Road trip around Hawaii's islands?

There's a 95 percent chance Senior Editor Christine Sarkis is thinking about travel right now. Follow her on Instagram @postcartography and Twitter @ChristineSarkis.

Christine Sarkis is an SATW-award-winning journalist and executive editor at SmarterTravel. Her stories have also appeared on USA Today, Conde Nast Traveler, Huffington Post, and Business Insider. Her advice has been featured in dozens of print and online publications including The New York Times, Conde Nast Traveler, and People magazine. She has also shared travel tips on television and radio shows including Good Morning America, Marketplace, and Here & Now. Her work has been published in the anthologies Spain from a Backpack and The Best Women's Travel Writing 2008. She is currently working on a travel memoir.

The Handy Item I Always Pack: The Trtl Pillow. It's easy to pack and comfortable, and makes it so I can actually sleep on flights.

Ultimate Bucket List Experience: Seeing the Aurora Borealis from the comfort of somewhere warm, like a glass igloo or hot spring.

Travel Motto: Curiosity is an amazing compass.

Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat: Aisle all the way.

Email Christine Sarkis at editor@smartertravel.com.

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If you’ve had your heart set on a road trip around Hawaii, this is your lucky month. That’s because after much anticipation, the Hawaii Superferry is set to begin service on August 28. The service will link Oahu with Maui and Kauai, and will hold 866 passengers and 282 cars.

Fares for weekday travel on the Superferry are $44 per adult with 14-day advance purchase, and less for kids and seniors. Cars cost $59 each. How does the ferry price compare to flight costs? On a sample weekday in September, I found fares on Go! For $30 between Honolulu, Oahu, and Lihue, Kauai. On Aloha, there were sale fares from $49, but they were sold out and the cheapest bookable fare I could find came out to $94.

So the ferry is competitive, but not necessarily the cheapest option. However, if you want to bring a car between islands, driving onto the ferry is a whole lot easier than trying to check it as baggage.

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