 1-25 LOWER.... this is very true.  Now, housing is cheaper than say CA, but electricity is 50% more per unit, & food is what will kill you... I paid as much as $9.00 for a gallon of milk ($6.00 if you catch it on sale).
If you do a travel contract, plan on being treated poorly, & regardless of contract or travel, do not expect a warm greeting from the local Hawaiian people, especially if you are white.  Plan on paying lots & waiting long time to get stuff from mainland, especially when you need stuff for your patients.  That said, it is a year I wouldn't trade for anything;  there is always something to do, the weather is amazing, & if you like to swim/snorkel/surf, this is the place for you.  The worst part is that you will have to work to live there.  
If you have any more questions, feel free to post them & I will answer the best I can.  & if you do go, I can suggest amazing places on almost all the islands.
Tim

Thanks! That is EXACTLY what I was looking for! This gives interested travelers REAL info to consider!  Pretty interesting stuff...
Our biggest concerns or road blocks would be taking our dogs (i know that there is a quarantine required) and  that we are BIG milk drinkers

Thanks again for the post!

Thanks!  I am interested in Hawaii also. I knew the cost of living was more (though not THAT  much more!  Ouch.)  I didn't realise the pay was less.  My assumption was that if the prices were higher the pay would be too.   So good information before I get my hopes up too high. :-)
I would still like to go. Love the beach etc. 

I have completed three separate contracts on Maui and had a very different experience from the previous post.

I cannot recall my pay rate, but all three times I had enough money to pay my mortgage back on the mainland and still have extra $$$ left for island play. Yes, the cost of living IS higher. However, if you are a traveler, you do not have to deal with housing prices or even the cost of electric (unless you are finding your own accommodations), which I would not recommend. My company had me in a one bedroom condo that was right across from the beach, so there were certainly no complaints there.

Any food that can be processed on the mainland (and then ships to Hawaii) will typically not run any higher than it does on the mainland. Anything processed on the island such as chicken, beef, dairy, etc, will run a bit higher and milk does cost quite a bit more. However, I looked up the ad for the Safeway in Wailuku (Maui) and the Safeway ad down the road from me here in Phoenix. The Safeway in Phoenix has 90% ground sirloin for $3.99 a pound this week; the price for 93% lean ground beef in Maui this week? $3.99 a pound.

You can do a direct comparison of food prices by going to Safeway's website, click the link to the weekly ad, and then put in any Hawaii zip code. You will see that the prices in the ad are not much different from prices here on the mainland.

Now gas is another thing that will be at a premium (Maui is in the $3.80 range this week), but when you consider that you can drive around the entire island of Maui in half a day, it shows that a tank will go a long way.

The car in which you are putting the gas will probably be your biggest expense unless you decide to ship a vehicle over with you. Rental cars will run you at least $500-600 a month and this is probably a low estimate. The last two times over, I have shipped my truck with me and would do so again. In fact, the last time I went to Maui my travel company paid to have it shipped one way (saving me $1000).

As far as the locals, if you are on one of the more touristy islands, you shouldn't have any problem being a haole (white). Oahu and Maui should not be an issue, but when you talk Big Island and Kauai, you are talking about mostly native Hawaiians (kamaaina). But, even on Oahu and Maui, there will be tiny bars and establishments that are primarily local and might not look too kindly on outsiders. These wont be in the touristy ends of town, so might not be an issue. You just have to be aware of your surroundings and sensitive to local culture (but this affects you on any assignment).

Even though it's paradise, I still get island fever if I am over there for more than a year (isolated feeling living in such a small place). I do enjoy my time spent on the islands, but for me, it's definitely a place I enjoying visiting rather than living.

Hope this info helps and feel free to post any other questions you might have.

David

My wife and I are moving to Oahu TOMORROW!!  I have been an ICU travel nurse for a number of years and found that there are no contracts available,  There can be some found on the outer Islands but our dream is to spend 5 months on Oahu where my wife once lived for ten years and we have friends.  
I have contacted a local office on Oahu and I will start orientation classes at three, maybe four area hospitals to work per diem;  I am told that ER/ICU is the most available positions. 
We have housing arranged for the first two months (November on the beach) and will wing it after that.  I found renting a car to be a low average of $900 per month including insurance, which isn't included on the web site listing price, so we are going to buy a local car and sell it after our five months is finished. 

Our experience traveling for the past several years, always finding our own housing has prepared us for this big move and I will be more than willing share our experiences and answer questions as we go along.  

Gary
www.travelrngab.com

latin4hawk:
Aloha,
I did a year of contract on the Big Island of Hawaii, as a new graduate, so here is some insight for you both.
From some US statistical data;  cost of living in Hawaii is 20-30% HIGHER than the mainland, while the pay rate is 1-25 LOWER.... this is very true.  Now, housing is cheaper than say CA, but electricity is 50% more per unit, & food is what will kill you... I paid as much as $9.00 for a gallon of milk ($6.00 if you catch it on sale).
If you do a travel contract, plan on being treated poorly, & regardless of contract or travel, do not expect a warm greeting from the local Hawaiian people, especially if you are white.  Plan on paying lots & waiting long time to get stuff from mainland, especially when you need stuff for your patients.  That said, it is a year I wouldn't trade for anything;  there is always something to do, the weather is amazing, & if you like to swim/snorkel/surf, this is the place for you.  The worst part is that you will have to work to live there.  
If you have any more questions, feel free to post them & I will answer the best I can.  & if you do go, I can suggest amazing places on almost all the islands.
Tim