Vacation Time: Hawaii

jasonatjl · Jan 23, 2020

Bostoneo said:
havnt determined that part yet, want something centrally located to can get to most stuff easily with some nightlife nearby as well.

Nightlife is pretty limited in Hawaii, and being centrally located doesn’t always mean things are accessible.

I’d tell you to stay in Waikiki for Oahu, and Wailea or Kahului for Maui. Maui is pretty anti-smoker, so you may have a hard time finding a place to settle in and enjoy a smoke.

Bostoneo · Jan 23, 2020

Found a nice place for Waikiki that was relatively close to restaurants and shops, parking that wasnt a highrise.

Not really worried about finding a cigar lounge, i'll probably just have one in the morning or evening on vacation, pending circumstances.

BloodWood · Jan 23, 2020

Yes, Maui is very anti-smoking. No lounges at all.
But, big but, the hotels and golf courses are very accommodating towards cigar smokers.
They'll kindly direct you to a nice smoking venue where you can plop down and herf... The Four Seasons receptionist walked us out about 100 yards, pointed to the shore and said anywhere you like.

Jen and I would opt for a scenic golf hole (way off the tee box of course) and enjoy ourselves with a smoke and beverage.
Simply put, anyplace away from people and have at it. I always had my morning and evening smokes right on the water in front of our condo. Never a complaint.

Kahului will put you smack dab in the middle of the city; where you'll land.
You'll get more of an island feel if your stay is on the outskirts.
Wailea is very quiet and dry. Once you drive past the Kealia Coastal Boardwalk the flora a fauna diminish until you head towards Haleakalā.
All the beaches are sandy and relaxing. Not much of a night life on this side of the peanut.
Lahaina is the greener wet side and has a great night life. All the eating/bar establishments on Front St. are oriented to view the scenic ocean and people watch.
Maui is small enough where finding a stay centrally located is unnecessary.

Bostoneo · Mar 5, 2020

Day one (feb 28)

Woke up at 4:30am to catch scheduled lyft to Cleveland airport, but guess who never showed... luckily i had plan b in motion and had the car ready to go just in case. Checked in at the park n fly and shuttled over with 90mins to spare after getting through security. First stop, salt lake city. I was quickly reminded how much economy seats suck on that 4hr leg and was relieved that i upgraded to delta first class on slc to Honolulu. The seats were great and even reclined flat if you wanted to sleep. 2 maitais and i was ready to fly again.

We landed an hour ahead of schedule so we picked up our turo rental. A 2014 vw convertable beetle amd headed to northshore as we had some time to kill before being able to check in at the airbnb. Stopped at giovannis shrimp truck, was ok... and matsumotos shave ice, which wasn’t bad but didn’t beat any others we went to later.

The traffic sucksssss in Honolulu on the highways and city. We stayed right in the middle of waikiki in an apartment which had everything we needed and within walking distance to everything including the beach.

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Bostoneo · Mar 5, 2020

Day 2

Happy leap day. We start out this glorious morning by noticing we cant get in the car... guess who left the headlights on lol. Luckily our turo host came out and jumped the car while we ubered to our first “experience”, scuba diving for beginners at the lagoon in magic island beach. This was pretty damn cool even though it was a beginners course. After a quick tutorial on scuba and how to communicate underwater we strapped on our gear and went out to get our feet wet and practice breathing underwater. Unfortunately another couple was with us that had no experience swimming whatsoever; why would you scoop if you don’t know how to swim lol? Fortunately we both got the knack of it and had a fun time underwater and saw some fish and coral with our instructor video recorded some clips with his go pro camera.

After a cool 50 minutes underwater we had worked up an appetite and headed to the Maui brewing company. Good food good beer $$$

With our car back in commission we had time left to head to the Dole pineapple plantation. They have a nifty train ride through the plantation where they grow all kinds of fruits, coffee and chocolate.

Now its back to waikiki through hellish traffic on the H1 highway. Get back and head to a recommended pokè place for some spicy ahi tuna and Hawaiian style tako (octopus) at Maguro bros, dellllllicious.

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Bostoneo · Mar 5, 2020

Day 3

You know what you start any balanced Hawaiian breakfast with? Malasadas, from leonards. Pretty much donut like with a fluffy breadlike consistency, some with flavored pudding inside! One of each please.

