Just back from adult only trip

[mouseclick1]

DH and I returned early this week from our Hawaiian adventure. We are both early 50's and travelled with just the two of us. We spent the first six nights in an ocean view studio (1256) and the final two nights in Kauai. We had visited Oahu 10 years ago with family and stayed on Waikiki Beach.

Day 1
We landed around 2:15 and picked up our rental from Budget. We had a mid-sized car reserved, but upgraded to a Jeep. We were so glad we did! We had so much fun driving around with the top off the Jeep and it was well worth the additional cost. We made a stop at Target on the way to the hotel. DH stayed in the car while I made a quick run in for a few basics. We arrived at the the hotel around 4:30.

As we pulled up to the hotel, no one was there to greet us with leis. I walked in to the lobby to find the check-in desk, and again no one greeted me or asked if they could help me. There were a few people standing around chatting with each other. I found the check-in desk and told them that I had registered online. It didn't seem to matter because we still went through the entire check-in process. I wasn't too impressed with our arrival. Being tired after spending 10 hours on a plane didn't help.

We left the car out front for a few minutes while a bellman helped us to our room. As we came back down to move the car to the structure, a cast member approached us and asked if we had received our leis. He gave one to each of us. This put a huge smile on my face and finally felt like we were ready to begin our Hawaiian vacation!

After parking the Jeep in the structure, we grabbed a bite to eat at Off the Hook. I had calamari and DH had a chicken sandwich. Both were pretty mediocre. Mai Tais we good though! We walked around a bit, checked out the gift shop, watched the sunset, walked around some more and finally called it a night.

The view from our room:

 

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Day 2
Our plan today was to spend the entire day at the resort. After a quick breakfast in the room, we headed down to the beach early to rent a casabella. Knowing that they opened at 8 am, I got down to the beach at 7:45. There was no need to get there early. We rented casabella #11, which was the at the far end of the beach near Ama Ama. It seemed like a quiet location, until we realized we were right next to the area where they do the fitness activities! This went on for a couple hours in the morning but stopped around 11 or 12. It wasn't a problem, just kind of funny to us.

We ordered two individual pizzas from the CM who takes food orders at the beach. Once again, it was pretty mediocre. We brought our leftovers back to the room but never bothered to finish them.

It was a beautiful day at the beach. There were always many seats available throughout the day. While the pool was indeed as crowded as everyone says, finding a chair at the beach would have been easy at any time of the day. We were very happy with our casabella rental. It was nice to put the top up now and then to get a little relief from the sun.

After watching another beautiful sunset, we headed over to our 7:10 reservation at Makahiki. The restaurant was busy but not overly crowded. There were many options available at the buffet. I tried a lot of different foods, but I hate to say that once again, the food was only OK.

The view from our casabella:

 

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Day 3:
I had booked a package tour at Kualoa Ranch for today. It included the movie tour, jungle tour, and catamaran ride. It also included a buffet lunch. We loved everything about today!

With traffic, it took us about an hour to get to the ranch. They ask that you arrive by 8:00 am, and we made it just in time. It felt like being at camp. You get your schedule and meeting places for your day, as well as your lunch time. We started out on the catamaran tour. The scenery is breathtaking on that side of the island, and was especially beautiful seeing it from the water. We saw many sea turtles on our ride out to the bay. This was my favorite of the three tours.

Next, we headed out on the jungle tour. This took us into the mountain range which gave us more spectacular views. There was an optional short hike to a higher lookout point, but we stayed put and just enjoyed the view from where we were. The people who hiked were gone only about 10 minutes.

When were returned, it was time for our lunch. It was a buffet of ribs, rice, salad. I know there was something else available that I did not take but I can't remember. It was OK, not great.

Our final tour was the movie tour. This was the basic tour where you stay in the bus for the majority of the tour. They offer a premier movie tour for those who want a more personalized experience. We got out for photos at the Jurassic Park log and then again at a WWII bunker. They have fun with you at the Jurassic Park log and take a few great pictures for you! Even though the bunker was used as a set, we found the real history behind it to be very interesting. We had plenty of time to walk around at this stop, and we enjoyed a great conversation with our guide.


Our day at Kualoa was over around 2:30. I highly recommend visiting the ranch! They have so many more experiences to choose from; there seems to be something for everyone. Since it was another beautiful day and we had the Jeep with the top off, we decided we would take the long way home. Instead of going back on the H3 route, we went up and around the island, traveling through the North Shore. We stopped at Ted's bakery for some delicious macadamia nut pie. After that, we made stops at Sunset Beach, the Banzai Pipeline, and Laniakea Beach. We found this guy taking a rest on the beach:

We did not stop in Haleiwa because we were saving that for the next day. After such a full day, we were pretty tired by the time we got back! We ordered a pizza from Pizza Corner and had them deliver it to the resort. I think we were asleep by 8 pm that night!

