SusieR

Hello

We are an English couple in our late 20's who are coming to Oahu next month for a friend's wedding. We've booked our accommodation but would be very grateful for feedback on our itinerary below.

We're not into sunbathing or swimming in the sea too much but would like to see some gorgeous beaches and scenery !

Thanks in advance.

Susie


Wed 11 October
9pm - Arrive HNL from San Francisco.
Shuttle bus to hotel Aqua Aloha Surf Hotel in Waikiki.

Thurs 12 October
Morning - look round Waikiki. Possibly do the submarine trip,
Afternoon - Hire car and drive to Diamond Head and then Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden / Lyon Arborotum.
Night at Aqua Aloha Surf hotel in Waikiki.

Fri 13 October
Morning - Check out of hotel. Drive to Hanauma Bay and then Kailua Beach for kayaking.
Late afternoon - continue up to the North Shore and check in to condo in Laie Point.
7pm onwards - dinner etc at the PCC with wedding party [ already booked].
Night at condo in Laie Point (5 mins from PCC)

Sat 14 October
Morning - snorkelling and exploring beaches close to Turtle Bay resort.
3.30pm - wedding at Turtle Bay resort.
4pm onwards - wedding reception at Turtle Bay.
Night at condo in Laie Point.

Sun 15
Morning / Afternoon - any suggestions !?
Night at condo in Laie Point.

Mon 16
Morning - check out of condo. Drive to Pearl Habour.
Afternoon - look round town buildings in Honolulu.
Early evening - dinner and then return hire car at airport.
9pm - fly from HNL to San Francisco.

Budman

I would just caution you on your last day not to leave your luggage or any valuables in the car all day while sightseeing. The islands have the reputation for break ins. Maybe someone familiar with HNL can give you some recommendations on where to keep/check your bags.

MerryTravel

I agree with Budman 100%. When we lived on Oahu we had guests of ours get their car broken into while they went kayaking at Kailua, and they were upset enough about just losing towels, credit cards and IDs. Neither is terribly convenient, but I think your options would be to leave your luggage at the hotel and go back to Waikiki to pick it up after Kailua, or drive up to your condo first thing to drop off your luggage, then go to Kailua. If you do the latter, you might want to either do Hanauma another day or skip it and just snorkel on the North Shore if conditions allow. Maybe I went on a bad day but I didn't find the snorkeling at Hanauma all that great anyway.

SusieR

Thanks for your replies. Any idea how long the drive is from PCC (where our condo is) to Kailua ? If it's less than 30 mins, we will leave our luggage at the condo on the morning of 13th and then go there.

We might have to risk it on 16th unless we can leave our luggage at the airport in the morning and come back for it.

If you have any other tips for what to do / see, do let me know !

Thanks again
Susie

gigib

It's about a 45 minute drive from Laie to Kailua, scenic but a bit slow.

On your free Sunday, you should drive up to the North Shore and see the surfing beaches, Waimea Bay and Haliewa town. You will pass by the famous shrimp trucks at Kahuku, a good stop for lunch, or, in Haliewa there are great burgers and grilled fish sandwiches at Kua Aina. Have a shave ice at Aoki's or Matsumoto's. There is a small beach a mile or two before you get to Haliewa on the right that is a hang out for sea turtles.

Enjoy Hawaii! You will love it.

suze

For your downtown Honolulu time you might be interested in seeing the Bishop Museum and/or Iolani Palace.

sleepyage

Just returned from Oahu this morning. On our last day we checked out of our hotel and then went to Pearl Harbor and kept our luggage in our car. With all the people in the parking lot, I cannot imagine anyone trying to break into a car. We had absolutely no problems.
It was a great way to spend the day since our flight didn't leave until 10:00 pm.

lcuy

You're vey lucky...The PH memorial is one of the riskiest places for car thefts! Takes only a few seconds for theives to pop a trunk and they look like the car owners as they do it.

It got so bad a while back that after tons of negative press, the park staff finally set up the "hat check" counter.