After a healthy breakfast we drove to the northeast side of Oahu and hit up whole foods for some tasty local beverages. The wife had to have a giant pretzel

All ready for our next experience the mrs found a neat airbnb experience with miniature horses in Kaneohe. https://abnb.me/vhYp7kx0B4

It was actually pretty nifty, and since the mrs already had some horse experience she loved it. We learned how to handle the horses and what cues to look for. We even got in the arena and paired with one of the miniature horses. After we enjoyed some nice refreshments and ukulele music by the hosts husband, whom was a native Hawaiian and was recently awarded this land where they have a farm. We learned some about the history of Hawaii and its culture and language as well as met some of the other animals they kept. Overall a great enriching experience to the native culture.

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Eulogy · Mar 5, 2020

Looks like you’re having a blast!

Bostoneo · Mar 6, 2020

I can wrangle horses to!

After the horse experience we worked up an appetite and headed to Konos, another recommendation. Prices were a bit steep but delicious nonetheless.

Then we were off to a japanese replica temple called Byodo-In Temple, a non-denominational Buddhist temple located on the island of Oʻahu in Hawaiʻi in Valley of the Temples Memorial Park. It was dedicated in August 1968 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the first Japanese immigrants to Hawaiʻi.

After the temple we stayed east to go around the easternmost side of Oahu and took in some scenic stops like Makapu’u lighthouse, beaches, diamondhead (couldnt hike, was too late), Halona Blowhole Lookout and stopped at kokonuts for some shave ice before heading back to waikiki.

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Bostoneo · Mar 6, 2020

Ended this day on beach at waikiki, Duke Kahanamoku statue and some big ass nachos and horchata from surf n turf tacos.

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Bostoneo · Mar 6, 2020

Day 4

Pearl Harbor! Wow totally awesome site. First up was the USS Arizona Memorial which you have to ferry out to (book in advance). The USS Arizona Memorial marks the resting place of 1,102 of the 1,177 sailors and Marines killed on USS Arizona during the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and commemorates the events of that day. The attack on Pearl Harbor and the island of Oahu led to the United States' direct involvement in World War II.

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Bostoneo · Mar 6, 2020

Bowfin submarine was next. USS Bowfin (SS/AGSS-287), a Balao-class submarine, was a boat of the United States Navy named for the bowfin fish. Has 16 deadly strikes against our enemies in WW2.

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Bostoneo · Mar 6, 2020

Next up Mighty Mo! The USS Missouri battleship an Iowa-class battleship and was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named after the U.S. state of Missouri. Missouri was the last battleship commissioned by the United States and is best remembered as the site of the surrender of the Empire of Japan, which ended World War II.

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Bostoneo · Mar 6, 2020

Lastly at Pearl Harbor was the aviation museum. This was a relatively quick stop with a short 20 minute introduction to the aircraft of World War II used in the Pacific theater. Now into the hanger!

After Pearl Harbor we headed for a bite to eat for dinner. Teddy‘s bigger burgers, delicious 1 pound hamburgers and furikake fries.

After dinner we met up with option240 for smokes and drinks on his luxurious 42nd floor balcony cigar lounge on the roof. Thanks Jeb!

crowned heads paniolo 2020

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Bostoneo · Mar 6, 2020

Day 5

We begin with breakfast of champions. Pokè from Ono Poke and Ahi assassin’s! This food is so delicious I could eat it every day.

A quick stop to the Ho’omaluhia botanical gardens. The scenery is amazing around here. The garden was established in 1982, and designed and built by the United States Army Corps of Engineers for flood protection. It is a rainforest garden, with plantings from major tropical regions around the world, grouped into distinct collections that focus on Africa, Hawaii, India and Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Melanesia, the Philippines, Polynesia, and the tropical New World. Special emphasis is placed on conserving plants native to Hawaii and Polynesia, as well as arecaceae, aroids, and heliconias.

The garden includes a lake (32 acres) and walking trails, as well as a day use area, campgrounds, and a visitor center with lecture room, exhibition hall, workshop, and botanical library.

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Bostoneo · Mar 6, 2020

To end off the day we visited the Polynesian cultural center. It may seem gimmicky but it was very informative of the Polynesian cultures with live demonstrations and tons of activities to do as well including Hawaii, Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti, Tonga and Aotearoa. Definitely make a day trip out of this! The night ended with a luau and after was a 90 minute show which was spectacular.