Hawaii

June 5, 2015

It’s time to leave Australia! My two-year adventure is coming to a close and it’s time to return home to Cork, Ireland. Why not go for a holiday through the United States on the way back? I couldn’t pass that opportunity! The next few post will be documenting my trip through Hawaii, Las Vegas, New Orléans and New York. Hope you find something interesting or helpful in these posts.. Don’t hesitate to tweet me for advice anytime @ljorahilly.

I’ve always dreamed of going to Hawaii. It was that one place on top of my travel list for many years. It was an absolute MUST when I was planning my trip with my partner back in September 2014 (yes, I like to plan ahead!). Although my partner wasn’t overly keen on Hawaii, I still got my way and he’s delighted I insisted on going!
When we are planning trips away together we always do research on different hotels and locations to make sure we get the best value for money and somewhere that suits us the best! In Hawaii it was essential that we stayed somewhere close to the beach. We don’t mind walking, so sand didn’t need to be at our doorstep. We ended up staying in Aqua Waikiki Wave which was only 5-10minute walk to Waikiki Beach. Absolutely perfect location and the hotel offered fantastic facilities so we were delighted with our choice. I’m an avid Trip Advisor contributor so if you want to read my detailed reviews on any of the hotels mentioned in the next few posts, just look me up.

Many people are shocked to realise that Honolulu is a pretty big built up city. Hawaii is made up of eight Islands, Honolulu is on O’ahu. The other islands are more the secluded tropical bliss that you would image Hawaii to be. Needless to say, as in many American cities, the shopping was brilliant in Honolulu!!

Pearl Harbour

Hawaii history takes pride in the war site at Pearl Harbour. Giving a detailed description throughout the tour of what happened way back in 1941 it was all very interesting. The grounds and memorial are a lovely tribute to those who died that December.

Pearl Harbour is definitely worth the visit. Give yourself a day away from Waikiki by getting the number 42 bus from Kuhio Ave.

Lanikai Beach

Voted one of the nicest beaches on earth ever! Also known as the area of Kailua, it was 100% worth the public transport trek!! The ocean was bright turquoise, sand like silk flowing through your toes, Lanikai beach lives up to its name in true fashion and exceeds all expectations. I have ranked Lanikai beach a joint second score of the nicest beach I’ve ever visited (so far)..

Get here by getting the number 13, 57 & 70 bus starting from Kuhio Ave. give yourself plenty of time as the busses don’t seem to run on time when you go outside Waikiki!

Diamond head

One of Waikiki’s most visited landmark would be Diamond head. We only visited the beach, which was gorgeous, but there’s a hike you can do from there that will bring you to the top of the mountain overlooking the city.

Aaand a few more notable photos I took of Waikiki and around..

Shave Ice as seen in the picture above is a Hawaiian original snow cone. It’s delicious!! Some notable restaurants I highly recommend are Bills Sydney and Da Big Kahuna for spicy buffalo wings! Yum..