O/T Hawaii with a Family?

[ekatiel]

DH has been asked to attend a conference in Hawaii in the fall. We're all going to come along (me and our two boys who will be 5 and 7). DH had to really twist my arm to tag along on this one . We will be staying in Honolulu most likely at the Hilton Hawaiian Village (that's where the conference is). What are the must-dos with small children? Where should we attend a luau, etc? Thanks for any input from those of you who've been there!! --Kate

 

[somcgregor]

I can't speak for what to do, but what ever you do DON"T TRY THE MANUA LOA Chocolate Covered M academia Nuts! Those things are highly addictive and you will need to bring back several bags with you. Trust me on this one!

Anyways have a great time. Try to snorkel, enjoy the pearl harbor memorial, and the culture center!

Oh and bring me back a case or two of the above mentioned food!

 

[gracie1]

I can't speak for what to do, but what ever you do DON"T TRY THE MANUA LOA Chocolate Covered M academia Nuts! Those things are highly addictive and you will need to bring back several bags with you. Trust me on this one!

Anyways have a great time. Try to snorkel, enjoy the pearl harbor memorial, and the culture center!

Oh and bring me back a case or two of the above mentioned food!

You are not kidding on this!!!! I had a friend come back and brought me a box and I was like eh, I'm not going to like these because I don't like macademia nuts. I ate the whole box except for 2!!! Holy crap are these things addicting.
Now that you mentioned them I think i will see if they can be ordered online

 

[gracie1]

And here is the website to order them!
http://maunaloamacadamianuts.com/milk_chocolate_mauna_loa_macadamia_nut_deluxe_wholes_more_info.htm
And you can buy in bulk

 

[disneypharm]

And here is the website to order them!
http://maunaloamacadamianuts.com/milk_chocolate_mauna_loa_macadamia_nut_deluxe_wholes_more_info.htm
And you can buy in bulk

They sell them at Target. I bought 2 for $6 (smaller ones) last week.

 

[ekatiel]

I can't speak for what to do, but what ever you do DON"T TRY THE MANUA LOA Chocolate Covered M academia Nuts! Those things are highly addictive and you will need to bring back several bags with you. Trust me on this one!

Anyways have a great time. Try to snorkel, enjoy the pearl harbor memorial, and the culture center!

Oh and bring me back a case or two of the above mentioned food!

This sounds like it's going to be a 10 lb trip (meaning I'm going to GAIN 10 lbs. ). Those sound really tasty. ODS is allergic to nuts, so I'm going to have to "sneak" these after he goes to bed!! Thanks for the other tips. We're defnitely going to plan a full day at the cultural center (probably the day after DH's conference ends so he can go, too). Did you do the Luau there or have you been to any other luaus? There is one at the hotel, but it's as expensive as the cultural center day's addmission+luau, so I'm thinking we should just do the luau at the cultural center-- any tips? Where did you snorkel? And does anyone know which beaches are best for kids? And has anyone hiked to the manoa falls with kids? TIA! --Katie

 

[DOPEYLUVER]

This may be stupid advice, but my other love besides Disney is cruising. You can check out the cruise critic message board. This is a section on ports and there is a subsection on Hawaii.

There is great information on car rentals there and other kinds of activities.

Also there is a GREAT series of books called "Revealed." There is a seperate book for each island. Many borrow them from the library.

Have fun. I LOVED Hawaii when I went there on a cruise.

 

[jsmith]

Carp-i typed a huge response and then got logged out when i hit post-so here we go again

low cost or free things to do-Pearl Harbor-the park service piece of it is free and the Missouri and the Bowfin charge reasonable admission. Parking is free if you have a car but the hotel probably runs a shuttle or you can take the Bus for a couple of bucks
Snorkeling at Haumanama Bay-6 dollar admission plus equipment rental and 5 dollars to park-or you can get tours that include admission and equipment for around 25 a person.
if you have a car or dont mind taking the The Bus-go up the Pali highway to the Pali lookout-its beautful views and alot of history. go to Hale'ewa and have shave ice at Masitmotos' general store. go to the dole plantation-ithe drive is quiet beautiful as well.
Eat local food at a local plate lunch vendor-we love Kenikikies in Wiamanolo-it looks like a hole but the food is cheap and delicious. L and L barbeque is good too. Visit the shrimp shacks on the North Shore for locally farmed shrimp so fresh it was swimiming an hour before you eat it. Get Malasadas from Leonards Bakery. Just hang out on the beach-Waikiki is crowded but there are nice beach parks all over the island where you can just hang out.
Not so low cost but worthwhile - A luau-Germaines is supposed to be a very good one. the Polynesian cultural center has one but see my remarks on that below. Reguardless of the vendor you choose unless you have a Miltary Id Card or your conference gets a group rate be prepared to pay 75 to 85 dollars per adult -that should include transportation to and from the site. If you are a military ID card holder the Hale Koa-next to the HHV has a very good one for about half that price or you can get tickets for the other vendors thru the ITR office at pearl harbor at a good discount. Hawaii has three prices for everything-Kamiana ( locals), military-and everyone else.
The Polynesian Culteral Center-this is really cool-and very very expensive. They have an amazing night show-the best i think-but the food at their luau is a bummer-and if that sort of thing matters to you its owned by the LDS church and therefore does not serve alcohol. Admisson runs from a basic price of 50pp adults/40 for kids to over 220 per person for the most complete package. packaged that include the luau start at around a 100 per person. Again your conference may have a group rate. We enjoyed the villages and and the show but give the food a

