Just Go.

I haven't been everywhere, but it's on my list...

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Hanauma Bay

My research on Hawaii was minimal before arriving, but, one of the places that kept popping up as a “must see” was Hanauma Bay.

WOULD NOT RECOMMEND!

While at first glance it appealed visually, the beauty of the site ended there. Let me give you a run through:

Before even stepping foot to sand, we had to walk through a tacky, plastic archway, where we were required to pay an entrance fee, then walk through a gift shop (That’s right- all this is set up, blocking your immediate access to the bay). Once through the gift shop, we came to an open-air waiting area filled with people. Of those people, about twenty-five of us were shuffled into a small, hot, cinema like room, where we had to stand and watch a video. The video gave instructions like “don’t step on the reef”, and “don’t feed the fish”. It went on and on and on for about 10-15 minutes, while we all stood there becoming agitated and uncomfortably hot.

Finally, we were released from this hot-box, and could get to the beach! We were pretty excited, and had high expectations of the snorkelling- the video in aforementioned hot-box had really talked it up!

Unfortunately the snorkelling was a massive let down, and I saw nothing but a few small silver fish. The coral was sun bleached and dull, and I became bored quickly.

Deciding to “suck it up” and make our trip a fun one, regardless of the shitty snorkelling and weird arrival to the beach situation, we stretched out on the sand and a few of the boys began throwing a small vortex back and forth between themselves. A group of American guys nearby had never seen a vortex, became curious, and began to join in passing it back and forth with our friends.

Morale was high again, and the sun was beating down on us. We were interrupted when a Hawaiian lady dressed in a khaki coloured uniform came marching up to us and insisted that we put the vortex away. She directed us to a sign, not too far away, which showed a whole array of activities that were not allowed on the beach. Turns out, throwing balls was one of those. We tried to argue that what we were throwing was in fact a vortex, and only made of sponge, but the answer was a firm no. Not wanting to get ourselves a fine (they love handing those out in the USA), we were packed up our things, called it a day and got the heck out of Hanauma Bay!!

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Koko Crater Trail

My next adventure on Oahu was the Koko Crater Trail. Myself, a Dutch girl, and another Aussie girl- both of whom I met at my hostel and were also travelling solo, took an uber out to this spot.

And it was a killer! The track is really steep, and over 1000 steps. We had to make a few stops on the way up, and by the time we reached the top, we were all bright red and missing a few items of clothing. Of course, the view made it all worth it. Although we didn’t witness it, rumour has it that on a really clear day, you can actually see the other islands.

Absolutely exhausted by the time we got back to the bottom, we decided to go and refresh by checking out another nearby tourist destination; the Makapu’u Tide Pools. Unfortunately there are only certain days, and certain times of those days, where the weather and tide permits such frolicking. This was not one of those days or times.

Still desperate to get our bodies salty, we asked our uber driver to take us to a beach- any beach! He obliged and brought us to one of the beaches along the east coast of Oahu. Our bodies aching, we were thrilled to finally get in the water, not expecting the strenuous swim we then endured! Our first experience with the powerful waves that Hawaii is famous for! Though all three of us girls were confident swimmers, we found ourselves absolutely exhausted for the second time that day, by the time we pulled ourselves back onto the shore.

We were pretty confident we’d be getting a good sleep that night!

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Diamond Head

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Diamond Head

The first touristy attraction I did on Oahu was the Diamond Head hike. This was a really easy hike, which meant that it was full of people. It was also part of a National Park, so cost a few dollars to get into.  Due to it’s ease, I would recommend to anyone travelling to Oahu, to do this hike. The view at the top was absolutely beautiful, and pretty similar to other hikes I ended up doing, which were much more strenuous. At the highest point of the Diamond Head hike, there were a few different platforms to check out the view from. I’d gone along with a few people from my hostel, and we brought some beers along which we enjoyed at the top.

Our plan was to watch the sunset from the top, but unfortunately, due to being a national park- there were closing times which didn’t allow that.

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Oahu

To clarify: Oahu is the name of the island, and Honolulu is it’s state capital. Waikiki is just one small part of Oahu.

Waikiki provided a pretty good base to explore the rest of Oahu; most of the island’s attractions were within a half hour drive, and the bus stop was in walking distance of my hostel.

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Waikiki Beach

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Waikiki

I didn’t have very high expectations upon arriving in Waikiki. Everything that I had heard from other travellers was that it was “too touristy” and crowded- not the “real” Hawaii.

While it is definitely those things, I still found it pretty cool. The hostel that I stayed at was ‘Seaside Hawaiian Hostel’, and it was located right in all the action- though on a quiet street. Upon checking in, the first thing I did was grab my bathers, and find the famous Waikiki beach, which was only a five minute walk away.

The beach was super packed, but this didn’t bother me. The water was absolutely divine; so blue and so warm! There’s a little kiosk set up where you can hire surboards, SUP’s, and canoes, if you’re feeling adventurous.

Waikiki beach runs alongside Kalakaua Avenue. If you are wealthy (not me), you can go crazy with the shopping along this street. Harry Winston, Rolex, Tiffany’s... You get the picture.