Itinerary help

[Cliffside]

We are scheduled to be at Aulani for our 25th wedding anniversary from September 5 - September 12th. This will be our first time there. I am trying to figure out an itinerary for our stay. We went to Hawaii on our honeymoon and said we go back for our 5th anniversary...it’s taken us 25 years.

We are coming from New York through Dallas on American so it will be a long travel day....I’m hoping the testing requirement for vaccinated individuals will be lifted by then so that will be one less thing to worry about. Hoping to make a Target stop on the way to the resort and just do Ulu Cafe for dinner and try not to go to bed that early.

Monday 9/6 Labor Day
Resort day
I‘m sure the resort will be busy for the holiday...but I’m sure we will be up super early so we will be able secure chairs by the pool...may want to try rainbow reef
Dinner Makahiki

Tuesday 9/7
Morning -Pearl Harbor
Afternoon-Waikiki beach/lunch at Dukes
Dinner-Roy’s near Aulani

Wednesday 9/8 -our anniversary

Character Breakfast-Makahiki
resort day
spa if open
dinner -Mina’s fish house -four seasons

Thursday 9/9
Morning -North Shore

Afternoon- Kaulua ranch

dinner -maybe Helena’s restaurant

Friday 9/10
early morning-Hike diamond head
early afternoon-Blowhole and Lanikai beach
evening -Aulani luau

Saturday
Resort day
possible Sunset catamaran with mana cruises

Also need to fit in Leonard’s for Malasadas and Matsumoto for shaved ice

For those that have visited before...any thoughts?

Am I missing any must dos?

Any restaurant recommendations?

Still trying to decide which tour at Kaulua ranch. Deciding between the 2 hour ATV and the general movie tour. I sometimes have back issues so I don’t know which one to do.

 

[vacay77]

Sounds like you have most of it covered! I highly recommend the Jurassic Adventure Tour at Kualoa Ranch, especially if you are a fan of movies. Malasadas from Leonard’s Bakery are fantastic - we ended up going there twice. Not sure if you are interested in the Polynesian Cultural Center - I think it’s worth a visit once.

 

[Cliffside]

Sounds like you have most of it covered! I highly recommend the Jurassic Adventure Tour at Kualoa Ranch, especially if you are a fan of movies. Malasadas from Leonard’s Bakery are fantastic - we ended up going there twice. Not sure if you are interested in the Polynesian Cultural Center - I think it’s worth a visit once.

I have not seen any of the Jurassic World movies but the ranch looks so stunning so I definitely want to go there.
Did you go to the original Leonard’s or one of the trucks?
I was thinking of the Polynesian Cultural Center? How long do you spend there?

 

[tankin]

The only thing I see you missed for us would be PCC... If the schedule is the same, opens around 1 closes at 6 but has a big show around 7:30.

We did both the movie and Jurassic tour at Kaulua and liked them both. We also tend to do the character breakfast on our first morning (before I have time to run to the store to stock up)

 

[vacay77]

I have not seen any of the Jurassic World movies but the ranch looks so stunning so I definitely want to go there.
Did you go to the original Leonard’s or one of the trucks?
I was thinking of the Polynesian Cultural Center? How long do you spend there?

They show filming locations for other movies like Jumanji, Kong, Godzilla, etc.

We went to the original Leonard’s location but there is a food truck near the Aulani and I don’t think you can go wrong with the food truck either. A lot of times, I feel like some of these bakeries are overhyped but I can seriously see why people love the malasadas there. They are that good!

Polynesian Cultural Center is basically open for the afternoon (beginning at 12:45). They have different packages that include a luau but because we attended the luau at the Aulani, we just bought tickets that include admission to the six islands. We were able to see a fun performance like the Samoans climbing trees. We were also able to take a ride on a canoe and there are activities like spear throwing at the Island of Tonga.