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

We stayed there an my kids love it. They want to know when we are going back. They were 6 and 4 at the time.

They have the penguin walk and a free nighttime show where they will let children sit in a special section up front. (I think they paraded in if you signed them up ahead of time.)

There are paid activities as well at HHV.

My kids also liked the Atlantis Submarine. I was watching my baby niece at the time. So dad took them. They climbed Diamondhead. They loved the train at Dole Pineapple plantation.

And they did enjoy Pearl Harbor and were well behaved at the memorial. We also did the USS Missouri which does have an admission fee, but I think boys would especially love that. My kids enjoyed it. There was a kid activity that involved rubbings--but it has been a few years, I don't quite remember it exactly.

Since we were there for my 4yo ON her birthday (She was 3 when we went and 4 when we left), we went to Chuck E Cheese for her birthday. Not a must do, but it is a place to take the kids.

Polynesian Cultural Center had kid's activities and then we had a coupon from their goody bag for a free happy meal at the McD's right outside of it. We did not stay for the luau.

One difficulty we had, the time change. We flew in from the eastcoast. having gone on an earlier trip with the 4yo when she was 23 months, I planned this trip to arrive in time so that we would get to the hotel before sunset. This way, the kids would stay awake on the ride from the airport to the hotel. (We had a direct flight from Atlanta, very nice!).

That free show that the kids can do the parade...I think we may have done that on the first night, maybe the second. My 6 year old fell asleep during the show.

One note--the "driveway/street" out in front of HHV with all the shops, can get a little congested at times. So just be careful with the kiddo's.

On our last day, we did a buffet at a hotel that had an aquarium in the dining room--but I have no idea what it was called.

Many of the touristy things can work with the little ones.

We did have a rental car to navigate the island.

For the luau, we went to Paradise Cove. We took a tour bus to it.

We also hung out at the swimming pool. And for the first 4 days, breakfast was bright and early at 5am when the first breakfast place opened.

 

[somcgregor]

You are not kidding on this!!!! I had a friend come back and brought me a box and I was like eh, I'm not going to like these because I don't like macademia nuts. I ate the whole box except for 2!!! Holy crap are these things addicting.
Now that you mentioned them I think i will see if they can be ordered online

I brought back to bags (Costco sized). As well as the Macademia Nut Hershy's kisses, right before Christmas and lets just say that was one holiday season my waist wishes to forget!

 

[somcgregor]

This sounds like it's going to be a 10 lb trip (meaning I'm going to GAIN 10 lbs. ). Those sound really tasty. ODS is allergic to nuts, so I'm going to have to "sneak" these after he goes to bed!! Thanks for the other tips. We're defnitely going to plan a full day at the cultural center (probably the day after DH's conference ends so he can go, too). Did you do the Luau there or have you been to any other luaus? There is one at the hotel, but it's as expensive as the cultural center day's addmission+luau, so I'm thinking we should just do the luau at the cultural center-- any tips? Where did you snorkel? And does anyone know which beaches are best for kids? And has anyone hiked to the manoa falls with kids? TIA! --Katie

We were on Maui, not Oahu, when I went. We went with a small charter boat company who took us to two great spots and then cooked us the best Lunch ever! I have never been to a luau, that is on the list items to do next time. My parents have done a few luau's and it is a toss up on the food and quality of food. So I can't comment on that. We also had our own snorkel gear and went to different beaches for two hours each day it was great, got to see a turtle one day pop right up next to me, I freaked a little, but he was friendly and just swam away!

Good luck I wish I was headed back again soon!

