I'll be there from December 4th - 11th. This will be my second trip there. As of right now I'm only gonna be on Oahu that week unless I decide to head to the Big Island (will be near Hilo) like I did last time. Other than xmas shopping and laying around Waikiki, I need some other recommendations. I DON'T want to go tour Pearl Harbor. Did that and found it a waste of time. Unless you're a direct descendent of someone that experienced Pearl Harbor...your time is better spent doing something better. Hiked Diamond Head once too. Way too many idiots the entire stretch. Yeah I want to do touristy stuff like a luau, but I also want to get off the beaten path. I wouldn't mind visiting the North Shore again. Gonna be splitting the time between staying in Honolulu and Ka'Olina. Would LOVE to hike/mountain bike on Oahu. May try to do some sea kayaking. Thanks. Also need CHEAP food recommendations around Waikiki...think plate lunches. Had my first plate lunch north of Hilo and found it AWESOME!!
If you can visit any of the other islands. Honolulu is like staying in any other big city. May I recommend visiting Kauai, Maui, Molokai and the Big Island. Each is unique. Kauai is very lush and green. The Na Pali coast is gorgeous. Also visit Waimea Canyon very scenic. Called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. Poipu Beach is nice as is the Spouting Horn. A blowhole located nearby. more to post later.
When I went to Maui and the Big Island for my honeymoon several months ago, I found the "Revealed" guidebooks very helpful, much better than the other travel books we had. Lots of details which other guidebooks did not have. There is a different book for each island (Maui Revealed, Big Island Revealed, Oahu Revealed, Ultimate Kauai). I am sure that these books would be able to point you to good plate lunches. More info here. (Disclaimer: I'm just a satisfied customer and have no other relationship to this company or the authors.)
I just got back from Oahu yesterday (my second trip). I also used the Ultimate Oahu book that Bill Reeves recommends as well as the lonely planet guide. Zippy's is okay - but really pretty so-so, IMO. The best plate lunch on the island I'm convinced is Diamond Head Grill which is just up the street from the Zippy's on Kapahulu (believe me, I take my plate lunches seriously). Take a right on Campbell off of Kapahulu (driving away from Waikiki beach) and it's on the corner of the first light you hit (Montsarrat). It's slightly upscale plate lunch run by a former Culinary professor. Get the Kalbi or Char Siu pork. Good vegetarian options there as well. The connected shop has great poke with spicy chili sauce dip and I liked the Mochiko chicken as well. If you want to sea kayak - find a place at Kailua that rents single person outriggers and head out to the pair of islands to the right of the bay and ride the waves with the surfers right near the island. I did it in a two person kayak and it was a lot of fun although we were a little too heavy to catch many of the waves. There were a couple of guys with the outriggers and it looked like a blast. Be careful you don't get stuck over reef where the big waves hit. Call ahead to make sure contamination isn't an issue (we ignored warnings because others were). Waikiki beach is a good place to learn surfing. There's a place that rents for $8 an hour - it's one lifeguard tower towards Diamond Head from Dukes. The best way to get up is to have someone giving you a push. I also learned the hard way that slow steady strokes with your arms is much more effective than thrashing around. Wear a t-shirt because your ribs are going to be really sore later. I had a lot of fun on Sandy Beach where everyone is always getting injured. If you get past where the waves break you can ride and dive into the really big waves. If you catch it wrong you can really get creamed though, which happened to me a couple of times. I can see how people break their necks there. Hanauma Bay seems like it's gone downhill a little. Visability isn't great so maybe it's just the time of year, but it just wasn't that awesome this time. If you like snorkeling, try to the left of the Makai Research pier. It may be the wrong time of year so the water may be too choppy/cloudy, but you'll pretty much have the place to yourself and it's a live coral reef. Other food ideas: Rainbow on Kapahulu is really popular - cheap plate lunches. Ono's Hawaiian also on Kapahulu has local food and you can get Poi, Kahlua Pig, etc. there. If you get to North Shore, everyone eats at the famous Shrimp Shack. Really garlicky Shrimp Scampi is all they serve from a run down no longer mobile van - it's good.
I mentioned Zippy's because they're all over and easy to find. Plus, they are open late so good for eating after leaving the bars. Nothing like a little Portuguese sausage sandwhich at 3 in the morning. Visibility at Hanauma Bay can be dependent on the time of year. I've only ever been in spring and summer and it's been fine. Unless of course you go on a windy or overcast day then there will obviously be less visibility. Shrimp Shack is great. There's a great burger place in Kailua called The Shack. They have another somewhere in Honolulu I believe but I don't know where. Look it up in a phonebook. They have one of my all-time top 5 burgers.
ALOHA from near Aloha Stadium where we are staying!!! Gotta agree with you here, but can't beat cheap food. And they have a good pastry selection!!! I was in Kailua yesterday, but got hit with a pretty heavy rainstorm so I headed back towards Honolulu. I am here till Saturday night so I'm definately gonna try to head back to Kailua Bay. The guy married to one of my cousins was just there the other day and he said it was pretty good snorkeling conditions...I'm gonna have to try to hit that sometime this week. I'll need to remember these cuz Kapahulu is pretty easy to navigate. Yup saw that going through Haleiwa (or however the heck it's spelled). A pretty sizeable crowd there as well as the other shrimp trucks along the way as if you were going down the windward coast.
