I’ve always wanted to get lei’d. By a handsome Hawaiian surfer dude. Wouldn’t that be the dream?
After having a hectic stop over at Guam, and after a having almost no sleep the night before, I finally made it to Hawaii – Honolulu to be exact. I stepped out of the airport and was greeted by the airport transfer guy with… you guess it, a lei. The scent of the fresh flowers woke me up a bit, which is what I needed since it was only the early evening and I needed to make the most of my short 3 day trip there.
While I did want to stay longer in Hawaii, I was only able to get a short time away and my next destination was the West Coast of USA, so I thought 3 days was good enough to get a taste of the Hawaiian sunny vibes.
Okay, so 3 days right? Where should I go? What should I see? Well being the beach lover that I am, I chose to stay at Waikiki. I stayed at Seaside Hawaiian Hostel and it was only a 5 minute walk to Kalakaua Road – the main road of Waikiki – making everything pretty easy to get to.
Waikiki Beach
I mean, why not? This beach is stunning; the sand, the water, the colours and the vibe. Despite it being the busy summer season when I went (July), it still maintained such a chill vibe. I actually stayed here for hours. Also, sea turtles are also known to pop up randomly in the water, but unfortunately I wasn’t lucky enough to experience this!
Diamond Head Crater (Lē‘ahi)
These views can be easily accessed, believe it or not, even if you don’t have a car. Take the public bus from Waikiki, conveniently named TheBus, up towards Diamond Head. It’s about USD $2.50 per ride and stops right at the bottom of the crater, which is just off Diamond Head Road between Makapu’u Avenue and 18th Avenue. Once you get into the park it’s $1 entry fee for pedestrians, or if you drove in, $5 per car.
It’s definitely a top thing to do when in Waikiki. The views along the way are amazing, whether you’re looking towards the city of Honolulu or behind you – postcard photos every step of the way. The walk is about 2.5km roundtrip, so it doesn’t take too long to reach to the top. Although the last bit to the top gets a bit steep! But really, though, the views totally make up for it.
Hanauma Bay
I love being in the water and going snorkelling and seeing all the local marine life. I looked around for a good place to go snorkelling and Hanauma Bay was a popular spot everyone kept telling me about. I booked the day trip online and it was all confirmed and I was good to go there the very next day. The trip was around $17 and included transport there and back to Waikiki and snorkel hire.
The bay itself is beautiful, although if I have to be honest, I have seen better underwater. But that’s because I’ve been lucky enough to snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef and go scuba diving in Boracay before 🙂 . It’s still definitely a place I’d recommend going to!
Hawaii is definitely a destination I’d love to return to – and this time stay there longer so I can check out the other islands, scuba and snorkel more and experience the local culture more. Until next time Hawaii!! 🙂
Who else has been to Hawaii – what were your highlights? Leave a comment below!
ShotsbyMV 