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family on holiday
aloha
hawaiian
holiday
t
child ca n resis
r fa vourite. No
ou
as
w
rk
Pa
alife
ion.
coun ter at Se
lo ve th e attent
Th e dolphin en
s, who seem to
re
tu
ea
cr
g
vin
th ese fun-lo
Marinovich family
A beach holiday in winter, with the chance to play with dolphins
and float with turtles, proved to be the ultimate combo ... great
fun and totally relaxing. We based ourselves in Waikiki and,
with surfboards in tow, jaunted barefoot and sandy through high
rises and admired designer shops on our way back to our
apartment each day.
Waikiki is, essentially, a city on the beach;
albeit very casual, clean, and with that
laidback Polynesian feel. It’s a great place
to base your family for a week in Oahu. You
don’t need a car everyday, but consider it
some of the time so as to take advantage
of the beautiful beaches all around the
Island. Although… we could happily have
lazed around on the North Shore and
Kailua for the whole week.
kids
ith kids
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not too hot in Spring
2 Great climate, and
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d, with plenty of great
3 American-st yle foo
salads.
del
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4 Casual sur fie attire
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5 Cultural, natural and
Cultural,
natural
relaxing.
5 C
ultltuura
ul
ral, nat
atuura
urr l and
and
nd rel
elaaxi
axx ng.
ng
g
very thought-provoking. Make sure you’re there
by 7am (latest) or you’re in for a long wait.
Definitely go to Laniakea Beach because the
turtles are there virtually every day of the year
munching on the shoreline seaweed. They seem
like big gentle giants, and once you’ve hung with
them in Hawaii, you are guaranteed to become
turtle-obsessed! See www.portaloha.com.
Also check out Haleiwa, a cute surfing town
that’s good for lunch and shopping. Sunset
Beach is iconic, and the water there is lovely: a
beautiful azure blue that goes from knee-high to
7 feet in just few steps. The Dole Pineapple
plantation is worth a quick visit to check out
their ‘pineapple everything’ store. Then head up
to one of the many Prawn Shacks for a messy,
but tasty feast of delicious prawns and shrimp
in your favourite style.
sea life park dolphin
encounters
This was our favourite day and not to be
missed if you’re a dolphin lover. Jump in the
water and get up close with these beautiful
creatures. The Royal Swim includes two
swims with two of the dolphins - you get to
ride holding their dorsal fins, and then stand
up on the water while being pushed along by
dolphins under your feet. The younger kids
can enjoy a quieter encounter with dolphin
kisses, dancing and even a swim on the
dolphin’s back. Check out
www.sealifeparkhawaii.com/programs.asp.
north shore excursion
including laniakea beach,
a.k.a. ‘turtle beach’
Rent some wheels and head off for a day
around the North Shore beaches. Start with a
trip to Pearl Harbour which our kids found
The Paradise Cove Luau tattooist.
wet’n’wild
We spent our only rainy day at this water park.
The rides are great fun, with plenty for toddlers
and unconfident swimmers too. But if thrill is
your game, then you’ll be in heaven. The boys
loved the Flyin’ Hawaiian and the Island Racer
and you can even get a package that includes a
boogie boarding lesson, where they’ll crank up
the wave pool and get you surfing.
www.wetnwildhawaii.com.
paradise cove luau
do
on a
Have your Hawaiian name engraved
e Plantation.
leather bracelet at the Pineappl
Paradise Cove is the ultimate tropical display;
coconut trees, white sand, frangipani trees and a
fiery golden sunset. Their family-friendly Luau
starts with traditional Hawaiian games, lei
making and a Hukilau fishing ceremony. Enjoy
cocktails with a dinner of local Kalua pork, fish,
chicken, salmon and salads. Then enjoy a
Polynesian show, with plenty of culture and
dancing (a bit of crowd participation required!).
Great for kids because it moves along fairly
quickly with plenty to do, eat and drink along the
way. See http://paradisecovehawaii.com.
Traditio
n
au.
t the Lu
jipanis a
n
ra
F
h
ing wit
L ei ma k
al Haw
a iia
n g a m es
a t the
L uau.
outrigger canoe surfing
Definitely try this (in your togs) ... it’s a lot of fun.
You start with a bit of paddling and manoeuvring
on to the wave, then surf your way to shore
alongside other surfers (and in our case a large
green turtle). Great for kids as the paddling is
simple to learn and Mum and Dad (and your
guide) do most of the work anyway. Oh yes, you
have a friendly handsome surfer alongside you
taking photos – all part of the deal, so take your
memory stick. www.waikikibeachservices.com.
The Green Turtle, now endangered,
are regulars at Laniakea Beach.
Our daughter swa m right next to one,
luckily he was completely
unperturbed and just swa m on up
to the beach.
familyy on holiday
stay - Aston at the
Waikiki Banyan
We stayed at the Aston at the Waikiki Banyan. Only 5
minutes from the beach and the Strip on Waikiki, these
apartments are great value for money and very
family friendly.
You have access to a pool, playground and BBQ area. The
kids of course were immediately taken with the icemaker
in the fridge and the heated toilet (complete with hot
water bottom washer and dryer!) an option in some rooms.
We adults were very comfortable with the blender (which
you can request), the latest DVDs on demand and even a
Playstation (quiet time!). The kitchens were very modern
with typical American ‘big everything’ and you have
unlimited Wifi. See www.astonwaikikibanyan.com
family know-how
1 Hire boogie boards or surf
boards from
www.hawaiibeachtime.com if
you’re after one for just the
day, otherwise buy one for $30
on Waikiki.
