The perfect Hawaiian Holiday
by Mandy Brown
Aloha,
Mother and daughter vacations can go either way. A recent getaway with my daughter, in her twenties went the best way. It was perfect. We didn’t have a destination in mind other than one flight and somewhere to relax, so I talked to my personal travel advisor, Kerry Graham and she suggested Hawaii. Now when it comes to relaxing, I’m good at it and my go to place would be an Island in Fiji. I have been to Hawaii a couple of times a few years ago and declared Waikiki not for me. So when Kerry suggested Waikiki for 10 days I was surprised as she knows me well. She not only suggested Waikiki, but in particular a Hotel in Waikiki, the Halekulani. Kerry visited the Halekulani last year with her own daughter and they were both thrilled with it and Waikiki. I liked Kerry’s advice so she booked it.
We arrived at the hotel and were very pleasantly surprised with the warm welcome from the bellboys through to the reception desk. We were whisked along and found that we were upgraded to an ocean view room, overlooking the pool area and out to the sea. Our room was very well appointed and the Super King bed was split into two good king-singles. There was plenty of space, with a small couch and coffee table area plus a desk and chair. A very large bathroom had an equally large wet-room shower and there was plenty of storage, which was good as we brought too many clothes with us and almost needed to purchase another bag to come home with.
The Halekulani Hotel, Waikiki is right on the waterfront as are many well-known hotels like, the Moana Surf rider, the Sheraton and the Hilton. Where the beach hotels of Waikiki are open to the beach and the beach crowds join with the hotel crowds, entry to the Halekulani is through a small key pass operated gate and the facilities are only available for the hotel guests. We would wander along the beach and people watch or wander into the hotel bars and restaurants for lunch or dinner, but we knew we had our very own haven back at the Halekulani. There were no crowds and rowdy pool goers. The wonderful pool staff made sure we were comfortable and arranged for the best lounges available. It was a very pleasant place to be during the day sipping on cool drinks or cocktails. Two of my favourites were Cucumberade and Le mint which were both very refreshing.
Besides relaxing by the pool in very comfortable lounges we intended to wander Waikiki, take a tour around the island and my daughter was going to learn to surf. Through the week we managed to do everything and more. My daughter took a 2 hour lesson and was up and surfing like a pro very quickly and is now hooked. We went for a catamaran sail and snorkeled with giant turtles not far off Waikiki beach. We rented a car for a day and toured around Oahu, visiting small towns, Waimea beach, the Pipeline and of course the Dole Plantation. We also took a helicopter ride over the Island, which was incredible and well planned. Flying over Pearl Harbour and seeing the sunken Arizona from the air is breath taking.
Shopping in Hawaii was very good. Waikiki has a strip running the full length of the beach area and includes all the top luxury stores and more. The Ala Moana Centre is very central and has all of USA’s top department stores on site. Shopping time for us was in the evening, as everything is open until 9pm every day. We either shopped before or after dinner depending on where we were eating.
Food in Hawaii is pricey; if you think figures on the menus for meals were the same figures you would see in New Zealand, but in US Dollars. Portions are very generous and we found this in all of the restaurants, cafes to high end restaurants included. So we tailored our ordering to suit us and in some cases wait staff would make sharing suggestions. We were in Waikiki during Easter and this is also Spring break for the US so it was a busy place. The restaurants were humming, but from what I was told this is the norm year round. Many of the restaurants would be full by 6pm and would hand out bleepers when you put your name down. They would also give you an approximate time. It was very common for it to be 1 hour or more. Luckily we found out quite early in our stay that when you get the time you can go away and come back within the vicinity of the place 15 minutes prior and the bleeper will be able to pick up the signal. So for a 2 hour wait we headed off shopping and came back actually half an hour prior to the time given and we were straight in to our table. We went to a number of great restaurants, listed below.
Air New Zealand flies daily and Hawaiian Airlines flies 3 times a week to Hawaii at some very competitive rates. Hawaiian Airlines also has connecting flights to the Islands of Hawaii, Molokai, Maui , Kauai and Lanai.
There are a number of great hotels and resorts to stay in Oahu and the other islands. Whether it is a family, golfing, surfing, adventure, hiking, relaxing or romantic getaway, Hawaii has the right accommodation for all.
