Summer Vacation in Honolulu

The most memorable things that we did on Oahu were go to the Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park, hike on the Hawaii Loa Ridge Trail, and kayak in Kaneohe Bay.

Quick Tips:

Some of the best things to do on Oahu are free, like hiking and going to the beach. Kayaking can be a lot of fun if you can get some sort of discount on kayak rentals. The Hawaii Entertainment Book is a good source for discount coupons for dining and activities. You can purchase this discount book online at www.entertainment.com. Another good source for discount coupons is This Week, a pocket-size magazine for visitors. This Week can be found in Waikiki at hotels or car rental companies.

Best Way To Get Around:

The best way to get around Honolulu is by car rental. They have a great bus system in Honolulu but unless you are only staying in Waikiki it takes a long time to get around on the bus. There are some great car rental deals online so it is a good idea to shop around.

We stay at the Hawaii Prince Hotel Waikiki several times a year. The two-tower hotel is about a 10-minute walk to the Ala Moana Center and Ala Moana Beach. It is located near the Waikiki Yacht Club and it is right on Ala Moana Boulevard which joins up to Kalakaua Avenue that leads in to Waikiki. Since it is at the beginning of Waikiki, it is a lot quieter and less congested compared to hotels in the heart of Waikiki.

The view from the rooms is stunning since all rooms face the ocean. There are no balconies, but you can open the large glass windows to let the cool ocean breezes in. The rooms are very nice with light colored hues. The bathrooms, in my opinion, are very nice with marbled walls and floors. Housekeeping is usually very efficient and keeps the hotel rooms very well stocked and clean. Service is outstanding from the time of your arrival until your check out. We usually swim at the hotel pool which is located on the fifth floor and overlooks the Waikiki Yacht Club. There is also a fitness center as well as a Business Center on the same floor. You can get snacks or hot beverages at the hotel gift shop (Lamonts) or the coffee shop in the lobby. We often eat the breakfast buffet at the Prince Court Restaurant which is located right above the lobby and overlooks the harbor. The breakfast buffet is very good and service is great. I would recommend this hotel to visitors that want to stay in a high end hotel that is not in the heart of Waikiki.

We often eat at the Food Court at Ala Moana Center because we can choose from many fast food eateries that serve different ethnic foods. My son and I like to eat at Sbarro's which serves pizza and different types of breads and salads, and my husband likes to eat at Patty's Chinese Kitchen which serves Chinese plate lunches. My son and I also always buy a yogurt piña colada smoothie at Thirst Aid which costs about $3.50 per smoothie. The prices at the Food Court are reasonable, plates usually run around $5 to $7, depending on where you dine. There are many tables and chairs so it is easy to eat with your entire family. It does get crowded however during peak season and on the weekends.

The most memorable thing that we did in Honolulu during our recent summer vacation was our trip to the Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park. This park is a very small water park compared to Walt Disney World's Blizzard Beach or Typhoon Lagoon but it is very pleasant because it is not very crowded and there are no long wait lines for the rides. Overall, I liked this 25-acre park in Kapolei because there were no long lines.

Note on discounts*** We were able to get a discount on the regular admission rates (which are about $34.99 for adults and $24.99 for children) through a relative's credit union. There are also discount coupons for admission to Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park in the Hawaii Entertainment Books which can be purchased onlin at www.entertainment.com. We also saw a discount coupon for the water park in This Week magazine which can be found at car rental companies and at hotels.

My son and nieces love to go to Ice Palace located at the Stadium Mall which is near the Honolulu Stadium. The admission price of $7.50 is very reasonable because the price includes the rental of skates for the entire night. Ice Palace has been around for over 20 years but it is well maintained. There is an area for beginners to practice skating which is roped off from the main skating rink. Kids can order drinks and fast food at the concession. There are also many fast food family restaurants located outside of Ice Palace at Stadium Mall like Taco Bell and Pizza Hut.

You will need to sign in at the security shack located at the bottom of the Hawaii Loa Ridge subdivision. NOTE: SOMEONE IN YOUR PARTY NEEDS TO BE A HAWAII RESIDENT WITH A HAWAII I.D. IN ORDER FOR YOU TO HIKE THIS TRAIL. After you sign in then you can continue to the top until you reach the parking lot and the trail head. The beginning of the trail is very easy with a lot of ironwood and strawberry guava trees. It gets quite hot when you get near the lookout point. Then the trail becomes very steep with not much tall trees but only ferns and brush. You will then have to climb up several steps and use cables to help you with the ascent to the lookout. The lookout point is a very small area with a steep drop facing the windward side. I wouldn't recommend this hike for small children.

We went kayaking on a Friday in Kaneohe Bay. We took two single man kayaks and a double man kayak out into Kaneohe Bay from a friend's house. Luckily our friend lives right along the bay. We paddled around Coconut Island which was quite pleasant because there were no big waves and strong currents on Friday. The views of the Kaneohe Marine Base and Kaneohe are nice from the ocean. There is an area that is very deep where small boats ride through but every one in our party are water rats and can swim quite well. We were a little weary of the deep channel because there are hammerhead sharks that are known to frequent the area. Oh well...none of us tipped over our kayaks...Yipee! I wouldn't recommend kayaking in Kaneohe Bay for anyone that is not a strong swimmer or to anyone that is afraid of sharks!

Dave and Busters in Honolulu is awesome! We usually go there when we visit family on Oahu. It is located in central Honolulu at the Ward Entertainment Center (on Auahi Street) which is right across from the Victoria Ward Center and Ward Warehouse. It is located on the second floor of the Ward Entertainment Center next to the Ward 16 Theater. There are several restaurants on the first floor of the Ward Entertainment Center including Wolfgang Plus Express, Buca De Beppo, Big City Diner, and Starbucks Coffee.

Admission to Dave and Busters is free but you need to buy a reloadable Dave and Busters card to play the arcade games. The card itself is $1 and you can choose the amount you want to purchase which is usually in increments of $10, $20, $25 and so on. If you load your card with $25 then you could probably play games for about one hour (depending on which games you play). The game area is very nice and it looks somewhat like a dark casino in Las Vegas.

There is a large bar in the center of the gameroom with a few seating booths and tables for diners and drinkers. You can watch sports events on the TVs that are mounted above the bar. If you don't want to play video games, there are other games that you can play such as basketball, horse racing, Wheel of Fortune, coin games, etc. Some games give out tickets that you can redeem for prizes at the gift shop located on the left hand side of the gameroom. Prizes range from small items like pencils to large stuffed animals. Even though it is expensive to play games at Dave and Busters, it is very fun and entertaining for children!