 

[nkereina]

Tuesday 9/7
Morning -Pearl Harbor
Afternoon-Waikiki beach/lunch at Dukes
Dinner-Roy’s near Aulani

I would suggest keeping this day flexible and trying to obtain tickets for Pearl Harbor in advance. If you are unable to, you'll need to arrive at Pearl Harbor early to line up in the standby line for a tour time. Tour times are given out in order, so the further back you are in line, the later in the day your tour time will be. I think the latest tour time is around 3-3:30pm. Unless you can obtain your tickets in advance, it can make for a challenge to plan anything else on the same day as Pearl Harbor since you won't know your tour time until day of. You may have some time to kill before your tour time, and it can be a challenging leaving and returning because parking is at a premium later in the day. I do think its worth going to Waikiki afterward no matter what your tour time is, but be prepared to sacrifice Roy's or move that to a different day if you have to.

Thursday 9/9
Morning -North Shore

Afternoon- Kaulua ranch

dinner -maybe Helena’s restaurant

Keep in mind that I believe some tours are only offered on certain days and at certain times. We did the VIP Movie Tour which I believe was only offered in the morning, at the time. I would also add that I don't know if there's much going on in the North Shore in the morning hours. Might be better to flip this - do a morning tour at Kualoa Ranch, and then spend the rest of the day at the North Shore so you're not rushed. This would also be a good opportunity to get Matsumoto's shave ice after dinner.

Friday 9/10
early morning-Hike diamond head
early afternoon-Blowhole and Lanikai beach
evening -Aulani luau

This day seems tight, IMO. We hiked Diamond Head around 8:30am and finished around 11:30am. We were sweaty messes in workout clothes and needed to shower before we could do anything else. Considering that, I do think it would be fine to go to the beach after, but Lanikai Beach is on the other side of the island in Kailua, about a 40 minute drive not including traffic. It wouldn't give you much beach time before you'd need to return back to Aulani (a 45 min drive from Kailua, not including traffic) and allow enough time to shower before the luau. Also keep in mind that rush hour traffic begins around 3pm.

Also need to fit in Leonard’s for Malasadas and Matsumoto for shaved ice

We stopped off at the Leonard's food truck which is parked at the outlet mall along the highway heading to Aulani. You can't miss it. Added maybe 10 minutes to our trip back to the resort, so its something you could do on the way back some day.

 

[LovintheLodge]

We did the 2 hour ATV tour (7 years ago) at Kualoa Ranch and loved it. Keep in mind you will get dirty (but it’s fun), so factor that into your plans for rest of day. My son and I were towards back of group so got hit more. The area is just beautiful.

 

[LilyJC]

A couple thoughts (a lot of advice is personal preference of course)… We finished Diamond Head super early and then headed over to the Halona Blowhole immediately after. Lanikai Beach parking is closed currently, and they expect it to take the rest of the year apparently. I believe you can scrounge around the area for parking, but I heard it would be rough with construction traffic. It wasn’t on out to-do, so we never headed over there.

We’d also skip Matsumoto’s and highly highly recommend Wailoa Shave Ice (the one at 2135 Wailoa). It’s literally the best we’ve ever had - perhaps personal preference, but we stopped by after our Diamond Head/Blowhole morning. Also, if you are Açaí bowl fans, the Island Vintage across the street has really tasty options. Ulu also has decent ones, but they’re a bit more expensive. Poke is another food item we eat a lot of while here if that appeals. Foodland grocery store has a huge variety, and it’s really good. The little ABC Island Country store across the street actually has decent Poke bowls as well.

We really enjoyed the Ho’omaluhia Botanical Garden. So gorgeous! The temple is nearby, but we ended up skipping it to make it to dinner at Haleiwa Joe’s in Kaneohe. Also gorgeous setting and really great food. They technically open at 4:30, but we got there at 3:45 and a line had already formed. By the time we left the wait (and parking lot) was insane!

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Kualoa Ranch and North Shore are not "same day" IMO. They're not really close to one another.

was thinking of the Polynesian Cultural Center? How long do you spend there?

The Bishop Museum is a better cultural experience (and closer to stuff), in my opinion.

Also, just a general recommendation, I wouldn't do dedicated resort days. I'd do something early morning, especially early in the trip before your internal clock has adjusted, and then spend the rest of the day by the pool. For example, you can "rope drop" Diamond Head at 6am, pick up Leonard's while you're there, and be on a pool chair by 9:30.