 

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Day 4
Today was going to be our North Shore day. Since we had seen quite a bit of it the day before, our goal was to simply enjoy Haleiwa. We called down to Ama Ama at about 7:30 am and asked if we could get in for breakfast. The told us it would be no problem to come in at 8 am. We were seated at a table with a world class view! I loved everything about our breakfast this morning. The food, the view, the service...everything was perfect. I had the pancakes with the vanilla sauce and DH had the cereal encrusted french toast with a side of bacon. Everything was soooo good! This was our very best meal at the resort. Neither of us could finish our breakfast so we took the leftovers back to the room. They even packed extra vanilla sauce for me in my carry out container. Breakfast was almost $50 between the two of us, but we ended up getting three meals out of it. Even if we didn't have leftovers to take back, the breakfast would have been well worth the price.
The view from our table:

After dropping off our leftovers, we began our drive to Haleiwa. We drove through the town on our way to Haleiwa Beach Park. Unfortunately, as we were driving through the town, the vehicle in front of us hit and older man and his mother who were riding on a scooter. It was very scary, but they seemed to be OK. They did get taken away in an ambulance, but there didn't appear to be any injuries other than being very shaken up. Just a word of caution while driving through this town. It is very busy and you really need to keep your eyes on the road!

We finally made it to the beach, and found a nice spot to relax. We watched the surfers and the turtles playing in the water for quite a while, then went back in to town for lunch. We ate at Teddy's Bigger Burgers. They were very good burgers! We walked around the town for a bit but I didn't love it as much as I thought I would. I love quirky little towns, but this one didn't do much for me. Maybe our drive in just set a bad tone, I don't know. We decided to head back to the resort.

On our way back, we made a stop at the Dole Plantation. How could I be in Hawaii and not get a Dole Whip?! It was a great treat and broke up the ride back nicely. We walked around the grounds a bit, and then headed back.

We were so full from eating so much today that we skipped dinner entirely. We walked over the Paradise Cove hoping to see some turtles, but we didn't see any. People were also there for the luau so it was rather busy. We walked back to the hotel in time to see the sunset. We walked around a little more and walked through the shops once again, then retired for the evening. I rarely made it past 9:00 on any night of our vacation!

 

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Day 5
After eating part of our Ama Ama leftovers for breakfast, we decided to go back to Paradise Cove hoping to see turtles. In retrospect, big mistake! There are signs at the cove warning about the slippery rocks, though there were other people walking on them. DH wanted to venture out on the rocks as well. I suggested that we stay on the beach and walk to the other end, avoiding the rocks since they are slippery. Here is my public service announcement: stay off the rocks! My husband slipped on the rocks, hit his head, and we spent most of the afternoon in the ER. He ended up getting four staples in the back of his head. Every time someone (nurse, doctor, etc) asked him why he was in the ER, his answer was, "Because I didn't listen to my wife!".

We didn't get back from the hospital until after 4:00. We put on our bathing suits and went down to the infinity pool. Chairs were easy to come by at this time of the day so we grabbed two chairs right next to the pool. DH was not allowed to go under the water anymore on our trip, so he sat along the edge while I got in. Such a pretty view from that pool!

After a fairly short time by the pool, we went back to the room to change for dinner. Tonight we headed over to Monkeypod. This placed lived up to its reputation! I had fish tacos and DH had the pork sandwich. both were excellent. We actually did a little shopping in this area before dinner. There were more shops in this plaza than I had realized, and we walked through some very cute stores. After our meal we headed over to Two Scoops for ice cream. It was a nice way to end a pretty rough day!

 

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Day 6
This was our last full day on Oahu. The only thing I definitely wanted to do today was eat dinner at Haleiwa Joe's - the Kaneohe location, not the one in Haleiwa. We knew we should get there right when it opened at 4:30 since they do not take reservations. We had gone to Lanikai Beach 10 years ago, but did not make it next door to Kailua. We decided to head out early and go to Kailua Beach for the afternoon since it was near the restaurant.

This beach is so beautiful. So much prettier than anything we saw along the North Shore. After a couple of hours, we got in the car and drove to Lanikai after all. Now this beach is absolutely heavenly! The water is pretty shallow for quite a distance, and the color is the prettiest shade of turquoise. I love, love, love this beach!
Kailua Beach:

Lanikai Beach:

We were watching the clock to make sure we got the restaurant by 4:30. We changed from our bathing suits into nicer clothes and made our way to the restaurant. We got there around 4:20, and there were a few people already lining up outside. They opened up promptly at 4:30 and we were seated along the rail for a spectacular view of Haiku Gardens. This was the view from our table:

The food was excellent. They are known for their prime rib, which is what DH ordered. It had to be the biggest cut of prime rib I've ever seen. Not only was it huge, it was flavored perfectly. They tend to run out of their prime rib on a nightly basis. I had grilled fish. This was a perfect meal for our last night on the island. I highly recommend making the trek out to this restaurant - it was well worth it! Because we had such an early dinner, we still made it back to Aulani before the sun set.

 

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Day 7
We had a 1:25 flight to catch for Kauai. Based on what I had read, we planned to leave Aulani at 10:00 am to give us enough time. It turned out that there was almost no traffic and it only took us 25 minutes to get to the airport. Car drop off was a breeze and we were at our gate with tons of time to spare. Way too much time actually, since our flight ended up being delayed by about 50 minutes. That was after they had changed gates on us twice. Not a great experience at the airport! We finally landed in Kauai about a hour late.

