~~~ACCOMMODATION~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Turtle Bay Resort – www.turtlebayresort.com, 10 minute drive to the wedding site at Malaekahana, hotel/condos, golf, restaurant, spa, etc.
Fancy to beachy.
Try www.vrbo.com and search for Malaekahana (our beach) or Laie.
Some Laie houses are on Hukilau which connects to Malaekahana beach just to the south.
Other Laie beach houses are on “Bathtub Beach” – this is a bit further away, south of Laie Point, closeby, but the beach doesn’t connect
There are other independent websites with beachhouses in that area so use those locations and try google.
Beachy to super-beachy (camping).
check out the campgrounds
http://www.alternative-hawaii.com/fom/
and here lists the same thing with more photos of the options
http://www.malaekahana.net/default.asp?file=Facilities
cabins, yurts, hales with full facilities (electricity, kitchen, etc.) holding 2 to many people, from $60-$150 per nite
Camp sites at $8.50/nite.
They even rent camping gear, boogie boards, coolers, sunshowers, etc.
They take reservations too...
Really, go anywhere...beach access is easy and all directions are amazing on Oahu.
Check out for details: www.hawaiiweb.com/oahu/beaches/
Our favourites, going counter-clockwise
East Oahu
Hanauma Bay – famous marine protected area for snorkelling. Go early and beat the crowds. Closed Tuesday (so Wednesday morning is a nice time to visit)
Sandy's Beach - great bodysurfing, super dangerous shore break if you are not accustomed to it.
Makapu'u - gorgeous set up, beautiful water, can have lots of waves
Waimanalo - long long stretch of beach, calm waters, lots of shady spots
Lanikai - Stunning set up- mokulua islands, calm waters, white white sand (kind of idyllic beach)
Kailua -Beautiful, pretty windy, kite surfing, kayaking rentals
Kahana Bay -beautiful bay and you can walk in to the Valley behind
Pounders – body surfing – strong shorebreak
Hukilau – connects to Malaekahana Beach
Malaekahana - Wedding Beach!! Mokuauia -goat island you can walk there on a low tide. Its a bird sanctuary so stay on beach and trails, surf spot off the island
North Shore
Kawela Bay – between Turtle Bay and Sunset Beach, hard to find but if you do, beautiful secluded bay
Sunset - This begins the 7mile stretch of the north shore, famous surf spot – usually bigger than the other breaks.
Ehukai Beach Park – home of Pipeline, whole beach is walkable – heaps of famous breaks right in front of the beach, powerful surf
Shark’s Cove – good snorkelling, can rent gear across the street
Three Tables – Also good snorkelling
Waimea Bay – Beautiful swimming on calm days, jump off the rock with the local kids
Chun’ s - they often do surf lessons here if conditions are right
Laniakea – famous surf spot, tons of turtles at east end, can walk to empty gorgeous beaches to the west, watch the cars when crossing the street!
Mokuleia (the other North Shore)
Mokuleia beach park – access to a long beach stretching as far as the eye can see, gets quite windy, outer reef offers sheltered swimming near shore.
Kaena Point – see the hikes
Honolulu –
Alamoana Beach Park – protected swimming, not the cleanest water, tons of breaks along the reef
Waikiki – its a classic, rent a board and surf, go for a canoe ride, be a tourist, nice stroll towards Diamond Head to the aquarium and Kapiolani Park
Diamond Head -uncrowded, short but steep path down, surf on outside reefs, always has waves, pretty calm on shorebreak. Beautiful overlook from parking area.
~~HIKING~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
Check out the Hiker's Guide to Oahu - amazing day walks all over the island, too many to list
Bring water, hat, sunscreen, bug repellent, maybe a rain jacket if you head to the mountains
Check out these websites for walk info and more info:
Frank's hiking guide:
http://oahuhiking.com
Na Ala Hele:
http://hawaiitrails.ehawaii.
Trip Advisor:
http://www.to-hawaii.com/
Some of our favorites:
Closer to H-Town
Mount Olympus – the summit of the Koolau mountains, big walk into the cloud forest above Honolulu
Manoa Falls – back of Manoa valley, next to Lyon arboretum, easy waterfall walk, beautiful
Kuliouou Ridge – classic walk from Hawaii Kai (near H-Town), up to the Koolau summit ridge
Koko Head Crater – above Sandy Beach, hot stairmaster, amazing views.