Here’s a list of recommendations from my journey:-
Accommodation:- Halekulani, Waikiki http://www.halekulani.com/ Loved this Hotel and would definitely go back.
Shopping:- For all the Luxury stores, the main road through Waikiki was perfect, also with some great people watching. Ala Moana Centre is for one of those days where the weather takes you away from the beach and be prepared to spend a few hours shopping in all the top US department stores.
Activities:- Surfing – Lessons and board hire with Gone Surfing http://gonesurfinghawaii.com/
Helicopter tour of Oahu with Makanikai Helicopters, which can also be done in a chopper with the doors removed. http://www.makanikai.com/
Rent a Car for the day and drive around the island visiting the small towns, beaches and markets on the way. We booked our car through the hotel.
Snorkelling with the Giant Turtles on the Waikiki Reef onboard a Catamaran with a short sail around to Diamond Head. We went with Holokai Catamaran https://sailholokai.com/ , which was based just on the beach by the Halekulani.
Restaurants we loved:- All walking distance from the Halekulani Waikiki.
Island Vintage Coffee Café, Royal Hawaiian Center, Waikiki - Great Coffee, great healthy breakfasts and lunches, including our favourite Acai bowls. https://www.islandvintagecoffee.com/
Dukes, Seafood a specialty, plus we loved the fresh salad bar http://www.dukeswaikiki.com/
Nobu, Japanese with a twist http://www.noburestaurants.com/waikiki/experience/
Morimoto Japanese http://www.morimotowaikiki.com/
Roys Asian influence http://www.royshawaii.com/
Wolfgang Pucks Steakhouse Fantastic steaks that need to be shared they’re so big. Great choice of sides. The New York Cheesecake flown in everyday from New York of course. http://wolfgangssteakhouse.net/waikiki/
The Cheesecake Factory American dinning, with their favourites included like, Mac ‘n cheese, mash potatoes, huge meals and lots of dressings and sauces. Also a huge range of Cheesecakes to try. Make sure you order to share, their servings are enormous http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/
Enjoy the Slideshow below
Halekulani Hotel, Waikiki, Oahu, Hawaii
The perfect Hawaiian Holiday
by Mandy Brown
Aloha,
Mother and daughter vacations can go either way. A recent getaway with my daughter, in her twenties went the best way. It was perfect. We didn’t have a destination in mind other than one flight and somewhere to relax, so I talked to my personal travel advisor, Kerry Graham and she suggested Hawaii. Now when it comes to relaxing, I’m good at it and my go to place would be an Island in Fiji. I have been to Hawaii a couple of times a few years ago and declared Waikiki not for me. So when Kerry suggested Waikiki for 10 days I was surprised as she knows me well. She not only suggested Waikiki, but in particular a Hotel in Waikiki, the Halekulani. Kerry visited the Halekulani last year with her own daughter and they were both thrilled with it and Waikiki. I liked Kerry’s advice so she booked it.
We arrived at the hotel and were very pleasantly surprised with the warm welcome from the bellboys through to the reception desk. We were whisked along and found that we were upgraded to an ocean view room, overlooking the pool area and out to the sea. Our room was very well appointed and the Super King bed was split into two good king-singles. There was plenty of space, with a small couch and coffee table area plus a desk and chair. A very large bathroom had an equally large wet-room shower and there was plenty of storage, which was good as we brought too many clothes with us and almost needed to purchase another bag to come home with.
The Halekulani Hotel, Waikiki is right on the waterfront as are many well-known hotels like, the Moana Surf rider, the Sheraton and the Hilton. Where the beach hotels of Waikiki are open to the beach and the beach crowds join with the hotel crowds, entry to the Halekulani is through a small key pass operated gate and the facilities are only available for the hotel guests. We would wander along the beach and people watch or wander into the hotel bars and restaurants for lunch or dinner, but we knew we had our very own haven back at the Halekulani. There were no crowds and rowdy pool goers. The wonderful pool staff made sure we were comfortable and arranged for the best lounges available. It was a very pleasant place to be during the day sipping on cool drinks or cocktails. Two of my favourites were Cucumberade and Le mint which were both very refreshing.