We loved our two days on Kauai. When I asked for advice about Kauai on Tripadvisor, a poster told me that I was wasting my time by going over to Kauai and I should have just stayed on Oahu the whole time. Now that I am back, I couldn't disagree with him more! We loved our time there and would do it again the same way in a heartbeat. Of course there is a lot that we didn't see, but we loved everything that we did see and do and I have no regrets!

We hope to make it back to Aulani someday. We are DVC members and felt it was a great way to use our points. While the resort obviously caters to family, we thoroughly enjoyed it as an adults only trip.

 

[poohj80]

Thanks for sharing so many details and photos from your adventure. I have been trying to decide which tours to book at Kualoa so was happy to read about the Catamaran ride. Did you get a chance to swim or was it just for sightseeing?

 

[mouseclick1]

Thanks for sharing so many details and photos from your adventure. I have been trying to decide which tours to book at Kualoa so was happy to read about the Catamaran ride. Did you get a chance to swim or was it just for sightseeing?

It was just a sightseeing trip, but it was a lot of fun!

 

[hilarys]

Loved your trip report. So sorry for your ER visit. We were there last week and found the weather to be perfect. We also love to get out and about while we are there - splitting our 6 full days as 3 out of the resort/exploring days and 3 beach/pool days at Aulani.

Glad you liked Kailua beach - we love it. The water is beautiful, clean, clear and the sand is so soft. My kids bobbed in the waves at Kailua for hours.

 

[Belle_Ann]

@mouseclick1 - I'm glad you made the comment about the North Shore vs Kailua beach. The day I had planned to loop around to the North Shore we never made it because we spent a few hours at Kailua beach, toured the grounds of the Byodo In temple, and did a tour at Kualoa ranch. I thought that part of the island was just beautiful but was feeling guilty that we never made it the North Shore

And that restaurant view is amazing! I need to put that down on my list for next time.

 

[happymommy]

Such a nice trip report! I'm sorry about the ER trip - I've been to that ER also a couple years ago (son ended up with a bad cough & needed a chest Xray).

Haleiwa Joe's - that used to be a Chart House years ago (we used to live right near there). The view is so serene! Glad to hear that it's still around - may have to try it next trip!

 

[mouseclick1]

Here are a few more pics from Haleiwa Joe's. It is so worth the drive!
The view of the restaurant from the garden

Prime rib and grilled fish for dinner!

 

[alohamom]

I love that you combined a day for the east side beaches with Haleiwa Joes, pretty smart plan! I think I might just have to copy that next time....

 

[PattiPB]

Thank you for the comprehensive report! We are doing adults only in June, and there aren't too many trip reports for just adults!

Great pictures, too!

 

[buffettgirl]

The prime rib at Haleiwa Joe's makes me always want to call it a brontosaurus rib. It's HUGE.

 

[mouseclick1]

The prime rib at Haleiwa Joe's makes me always want to call it a brontosaurus rib. It's HUGE.

LOL, indeed!

 

[TwoLittlePrincesses]

Love your pictures and so glad you had a wonderful trip! Not sure why husbands still haven't learned to listen to their wives, however

 

[jujubiee4]

DH and I returned early this week from our Hawaiian adventure. We are both early 50's and travelled with just the two of us. We spent the first six nights in an ocean view studio (1256) and the final two nights in Kauai. We had visited Oahu 10 years ago with family and stayed on Waikiki Beach.

Day 1
We landed around 2:15 and picked up our rental from Budget. We had a mid-sized car reserved, but upgraded to a Jeep. We were so glad we did! We had so much fun driving around with the top off the Jeep and it was well worth the additional cost. We made a stop at Target on the way to the hotel. DH stayed in the car while I made a quick run in for a few basics. We arrived at the the hotel around 4:30.

As we pulled up to the hotel, no one was there to greet us with leis. I walked in to the lobby to find the check-in desk, and again no one greeted me or asked if they could help me. There were a few people standing around chatting with each other. I found the check-in desk and told them that I had registered online. It didn't seem to matter because we still went through the entire check-in process. I wasn't too impressed with our arrival. Being tired after spending 10 hours on a plane didn't help.

We left the car out front for a few minutes while a bellman helped us to our room. As we came back down to move the car to the structure, a cast member approached us and asked if we had received our leis. He gave one to each of us. This put a huge smile on my face and finally felt like we were ready to begin our Hawaiian vacation!

After parking the Jeep in the structure, we grabbed a bite to eat at Off the Hook. I had calamari and DH had a chicken sandwich. Both were pretty mediocre. Mai Tais we good though! We walked around a bit, checked out the gift shop, watched the sunset, walked around some more and finally called it a night.

The view from our room:

What room is this and is it considered ocean view/premium? Gorgeous!

 

[mouseclick1]

What room is this and is it considered ocean view/premium? Gorgeous!

It was an ocean view studio - room 1256. We were very pleased with it!