Hawai'i with Igor

March 2024

For our short vacation getaway, we decided to go to Hawaii (Oahu) and even though it was only for 4 nights, we still managed to do a lot and have a really good time. Hawaii is on top of the minds for many and it’s well worth a visit. 

For the first timers I'd recommend visiting the island of Oahu first (and spending about a week or so there) because you can experience a bit of everything and there's just so much to do and see on this beautiful island! One thing that you need to keep in mind is that Hawaii has never been on the list of the most affordable tropical destinations and it's even less so these days, so, unless you have an unlimited budget (how we wish we all had!) or are redeeming points for airline ticket(s) and/or accommodation, even a short trip to Hawaii may drain an unprepared traveler's wallet before they even know it, but with the right planning it is still possible to have a fabulous time in Hawaii without breaking the bank, while not compromising on the quality of accommodation, food, or service. 

Departure from YVR: 

Even though YVR EXPRESS wasn't available on the day of our departure, we were still able to use a "special" lane to get through to the security screening since we were travelling with our 4-year-old son. We also took advantage of the Mobile Passport Control (MPC) – an app designed to streamline the process of moving through Customs for eligible travelers entering the United States. Just submit your document information and responses to CBP questions through the app from the comfort of your home and then proceed to a designated MPC lane at the airport. These new features at YVR are huge time savers and you'll absolutely want to take advantage of those (unless you enjoy waiting in line!)  

Waikiki accommodation overview: 

Probably the first thing you'd want to decide on when planning your Hawaiian vacation (or any other vacation for that matter) is where you're going to stay. Almost half of all visitors to Hawaii are staying on the island of Oahu and the majority of those end up in the Waikiki area. This is exactly where we chose to stay ourselves for our short tropical getaway and this is also the area I would recommend for the first timers. If you do choose to stay in that area, every single hotel room there is either right next to the ocean or a mere two to three blocks away from it and with so many hotels, resorts, and condos to choose from, there is really something for everyone.  

An important thing to note, however, is that in addition to the type, location, and features of your accommodation, one should pay close attention to the resort (or amenity) fees that are being charged by almost every property in Hawaii and they will be on top of your nightly rate. The resort fees were introduced to cover specific services and amenities not included in the room rates. Ironically, some of those (now) paid amenities used to be free before and even some basic things that, you would think, should naturally be a part of your room rate, like the use of a coffee maker, in-room safe, or local phone calls, are now often added to a list of amenity fee inclusions, likely to make that list look longer (and more impressive!) than it actually is. 

The average daily resort fees on Oahu are $30 to $50 before taxes. This fee can range as high as $90 per day for an Ocean Villa at the Turtle Bay Resort (also on Oahu). So, what do these resort fees cover exactly? The range of inclusions varies significantly (as are their costs) from one property to another and I'd say that checking those inclusions is as important these days as selecting a property (you'd like to stay at) itself. The reason being is that the resort fees are both mandatory and can't be prorated (in case you end up not using some (or even most) of those amenities), so you may want to choose a property where you'd get the most value for your buck not only in terms of the property features itself, but also the resort fee inclusions as well.

Oahu transportation overview: 

In between the two extremes of either not ever leaving the Waikiki area at all or exploring the island during their entire stay, most travelers will settle somewhere in between, and this is where the question of whether to rent a car or not comes to mind. While ultimately, it's a personal choice, unless your budget allows for pretty much anything you want, I'd say, depending on what your plans are, it's a good idea to consider some alternative options before making a final decision. Hotel parking in Waikiki averages between $30 and $50 per night. On the higher end, the cost of parking at the Hilton Hawaiian Village is $72.25 (self) or $82.72 (valet) and is on top of their resort fees and any other additional paid services that you use at the resort.

At our hotel, The Twin Fin, valet parking is currently the only option and it's $52 per night, but since we didn't rent a car, we didn't need worry about it. Personally, I would not want to have my rental car just sitting in the hotel's parking garage most of the day while paying an exorbitant fee for that. So, what are other ways to move around Oahu that could help you save money? There really are plenty of choices. 

Do I even need to mention Uber or Lyft? What you may not know, however, is that there's also holoholo (the only locally owned rideshare company in Hawaii) and they don't implement surge pricing. If you still wish to rent a car, but only need it for a short period of time and want to avoid paying hotel's overnight parking fees, then Hui Car Share will probably be your best bet: simply reserve your date and time and unlock a car through their app. They have multiple locations just blocks away from major hotels, condos, and attractions across Honolulu. 

Or how about exploring Waikiki and beyond on two wheels? Does it sound like fun? Then try renting a moped or scooter for a day! And if you enjoy riding a bike, then give Biki (Honolulu's bikeshare system) a try! It has more than 100 stations throughout Honolulu. And now on to Oahu's most extensive and the least expensive public transportation option: The Bus. It'll take you pretty much anywhere on the island for a mere $3 per ride or just $7.50 per day for unlimited rides. There is also a 7-day pass available for just $30. Just purchase a HOLO card ($2), load it online with the amount that you need and you’re good to go! Yes, it may take a bit longer for you to get from point A to point B, especially on longer rides, but let me tell you this: on every single bus that we took, not only we were able to get a seat for each of us, but there were also plenty of empty seats, especially once you leave the Waikiki area. And we really enjoyed having the entire air-conditioned bus almost to ourselves compared to sitting on packed tourist buses, where every tourist is paying an upwards of $30 for a similar ride. Still, I understand that a city bus may not be for everyone for a variety of reasons, but surely an option to consider when planning on how you're going to get around Oahu. 