Fear - Just make sure you eat at Diamond Head Grill. The best plate lunches I've had. (Directions are in my previous post.) Supposedly there is also a really good plate lunch place near or between the two malls -- Ala Moana and the other one that has Borders (drawing a blank at the moment), but I've never been there. Also on Kapahulu is the famous bakery with the Spanish donuts that they fill with filling -- I'm not crazy about donuts, but I recommend the Haupia one. Speaking of good pastries at Zippy's, I really like their Haupia cake. It's really lite coconut cake - very good.
Well ********...last night I was watching the news and apparently on the south shore beaches...the tides have brought in stinging jellyfish..not the Portugeuse Man-O-War, but something else. They have signs posted along the beaches which everyone pretty much ignores and they showed people that got stung by 'em. They are saying that in the next day or so the tides will change and there will not be a problem with those things. OK I'm off to the North shore again>>
Aloha from Oahu! We've got some great hiking on the island. There's a network of trails just mauka (towards the mountains) from Honolulu. You can reach most of these trailheads with a 15 minute drive, traffic permitting. It will be very muddy this time of year, but well worth it; just watch your step on slippery rocks/roots and bring lots of water. Get a hold of a hiking guide from a library or bookstore. I was out bodysurfing at Pt Panics (south shore, across the channel from Alamoana Beach park) on Saturday and a guy got stung by a box jellyfish, but nobody else had any trouble. For town beaches, I'd recommend Alamoana and San Souci (next to the Aquarium across from Kapiolani Park; you can sometimes catch a game of pickup soccer there in the evening also a great place for a picnic). It's pretty rainy and windy at the moment but the East side has some great beaches: Makapuu, Waimanalo, Bellows (open to public Thursday-Sunday I think), Lanikai and Kailua. The North shore is getting a nice swell this week so you can check out the rippers at Sunset, Pipeline (Ehukai beach park) and Waimea. In the summer when the South shore is going off, Shark's cove is a great place to snorkel but probably too rough now. I'd stay away from Hanauma Bay, it's been ecologically degraded from massive overuse. Also, checkout Mokuleia on the Northwest end of the island for a nice secluded beach. It should be swimmable, look for patches of sand among the reef in the clear water just off the beach, but don't go past these areas because there can be a swift current. Also, don't be alarmed by the plane wreckage, this is the set for the tv show Lost. It's supposed to be sunny on the West side tomorrow so that might be a good call; Makaha and Yokohama (end of the road) are great beaches. Just don't leave any valuables in the car. The Northwest corner of the island is inaccessable by road and it's a nice walk out to Kaena Pt. There should be albatross out there this time of year. Bring lots of water if you go. For kine grinds (good eats), checkout: Little Village(chinese) in Chinatown Phuket Thai on Kapiolani Ave Irifune (japanese), La Bamba (mexican) and India Cafe on Kapahulu Ave Olive Tree (greek) and Antonios Pizza by Kahala mall Kua Aina Burger by Ward mall and in Haleiwa on the North shore C&C Pasta on Wailae Ave Maui Tacos in Kailua Bubbies (ice cream, try the Passion Fruit mochi) by the university Aloha nui loa (laters)!
ALOHA from Foster Village! I've got several books already. First I went to the western point of Oahu...forgot the name of it. Got really bad vibes...saw alot of unsavory folks and at the place where I was gonna park there were mounds and mounds of broken car glass...I really didn't want to risk it. So I headed back towards Honolulu and made my way up to another trail high in the hills only to turn back after a mile cuz it was just a ********ing muddy gumbo...like Georgia gumbo, but without the inbredness. And I got bit by skeeters...at least 5 bites on the left leg and 3 or 4 on the left. So I hopped in my car and then headed towards southeast Oahu and eventually did a 2 mile hike north of Sandy Beach...forgot the name of it though...it has the lighthouse near the top you can't get to. HOT AND MUGGY AND WINDY!!! But it was a good workout. Gonna try to hit Kailua before Saturday...I hope. Also want to do some snorkeling. Hit the North Shore the other day and was hit with rain, rain, and even more rain. This is where I wanted to go yesterday, but this is the place where I got a bad vibe when I was driving towards there and saw that the place where I was gonna park was littered with mounds of broken car glass. I can't believe the number of homeless people living on the beaches.
For the life of me I couldn't find this place today. I'll try again soon. I know where this place is at and I need to stop in there before we take off Saturday night. --- HOLY CRAP was Waikiki packed today. I eventually went to Queens Beach cuz it was less crowded.
It's kattykorner from the gas station you will see on the left across the street when you hit the light (i.e., on your right). It's just a white nondescript place. It's called Diamond Head Market and Grill and the address is 3575 Campbell and the number is 808-732-0077.
