I've been to HNL many a time and can tell you this - the most beautiful parts of Hawaii are on the outer islands or at least away from Waikiki. While Waikiki is pretty nice and the weather can't be beat, the truly breathtaking parts of Hawaii are a little outside of the city. I used a vacation rental website to find pretty good deals for houses for rent on Kauai (the most beautiful island, IMO). If you factor in what you pay for food, parking, etc at the Waikiki hotels, you'll likely spend less renting from VRBO. It was a really nice experience.
HAL flies to the outer islands almost hourly, so you'll have no problem getting there. It was well worth the trip, and there are good deals to be found.