Hawaii - Feburary 2012
What a destination! I had always wanted to visit Hawaii and was excited for the opportunity. This was a family holiday but Hawaii is perfect for any holiday and suits most people who love the sun, beach and fresh air. I felt so alive being on the islands.
We flew with Hawaiian Airlines from Sydney direct to Honolulu and they were great. The good news now is they will be flying directly from Brisbane to Honolulu with services commencing late 2012. They are a full serviced airline and the flight times were perfect as we left Sydney 9:20 pm, had a drink, meal and movie onboard (all complimentary) and fell asleep for 6-8 hours until we woke up and landed in Honolulu at 10:30 am the same day. Too easy.
We stayed at Aston Waikiki Beach which is across the road from the beach and an easy walk to most areas within the Waikiki precinct. Waikiki Beach is fabulous and only getting better. Due to erosion, they were refurbishing the beach with sand from Stradbroke Island, Queensland! But this did not at all hinder our daily fun and frolicking on the beach. The beach and city is very clean and there is such a positive energy about the place. A must is to have lunch and/or a Maitai cocktail at beach restaurant of The Royal Hawaiian Hotel (The Pink Palace) and watch the views of Waikiki Beach and Diamond Head. Sunset from the jetty at the end of Waikiki Beach is another must. We hired a car and drove around the whole island which I would recommend but definitely book your car when you make your holiday booking as we had problems trying to find a car available. If I wasn’t comfortable driving in the States and I didn’t have children with me, I would have taken an island tour to see the sights. Hire cars give you the freedom to travel (and stop) whenever and wherever you feel like it.
So many places to see. Pearl Harbour was very interesting. A lot of people there so need to pre-book tours of museums and allow a full day for this attraction. Shopping is excellent in Honolulu and Waikiki Beach area from upmarket boutiques to markets and the largest open air shopping mall in the world called Ala Moana. Also great shopping outlets outside of town which are accessible by public transport. The Zoo is worth a visit as well as the Sea Life Park where kids as young as 1 year old can have a Dolphin Encounter with their parents. This is special for families with young children as the minimum age for a dolphin encounter at Sea World on the Gold Coast is 5 years old.
After Waikiki/Honolulu we flew to Kauai which is the garden isle. This is an untouched paradise which has a slower pace and where Elvis filmed “Blue Hawaii”. We stayed at Aston Islander on the Beach. The beaches we saw were not as nice as on Oahu but the natural beauty of the island was spectacular. Again we hired a car which gave us freedom to explore this beautiful island. One day we took a cruise to see the Napali Coast and because we were there during whale watch season, we saw an abundant of humpback whales and spinner dolphins which was an added bonus. Whale watching season is from December to May. We also travelled to Waimea Canyon which is the Grand Canyon of the Pacific and we went kayaking up a river from a quaint town called Hanalei.
Because travelling between the Hawaiian Islands is easy we then travelled to Maui for 5 nights and stayed at The Kapalua Villas which is a great area for golfers. We could have stayed longer on Maui as it is a large island which so much to see. We loved driving along the coast and stopping at one of the many beaches in the afternoon to watch the sunset and the whales playing not far from the shore. Another highlight is travelling to the top of Haleakala Volcano which rises over 10,000 feet above sea level. It was 4 degrees Celsius and blizzard like conditions when we reached the top and it was difficult to believe that we had just left the beach and 30 degree heat at the bottom of the mountain. One popular tour is to watch the sunrise on the mountain but this was not an option for us this time as the kids probably wouldn’t have liked the 2:00 am departure. Maybe next time. We embarked on another cruise where we travelled to Molokini Crater for snorkelling and a snuba experience (cross between snorkelling and scuba diving – no certificate needed).
Before we headed back to Australia we stayed at the Aulani Disney Resort in Oahu which opened in September 2011. It is a Hawaiian Resort with a Disney feel and has some of the Disney characters walking about the resort daily and facilitating a pool party at lunch time. My kids didn’t want to leave the kids club which was free. We were given a mobile phone and the kids club would ring us when the kids had enough. Inside the resort was a mini water park with various pools and slides. There was also a reef pool which cost extra but guests could swim with tropical reef fish. We purchased a souvenir mug from the gift shop on the first day and this gave us unlimited access to soft drinks and coffee/tea free of charge. This is the most economical way. I would also strongly advise booking the Disney Character breakfast at the same time you book your accommodation as these can book out at least 3 months in advance. We ate breakfast next door at the Marriott as the buffet was cheaper and included more.
Our last night we stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and oh what a village. This resort is massive with everything at your fingertips. My obsession with this resort was that they filmed Hawaii 50 here and I was hoping to see Alex O’Loughlin but I was a couple of weeks late apparently. Anyway, I saw the pink flamingos roaming around near the ponds at reception and the penguins at their pool. So much to do here and right on the beach at Waikiki.
Altogether we spent just over 2 weeks exploring Hawaii and I loved every minute of it. I don’t know if I will ever get used to tipping an average of 18% on top of every bill but I’m already planning to go back – maybe for my 40th?