 

[Cliffside]

Thanks for all the great ideas...still so much to think about.

 

[Cliffside]

Kualoa Ranch and North Shore are not "same day" IMO. They're not really close to one another.


The Bishop Museum is a better cultural experience (and closer to stuff), in my opinion.

Also, just a general recommendation, I wouldn't do dedicated resort days. I'd do something early morning, especially early in the trip before your internal clock has adjusted, and then spend the rest of the day by the pool. For example, you can "rope drop" Diamond Head at 6am, pick up Leonard's while you're there, and be on a pool chair by 9:30.

Thanks for the ideas...I wish we had more days..the reason I planned resort days is one is Labor Day, one is our anniversary and the other is a Saturday the day before we leave. I figured things might be crowded around the island on Labor Day and it might be easier to stay put. I was hoping to get a cabana for our anniversary but they are sold out and the final resort day is the Saturday before we leave...maybe we will schedule Koalua Ranch that morning..,we just booked the Mana sunset sail for that evening.

 

[vacay77]

I don't think you can go wrong either way. We had days where we just stayed at the resort, and other days where we did excursions in the morning, then came back to the resort in the afternoon and hung out at the pool and beach. We tried to do the waterslides as soon as they opened in the morning on resort days because the lines could get longer as the day progressed. I don't know when your flight leaves back home but we had a redeye flight which meant our flight didn't leave Honolulu until 10 pm. We ended up booking our tour at Kualoa Ranch that day since we needed to check out of the hotel anyway. We basically just had to roll with it. We tried earlier that week to go to Waimea Falls but no swimming at the falls was allowed that day due to the weather. And on the last day, we went to the blowhole - which wasn't spouting water. Lol.

 

[vacay77]

Also, regarding Diamond Head, you'll want to be there as soon as they open in the morning. They opened by 6:00 am and we were there at 6:45 am. The lot became full four cars in front of us. So we had to turn around and park really far away just to get to the entrance. We had reservations for Pearl Harbor after that and I was worried that we wouldn't make it in time.

 

[808blessing]

Agree with comments above about luau day being tight. That might be your North Shore day. Waimea Valley is nice now and has a nice paved 30 minute walk.
Lanikai and Kualoa could go together.
Roy’s might be just a nice dessert. Monkeypod has a fun date vibe with live music. Not as quiet as Roy’s.
The Kualoa movie ride is relaxing and beautiful. The ATV might be too much as it’s on the opposite side of the island and you need a lot of energy. Still if you have always wanted to do it, it’s great fun.

 

[happymommy]

If you are the type to go go go on vacation, most days work (other than Friday, hiking Diamond Head, then Lanikai (parking will be an issue) and luau that night. We used to live in Kailua, and Lanikai is a residential neighborhood with currently no parking. The beach has eroded to the point where there are places now that if you don’t enter from between houses, you can no longer walk its length. Kailua beach is a nice beach, but we don’t even bother when we visit.

I understand you likely already booked your flight and resort, but coming from the East Coast, we can’t do shorter than two weeks. We moved to Maryland in 1998 from Oahu, and go every other year for at least 2 weeks. We like to relax, eat (if you like sushi I highly recommend Sushi Bay in Kapolei; Genki Sushi used to be my favorite but Sushi Bay blows them away), swim a bit, read, go out some but we’ve seen most things. Never hiked Diamond Head in my life though lol. Have done Makapuu Lighthouse with a wives group when we lived there, as well as Iolani Palace. My kids loved the day I took them to the Bishop Musem; it’s not far and a nice couple hours.

The one time we went to Matsumoto for shave ice, it was highly overrated. Line was huge. It’s in Haleiwa, so you could do that on your way back from Kualoa Ranch if you want to cool off after that, though. To us, it was just shave ice, not too special. I’ve heard Uncle Clay’s is really good, in Honolulu. I’m just not a huge shave ice person, but theirs sounds much better!

We’ve eaten at the Roy’s at Ko Olina a couple times (we used to like the one in Baltimore, which is not owned by Roy any longer; it’s owned by a chain restaurant and although it used to be excellent, it’s not as great any more). It was good, but expensive and at the golf course so we probably won’t go back. On Oahu, if we eat out, it’s much nicer to overlook the water.

