No specifics but to be honest everything felt very "back to normal" so I wouldn't be surprised if it would be soonAny idea of when they might be bringing back the SNUBA at the reef - supplied air snorkeling? Are they still doing Paint with light and stargazing?
We did a day on the north shore and also drove a lap of the island with a few stops. We did all the "usuals". Ted's Bakery, Giovanni's, Matsumoto's, Kono's - we also went to Kualoa and did the ATV tour which was fantastic and went to a place about 15 mins away called "Fresh Catch" for lunch which did poke and plate lunches which was really good too.Did you do anything outside the resorts?
Any food recommendations in either place?
We had a vehicle for the first 4 days so we drove to Aulani from the airport and then we dropped off our suitcases at the Waikiki hotel and dropped the car off at Hilton Hawaiian Village. We took an uber to the airport from Waikiki on our departure day.Did you have a vehicle for the whole time? If not, how did you get to Waikiki/Aulani/Airport?
We didn't find it too bad but also planned our outings around traffic - avoiding going into waikiki in the mornings and through/out of it in the evenings with the commuters. We also did our north shore day on a Monday to avoid traffic etc.How did you find the traffic? I have friends that live just outside of Honolulu that seem to complain about it constantly on Facebook, and it makes me worry a little about how much time to budget towards driving to pre-booked activities!
I don't have any kids sorry! But I don't believe it was open yet we checked out of Aulani on the 17th of May.Did your kids use Aunty's Beach House? How was it?
Hi!No specifics but to be honest everything felt very "back to normal" so I wouldn't be surprised if it would be soon
We did a day on the north shore and also drove a lap of the island with a few stops. We did all the "usuals". Ted's Bakery, Giovanni's, Matsumoto's, Kono's - we also went to Kualoa and did the ATV tour which was fantastic and went to a place about 15 mins away called "Fresh Catch" for lunch which did poke and plate lunches which was really good too.
One place we tried in Waikiki which i've never seen get a mention but was certainly a food highlight this trip was Quiora for dinner and drinks.
Everyone thinks that the traffic in their home city is "the worst". We did not find traffic to be worse then any other mid sized city. If you avoid the main rush hour, it is fine. The traffic is nothing like the bigger cities, Chicago, LA, etc. So if you have ever driven in one of those places, you will think that there is hardly any traffic at all on Oahu. Look at what Google maps says for travel time and then add an extra 20-30 minutes to be safe.How did you find the traffic? I have friends that live just outside of Honolulu that seem to complain about it constantly on Facebook, and it makes me worry a little about how much time to budget towards driving to pre-booked activities!
I reckon that is 100% doable - but of course depends on how long you take for stops etc, all of ours were about an hour except for one which was probably about 30mins. We left around 8:30am, did 5 stops and were back in the Kapolei area in time for an "early" (5:30pm) dinner (and did sit through a bit of bumper to bumper on the way back from Lanikai).Hi!
On the Thursday of our July trip we are considering a lap or road trip around the NE portion of the island - taking the H3 toward Kane ‘ohe Beach Park and driving counterclockwise around the island stopping along the way to see the sights/beaches/etc between and stopping at Haleiwa for food trucks before heading south on 99 or 803. (We are doing Kailua/ Lanikai and the SE area another day)
Is that doable in a day from Aulani based on what you experienced or describe above?
Hi!
On the Thursday of our July trip we are considering a lap or road trip around the NE portion of the island - taking the H3 toward Kane ‘ohe Beach Park and driving counterclockwise around the island stopping along the way to see the sights/beaches/etc between and stopping at Haleiwa for food trucks before heading south on 99 or 803. (We are doing Kailua/ Lanikai and the SE area another day)
Is that doable in a day from Aulani based on what you experienced or describe above?
I'll add in that you should avoid the North Shore drive on the weekend if possible. All the locals go up to Pipeline and all the other surf spots on the weekend, and there is one 2 lane road that everybody has to use.Everyone thinks that the traffic in their home city is "the worst". We did not find traffic to be worse then any other mid sized city. If you avoid the main rush hour, it is fine. The traffic is nothing like the bigger cities, Chicago, LA, etc. So if you have ever driven in one of those places, you will think that there is hardly any traffic at all on Oahu. Look at what Google maps says for travel time and then add an extra 20-30 minutes to be safe.
Yep - it's a Thursday and we are used to more traffic in our City - pre WFH. Prefer to avoid long lines of stop and go of course, but can deal with a bit.I'll add in that you should avoid the North Shore drive on the weekend if possible. All the locals go up to Pipeline and all the other surf spots on the weekend, and there is one 2 lane road that everybody has to use.
Yep - it's a Thursday and we are used to more traffic in our City - pre WFH. Prefer to avoid long lines of stop and go of course, but can deal with a bit.
We just want to enjoy a "circle island tour" that does not include planned excursions, but stops where we feel like stopping.
It’s not so much the traffic, but trouble finding places to park at the beaches and dodging pedestrians crossing the road in random spots. It’s just not a relaxing drive through those areas. But definitely worth a see.Yep - it's a Thursday and we are used to more traffic in our City - pre WFH. Prefer to avoid long lines of stop and go of course, but can deal with a bit.
We just want to enjoy a "circle island tour" that does not include planned excursions, but stops where we feel like stopping.
We were staying on points sorry!If you were not on DCV points, did you get housekeeping every day or every other day?