Found it AFTER I ate at the Rainbow Drive-In. I went to hike Diamond Head again and was ready to eat again and stopped at the restaurant, but they didn't have any restrooms and I uhhhh....needed to clear my tummy before I ate anymore so I didn't end up eating there. I know we'll be back within the next five years so I will eat there as well as Ono Hawaii. Earlier this morning I bought a half dozen masaladas from Leonard's.
Well since it was my first time snorkeling today, I figured this would be the best place to do it. Rented gear from Snorkel Bob's and made my way out there this morning. First off I don't swim and have never ever snorkeled before. The first couple of times I went down...I started to panic cuz I wasn't breathing right. Our natural tendency is to breath in through the nose and out the mouth. But with goggles and snorkel...you need to breath in and breath out through the mouth. After a while I got the hang of it and was just getting comfortable wading around with my head in the water. Then I put on my flippers and next thing you know I was zipping around. That was a blast. I also purchased an underwater camera and took alot of pics, but I don't know how they'll turn out...guess we'll see next week. I didn't venture far out into the bay cuz I was a newbie and didn't want to go beyond my comfort zone. But overall it was a very enjoyable experience and I wish I woulda done this earlier in the week instead of having to rush things today since we're flying out in a couple of hours.
My cousin Leilani gave this book (Oahu Revealed) to me as a xmas gift AFTER our vacation was over. WHAT A GREAT BOOK!!! Far superior to the other books I brought with me. The way the author presented the material...it just "clicked" with me much better than my other books and guide magazines. Very easy to read. The author seems to be talking with you instead of at you like those other books. A very valuable resource for the next time I go to Oahu. Wished I woulda gotten that book BEFORE my trip. Well now I'm back in Idaho and am in the process of recapping my vacation and found some deficiencies in it.... 1) It really does help to have an iteniary. I still had a good time with waking up in the morning and just going, but on the flipside, not having an iteniary is also a big time waster. I do classify myself as the anal type. But then again on most of my vacations...I really never do have an iteniary...just some general ideas of what I want to do. I think having an iteniary makes you budget your time more wisely and become more efficient throughout the vacation. 2) Pre-planning also helps. This goes along with #1. Leading up to this trip...I was busy with other things at night like working at my parttime gig or going to the gym...so I really didn't have any time to look into what I wanted to do. The two days prior to the trip I was scouring the net for all things Oahu. Really wasn't successful there. 3) I need to take more advantage of those damn coupons that are all over the place. Free stuff...discounts...etc. Good stuff! 4) I blew ALOT of money. I shoulda drawn up a reasonable budget and stuck with that. I'm gonna hate seeing my credit card statements the next couple of weeks. 5) I needed a hydration pack of some sort if I plan on doing any hiking...either a backpack style one like the 30 or so that I already own...or a waist pack one. I had a daypack with me, but it was too voluminous for just a liter or two of water plus my camera. 6) I also needed to pack my low cut hiking shoes. I brought along a pair of New Balance trailing running shoes that got really muddied up on the one trail that I was on earlier in the week. And I just really don't like to hike in running shoes.
I WANNA GO TO HAWAYEE! I WANNA GO TO HAWAYEE! I WANNA GO TO HAWAYEE! I WANNA GO TO HAWAYEE! YEEAAAAAAAAAYYY!!!! I just had to say that.
Bummer (I had the same problem but went across to the street to the gas station -- they're pretty cool about letting you use it). I know it sounds like I have stock in the place or something, but I really just liked the food alot. I swear we ate there like 7 times. Hanauma bay or Research pier? Yeah - I always go back and forth between feeling hostile that my vacation is too structured (I really hate it when I'm visiting someone and they try to plan the whole thing out), and feeling like I'm squandering opportunities. But really, when I get back from Hawaii I always wish I had chilled out a little more -- I'm usually trying to do 20 things at once. You rented a car though right? Both times I was in Hawaii I splurged for a convertible and it made the trip a lot more enjoyable -- even when you're driving around you're getting fresh air, sun, etc. Budgets, IMO, are for before or after vacations, not during.
Dark Knight spelled every vacation out in his last line, "Budgets, IMO, are for before or after vacations, not during". Didn't catch any of the contests on the North Shore?
Nope...the two times we went through the North Shore...nothing was going on. They did have everything set up for the contest at the beach where the Banzai Pipeline is at on either Wednesday or Thursday...can't remember. The weather wasn't too great, but I don't know if "ideal" weather conditions go hand in hand with "ideal" surfing conditions. My second time through the North Shore, the weather wasn't great, but there were some surfers out there along with a TON of Japanese tourists.
Latest is that the Pipeline Masters was postponed due to the conditions. In its place the Fosters Expression Session was run. I took a similar photo when I was there three years ago. My goal is to someday compete in the World Bodysurfing Championships held at Pipeline. I was in at Ehukai about 50 yards to the right of this break with a couple of guys who compete. Mike Stewart wins every year, but it would still be a rush to have a Pipeline wave all to oneself for just a fleeting moment.
The straight truth there Sinko. I think I've had that dream of Pipeline since childhood, along with knocking in the winning goal in Azteca against Mexico.