 

[chris31997]

Paradise Cove, IMHO, is the best luau. Over on the windward side of the island(Kaneohe) is Valley of the Temple( drive into a graveyard and go into the back and can see a temple), Tropical Nut Farms: they do a tour and you can see where they have done some filming on the island, right across the street is Koolua Ranch(I think that is how you spell it): horseback riding. I would also recommend going to the Aloha sadium on Wendsday, Saturday or Sunday, that is when they have their Swap Meet:really good buys on souviners(some made in China and some made here you just have to be careful)

 

[ekatiel]

Thanks for all of the ideas, guys ! Off to check out some of the things you've mentioned on the interweb . --Katie

 

[dex08]

Do not go to the luau offered by the Hilton Hawaiian Village! We went and it was not a true luau experience. It was held on the roof of the convention center and all you saw around was hi-rise buildings towering over you with vacationers and residents all on their balconies. The food was mediocre at best and we were lucky we didn't actually pay for it otherwise I would have been ticked off. (we sat through hours of them trying to sell us a timeshare and received the tickets after their hard selling tactics).

 

[MichelleinMaine]

We liked the Polynesian Cultural Center, but do NOT pay the extra for the luau/guided tour extra package thing. The luau show was ok (but the big show at the end of the night is MUCH better and included with any ticket.) The food at the luau was only average and was served cafeteria style. Save the money.

Get to Pearl Harbor early as the boats to the memorial are first come/first served. Obviously, prep your kids a little that it is a special place and what appropriate behavior should be. (Not impossible- my daughter was 4 when we went. She took in alot more than I expected and asked me if the oil {still leaking from the ship} was the ship crying.)

We also liked the submarines (they leave right from HHV).

 

[Suz D]

Just and FYI, we found food to be quite expensive, so plan ahead for that one. Wish we would have set more $$ aside (we didn't really have more so I don't know where I thought we'd get it) because we ate a lot of junk food. My DH was there for a conferance as well so his airfare and the hotel was paid for. We used frequent flier miles for our daughter and me so we really felt like it might be our only chance to go to Hawaii and went even though we hadn't really budgeted much for spending.

 

[alohamom]

We have been with our kids at that age (and amny other times as well) and I can tell you it will be great. the HHV is a cool hotel and there are lots of kid friendly activities. Try the Honolulu Zoo, there is a small kid area of the Bishop Museum that is meant to be like a science center with info on volcanos but your kids may be a bit young. I know my Dad took me when I was 10 for the first time and I fell in love with Oahu, so much so that we try to every 2 years or so. There is a place called Sea Life Park with interactive Dolphin shows etc but check the website and then read reviews because it is feeling it's age and I would hate for you to go and find it terrible. There used to be a great water park called Hawaiian Waters but I have never been so cant say. Another thing you may want to look at is the ne Disney propety out in Ko'olina area, worth the drive just to walk around and check out and if anything is open (which it could be) maybe your family could have lunch or whatever. HHV also has a dolphin swim experience but is pricey. Oh, and my kids LOVE the waikiki trolley-lots of fun! If I think of more, I will let you know...

 

[lurkernj]

I'm in the planning stages of going this summer, but skipping Oahu this time.
I just wanted to suggest going onto tripadvisor dot com and typing in Oahu, lots of information there. You can also read hotel reviews there to see what people had to say about activities, dining and accomodations.

We did stay on Oahu 5 yrs ago, right across the street from Hilton. There was a diner on the corner by the traffic light. It was very reasonably priced (for Hawaii), and the food was good. We only stayed 2 nights before Maui/kauai, so I can't say much about activities, we did Pearl Harbor and took the bus that I recall being quite easy to do and inexpensive. We walked around HHV and it was beautiful, and we ate at Benihanas on site(a trip highlight for my kids even though there is one 20 mins from our house).

 

[alohamom]

Also, Ala Moana Center is close to you hotel and even tho it is a mall, it is a unique one with open air architecture and a build a bear with hawaii specific bear clothes etc

 

[holyschmolly]

We liked the Polynesian Cultural Center, but do NOT pay the extra for the luau/guided tour extra package thing. The luau show was ok (but the big show at the end of the night is MUCH better and included with any ticket.) The food at the luau was only average and was served cafeteria style. Save the money.

Get to Pearl Harbor early as the boats to the memorial are first come/first served. Obviously, prep your kids a little that it is a special place and what appropriate behavior should be. (Not impossible- my daughter was 4 when we went. She took in alot more than I expected and asked me if the oil {still leaking from the ship} was the ship crying.)

We also liked the submarines (they leave right from HHV).

I say the opposite.....we always recommend paying for the guided tour. The Center really, really lacks in signage/info. We were thankful to have a guide that informed us of what buildings were used for what and knowing the best places/times for things. Well worth the added cost.

One of our best days on Oahu was renting a car and just exploring.