Every year {for the last eight years} we’ve gone on vacation with the same two couples. And every other year we bring our kids. This year was my year to choose where to go – and naturally I chose Hawaii since it’s where my family is from. I wanted to show the group where I grew up, introduce them to my family, and take them around to all of my favorite local spots. What I love about Hawaii is there’s a variety of things to do besides laying on the beach. Don’t get me wrong…lazy beach days are the best part, but it’s great to have a mixture of activities to choose from especially when traveling with kids. We had a more action-packed first half of the trip in Oahu and relaxing days by the pool and beach the last half in Maui. Follow our itinerary below to see how we enjoyed our time on the islands:
Day 1 – Lanikai Beach is on the east side of Oahu and takes around 45 minutes to get there from Waikiki. It’s a hidden gem near Kailua, HI. The white soft sand, the bright teal blue colors of the water, and the not-so-touristy beach makes the drive worth it. You do have to be prepared and pack your food, drinks, towels, beach toys, boogie boards, etc. with you. Don’t forget to go to the bathroom before you get there as there’s no public bathrooms. The only difficult part could be finding a parking spot since you have to park on the street (no public parking). After a hot day in the sun we headed to Island Snow shave ice in Kailua. This is always our favorite place for shave ice as it’s usually not as crowded as other places around the island. Note to self to try shave ice with condensed cream on top. Sounds weird, but it’s delicious. We ended the night watching a complimentary fireworks show that the Hilton Hawaiian Village resort puts on every Friday night in Waikiki.
Day 2 – Polynesian Culture Center is a great place to take families that want to learn and experience the different history, dances, and culture of the Polynesian islands (Hawaii, Samoa, Tahiti, Aotearoa, Tonga, and Fiji). It’s a full day event and at the end of the day there’s a traditional luau, dinner, and evening show. This is Hawaii’s version of an ‘amusement park’ and in my opinion is worth it, especially for the kids. The drive up to Laie is right next to the water, which makes the trip up to PCC worth it even more.
Day 3 – We drove up to North Shore (famous for watching surfers) to first go to Waimea Falls. It’s about a 30 min nature walk to the waterfall and when you get there they have life jackets ready for those that want to swim underneath the waterfall. After Waimea Falls it was lunch time so we headed east about 5 minutes to Pupukea for the wide variety of food trucks (fish tacos, shrimp plates, pizza, shave ice, and more). Highly recommend stopping and taking in the ocean views while getting some grub. It was pouring while we were there so we didn’t get to enjoy it as much. We then went to an area on google maps called ‘Save the Turtles International’ for boogie boarding. You have to find on-street parking but I love this area b/c it’s never crowded. The highlight of the trip for the kids was boogie boarding with the big waves. If you have time walk over to Chen’s Reef to see the sea turtles lying on the beach. We ended the day visiting family in Ewa beach – definitely my personal highlight of the trip. Nothing better than seeing grandma!
Day 4 – Hanauma Bay – this usually is a great spot for snorkeling, but after making the trek there, parking, waiting in line, etc. in my humble opinion it wasn’t worth it. There were a lot of tourists and barely any fish to see. I remember going there when I was a kid and loved that I could just snorkel right off the beach instead of having to go in a boat somewhere. It’s still a beautiful area – but a little disappointed.
Day 5 – We hopped on a quick 40 minute flight from Honolulu into Kahului (OGG) and stayed at the Westin Nanea villas. It’s a stunning resort that offered two bedroom, two bath suites, multiple swimming pools and hot tubs, and private beach areas.
Day 6 – We decided to keep it low key and stay at the resort all day. In the morning we went to Shelby’s Beach right outside the resort. It was the perfect spot for building sand castles and the best snorkeling we found while in Hawaii. We then ventured over to the sister resort, Westin Kaanapali, for swimming and eating. Later that night we explored the historic area of Lahaina – plethora of shopping and good eats. We found a local thai restaurant that was fantastic (Thai Chef Restaurant).
Day 7 – We found a local Maui photographer to take our family pictures at Baldwin Beach near Paia. The beach offered views of mountains, rocky terrain, greenery, and bright blue/green water. Didn’t seem busy at all so if you have the time to hang out for the day there I would recommend it. We ventured into the town of Paia for shopping and lunch. A great crepe place we ate at was called Café des Amis. Prices were good and the food was excellent. The kids particularly loved the Nutella crepes! They had a small courtyard to eat which was intimate and comfortable.
Day 8 – We spent the day at the Grand Wailea Waldorf resort where our friends were staying. Fun hotel for the kids to go down numerous water slides and swim in the lazy river. The adults definitely enjoyed having some cocktails in the adults-only grotto area while the kids swam. After swimming all day we worked up an appetite and went to Monkeypod Kitchen – wowzers they had the best food on the island. We couldn’t get enough of it and the other couples even went there the previous night it was so good. Highly recommend this restaurant as a must-do on Maui.
Day 9 – For our last day in Hawaii we decided to soak up more time at the resort and headed back to Shelby’s Beach and the Westin pool area in Kaanapali. Even caught one last hula performance at the resort. Finally, before heading to the airport we made a quick stop at the Lahaina Henna Tattoos shop to get our girls henna tattoos.
Nova Vacations 