The Best Ways to Get to Hawaii This Year – From $197 or 15K Points RT

Everyone wants to go to Hawaii, and that means there's high demand for flights to the picture-perfect islands. But that high demand doesn't mean you should expect high prices – just the opposite. 

In the last few weeks, we sent our Thrifty Traveler Premium members several alerts for some of the lowest fares we've ever seen from all across the country to Hawaii and back: from $196 or from 15,000 points roundtrip! 

Plus, we've also been finding great availability to use your points and miles to fly lie-flat premium economy or first class suites from just 23,000 points or 40,000 points each way respectively.

This phenomenal run of Hawaii flight deals comes at a great time: Right before the dead of winter. Because remember, Hawaii offers year-round, picture-perfect 80-degree weather and sunny skies…

So put a Hawaii trip back on your list for 2026, because you might just as soon cross it off with a flight deal like one of these.

Booked a cheap flight to Hawaii? Check out these tips to save on your lodging, too! 

How & Where to Find Hawaii Flight Deals

Getting a cheap flight to Hawaii is never a sure thing. Paying $600 to more than $1,000 (or more) per ticket can be the norm, and travelers can go months without seeing even a halfway decent deal to the islands.

But that's not always true. Fare wars are heating up as airlines compete for passengers to fill all their seats flying to the Hawaiian islands by slashing prices, leading to some especially good flight deals lately. In the last few weeks alone, we've found and sent Thrifty Traveler Premium members alerts for cheap flights from airports nationwide, all for under $400 roundtrip … and often far less!

Exhibit A: This widespread flight deal for all four major Hawaiian islands through the fall and winter that we sent our subscribers just last week. 

From most U.S. and Canadian cities, flights under $400 or $500 roundtrip are a great deal to Hawaii. But sometimes…it gets even better! 

This was on example from a recent mega-sale of nonstop flights to Hawaii thanks to some aggressive flying from Alaska and Southwest. 

Your flights to Hawaii shouldn't be the most expensive part of your trip. We can help make that a reality. All you have to do is pick the best island to visit in Hawaii for your cheap trip! 

Booked a cheap flight to Hawaii? Follow these tips to save on your lodging, too!

Use Points & Miles to Get to Hawaii

Why pay cash when you can use your points and miles to get to Hawaii instead? You've been earning and saving up those points and Hawaii is the perfect way to use them. 

On top of cheap cash flights, we've also been finding some exceptional award deals to these islands and instantly alerting our Thrifty Traveler Premium members about them. 

Delta SkyMiles rates can be astronomically high for Hawaii flights … but there's another way to book Delta using your credit card points. 

The key is to transfer your points from cards like the *csp* or the *capital one venture card* to Air France/KLM Flying Blue. The European carriers are partners with Delta, meaning you can book Delta flights using Flying Blue miles – and often at far, far lower rates than what Delta itself would charge you. 

Whether you're earning American Express, Capital One, Chase, or Citi points or even Wells Fargo or Bilt points, you could transfer them to Flying Blue to get the miles you need to book these flights to Hawaii and back. 

But Southwest wasn't going to let Delta and its partners fly you there for less. No, no. Southwest undercut all those fares when you book with Southwest Rapid Rewards points. 

Read more: 5 Ways to Book Flights to Hawaii with Points & Miles

Fly Fancier: Premium Economy from 23K Points Each Way

The cheapest flight, especially if you can get it for less than $200, is a great way to get to Hawaii. A lie-flat seat (more on that later), is even better. But lately, I've been most interested in this middle ground: American Airlines Premium Economy. 

For the 6+ hour flights to Hawaii, economy feels tight, but maybe lie-flat is a little too much of a splurge. That's where Premium Economy shines, and this one deal in particular is how I booked my trip to Hawaii this March! 

A big, wide recliner. Some special baggage and priority privileges, and a full meal service on the way to and from Hawaii. Beautiful. 

Even more beautiful: These extremely cheap American fares bookable with your Alaska points. 

Just 23,000 Alaska miles is enough to book these each way  – a sizzling deal! Plus, you can book some connections for a few points more. I booked one-ways from Minneapolis (MSP) through Dallas (DFW) to Maui (OGG) for just over 30,000 Alaska miles each way. 

Lie-Flat to Hawaii for Less

There's a single-best way to fly to Hawaii. It's in Hawaiian Airlines' new first class suites.

This fancy new Hawaiian Airlines suite is lie-flat and has fully enclosed doors. Booking with Alaska/Hawaiian's new Atmos Rewards program will only cost you 40,000 points each way! And while the Suites only fly to and from some cities, you can fly Hawaiian's slightly older lie-flat seats from all of these cities for that 40,000-point rate, too. 

Bottom Line

Hawaii flights don't have to be expensive. 

Airlines are slashing flight prices to Hawaii for 2026 in economy, premium economy, and even first class. 

So feel confident booking one of these Thrifty Traveler Premium flight deals. It's the difference between paying $800-plus for your next trip to Hawaii … or less than half that.