One day North Shore Outing from Aulani - Can it be done

[Sbunit81]

Hi everyone

We are visiting Oahu and staying in Aulani the 3rd week of august. It will be my wife and myself along with my 6 year old and 8 year old boys, both adventure seekers. I have an ambitious itinerary planned for a day spent in the North Shore and would like to see if this can be accomplished. Your thoughts and advice are greatly appreciated

-Wake up early and make the drive up to Haleiwa for a 8am shark Cave dive
-Swing by Giovanni's shrimp truck for an early lunch
-Matsumoto Shave Ice (after indulging the Shrimp)
-Drive up to the Waimea valley to swim in the Waimea falls and possibly the beach (for cliff jumping)
-End in Kualoa Ranch for their ATV excursion (2 hours I believe)
-Head back to the hotel

Is this a reasonable itinerary or are we pushing the limits on what we are trying to accomplish during the daylight hours? Thanks in advance for the advice and help

 

[MICKIMINI]

Our son and DIL are at Aulani now. They are having an amazing time. They did the ATV excursion and the videos they took of the mountains are incredible. AP holders get discounts at Alamo and they were able to rent a 4 door Jeep Sahara with a removable top for $650/week. They are world travelers and hard to impress...I must say they are blown away!

This morning was hiking, shopping in Waikiki and Pearl Harbor Memorial this afternoon. There is a Target across the street from Aulani where they found Hawaiian shirts as well as water and snacks. Everything seems easy to get to and they are making the most of each day.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[OKW Lover]

That is a lot to do in a day but I think it is all do-able. Fortunately the North Shore isn't that long a drive from Aulani and there is some great scenery along the way.

 

[gatechfan99]

I’ll give you our itinerary. We went to Pearl Harbor at 8:00 and then to Dole Plantation. We wrapped up and ate lunch there by 12:30. Went to North Shore where we ate at Matsumotos, Teds Bakery, and Giovanni before it closed. We added a 30 minute stop at a beach. We were leaving the area by about 5:00. The only thing that might be questionable is the ATV tour. I would recommend giving that its own half day.

 

[cgattis]

Not sure how late the last ATV tour leaves, but I think it could possibly be do-able. However, here’s where I can see a possible snag….we did Sharks Cove in the morning, then lunch in Haleiwa, then tried to get Matsumoto’s—but the line was about 100 deep. If you can be ready to punt that if needed, you’d have more of a chance.

 

[SueInBoston]

[QUOTE="MICKIMINI, post: 63822113, member: 55313"

This morning was hiking, shopping in Waikiki and Pearl Harbor Memorial this afternoon. There is a Target across the street from Aulani where they found Hawaiian shirts as well as water and snacks. Everything seems easy to get to and they are making the most of each day.

Enjoy your trip!
[/QUOTE]

there's now a Target across from Aulani? That's great for picking up water and snacks!!

 

[jotan82]

it can be done. you'll be exhausted and you may have to consider rush hour traffic, but it's definitely possible

 

[WAstateDVCDaddy]

It’s doable, but not ideal. Not sure what time shark excursion gets you back, but assuming you’re done by 10, finish lunch by 11:15, and shave ice by 11:45, you can get up to the falls by 12:15 and leave by 2. An hour drive to Kualoa gets you there just in time for the 3:30 ATV tour (last one usually). I’d leave before 2, just to add a little leeway for traffic.

As cgattis mentioned, Matsumoto’s is a wild card. If the line’s long, skip it (there are better shave ice shops elsewhere).

check the falls before you go though, to make sure they’re open for swimming.

SWIMMING AT THE WATERFALL IS DEPENDENT ON DAILY WATERFALL CONDITIONS. LIFEGUARDS MAKE THE SWIM CALL FOR THE DAY AT 9 AM. SWIMMING AT THE WATERFALL STOPS AT 4:30 PM. CALL 808-638-7766 FOR SWIMMING STATUS.

 

[Sbunit81]

Is there anywhere/place you can change in or around Waimea to get into dry clothes? Also, do you get dirty/dusty after the ATV tour at the Ranch? Would it be possible to go to a casual dinner afterwards or is it recommended to go back to the hotel and change prior to dinner (I know some may say it's a personal choice and may be dependent on the restaurant we are planning to attend, but for example how about if wanted dinner at Haleiwajoe's since we can pass by it on the way back to the hotel from the Ranch? Again, is there somewhere to change at the Ranch if necessary?)

 

[Lew]

There is a Target across the street from Aulani where they found Hawaiian shirts as well as water and snacks.

Sorry to disappoint, but there is no Target across the street from Aulani. The closest Target is about 2 miles away in Kapolei.

