Just returned from a great trip to the north shore of Oahu. Stayed at the Turtle Bay condos and would highly recommend them. We had a two bedroom/two bath unit that I found on vrbo.com. The condos are located on the golf courses at Turtle Bay and are an easy walk to the resort's restaurants, shops and public beaches. We saw turtles swimming on both sides of the resort and the bay to the right was our favorite swimming beach complete with chairs and shade-providing palm trees. Lei Lei's was our favorite restaurant, though we had good meals at Haleiwa Joe's, Pizza Bob's, and Cholo's. Shaved ice at both Matsumotos and Aoki's with ice cream in the bottom was a great treat. We spent one day at Waimea park and it is so worth the $8 admission. We took lots of pictures of the plants, flowers and waterfall. We also did a photo session there with a local photographer to capture some family vacation memories. After spending the first couple of days of our trip in Waikiki it was nice to get away to a more relaxed environment. We did enjoy staying at the Ilima hotel and would recommend that hotel to anyone looking for a bargain place to stay. We had a large room with two beds, full kitchen and dining table, and a balcony with a mountain/canal view for $90 per night. Located right behind the Int'l Marketplace and close to Duke's for lunch each day! It's so hard to come back from a good vacation.....

Thanks for the trip report! Considering Turtle Bay for our trip-after-next.
(After Big Island) Just got the hotel brochure in the mail today. Looks fabulous! Of course, I've checked the website...but still like to receive brochures. Did you notice- do they use wrist bands or something similar to keep the condo folks out of hotel pool?
I prefer condos, but want a nice pool for 12 year old traveling with me.

I did not see anyone wearing a bracelet at the pool. Occupancy was only 28% at the hotel during our stay so the pool area was pretty empty, but very nice. There was a waterfall pool with a slide that I'm sure your 12 year old will enjoy. I will say that our pool at the condo was nice too, but not as fancy.

I have a question - you mentioned a bunch of restaurant type places - I'm assuming they're located in Haleiwa? Are they affordable? (Not more than $10 per person). Need a decent place for lunch w/ Hawaiian "flavor" for a first time person visiting Hawaii and not very familiar with North Shore... (Lei Lei's, Haleiwa Joe's, Pizza Bob's, and Cholo's. Shaved ice at both Matsumotos and Aoki's with ice cream in the bottom was a great treat. ) MAHALO

Pizza Bob's and Cholo's were more affordable than Joe's and Lei Lei's. We ate out for dinner only, so I'm not sure about their lunch prices. Lei Lei's is located at the Turtle Bay Golf Club, and the others are in Haleiwa. You might want to try one of the shrimp trucks for an inexpensive lunch and then have a shaved ice afterward? That might make a good local experience.