Makapuu Lighthouse walk – 2 mile mellow climb to East tip of island, HOT – good for whale watching
Ka’au Crater – harder to find, serious adventure, Palolo Valley, Honolulu
Diamond Head Crater – Hot, touristy, but a bit of a classic - Honolulu
East side of Island
Maunawili Falls – easy waterfall walk on the way to Kailua, east oahu
Olomana – very steep ridge trail above Kailua, East Oahu
Kahana Valley - flat, lowland Pandanus forest along a stream, East Side Oahu
Pu’u Manamana – not for those prone to vertigo, insane ridge hike S of Kahana Bay, East Side
Ha’ula gulch – Amazing river bed walk to waterfall(s), slippery rocks, can flash flood if rainy
North Shore
Kaena Point – walk along the North shore to the NW tip of the island, HOT and DRY but spectacular beach
Kealia Trail – Hike up the coastal ridge above Mokuleia beach, North Shore, few hours
Central Oahu
Poamoho Ridge Trail – above the Dole Pineapple plantation, walk into the cloud forest, tricky one to find
Aiea Loop Trail – easier access than Poamoho - 5 mile walk, dry start but reaches cloud forest at Koolau Ridge Summit
Remember – beautiful walks on the beaches too...
~~GARDENS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~```
Ho’omaluhia – beautiful Botanical Garden at the base of the Pali (cliffs), East Side Oahu
Valley of the Temples – stunning place for worship , near Ho’omaluhia, East Side
Foster Botanical Garden – City of Honolulu’s historic gardens
Lyon Arboretum – back of Manoa Valley, beautiful, near Manoa Falls
Waimea Valley – another magical spot, just behind the more famous Bay.
~~~RANDOM ACTIVITIES~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
Dillingham Airfield at Mokuleia, North Shore – sky diving and glider rides (super cool)
Kualoa Ranch - Horse-back and ATV riding, East Side Oahu http://www.kualoa.com/
Cage dive with sharks – www.hawaiisharkencounters.com
~~~MUSEUMS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~``
Doris Dukes home and Art Collection: Stunning! http://www.shangrilahawaii.
The Contemporary Museum - Beautiful grounds, good food at the cafe http://www.tcmhi.org/
Bishop Museum: Hawaiiana and Natural History, http://www.bishopmuseum.org/
Polynesian Cultural Center - In Laie, Mormon Town http://www.polynesia.com/
Waikiki Aquarium – http://www.waquarium.org
Pearl Harbor Memorial - www.pearlharbormemorial.com
~~SHOPPING~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
Aloha Stadium Swap Meet – ultimate flea market style bargain hunting http://www.to-hawaii.com/oahu/attractions/alohastadiumswapmeet.php
China Town – go get lost in the markets and feel like a foreigner – good eats, weird asian products
Waikiki – the strip! Upper end designer stores
Ala Moana – ‘famous’ outdoor mall in Honolulu
Cool local apparel? – www.kealopiko.com
~~~FOOD~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~````
Tamura’s – the local supermarket in Ha’ula, closest groceries if you’re staying near us at Malaekahana. Good beer and wine selection, great fish.
As for restaurants, Oahu has great food, most places are in H-Town.
North Shore
Ted’s Bakery – near sunset, good breakfast sandwiches, famous desert pies
Waialua Bakery – in Hale’iwa, our favourite for sandwiches and smoothies
Kua’aina – good sloppy burgers and fries
Storto’s – if Waialua’s closed, deli-style sandwiches
Jameson’s – alright more upscale dinner place
Lei Lei’s Bar and grill – breakfast, lunch and dinner, at Turtle Bay Resort, overlooks a surf spot
Waimea Valley Grill – in Waimea Valley
Honolulu
Tokkuri Tei: super local Japanese restaurant. sake, squid pancakes and
sashimi galore
Irifune: Famous Garlic Ahi, yum
Hale Vietnam: fresh and flavorful
Chiang Mai: Thai
Mekong II : great Thai, try the Snapper fried whole
Yanagi Sushi: late night super sushi
Roy's: probably city's most famous, pretty damn tasty Pacific rim- if you got the $$
Alan Wong’s: fancy food, world-renowned Pacific fusion
Sasabune: No menu, no prices, just go with full wallet and leave with full belly
Indigo: Eurasian food been around for ages...good bar and night scene too- try the ahi tempura
Du Vin: wine bar, tasty eats
Cafe Sistina: Italian
Ono Hawaiian: super hawaiian style yumminess- kalua pig, chicken long rice, poi of course
Duke’s Waikiki: touristy, but classic Waikiki, only place in town for a Mai Tai on the beach
Waiola’s – local favorite, best shave ice on the planet. Seek and enjoy desert (but follow the directions on how to order...)
Bubbies – homemade ice cream near the University of Hawaii at Manoa, try the mochi balls
Kailua/Kaneohe Town:
Willow Tree: Korean BBQ
El Mariachi: Ho chi chi- awesome carnitas and rice drink, Horchata
Wahiawa:
Don Yang Inn: Korean Dive-excellent BBQ we love, chicken katsu, meat jun,
and pork bbq
El Palenque: Mexican food in Hawaii? Si – es muy Buena, seriously good homestyle
lots of more info at:
