Things to do in Hawaii, Honolulu
 

Hey guys im going on a vacation getaway from June 11-16th
and was wondering what are some MUST do things in Hawaii, or PLACES to go?

thanks!

say, "HELLUH"

Surfing, snorkeling, banana-riding, para-sailing, sunbathing etc etc.

You may go to a Luau as well, but just be prepared to watch some fire breathing and other cliche Hawaiian stuff but eat some sub-par food like KFC fried chicken and stuff like that. (50 to 100 per person). I was definitely not impressed but it was only once. I stuck with eating whatever was available so lots of junk food and beard papa's.

Are you renting a car or taking transit everywhere? I stayed near Waikiki (on Kuiho Ave) and I had a bus stop in front of my hotel, so didn't rent. One bus to Ala Moana shopping mall and you transfer to buses from there (bus hub). Everything I did (except Luau) was accessible by transit or walking.

Diamond Head - went for a hike there and it was a fucking fabulous view. I went at 8am and was packed with tourists... so left shortly afterwards.
Hanauma Bay - crazy ass beach that looks EXACTLY like the pictures. Go swimming or snorkeling.
Turtle Bay - on the other side of the island from Honolulu (Forgetting Sarah Marshall's main filming location) beautiful place.

I took a bus that went from Ala Moana - Turtle Bay - Ala Moana (around 4 hours I think) and cost only 10 dollars for 2 people. The Dole Plantation and Shrimp trucks were along the bus route so you can plan your trips accordingly. There are also plenty of smaller beaches on the other side of the island. If you're into history, you can check out Pearl Harbor and the Polynesian Cultural Center.

In Waikiki area there are plenty of places to buy souvenirs and other shopping if you're into that stuff. The biggest mall is either Ala Moana or Royal Hawaiian. Last time I was there it was 4% state tax I believe. There are lots of Japanese tourists so many things are catered to them. If you like Japanese food, this place is pretty good with a large variety of selection. I tried out a place called Gyu-kaku which is essentially a much much better version of Shabusen.

Just remember, you are still in the US, so once you're outside the tourist areas, its just like another American city. The bus ride will drive past the uglier parts of town and other very boring parts, so be prepared. Also, when you enter Hawaii, you must fill out a separate card identifying your food/fruit products that you're carrying.

Be prepared to spend lots of $$

Have a nice trip!

hey buddy thanks for the great info, yeah my girlfriend and I are going to stay at llikai hotel so thats very close to where you stayed. And we plan on probably taking transit as well because we hardly ever transit so it will be a change of scenario.

So would you say the food over there around our hotel really expensive?
Sigh time to swipe the good ol' Visa lol

Ill def visit everything you just recommended and take pictures when I get back haha

i'd rent a car for a day or two to drive around the island. I did that and am glad I did instead of transit cause I got to stop where and when I wanted, I checked out the dole plantation and the hawaiian plantations

last time i went, we rented a car and went to the doll plantatation and pearl harbor. that's all i remember as i was pretty young the few times i've been haha

I miss Hawaii so much! I went with my boyfriend for a week last August. We stayed in Waikiki. We didn't do too much during our stay but towards the end of our trip we rented a car and drove to the North Shore and did an ATV tour at Kualoa Ranch. It's a popular filming location for movies and tv shows (LOST, Pearl Harbor, Jurassic Park, 50 First Dates among them). I'm a huge LOST fan so this was an amazing experience for me. We went ATV-ing for about two hours. The views were absolutely breath taking. The tour guides were super awesome and friendly, they would make stops along the way and talk about which movies were filmed at this location etc. They were super laid back and helped tourists with taking photos; we took our time and they never made us rush to take pictures. We picked fruit off the trees and ate them on the spot. I ended up with a ton of mosquito bites on my legs at the end of the day but it was so worth it. This was my first time ATV-ing and I'd love to go back.

After googling your hotel name the map shows that you're on one end of Waikiki-downtown area. The Hilton next somewhat reminded me of the Mirage in Las Vegas. Anyway food prices (and everything in general) is more expensive than say, your regular downtown Vancouver prices, owing to the fact that most food is brought in from the mainland. Don't expect to eat the greatest food there.

As others have said, if you can rent a car and drive around at your own schedule that'd be better than taking transit. I didn't because I wasn't old enough so took transit everywhere. Also, you have to factor in the time for waiting and transferring, and the fact that if you miss the bus out in the boonies you're looking at either a big cab fare OR extra hour in waiting time.

I stayed at Wyland Waikiki Hotel, which is now called Courtyard by Marriott Waikiki Beach.

Before I went, I pretty much just read over Wikitravel to see whats good and went from there. There are plenty of pamphlets that you can take from hotels.

God damn speaking about that place I would love to go back

if you do rent a car, the good thing about staying at the Ilikai is that theres really cheap parking by the dock, 25cents/hour
$6/day FTW!

Renting a car is really cheap if you book online ahead, like $12 a day. Parking is decent too. I stayed at the Sheraton Waikiki, awesome hotel, amazing pool, prime spot on the beach/strip. Parking was $25 a night. If you dont plan on exploring the island much, you can just walk around the strip. I think it's worth the car rental though especially if you want to go to diamond head/hanauma bay. Lots of ppl rent scooters but its more expensive than renting a car....