 

[MICKIMINI]

Sorry to disappoint, but there is no Target across the street from Aulani. The closest Target is about 2 miles away in Kapolei.

Oh, thanks for the info...my DIL told me that on the phone a couple days ago. Coming from rural NH, two miles away IS across the street for us LOL! Thank you for clarifying!

 

[Lew]

Oh, thanks for the info...my DIL told me that on the phone a couple days ago. Coming from rural NH, two miles away IS across the street for us LOL! Thank you for clarifying!

I hear you loud and clear! We live in Burlington, VT; however, there is a target within 2 miles of our home.

 

[MICKIMINI]

We often stay in Waterbury at the BW as Burlington is too big a city for us now! We can get to Burlington in half an hour.

Thanks again for setting me straight. I think she was more excited our son actually bought a Hawaiian shirt at Target than anything else... 🏖

 

[gatechfan99]

Is there anywhere/place you can change in or around Waimea to get into dry clothes? Also, do you get dirty/dusty after the ATV tour at the Ranch? Would it be possible to go to a casual dinner afterwards or is it recommended to go back to the hotel and change prior to dinner (I know some may say it's a personal choice and may be dependent on the restaurant we are planning to attend, but for example how about if wanted dinner at Haleiwajoe's since we can pass by it on the way back to the hotel from the Ranch? Again, is there somewhere to change at the Ranch if necessary?)

You definitely get very dirty on the ATVs. 2 hours of dust and dirt blowing in your face. They do have an outside sink that you can wash off at so if you spend some time there, you'd be fine for a casual restaurant on the way home. If you're concerned, you can always bring a change of clothes and use the bathroom there as well. Here’s what my daughters looked like after.View attachment 652461

 

[Lew]

-Swing by Giovanni's shrimp truck for an early lunch
-Matsumoto Shave Ice (after indulging the Shrimp)

Can't comment about Giovanni's...never been. Our goto shrimp truck on O'ahu is Big Wave Shrimp. We weren't disappointed yesterday for lunch...see below.

The line at Matsumoto was a mile long...didn't stop.

 

[PocahontasLookALike]

We were at Matsumoto on Monday around lunch and walked right in! We had a car that day and drove the entire island. We went to Dole with our kids and had no wait for the train. We went to SevenBros (not the one by giovannis but even that line wasn’t bad!) with no line, Ted’s bakery along the road had the longest line of the day

 

[Paul Stupin]

Hi everyone

We are visiting Oahu and staying in Aulani the 3rd week of august. It will be my wife and myself along with my 6 year old and 8 year old boys, both adventure seekers. I have an ambitious itinerary planned for a day spent in the North Shore and would like to see if this can be accomplished. Your thoughts and advice are greatly appreciated

-Wake up early and make the drive up to Haleiwa for a 8am shark Cave dive
-Swing by Giovanni's shrimp truck for an early lunch
-Matsumoto Shave Ice (after indulging the Shrimp)
-Drive up to the Waimea valley to swim in the Waimea falls and possibly the beach (for cliff jumping)
-End in Kualoa Ranch for their ATV excursion (2 hours I believe)
-Head back to the hotel

Is this a reasonable itinerary or are we pushing the limits on what we are trying to accomplish during the daylight hours? Thanks in advance for the advice and help

That’s too much. You could do everything but Kualoa, which you should save for another day and couple with a trip to the beach at Kailua. The thing is, Waimea Valley is fun to explore and it’s a walk to the falls. Also, you can get caught up in traffic up there which could really slow down your drive to Kualoa.

 

[teach22180]

Is there anywhere/place you can change in or around Waimea to get into dry clothes? Also, do you get dirty/dusty after the ATV tour at the Ranch? Would it be possible to go to a casual dinner afterwards or is it recommended to go back to the hotel and change prior to dinner (I know some may say it's a personal choice and may be dependent on the restaurant we are planning to attend, but for example how about if wanted dinner at Haleiwajoe's since we can pass by it on the way back to the hotel from the Ranch? Again, is there somewhere to change at the Ranch if necessary?)

There are changing areas at Waimea Falls. Didn't see that question answered yet, and I know that one.

 

[WAstateDVCDaddy]

Can't comment about Giovanni's...never been. Our goto shrimp truck on O'ahu is Big Wave Shrimp. We weren't disappointed yesterday for lunch...see below.

The line at Matsumoto was a mile long...didn't stop.

View attachment 653557

Big Wave! Yum! But no garlic shrimp?

 

[Lew]

Big Wave! Yum! But no garlic shrimp?

We like their garlic shrimp, but we both went for coconut shrimp this time. Can't get enough coconut shrimp!!