Two Weeks in Oahu, Hawaii

Highlights of our Hawaii trip, from Shangri La to Diamond Head

Downtown Honolulu, in Waikiki.

In order to go to Hawaii, my family literally saved up our money for seven years. It took the combined efforts of every single family member to get there as the islands are pretty unaffordable for the average American family.

We really saw that when we went there since the gas prices are so high—in April 2022, we were paying $5.20 a gallon—and eating at an actual restaurant cost $200 per meal. We only ate dinners out because of these high prices, but you have to remember that Hawaii deeply depends on imports in order to function at a rate to maintain its current society.

The focus of our trip was to do everything we could set out to do over the course of two weeks, and a wrench in our plans happened almost immediately.

We learned multiple times to never fly Southwest Airlines for big trips, and lo and behold, our Southwest tickets were cancelled two hours before the flight. The earliest they could get us out was three days before, so we had to rush book tickets for a Delta flight so our vacation wouldn't be ruined. A freak accident then occurs because the pilot was forty minutes late, so we had to sprint through the Atlanta airport and made our flight two minutes before the gates closed.

But we made it! Definitely recommend the Delta nonstop flight from Atlanta, Georgia to Honolulu—we got two free meals and free alcohol. It was such a relief to pull up to our place in Waikiki and actually set foot in our condo after this series of events, but Hawaii genuinely was one of the best trips of my brief lifetime.

We prioritized learning about the local culture, and I left with such a deep devotion for both Hawaiian and Polynesian culture. That being said, here are some of my favorite places we visited.

Shangri La Museum of Islamic Art

Doris Duke, once one of the wealthiest women in the United States, turned her estate and love for Islamic art into a museum upon her death. Located in a very wealthy neighborhood of Oahu, you have to get a shuttle from the Honolulu Art Museum (you have to get it from there, it’s the only way they’ll let you in) that lasts about twenty minutes.

You’re transported into Duke’s world then, as her estate is modeled after a palace in Esfahan, Iran, and is absolutely gorgeous to look at. The employees give talks in the rooms, but you’re allowed to just wander around for the hour you get in the museum. Everyone in my family agreed this was one of our top places to visit when our trip concluded. They also gave us a free wooden hand fan, ice cream, and drink at the very end.

Iolani Palace and the Bishop Museum

I highly recommend doing these two back-to-back, one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. We did them on separate days, but it’d be very informative to do them together at the end of the day. You can book tours of Iolani Palace, which is where the Hawaiian monarchs lived until their overthrow by the Americans.

It was at Iolani Palace that the Queen was forced to abdicate in order to avoid bloodshed, so there’s a lot of history. The tour goes through each of the rooms and explains them and the history of the monarchs, including the fateful day and what happened after the coup. Unfortunately, the palace was looted after the coup and a lot of the original items are missing, but it’s still a beautiful and enlightening trip.

We then headed to the Bishop Museum the next day, which includes artifacts from Hawaiian and Polynesian cultural history. You’re going to learn a lot about Hawaiian history in the halls, then progress into general Polynesian history.

When we went, they had the Honolulu Museum of Art Triennial going on, but I personally was not a fan of the art. General ticket also includes access to the science museum there, which was a fun step away from all of the history.

If you want books on Hawaiian history as well, these are your two places to go. All proceeds support these institutions directly, but the Bishop Museum also runs its own scholarly press about Polynesian and Hawaiian culture, ethnography, and history. There were some really interesting books there and on the website, even though they didn’t have the book I wanted in stock at the time.

Ho’omaluhia Botanical Garden

This is where you often find people taking [illegal] Instagram pictures on the middle of the road. Don’t be that person—those roads are small and it was absolutely annoying to go around these people.

The views, however, made it completely worth it. No pictures in the world can amount to the beauty that was in the botanical garden. There’s a section in the front where you can walk to the lake, but know that this place is similar to Acadia National Park in Maine—you drive around and stop at the sections if you want to get out. There’s some scenic spots where you can chill with a picnic basket, which I wished we did.

I learned here as well that there are many other free botanical gardens scattered throughout the island, consisting of five total. Foster’s is the only paid one, but it’s across the street from the former queen’s gardens (free). Definitely check those out if you’re into gardens.