Im not a huge fan of honolulu, way too commercial for hawaii. It feels like living in LA FILLED with japanese tourists. I dont know about you but when i go to Hawaii, i want deserted beaches with on the island kinda feel.

If you have extra time, I highly recommend flying over to Kauai and spending a few days there. MUCH nicer imo than the other islands. Amazing scenery, beaches, and feel. It's like being in jurassic park. I stayed at the St.Regis on the north shore there in the most amazing location on the island. All the rooms face the bay with massive windows. There an awesome trail there that has some of the most incredible views in the world. Great surfing, snorkeling, fishing, awesome ppl and oh, did i mention surfing?

My wife and I absolutely hate taking transit here, but over in there we don't mind at all.

Zenshu - A great japanese restaurant there that just opened up about 2-3 years ago, definitely worth the a visit. 477 Kapahulu Ave

Ono Hawaiian Foods - Authentic Hawaiian Food, one of the best hole-in-the-wall Hawaiian restaurant. A few blocks down from Zenshu, 726 Kapahulu Ave

Leonard's Bakery - Great malasadas! 933 Kapahulu Ave

Aloha Stadium Swap Meet - need cheap souvenirs? Definitely the place to get it from, it's only on certain days of the week, and theres free admission (or 2 for 1) coupons inside those booklets you can get in your hotel.

Tons to do there...and I'm sure you'll find lots of great ideas online, but PM me if you want to hear more!

If you are on a budget, transit is amazing. $2.50 will get you across the island to north shore on a public bus.

Also go surfing ffs.

Hey guys thanks for the ideas! I have searched online, but none better than hearing it from peoples experiences.

About renting a car I would like to but my girlfriend and I are both twenty, so thats out of the question...as well as how the hell can I get liquor over there LOL...I need to boot! -_-

- Lounge on Waikiki beach

- Visit the Pearl Harbour monument

- Rent a car and drive around the island

- Visit the incredible surf beaches on the north shore

- Snorkel in Hanauma Bay (mediocre, but still worth doing)

- Check out Diamond Head

- See an "authentic" luau

- Go shopping

...can't possibly go wrong on Oahu!

i went a month ago, if either of u like shopping check out the waikele outlets. Haunama bay was really fun, if you go buy a good waterproof disposable, mine leaked and ruined all my film =( Luau was kinda hokey imo, rather have spent the 100/each elsewhere. Kmart has the cheapest gifts and alcohol (26$grey goose, 19$ bottles of alize), theres one @ the outlets. Fishing was pretty fun, its about 70$ to go reef fishing and you can eat certain ones that you catch, my gf caught this and we got to eat it on the spot http://www.hawaiibeachcombers.com/images/FLY-MOANA.gif . We also went trolling(sport fishing), probably would not recommend it unless you got a large budget, and if you do go do a full day trip and bring gravol, but you are allowed to keep half of what you catch, we ended up with like 20pounds of ---> http://www.grandermarlin.com/images/...sh/catch12.jpg, fortunately our hotel had a barbecue outside. As for food...the only place that I remember was good was Keo's thai, i think it was 40$ for a fresh whole fish. Chinatown has some good Pho places too. Lastly we took transit everywhere too, if you get a shuttle bus to anywhere, look through the little coupon books and book it yourself, we used it through the hotel and they booked like the most expensive one and didnt mention the price until we got there. Bus tickets are only good for one transfer aswell, like if you get on a bus and transfer to a different bus u gotta give up ur ticket. Hope that helps ;)

my buddy just came back from hawaii trip
he said its hella fun, just prepare a sum of cash

5 days $1800
;)

You should check out the polyanesian cultral center, they have the lu'au there at night with a buffet dinner and a showed called Ha. Highly recommended.
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Luau is overrated.

Much rather pay 100/person to watch Cirque du Soleil....

damnnn its today!!! or well..when i wake up and stuff but yeah..dont think i can sleep tonight! i'll take some pics when im there hopefully of some nice cars lol and scenery

Rent a car and go up to the North Shore (you can rent from lots of places down there being only 19....so I can't see you having a problem...). My boyfriend and I went in December and that was the best part of our trip. There are a couple of small towns up there where you can find the most awesome people and beaches I've seen :) have fun!!

Just got back from Hawaii today! I sure miss the sun. I stayed at the Ilikai, decent hotel, away from the noise of Waikiki beach and close to several beaches and Ala Monana Mall (10 min walk). Everything is within walking distance if you're willing to walk. ABC stores all around so you can stock up on food. I recommend renting a car and parking overnight in the area is cheap. Don't park in the hotel, it's valet only - $25 bucks. I also recommend taking a morning jog on the beach. The sand feels so much better than the beaches in Vancouver. Gotta go back again!

Haha we are leaving on the same day but I am coming back on the 25th. Anyways if anyone knows, how are the prices like for high end items at Ala Moana Center, The royal hawaiian, and Luxury Row compared to here in Vancouver?

haha is it? I was in the same hotel haha got back on the 17th.
on the 24th floor...

I freaking miss it best trip I ever had, i'll post pictures later!

Rent a convertible.. Drive to Hannema (sp?) Bay, North Beath, Turtle Beach, Pearl Harbour, Drive to the pineapple factory