places to visit near waikiki beach area?
swamy asked:
hi..we are travelling to hawaii with a 2 year old kid and booked a hotel near waikiki beach area. i am wondering what are the places to visit near this area without traveling to any other island?
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hi..we are travelling to hawaii with a 2 year old kid and booked a hotel near waikiki beach area. i am wondering what are the places to visit near this area without traveling to any other island?
thanks!
February 27th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
i just got back from oahu. Just be prepared there are alot of upscale stores and its really expensive there, but they have a zoo walking distance from waikiki beach, defiantly go to Huanama Bay and spend the day there. it gets really crowded near the middle of the day so go early, also Polynesian culture center would be really cool for your family. the dole plantation is about an hour from waikiki beach but they have a maze and stuff there you will find stuff to do. also go to burger in paradise and another day go to a local drive in its called rainbow drive in its awesome!! have fun
February 28th, 2009 at 6:59 pm
Diamond head, an inactive volcano. The waikiki beach is pretty shallow so good for you and baby. Beware it is a tourist trap area.
February 28th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
The beach that is walled off from the ocean toward the Diamond Head end of Waikiki beach is a great shallow swimming area for little ones. I guarantee you will enjoy this very large area that is not too crowded. Huanama Bay is very nice and a huge must. But be sure to go early. 10:00 am is good. The big parking lot fills up later and there is no nearby parking otherwise. Also, after 2:00pm you can get a spot. The zoo is near Diamond Head. The Pineapple Plantations and Polynesian Cultural Center is fun.
The Hawaiians are very helpful with info. Oahu’s main income is tourism. They are more than happy to make you comfortable.
Good luck and have fun.
February 28th, 2009 at 9:40 pm
Slightly different take from some commenters after a recent 12 day family vacation to Oahu.
1) Waikiki Beach – the walled off section, as mentioned, is nice and calm. Our kids (2 of our own, 3 nieces and nephews, all aged 9 months – 5 years) really enjoyed it. They were able to go “deep” with very minimal swell.
2) Waikiki shopping – it’s ok. Mostly high end stores or tourist-trap souvenir shops. Worth a look just to say you’ve looked, but nothing too special, imo. The International Marketplace is worth a look for the food court (a variety of ethnic foods, mostly Asian), but the shops themselves are only ok. Again, mostly tourist-trap souvenir places. Great if you want some cheap t-shirts, but not much else.
3) Dole Plantation – about an hour drive from Waikiki. Nice store, train ride is educational with some great views, and the maze is fun (although will need a stroller for the little one). Pineapple ice cream is tasty. This would be a good morning stop on the way to the North Shore.
4) North Shore – Great surf-watching, obviously, although your child may not appreciate it as much as you and your spouse. However, the shopping is much better than Waikiki up here. The shops tend to be local joints with more variety than at Waikiki, and there are some good local food joints (try the shrimp trailers!). A nice place to spend the afternoon.
5) Hanauma Bay – This is east of Waikiki and relatively short drive. This is a marine protected environment, so you need to pay to get in and must also watch a short video (snorkeling safety, look-dont-touch wildlife and coral, etc). Beautiful beach and excellent for snorkeling. Downside for you is that, if it’s just the 3 of you (2 adults, 1 child), you’ll have to take turns snorkeling. Also, there is the issue of the big hill. The beach/bay is at the bottom of a very large hill. There is a tram ($0.50 down, $1 up), or you can hoof it. Trust me when I tell you that it is no picnic pushing a (double) stroller up that hill. Worth it, imo, but you’ll have to make your own call on this one.
6) Pearl Harbor – The USS Arizona Memorial is a must-see. I was amazed by my unexpectedly emotional reaction when I was explaining to my 3 year old daughter why all those names of the sailors were up on the wall. You can also check out the Missouri Memorial (separate tour). Lines can get long for the Arizona, so call ahead to see what the wait is like. PS – no bags of any kind on the Arizona, including diaper bags, purses, ***** packs, etc.
7) Other beaches – Ala Moana beach, I hear, is nice. Just west of Waikiki and also across the street from Ala Moana Center, a large and nice mall. Kailua Beach is also nice, although probably about 30-40 min drive from Waikiki. Soft white sand and minimal surf make it a nice family beach.
Polynesian Cultural Center – We, personally, found this not all that great and, frankly, a bit overpriced. If you’re into this sort of thing, then don’t let me discourage you, but it wasn’t for us. Also, it’s over an hour drive from Waikiki, although some of the scenery on the way there is nice. On the way there or back, you could also stop by the Valley of the Temples, which was featured in an episode of Lost (if you’re into that show).
9) Night Shows – There are a few well-regarded night shows. Magic of Polynesia; Cirque Hawaii; and Creations – A Polynesian Journey are the ones I keep hearing about.
10) Luau – We did one on a previous trip to Oahu which was quite fun. The night shows can include dinner (or just cocktails/appetizers), so one of those may be a substitute, although not necessarily as authentic.
PS. Skip the Aquarium. It’s VERY small. They have some interesting fish and a couple nice exhibits, but we were through the entire place in less than half an hour.
March 2nd, 2009 at 1:36 pm
Oahu is an island and if you don’t stop, you can probably drive around the thing in 3 hours.
March 2nd, 2009 at 2:11 pm
ala moana mall, diamondhead, and north shore!
March 4th, 2009 at 8:48 pm
I went to Oahu this past Feb with my husband and stayed at the Wyndham Waikiki Beach hotel which was great because we had our own kitchen with a stove/refrigerator,dishwasher & a washer/dryer. We were able to go to Safeway & get food to save $$ on the overpriced restaurants.
Some things I would definately do (we did these)
Pearl Harbor
Sunset Dinner Cruise
Dole Plantation
Visit the North Shore
Polynesian Cultural Center
Diamond Head
I’olani Palace
Go shopping in the International MarketPlace
Watch the Hilton’s Fireworks (on Friday night I think)
Watch the free hula shows on the beach
Just drive around the island and see the beautiful landscape.
Enjoy your trip!
March 4th, 2009 at 10:06 pm
Just got back from Hawaii, and stayed at the Waikiki Beach Walk! Here are some things that we did and enjoyed…
(1) Visiting the Pearl Harbor memorials (Arizona, Missouri, Bowfin – I really enjoyed the Missouri) – not sure how much a kid would enjoy this
(2) Catamaran sail (we went through Makani Catamaran) – it was a great relaxing afternoon!
(3) Polynesian Cultural Center – this might be good with a small child – it’s on the other side of the island though, so you would need a car or the bus probably goes there too
(4) Dole Plantation – Definitely geared towards kids – they have a giant maze and a train ride. Also a bit away from Waikiki and would require some sort of transportation
(5) Sea Life Park – we didn’t do this, but it’s supposed to be cool (sort of like Sea World I think – it was where Adam Sandler worked in 50 First Dates if you’ve seen that movie)
(6) Hanauma Bay – snorkeling area, but a nice beach to hang out on too
(7) Drive up to the north shore – Haleiwa is a nice town to walk around, check out Sunset Beach, and another beach (not sure the name of it) where the turtles come up to rest right on the beach – they are huge and it’s fun to go see them!
(8) If you have a pack to carry the kid in or he’s able to walk far… hike Manoa Falls – it’s really pretty and a nice hike (I think it’s about 2 miles roundtrip). We saw a surprising number of kids on this – most with their parents carrying a pack on their backs to put them in when they get tired
(9) And definitely check out a luau – we did Germaine’s Luau and it was a lot of fun!
Hope you enjoy your vacation!