Polynesian Cultural Center

Don’t have pictures really from here because I was so immersed in the world they drop you in. I recommend the luau package of the Polynesian Cultural Center—it’s worth the extra money even though I will say the food is incredibly mediocre. That package gives you three days to return to the park as much as you wish, which you’re going to need. It also comes with a tour guide which was very, very helpful due to the fact that she showed you the best shows to go to.

We only had one day to stop here, but I think you need the three days—there’s an insane amount of things to do and see at the center. I adored the cultural presentations and learning about the different islands, so I highly recommend visiting the PCC if you get the chance.

Kualoa Ranch

We took the jungle tour of the ranch, which was very bumpy—our tour guide even said this was the bumpiest ride out of all of the tours, but it also takes you to the highest elevation the ranch can offer on a truck. Expect a more nature-based tour here, as we got up close and personal with the cattle grazing in the fields and had the opportunity to hike to a beautiful view of the property lines and island.

This tour also includes three views of movie sets on the ranch, and we were allowed to wander around the Jurassic World set for. bit. The movie tours are more expensive at Kauloa Ranch, but if you’re into wandering the sets of, say, Jurassic Park, that may be right up your alley. I enjoyed the nature aspect more personally.

Waikiki / North Shore / Diamond Head

We stayed in Waikiki, which is about an hour drive to North Shore. We didn’t realize it takes forever to get anywhere from Waikiki, so heads-up if you’re not aware: it takes a very long time to get outside of Honolulu. Waikiki is very nice to walk around at night, as there’s a path along the beach and lots of designer stores on the other side, but it becomes like New York City towards the weekend. The wait times for restaurants also is a major nightmare, so I recommend eating during off hours to beat that or getting reservations way in advance.

North Shore was more nature like. If I wanted a peaceful vacation, I would stay in North Shore. It seemed like some things were also less expensive down there, so it might be of interest if you don’t want to spend an insane amount on groceries and food.

Our breakfasts for a week (we only ate breakfast and dinner) would cost up to $100 for groceries. This is for a family of five. One of our favorite places to eat at (Haleiwa Beach House) was on the North Shore, and my one of personal favorites (Kahuku Farms) are in this area.

Our entire family actually couldn’t make it through Diamond Head. My mother and father had to head back, while my eldest sister almost vomited before making it to the top. The first part is just rocky elevation and finding the proper footing, but then the worst part was the tunnel right before the steps.

It was difficult to breathe, but the actual steps after aren’t that hard. The view was quite nice, although some tourists jumping onto the thin railing and sitting for photos was extremely anxiety-inducing. The best part? The fresh pineapple smoothies you can buy before or after your hike. It was the perfect post-hike treat.

Random places I enjoyed: Haloma Blowhole, Kahuku Farms, the Macademia nut farm across from Kauloa, the beach on North Shore (Turtle Bay) where you can see turtles.

What I Didn’t Like As Much

Dole Plantation

Don’t wait two hours for a twenty minute train ride. It was not worth it and the same things you see on the tour you can literally see on the main roads driving there. We also waited in a big line for Dole Whip, which also was not worth the hype. It tasted very artificial, and the best part about it were the pineapple chunks scattered around.

People were going nuts for this ice cream though, but we all kind of shrugged and said it was okay, that it was something you got because you were there. I also wanted to buy a stuffed pineapple in the gift shop and nearly died when I saw it was $30 once tax was added. The gift shop was quite expensive even for pineapple candies.

My one complaint though is that they should acknowledge that the Dole family helped overthrow the monarchy and set up a plantation system. This place was a go once and go never again sort of deal, unless you’re very into pineapples.

Hanauma Bay Preserve

Hanauma Bay is a really nice area, but no one warned us that it was extremely rocky and the water was freezing. I swore I kept cutting my feet because I was stepping on rocks, but then I still kept going. There’s not much to eat or drink unless you want to take a tram back up to top of the mountain/entrance to the bay.

The waves were also quite rough and the lifeguards had to keep warning about high tides—there are sudden drop-offs in the water, so if you’re paying attention, it could potentially be very easy to drown.

You do see fish in the water, especially once you get closer to the coral reefs. Buy a snorkel mask at Walmart and pack a picnic basket full of sandwiches for lunch if you plan on being a while. I’m used to the Caribbean, however, so I refused to get in cold water. I brought a book and had a blast in the shade of a palm tree.

If you also go to Hanauma, be aware parking is nonexistant. We arrived an hour before our time (so 9:30 for a 10:30 slot) and parking was just about to run out. Just Uber there if you have a later time slot.