The Twin Fin: 

For our short getaway to Oahu, we decided to stay at The Twin Fin hotel. One of the main reasons for that choice was because it's located right across from Kuhio Beach. This beach is somewhat unique with concrete walls jutting into the ocean essentially serving as breakwater, thus creating a calm swimming enclosure ideal for families with small children, like us. Another reason was the hotel's proximity to some of the main kid-friendly attractions in Waikiki, including Honolulu Zoo and Waikiki Aquarium. The hotel used to be called Aston Waikiki Beach and, after a multi-million-dollar renovation, it opened its doors again in November 2022 as The Twin Fin hotel. Over 85 percent of its 645 rooms have either full or partial ocean views and all the rooms feature a coffee maker, a safe, a mini-fridge, and a balcony. As a part of its daily resort fee of $51, the hotel provides 2 refillable water bottles (that you could actually take home), sunscreen lotion (upon request), pool towels (for day use), in-room internet, and access to its fitness center. 

However, I found the most valuable resort fee inclusion to be beach rentals (beach chairs, umbrellas, body boards, etc.), from the Beach Candy Waikiki store (conveniently located on the hotel's street level) where, as a part of your daily amenity credit, you could rent up to three items per day (for example, two chairs and one umbrella). For comparison, a similar beach set at the Sheraton Waikiki will set you back $95 per day. Fun fact: at the Twin Fin, there's no in-room microwave, but you could request it for free if you wanted to (which we did), however, there will be a $25 charge for a similar request at the Royal Hawaiian Resort! So, if you do request for something, just make sure to find out first if whatever you are requesting is free or not to avoid scratching your head at check-out.  

The hotel also has a pretty nice swimming pool, and the pool deck is also where you'll find a number of daily cultural activities happening, from ukulele lessons to hula lessons to live music and more. Overall, we had a good stay at The Twin Fin, and I would recommend that property especially for families with kids. Just be aware that despite a recent renovation, it's still an older property (originally built in 1968) although this is often the case for many other properties in the Waikiki area. 

Attractions: 

With less than 4 full days on Oahu and travelling with our 4-year-old son, there was only so much we could see and do, but we still managed to visit the Kualoa Ranch and the Polynesian Cultural Center (one of Oahu's top attractions). At Kualoa Ranch we decided to go with their Jungle Expedition Tour where you board one of their custom-built jungle vehicles for a 90-minute bumpy ride (which was great fun for our son!) through the lush and beautiful Hawaiian rainforest with some spectacular views. This is also where the scenes for several movies were filmed, including Jurassic World, Kong Skull Island, and Jumanji. This was just one of many tours offered at Kualoa Ranch and if your time permits, you may also join their Hollywood Movie Sites Tour and for those more adventurous, there are UTV Raptor Tours, E-Bike Tours, and their "Jurassic Valley" Zipline Tour. 

Overall Kualoa Ranch is well worth a visit and, yes, you could take The Bus to get there. The Polynesian Cultural Center was another major attraction that we visited during our stay on Oahu. It's a unique experience, but it won't come cheap: their (most expensive) Super Ambassador Package (where you'll have a private guide to take you through the 6 island villages, followed by Ali'i Lu'au buffet with live entertainment, and, finally, their signature "HA: Breath of Life" evening show) will set you back almost $350 (including round-trip transportation) per head. We decided this was not the right package for us, so we went with their Gateway Buffet package instead. That package includes a self-guided tour of all 6 island villages, a buffet dinner with live music, and the "HA: Breath of Life" show. To be honest, we found self-guided exploration to be a much better choice for us, as we were free to go anywhere, we wanted to and see only the shows of our choice. 

My personal recommendation would be to do just that: skip the tour group (save some money), do your research online and create your own "itinerary". This works great especially for those with younger children who are not necessarily keen on staying in one place for an extended period of time! Thank me later! It worked out perfectly for us as we kept our own pace and managed to see a variety of shows, play games, and take lots of pictures and videos without being told what to do or where to go.

After hours of exploring, we finally decided to go to the buffet and when we inquired about the difference between our buffet and the Ali'i Lu'au one, we were told that the variety of food was better at the Gateway Buffet (no kidding!) What a nice bonus! And yes, it was indeed an impressive selection of food with a wide variety of seafood items (unlimited poke, anyone?) and meats, an extensive salad bar, and, of course, the desserts! After spending a few hours at the buffet, we were ready for the show, which was honestly great, and a nice way to finish off the day.

Food: 

When you're in Hawaii (or anywhere you go, for that matter), you just must try at least some of the local food. With less than four days at our disposal, we still managed to try several local dishes, particularly at the Polynesian Cultural Center's buffet (which is already a good enough reason to visit it). 