Besides relaxing by the pool in very comfortable lounges we intended to wander Waikiki, take a tour around the island and my daughter was going to learn to surf. Through the week we managed to do everything and more. My daughter took a 2 hour lesson and was up and surfing like a pro very quickly and is now hooked. We went for a catamaran sail and snorkeled with giant turtles not far off Waikiki beach. We rented a car for a day and toured around Oahu, visiting small towns, Waimea beach, the Pipeline and of course the Dole Plantation. We also took a helicopter ride over the Island, which was incredible and well planned. Flying over Pearl Harbour and seeing the sunken Arizona from the air is breath taking.
Shopping in Hawaii was very good. Waikiki has a strip running the full length of the beach area and includes all the top luxury stores and more. The Ala Moana Centre is very central and has all of USA’s top department stores on site. Shopping time for us was in the evening, as everything is open until 9pm every day. We either shopped before or after dinner depending on where we were eating.
Food in Hawaii is pricey; if you think figures on the menus for meals were the same figures you would see in New Zealand, but in US Dollars. Portions are very generous and we found this in all of the restaurants, cafes to high end restaurants included. So we tailored our ordering to suit us and in some cases wait staff would make sharing suggestions. We were in Waikiki during Easter and this is also Spring break for the US so it was a busy place. The restaurants were humming, but from what I was told this is the norm year round. Many of the restaurants would be full by 6pm and would hand out bleepers when you put your name down. They would also give you an approximate time. It was very common for it to be 1 hour or more. Luckily we found out quite early in our stay that when you get the time you can go away and come back within the vicinity of the place 15 minutes prior and the bleeper will be able to pick up the signal. So for a 2 hour wait we headed off shopping and came back actually half an hour prior to the time given and we were straight in to our table. We went to a number of great restaurants, listed below.
Air New Zealand flies daily and Hawaiian Airlines flies 3 times a week to Hawaii at some very competitive rates. Hawaiian Airlines also has connecting flights to the Islands of Hawaii, Molokai, Maui , Kauai and Lanai.
There are a number of great hotels and resorts to stay in Oahu and the other islands. Whether it is a family, golfing, surfing, adventure, hiking, relaxing or romantic getaway, Hawaii has the right accommodation for all.
Here’s a list of recommendations from my journey:-
Accommodation:- Halekulani, Waikiki http://www.halekulani.com/ Loved this Hotel and would definitely go back.
Shopping:- For all the Luxury stores, the main road through Waikiki was perfect, also with some great people watching. Ala Moana Centre is for one of those days where the weather takes you away from the beach and be prepared to spend a few hours shopping in all the top US department stores.
Activities:- Surfing – Lessons and board hire with Gone Surfing http://gonesurfinghawaii.com/
Helicopter tour of Oahu with Makanikai Helicopters, which can also be done in a chopper with the doors removed. http://www.makanikai.com/
Rent a Car for the day and drive around the island visiting the small towns, beaches and markets on the way. We booked our car through the hotel.
Snorkelling with the Giant Turtles on the Waikiki Reef onboard a Catamaran with a short sail around to Diamond Head. We went with Holokai Catamaran https://sailholokai.com/ , which was based just on the beach by the Halekulani.
Restaurants we loved:- All walking distance from the Halekulani Waikiki.
Island Vintage Coffee Café, Royal Hawaiian Center, Waikiki - Great Coffee, great healthy breakfasts and lunches, including our favourite Acai bowls. https://www.islandvintagecoffee.com/
Dukes, Seafood a specialty, plus we loved the fresh salad bar http://www.dukeswaikiki.com/
Nobu, Japanese with a twist http://www.noburestaurants.com/waikiki/experience/
Morimoto Japanese http://www.morimotowaikiki.com/
Roys Asian influence http://www.royshawaii.com/
Wolfgang Pucks Steakhouse Fantastic steaks that need to be shared they’re so big. Great choice of sides. The New York Cheesecake flown in everyday from New York of course. http://wolfgangssteakhouse.net/waikiki/
The Cheesecake Factory American dinning, with their favourites included like, Mac ‘n cheese, mash potatoes, huge meals and lots of dressings and sauces. Also a huge range of Cheesecakes to try. Make sure you order to share, their servings are enormous http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/
Enjoy the Slideshow below
