leafyeon
blue skies & sunshine, guaranteed
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2019
Hi All,
Before my trip (my first trip to Oahu and Aulani!), I read as many trip reports of Aulani as I could to prepare me for my trip! I really appreciated everyone's writeups, so I thought I'd return the favor now that I'm home! It also allows me to savor my own memories of the trip -- we had an excellent time!
It was a just a short eight-day trip, but we did a split stay - half in Honolulu, and half in Aulani to save some money and explore more of the island. It was just my longtime boyfriend and I on this trip, but I'll refer to him as DH for convenience!
Hope you enjoy reading! Feel free to ask any questions!
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Day One - Mid-Day Arrival at Honolulu Airport
We flew a nonstop direct flight from JFK in New York City to Honolulu Airport, on Hawaiian Airlines. 11 hours is no joke in economy class! We fly regularly on long international flights, ranging from 12-20+ hours, but international plane configurations certainly seemed a little more generous than Hawaiian Air's economy class. If I'd do it again, I would likely have paid for the premium economy for a little extra legroom. Thankfully, the 2-4-2 configuration makes it great for travellers of two, like us.
We somehow slept through the meal service at the beginning of the flight, so we were awfully hungry, but thankfully I had packed some peanut butter sandwiches and other snacks to tide us over. We had also bought two big bottles of water (each) in the airport before the flight!
I watched Moana on the plane; it was a nice introduction to Hawaii. We thought for sure Lilo & Stitch would also have been available, but it wasn't. That would've been a better introduction to Hawaii (as far as Disney movies go!)
We arrived safely in Honolulu, picked up our bags (DH got a coffee from Starbucks), and called Charley's Taxi, whom we had made a reservation with for airport pickup. We were a little confused as to where the driver told us to wait (it was a dedicated smoking section), but the driver picked us up shortly thereafter and drove us to our Airbnb near Waikiki Beach. We are not interested in the whole Waikiki scene (nightlife/etc.), but we got a good deal on a nice Airbnb with free parking (we picked up the rental car the next day), so it was nice and convenient. I believe the flat fare was $29 from Honolulu Airport to the Waikiki Beach, plus $1 tax and a discretionary tip.
View of Honolulu and Diamond Head from our Airbnb Balcony
We settled into our Airbnb, and by then it was around 4:30 p.m. We went for a walk to check out Waikiki Beach, and to find a snack, and then eventually go for dinner.
Waikiki Beach
Waikiki Beach and the surrouding area was hustling and bustling, as expected. Very posh streets. We checked out a Japanese food market/emporium or something similar in the basement of one of the buildings, but everything seemed unnecessarily busy with not very exciting food. I wound up getting a warm spam musubi from an ABC Store as a snack to tide me over before dinner -- most ABC Stores have them cold, but there are ABCs with musubis in warmers. It was mediocre; I wouldn't waste your time. I had heard good things and wanted to try out Musubi Cafe, but DH had misread the map and thought it was much further than it was (we found out later that it was right behind our Airbnb!)
Sunset from Waikiki Beach
I had looked up some recommended dinner spots in the area, and we picked the Japanese restaurant Yoshitsune. We were a little worried that it might not be good when we learned it was in a hotel (Park Shore Waikiki), but were pleasantly surprised! (DH is a total foodie - we live in Manhattan and he has eaten at almost all of the Michelin-starred restarants in NYC. Japanese cuisine is our overall favorite. I grew up visiting Japan regularly, and as an adult still visit it every other year, so I would hope that I am familiar with good/authentic Japanese food!) The food was above average, and we were delighted. Service was efficient and polite as well.
After a lovely dinner, we stopped at the ABC Store around the corner to get some necessities (mainly water and fruit), and called an Uber very easily back to our Airbnb. That was it for our day!
Stay tuned for Day 2... a wonderful day at the North Shore!
Before my trip (my first trip to Oahu and Aulani!), I read as many trip reports of Aulani as I could to prepare me for my trip! I really appreciated everyone's writeups, so I thought I'd return the favor now that I'm home! It also allows me to savor my own memories of the trip -- we had an excellent time!
It was a just a short eight-day trip, but we did a split stay - half in Honolulu, and half in Aulani to save some money and explore more of the island. It was just my longtime boyfriend and I on this trip, but I'll refer to him as DH for convenience!
Hope you enjoy reading! Feel free to ask any questions!
---------
Day One - Mid-Day Arrival at Honolulu Airport
We flew a nonstop direct flight from JFK in New York City to Honolulu Airport, on Hawaiian Airlines. 11 hours is no joke in economy class! We fly regularly on long international flights, ranging from 12-20+ hours, but international plane configurations certainly seemed a little more generous than Hawaiian Air's economy class. If I'd do it again, I would likely have paid for the premium economy for a little extra legroom. Thankfully, the 2-4-2 configuration makes it great for travellers of two, like us.
We somehow slept through the meal service at the beginning of the flight, so we were awfully hungry, but thankfully I had packed some peanut butter sandwiches and other snacks to tide us over. We had also bought two big bottles of water (each) in the airport before the flight!
I watched Moana on the plane; it was a nice introduction to Hawaii. We thought for sure Lilo & Stitch would also have been available, but it wasn't. That would've been a better introduction to Hawaii (as far as Disney movies go!)
We arrived safely in Honolulu, picked up our bags (DH got a coffee from Starbucks), and called Charley's Taxi, whom we had made a reservation with for airport pickup. We were a little confused as to where the driver told us to wait (it was a dedicated smoking section), but the driver picked us up shortly thereafter and drove us to our Airbnb near Waikiki Beach. We are not interested in the whole Waikiki scene (nightlife/etc.), but we got a good deal on a nice Airbnb with free parking (we picked up the rental car the next day), so it was nice and convenient. I believe the flat fare was $29 from Honolulu Airport to the Waikiki Beach, plus $1 tax and a discretionary tip.
View of Honolulu and Diamond Head from our Airbnb Balcony
We settled into our Airbnb, and by then it was around 4:30 p.m. We went for a walk to check out Waikiki Beach, and to find a snack, and then eventually go for dinner.
Waikiki Beach
Waikiki Beach and the surrouding area was hustling and bustling, as expected. Very posh streets. We checked out a Japanese food market/emporium or something similar in the basement of one of the buildings, but everything seemed unnecessarily busy with not very exciting food. I wound up getting a warm spam musubi from an ABC Store as a snack to tide me over before dinner -- most ABC Stores have them cold, but there are ABCs with musubis in warmers. It was mediocre; I wouldn't waste your time. I had heard good things and wanted to try out Musubi Cafe, but DH had misread the map and thought it was much further than it was (we found out later that it was right behind our Airbnb!)
Sunset from Waikiki Beach
I had looked up some recommended dinner spots in the area, and we picked the Japanese restaurant Yoshitsune. We were a little worried that it might not be good when we learned it was in a hotel (Park Shore Waikiki), but were pleasantly surprised! (DH is a total foodie - we live in Manhattan and he has eaten at almost all of the Michelin-starred restarants in NYC. Japanese cuisine is our overall favorite. I grew up visiting Japan regularly, and as an adult still visit it every other year, so I would hope that I am familiar with good/authentic Japanese food!) The food was above average, and we were delighted. Service was efficient and polite as well.
After a lovely dinner, we stopped at the ABC Store around the corner to get some necessities (mainly water and fruit), and called an Uber very easily back to our Airbnb. That was it for our day!
Stay tuned for Day 2... a wonderful day at the North Shore!