Poke is a must try when you're in Hawaii. In Hawaii, it's not just a dish, it's a way of life. In essence, poke is simply diced raw fish tossed in some sauce and, depending on the type of poke, a few other ingredients are added. But eating poke in Waikiki can get very expensive very fast, so we waited until we got to the buffet and, oh boy, did we take advantage of unlimited poke there! All their poke were really yummy! Same with Kalua pork (which is tender and juicy shredded pork): it was onolicious! 

Tip: if you want to have poke, but don't want to go to the Polynesian Cultural Center, I recommend you buy it at Foodland or Costco and if you go to Costco, try it with the Ono Giant shrimp chips! 

Then come plate lunches. A plate lunch is a quintessentially Hawaiian meal usually consisting of 2 scoops of white rice, macaroni salad, and an entrée. If there's more than one entrée, it's usually called a "mixed plate". Entrées of Hawaiian origin include Kalua pork and pork Lau Lau (pork wrapped in lu'au leaves). There are a lot of restaurants (some have become more of institutions of sorts, such as Rainbow Drive-In or L&L Hawaiian Barbecue) on Oahu that have been serving the Hawaiian comfort food (including plate lunches) for many decades now. 

We decided to try it at the Rainbow Drive-In and it was pretty tasty and the portions were very generous: even 2 people can actually share a single plate! We decided to go with some of their signature plate lunches - the Mix Plate (includes three entrées: BBQ Beef, Boneless Chicken and Mahi Mahi) and Loco Moco (served with 2 hamburger patties and 2 eggs (cooked the way you like it, although traditionally it should be sunny side up), topped with brown gravy), although I have to say that Loco Moco is probably better at Liliha Bakery, which is another major institution in Hawaii that has been serving customers since 1950! Don't be confused by the word "bakery" in its name: Liliha Bakery is a restaurant, a bakery, and a coffee shop, all in one, with multiple locations on Oahu. When you are there, don't forget to try coco puffs: it's their single most sold item, and it's really tasty! Speaking about snacks, make sure you don't miss out on spam musubi: the ultimate portable snack in Hawaii. Essentially, it's a slice of grilled spam on top of a block of rice, wrapped in nori (a dried edible seaweed). Being essentially just a snack, there are many places on Oahu where you can find spam musubi, but I heard a good place to buy it from was a…7-Eleven store! In fact, they sell thousands upon thousands of them every single day! And this is where we got ours from too. 

Speaking of 7-Elevens, in Hawaii, this convenience store chain is unlike any of the 7-Eleven locations anywhere else. What makes 7-Eleven in Hawaii so special is that they carry foods that you won't find in any mainland USA or Canadian locations: from pork hash (Hawaiian version of the Chinese shumai) to manapua (Hawaiian version of the Chinese bao) to a wide range of hot and cold local bento boxes to Li Hing gummies to local baked goods and slurpee flavors. You can probably already tell that 7-Eleven in Hawaii is very different from any other 7-Eleven stores you've been to outside of Hawaii, so definitely give them a try on your next trip to the islands. Another popular dish to try in Hawaii is garlic shrimp. There are many garlic shrimp spots on Oahu with some of the most popular ones being on Oahu's North Shore, but since we did not have a car, it wasn't practical for us to go there. Instead, we tried it at the Barefoot Beach Cafe - a casual restaurant on Queen's Surf Beach, just about a 10-minute walk from our hotel, - and it wasn't bad at all! Plus, the oceanfront location of the restaurant makes it a perfect dining setting at any time of the day. 

Now on to desserts! When people think of an iconic Hawaiian dessert, shave ice is probably the first thing that comes to mind, however, we were craving another popular dessert and that is acai bowl. Basically, it's a frozen puree of acai berries topped with various fruits, berries, granola, and, depending on the type of bowl you order, some other ingredients as well. Really delicious and very healthy too!

Stay connected:

When you travel, you probably want to stay connected to the internet not just in your hotel room (if you even have Wi-Fi there), right? But how do you do that exactly? This was our first time trying eSIM and it worked out well for us. So, what is eSIM? Without getting into any technical details, an eSIM (embedded-SIM) is a type of SIM card that is embedded into your device, so you don't have to worry about the need to have a physical SIM card to be able to connect to a local mobile network. The best part is that dual SIM technology allows you to use an eSIM and your regular physical SIM card at the same time! The way it works is that you just purchase and download an eSIM (data only) plan (we used Airalo for that) at home and then you can instantly connect to a local network when you're at the destination. That's pretty much it! You can now order Uber rides, check restaurant menus, check for driving directions or public transport schedules with Google maps, or pretty much anything else you'd normally need/use internet for while on vacation. Isn't that great? Try it, I'm sure you'll love it!

Overall, we had a good time in Hawaii. Just remember that Hawaii is not an all-inclusive experience, and you'll have to pay for pretty much everything there and nothing there is cheap, but all you need to do is just some planning and, with that, you could save a lot of money and still have a really good time!