2 Buy lilos for US$3 from the
ABC stores, they ’ll blow them
up for you, then you can float
the day away.
3 Do a food shop at The Foo
d Pantry on Kuhio Street for
snacks, water and fruit . This
is a good city supermarket,
and is walking distance from
the beach and most hotels.
4 If you haven’t got room in
your luggage for beach towels,
you can buy them there. The
y sell at The Food Pantry
Express for US$10.
5 Waikiki has two calm area
s of beach, where a man mad
e
sea wall makes the sea like a
mill pond. Great for
the littlies.
eat
Your first night really deserves to be a Mai Tai night, or
anything virgin with umbrellas for the kids! Go for glamour at
The Mai Tai Bar on the beach at The Royal Hawaiian, or the
Sheraton Moana Surfrider close by.
Lulus on the west side of the strip has great food,
interesting collectables and live music. Sits up on a level with
the top of the frangipani trees overlooking the beach. Good
vibe and easy with kids.
Cheesecake factory is a favourite with the kids. Get there at
5pm for an early dinner, otherwise you might end up waiting for
over an hour.
Good burgers can be found at Teddy’s Bigger Burgers on the
Diamond Head side. Best burgers in town, according to the locals.
Pai’s Deli tucked away in the Outrigger on the beach, is well known
(since the 70s even!) for their pure fruit smoothies, delicious! You
can get a fantastic sandwich or croissant here too, made to order
and reasonably priced. Great if you’re on the beach.
Go to Fatty’s behind the International Market on Kuhio
Boulevard. This is a small cheap Chinese eatery, almost
cave-like, where you can take away or sit at a tiny bar. Has good
and healthy noodle soup.
If you are super healthy or have food intolerances, go to
Ruffage Natural Foods on Kuhio Street for a meal, or to stock
up on supplies.
Malasadas from Leonard’s bakery on Kapahulu Avenue (or find
one of their trucks either at the Waikele Outlet Mall or at Haleiwa
village) are an absolute must-try. Get your pink box of these golden,
hot, sugar coated, custard filled doughnuts and join the queues of
locals and tourists who are in the know.
If you’re heading out to the North Shore, pop into one of the local
Prawn Shacks for your favourite style of shrimp or prawns. Messy,
tasty and very local.
shopping
Th e wa ter and sa
nd are lovely on
Wa ikiki - a city
on th e beach.
th eir
n d out
.
n dors le ts for pho to s
ve
t
e
e
o
S tr
n d pa rr
a
s
w
a
ma c
Vans for
great bargains. You’ll get
Waikele Outlet Mall for
Other great
.
$50
US
for
is
Lev
st
late
around US $45 and the
se and Gap. See
stores are Adidas, Conver
for discount vouchers.
.com
ww w.premiumoutlets
and has the
asant experience, less hot
Ala Moana is a more ple
and International
an
Asi
of
n
ctio
sele
e
food court with a massiv
t to see at
ner). Choose what you wan
food (worth staying for din
und in one
aro
get
er
t because you’ll nev
ww w.alamoana.com firs
hen is wor th
Kitc
za
Piz
nia
ifor
Cal
at the
day. The red velvet cake
ar revive.
a try when you need a sug
’re a keen
but good for a visit if you
Kahala Mall is smaller
arket which
erm
Sup
a Whole Foods
shopper. Best of all, it has
c snacks
ani
org
lthy
hea
up
k
pic
to
I loved, and a great place
and fruit.
any way, so
shops are at Waikiki now
Most big name designer
ing attire.
mm
swi
r
d to get out of you
you possibly don’t even nee
e
an o es ar
trig ger C
y, the Ou t in the world rr
o
w
t
es
Don’
y the saf
.
a pparen tlr kids o f all ag es
fo
d
goo
Th e
F lyin
’
getting around
Ha w
aiia n
at W
et’n’w
ild.
1 Rent your own car – convertible Jeeps and Mustangs are the
caper for Hawaii, and the kids will love it (although safe
storage is a challenge). Check out
www.discounthawaiicarrental.com
2 The bus system (trolley, hop on hop off and the local bus) runs
through Waikiki, to Ala Moana, the Waikele Outlet Mall and to
a handful of beaches on the east side (Kahala and Kailua).
This is cost effective but it pays to ask how long each trip is
likely to take. Grab a timetable from any ABC store.
3 Most parks and planned excursions provide transport either
free or for a small charge, so make sure you ask about this and
build it into your package.
getting there
hawaiian airlines
1 Now that Hawaiian
Airlines has hit New
Zealand, it seems
everyone is talking abo
ut holidays in Hawaii.
The rates are
ver y reasonable, and
the flight times and off
erings in-flight
are all ver y family-frie
ndly.
2 Every seat has a
screen and a USB plu
g. So either watch
the latest movies, or
take your own device
, complete with
USB cable to keep it
charged.
3 Airline earphones
are never that great,
so our kids took
their own, which made
for hours of comfor tab
le screen time
(I’m not sure this is a
good thing, but possib
ly bet ter than
the alternative!).
4 The ver y latest mo
vies are US $7 each,
but you can replay
them endlessly. We allo
wed our kids one mo
vie choice
each, and then they sw
apped seats to watch
each others’.
emperor lounge
Spend a little extra and
use the Emperor Lounge
in Auckland
Airpor t, this is the officia
l lounge used by Hawa
iian Airlines.
There are food and bev
erages for the kids, tele
vision, magazines
and it’s a peaceful env
ironment to have a sno
oze or just chill.
See prices and buy tick
ets at www.aucklandai
rport.co.nz.