Hawaii - leg 3/4 - 6th Jan - 12th Jan
Travel Information:
Airline Korean Air - Great flight! So much room in the seats and the food was lovely. The only thing I would keep in mind is that the TV choices were not as good as others, not a problem for me as I was asleep :) Tokyo Airport was probably one of the first time we had really heard about COVID too. Temperature checks everywhere and so many health questions! - Good job Japan.
Hotel - Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa - Booking.com - Claireztavels rating 8/10 - Hotel was lovely, big room with good views from the from various areas. Lots of restaurants to use and right by the beach. Provided your own water bottle so it was super easy to keep hydrated in the heat. Only real downfall was the faff of getting a room at check-in. We arrived early and didn't expect a room until check-in time, went back at this time and was told it was going to be at least another hour, not really what you want to hear from a fancy resort pretty jet-lagged. The 'ocean view' room was also questionable; you could just about see it from the balcony but we were expecting a little better for the amount extra we paid to treat ourselves.
Our first couple of days in Honolulu were very similar and I was not complaining after a super busy year topped off with the Wedding. This was the first time in a long time I had been able to chill and it was THE best place for it. There was a mini section of beach in front of the hotel which was the perfect place to relax. It was away from most of the crowds as it was based away from the main beach area. We had gone a tad 'out of season' so the weather, although very warm, was a bit unpredictable. We had plenty of random downpours but a bit of rain want dampen our spirits! (Apart from when I went flying, cartoon style, over a wet grid.)
Starting with breakfast at LuLu's; reasonably priced food and plenty of choice, even for the fussy eaters (Matthew). Beautiful views of the sea whilst you eat and was never too busy went we ventured over in the morning. Totally recommend going here if you can, it had a super chilled vibe in the morning changing to more of a sports bar in the afternoon/evenings.
As a Raven's fan, I managed to watch my first LIVE play-off game in America (even if it was on TV) and my dreams were slowly crushed; watching an amazing season go down the pan in a couple of hours. At least it was a lovely place for it!
Then we would head to the beach for most of the day. There were lots of food/drink stands around further down the road if you wanted something different, like I did, a cocktail in a pineapple. Yes I had to do it. It was super expensive so I just made sure I ate/drank every single thing I could off it.. and got a few photos.
The sunsets were pretty sweet too...
The only thing to mention is the significant levels of homelessness on the island. This is something I really wasn't expecting and no way it bad at all. The only bizarre thing was when they got into what I think was turf wars. There was a couple of times that people would be screaming at each other. Apart from that everyone just kept to themselves.
Once we had recoup-orated enough we had a lovely walk out to Diamond Head. I'm 90% sure you can get a bus most the way but we obviously decided that was too easy and to have a good walk out. The walk was amazing, the views were totally worth the walk up. It wasn't the easiest walk up as the terrain was quite rough but we managed it easy enough. It costs a couple of dollars to gain entry which is used to maintain the area. It was pretty busy there and you have to wait a bit for people to pass. There are some lovely photo opportunities on the way up and the stop was so good! The amount of different rainbows we saw was incredible. Worth a visit up and a snow cone on the way back!
We also ventured into central Honolulu most nights to eat and have a nosy around some of the shops. I was in love with all the style there, I could have bought so much stuff! Food was great too, we went to Yard House a few times, a great sports bar where I got really into the surfing on the TV. Also had our first Cheesecake Factory! The amount of food you get there is insane!
On our last day there it was very overcast so we planned a trip to Pearl Harbor. This was a 40 min bus ride from the hotel. This super easy and cheap to do. The place itself was very interesting, Matthew was in his element. We got a boat over to the USS Arizona memorial, you get a timed ticket for this and a mini film and talk though the memorial. There are many other areas you can visit too but these cost a bit more to get in :)
One thing I do like to do when I am away is go for a run to check out the area a bit more. I managed a couple of runs around Honolulu and they were lovely, very warm, but lovely. Probably one of the better places I've been able to get out. Plenty of space and some amazing views of the beach to explore! Definitely a great way to get in a lot of the area in a shorter space of time.
Reluctantly after spending 6 days in one of my favorite places in the world it was time to leave. it's a good job we made leaving that little bit better.....
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