Been coming to Hawaii since I was a little kid (to the Big Island, Maui and Oahu) and after a 6+ year hiatus finally made my way back. Went on a fun girlie trip with my SF roomies and had a non-packed agenda to Oahu.
ITINERARY
February 2018 - 4 nights @ Pearl Aqua Waikiki (meh room but cheap price and awesome location) in Oahu
HIGHLIGHTS
Running into Shaun Livingston at SFO. What a way to kick off a trip. Fun fact: Shaun Livingston does not have TSA-precheck. LOL
Getting my heart pumping with shark cage diving. Recommend going with North Shore Shark Adventures because they give you a refund if you don’t see sharks. At first I was terrified, but after a moments you become so mesmerized by them you honestly forget to even be afraid. Definitely recommend going snorkeling or scuba diving while in Hawaii— theres a whole beautiful world down there!
Kayaking in Kailua Beach. Definitely a beach I would recommend x100000! Less touristy and the beaches are so soft and sandy. I had a great time paddling through the rain to catch a rainbow on the other side. Go with Kailua Beach Adventures, and they even take you to kayak to an island. Note, Kailua doesn’t allow for tourism activities on Sundays!
Taking a sunset yoga class on a paddle-board. Booked through Classpass so it was free.
Tanning at Waikiki Beach. Definitely head here for a few hours— don’t forget the tanning oil and sunscreen!
Experiencing food truly unique to Hawaii. Katsu, green tea ice cream, sushi, poke, anything with macadamia nuts… Hawaii you have stolen my heart and added extra weight to my stomach.
Enjoying reverse happy hours
Late night at Izakaya Torae Torae we went to on the first night, starts at 9pm! Wonderful hamachi cappachio (5 huge pieces for $9!!!) along with yummy chirashi bowls, chicken carrage, ahi poke.
Late night at Sansei (50% off entire menu!!!!!) starts at 10pm. Paying $7 for 5 pieces of sashimi was AHHH-mazing!!!!
Brunching at cute cafes and being basic eating açaí bowls.
Island Vintage Coffee -- delicious Island Latte (mmmm how many macadamia lattes can I drink in one trip?), salmon poke, taro bagel with lox, and a very basic açaí bowl (with flowers in it). Bit expensive, but prime location in Ala Moana shopping center and food was a solid ⅘ stars!
Hawaiian Crown Plantation -- more price friendly, and fresh fruit everywhere!!!!! And nothing more basic then having a delicious açaí bowl in a carved out pineapple.
HiBlend Health Bar and Cafe -- huge selection of pitaya bowls, açaí bowls & smoothies!
Macadamia ice lattes -- I don’t even like macadamia nuts that much but for some reasons these guys are tasty
Getting the best value meal at Marukame Udon. Udon ranges from $4-$7. Also have bunch of fried food (tempura and veggies) you can add.
Cooling down with ice cream and shaved ice.
Maiko Green Tea ice cream. Very rich matcha ice cream (with different variations of snow ice, cone, or rice balls).
Waiola Shave Ice. Lame location, meh ambiance, kind of cheap owner…. but one shaved ice shared amongst a group of friends is perfect on a hot day x)
Getting spammed at Musubi Cafe Iyasume.
Eating katsu at Tonkatsu Ginza Barin. I never thought katsu could be so good (re: my thoughts on Germany/schnitzel) but W O W was that flakey and soft. My favorite was minced pork.
Bringing back yummy souvenirs for friends. Make sure to pick it up at Walmart vs an ABC store for half the price!
Hawaiian Host Matcha Macs -- (my coworkers went crazy for these!) super yummy matcha flavored chocolate with macadamia nuts
Li Hing Lychee Sour Belts -- ling hing is plum powder and brings such a unique flavor twist to a modern cand
Being a freaking dare devil and getting a cartilage piercing at Tattoo Hawaii. Shout out to Nax for listening to me for 20+ min as I debated about the piercing.
Soaking in that beautiful and lush scenery at Diamond Head.
Meeting such kind and friendly locals that made that made the trip more than I could have imagined! S/O to Kendra our Uber driver for greens, German our Kayak tour guide for photos, and Nax for patience.
Drinking freaking cheap drinks. Go out to Chinatown if it’s the first Friday of every month for a fun college / bar hopping experience. Playbar (bleh an 18+ club) had $4 drinks on Fridays and $1 drinks on Sundays (which I have fully taken advantage of).
Feeling girlie with a spa experience. Go on the last day of your trip to unwind and scrub off all the sunscreen / deet. We went to Lava Massage and Spa, and spent 2.5 hours getting an aromatherapy message, facial, and foot scrub-- all for $105! #gooddeal
Wearing flowers in our hair and attending a luau. Found a great deal with Moana Luau (that was closer by and didn’t require a far commute)— but still prefer Polynesian Center because it felt more authentic and the luau show was more impressive.
Most importantly, spending time with my roommates! Life moves so fast and with work, boyfriends, side projects, etc going on it’s SO easy to neglect spending time with my roommates. I’m super grateful for such amazing / down friends, and the chance to spend uninterrupted time with them. Cheers to more quarterly trips together!
lowlights
Running 15 minutes late to a pilates class. Got over ambitious and decided to use our Classpass membership for pilates class at 8:30AM. Ran late, and the pilates class itself wasn’t great. I’ve been too spoiled with luxurious studios in SF.
Meh, can’t be fixed but getting sea sick on boats. Recommend Bonine for those similar to me. Also applying pressure #acupuncture on the wrist between the two tendons helps a lot! Don’t forget to not eat beforehand, otherwise that’ll add to the dizziness.
Overhyped masaladas. Worth if you’re near by, not not worth waiting 20+ min in line at Leonards Bakery for.
The smell of suncreen mixed with deet. I'll put up with it, but man you need a firm scrub at night to wash it all off.
for next time
Get a hotel w a pool for night swim.
Go hike near a waterfall.
