In Waikiki for the first time

[dmbrand Member Find all posts View Profile Close dmbrand]

Beautiful weather.....much warmer than what we left behind in WI! The time zone adjustment is funny; we are definately up and out the door earlier than normal. Right now, my husband and daughter are scaling the 1000 steps up the Koko trail.

Tomorrow is surf lesson day; my son turns 18 tomorrow, so we thought this would be memorable. The surfer dudes here are fascinating to watch, both in the water and out. Then we have 3 days to fit in a luau, snorkling, Pearl Harbor, the north shore, and Diamond Head. Then we're off to Big Island for the last 3 nights of our vacation.

The plane ride was looooong, but worth it!

Aloha!

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

Where are you staying?

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

Go to the Dole plantation and have some fun doing the worlds largest maze.

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

Eat at Maile's Thai Bistro in Hawaii Kai. It's my favorite restaurant on Oahu.

Or, get a burger at The Counter in Kahala Mall. Really great custom burgers.

[dmbrand Member Find all posts View Profile Close dmbrand]

I think I know why everyone makes multiple trips here....because it is impossible to get these streets and towns down on the first trip! Where is Main Street, and First Street? Every street starts with a Kah...

We are having a great time. Just picked up my son from the airport, he said that the NW MSP-HNL non stop flight was excellent...4 movies, 2 meals. (8.5 hours).

Riverdees-We are at the Waikiki Banyan. It is two blocks off Waikiki Beach, perfect for my 20 and 18 yr olds. Lots of people watching. Unit is very satisfactory for a downtown condo. New carpet, new paint, and very comfortable new pillowtop king mattress for us parents. Kids get the queen Murphy bed. They even supplied two beach chairs for us to take with to the beach. Kitchen is very complete...a surprise, didn't even need any paper products or coffee.

Frank-the Dole plantation was on my first list, but I don't know if we can get there. I did buy a Maui pineapple and native bananas at the Safeway, though! Very tasty!

Boca-I will try to find the Thai place, I love Thai....basically, anything Asian.

That Koko railway trail was awesome, or so my hubby and daughter said. Surprising that they still let folks climb, especially with the "bridge" area. They got some awesome pictures from the peak.

Tomorrow is Diamond Head hike, surf lesson at noon, and then luau at Germaine's. Wednesday is Pearl Harbor, then snorkel at Hanauma Bay. Thursday is north shore, maybe get to Goat Island, but definately Waimea Bay. Some locals said that now is the time to jump off cliffs there.

Now, we are off to the Cheesecake Factory.....I know, not very Hawaiian, but, we don't have one of those back home anyway!

Aloha!

[Hoc Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Hoc]

You mentioned "native bananas." I hope you tried the Apple Bananas. They are the short ones. You can't get them back on the mainland, and you're not allowed to take bananas off the islands. They have kind of a tangy flavor -- one of the best bananas in the world.

Make sure to get some great Chinese food over there. Little Village in Chinatown is excellent, or for something cheap, go to the Waimalu Shopping Center and get some at Chun Wah Kam (fast-food type, but absolutely wonderful). Their Egg Foo Young is about the best I've ever had. It's on the way if you plan to shop at the Outlet Malls in Waikele.

[dmbrand Member Find all posts View Profile Close dmbrand]

Hoc- Yep, we bought those bananas, very sweet! So, I shouldn't try to put these on my carry on?

Well, we have finally adjusted to the time zone. We didn't awake this morning until 6am. Much better than 4am the past couple of days.

It is nice to look out the window each day and see a beautiful, sunny, and warm(alright...hot) day ahead of us.

Frank- I think I can make the family stop for a quick look at the Dole plantation, it appears to be on the road we will be taking to the north shore. How many calories can we burn in that maze? It should offset the Whip that everyone says is good.

Aloha!

[rikkis_playpen Diamond Club Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close rikkis_playpen]

I'm so filled with vacation-envy right now..... What a great experience for your family!

[SteveChapin Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close SteveChapin]

Then we're off to Big Island for the last 3 nights of our vacation.

Aloha!

If you want to do some great walk-in snorkeling, I highly recommend the Wai'Opae Tide Pools. They're all the way on the eastern-tip of the Big Island, but if you're spending any time on the Hilo side, it's about an hour out of Hilo (south-east of Kaeau).

And of course you're going to hike across the volcano, right?!