I’ve flown that route before, but next trip we booked the nonstop from Dulles; cuts our travel time by several hours. Also has lie flat seats which we booked; always coming home I prefer that but had points so one way was free, and I’m over 50 now so not flying economy that far, LOL. Nice to try to get at least a couple hours sleep coming home.

 

[kungaloosh22]

We are scheduled to be at Aulani for our 25th wedding anniversary from September 5 - September 12th. This will be our first time there. I am trying to figure out an itinerary for our stay. We went to Hawaii on our honeymoon and said we go back for our 5th anniversary...it’s taken us 25 years.

We are coming from New York through Dallas on American so it will be a long travel day....I’m hoping the testing requirement for vaccinated individuals will be lifted by then so that will be one less thing to worry about. Hoping to make a Target stop on the way to the resort and just do Ulu Cafe for dinner and try not to go to bed that early.

Monday 9/6 Labor Day
Resort day
I‘m sure the resort will be busy for the holiday...but I’m sure we will be up super early so we will be able secure chairs by the pool...may want to try rainbow reef
Dinner Makahiki

Tuesday 9/7
Morning -Pearl Harbor
Afternoon-Waikiki beach/lunch at Dukes
Dinner-Roy’s near Aulani

Wednesday 9/8 -our anniversary

Character Breakfast-Makahiki
resort day
spa if open
dinner -Mina’s fish house -four seasons

Thursday 9/9
Morning -North Shore

Afternoon- Kaulua ranch

dinner -maybe Helena’s restaurant

Friday 9/10
early morning-Hike diamond head
early afternoon-Blowhole and Lanikai beach
evening -Aulani luau

Saturday
Resort day
possible Sunset catamaran with mana cruises

Also need to fit in Leonard’s for Malasadas and Matsumoto for shaved ice

For those that have visited before...any thoughts?

Am I missing any must dos?

Any restaurant recommendations?

Still trying to decide which tour at Kaulua ranch. Deciding between the 2 hour ATV and the general movie tour. I sometimes have back issues so I don’t know which one to do.

Hi Cliffside! We're at Aulani in early Sept with similar activities. We're also on the Mana sunset cruise that Sat evening! I guess it will just be us, you 2, and 1 other couple as they only take 6 people. We might also be at Pearl Harbor the same morning, but we're still working out our plans. Looking forward to it all!

 

[Cliffside]

Hi Cliffside! We're at Aulani in early Sept with similar activities. We're also on the Mana sunset cruise that Sat evening! I guess it will just be us, you 2, and 1 other couple as they only take 6 people. We might also be at Pearl Harbor the same morning, but we're still working out our plans. Looking forward to it all!

Funny…what are the chances…looking forward to all as well!!!
Have you been to Aulani before? How long are you staying?

 

[jimmymc]

Matsumoto's is in the first town you come to when driving to the North Shore and they open at 10 or 11.

There is a Leonard's truck not far from Aulani and you can easily get there on a resort day. The main location is on the way from Diamond head back to Aulani, so you can grab them on that day.

The north shore is a big place with a lot to see, so make sure you allow enough time and do a Kualoa Ranch tour later in the day. I would get Kono's BBQ for lunch, Matsumoto's after, and smoothies and iced coffee at the Sunrise Shack at some point.

 

[Cliffside]

Based on people’s suggestions…I think I will split up the North shore and Kaulua ranch…I think it makes sense to do the North Shore during the week as well as Diamond head and save Kaulua ranch for Saturday…since we have to have reservations I figure doing it on a weekend shouldn’t matter.

 

[nkereina]

Based on people’s suggestions…I think I will split up the North shore and Kaulua ranch…I think it makes sense to do the North Shore during the week as well as Diamond head and save Kaulua ranch for Saturday…since we have to have reservations I figure doing it on a weekend shouldn’t matter.

Good call. We went to Kualoa Ranch on a week day and the traffic was pretty bad trying to get there. Since we had a set tour time, we couldn't avoid rush hour. Took nearly double the time it would without traffic.