Place of Refuge is also quite interesting to visit. In addition to visiting the park itself, there's great snorkeling there, too. I've only come in from the water side there for snorkeling, so I don't know about access from land.

sc
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[StressCadet Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close StressCadet]

Frank- I think I can make the family stop for a quick look at the Dole plantation, it appears to be on the road we will be taking to the north shore. How many calories can we burn in that maze? It should offset the Whip that everyone says is good.

Aloha!

Oh it is good. If you are pressed for time--just get the Whip! It's vacation after all

[dmbrand Member Find all posts View Profile Close dmbrand]

Aloha again!

What a busy two days! The hike up Diamond Head was a good workout; definately no guilt getting the shave ice after reaching the bottom! Trade winds have stopped a bit, so it is very hot. It reached 91 degrees on Tuesday, a record for them.

Surf lessons at Hans Hedemann's in Waikiki were a hit; would recommend to the adventurous folks! Then head up to Lulu's Surf Club for the stongest, best MaiTai I have had! Meals are so large at all these restaurants, my daughter and I have learned to split meals. No one seems to mind.

Germaine's luau was good as a first-time in Hawaii sight. Tried all the Hawaiian foods, and the show was fabulous. The dancers are very talented; but the show did seem a little long. Or maybe we were just tuckered out from a busy day. Being located on a beach was a plus!

Wednesday was the USS Arizona memorial. We lucked out, with tourism down, we were able to get here around 8am, received the 9:45 entrance tickets, and were out by 11:15am. This allowed us to go to Chinatown for lunch. Stopped at the Fort Street Cafe for Shrimp Fried Rice with Spam and Egg(Monty Python comes to mind), hot and sour soup, and garlic chicken. Very good! Then walked into the Hawaiian Pacific University office next door to pick up info for my daughter. Very nice looking place, and the majors are appealing. Hmmm, we'll see.

The best was Hanauma Bay!!! This is exactly the image of Hawaii that I pictured before we came. We snorkeled late in the afternoon during high tide. Definately like swimming in an aquarium with all those fish. And the turtles! I was getting spooked a little; thought they were going to swim up and bite my leg!

Steve-thanks for the tip on the tide wave pools. I will look it up in our book, to see if we can make it. This snorkeling is a big hit with all of us.

Aloha!

[dmbrand Member Find all posts View Profile Close dmbrand]

What a fun vacation

We're back now

Finished our stay in Waikiki with a day trip to the North Shore, by way of the Dole Plantation. We ran through the maze and tried the Whip, it was a good time. I love their store, it had everything! I almost bought the Dole pineapple luggage straps! Don't see those everyday!

Hubby and kids jumped off the cliff at Waimea Bay, swam in the little falls at the Waimea Falls park, and ate the Garlic Shrimp plate at Ted's Bakery by Sunset Beach. My kids swear they saw Kenneth from 30 Rock. It did look like him, but there are always look-alikes out there!

We then flew over to Big Island to see the eruption at the Kilauea crater. Wish we could have stayed for the night time viewing. Made it to the public viewing area outside the park to see where the lava enters the ocean. Again, it would be better at night, but we were staying on the Kona side and were driving back. We took Saddle Road home in the dark, it is newly paved with road reflectors. It is very curvy, but it shaved 30-40 minutes off our drive time back from Hilo; didn't violate our car rental contract.

Stayed at the Hilton Waikoloa hotel using our Honor points. Very relaxing, and what a fabulous resort! Bring snorkel gear, or rent it here. There are sea turtles, fish, and eels in their lagoon! Oh, and bring your cash! Very expensive restaurants inside; we ate there a couple of times, then shopped at the Queen's marketplace outside the resort.

Didn't realize the time zone change would be so noticeable, we've been sleeping til 9-10am, and wide awake at midnight! All in all, a very good time!

[chriskre Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close chriskre]

You mentioned "native bananas." I hope you tried the Apple Bananas. They are the short ones. You can't get them back on the mainland, and you're not allowed to take bananas off the islands. They have kind of a tangy flavor -- one of the best bananas in the world.

FYI - We have those bananas in Miami in case you come to Florida. You find them in the Cuban supermarkets like Sedanos, Star, Presidente, Varadero. Just in case you happen to find yourself in my hometown. People actually even grow these in their backyards in Miami. My Mom has a few banana plants in hers.