Well I’m sad to say that it’s time to say goodbye to Waikiki. I’ve had a great last few days here.
We went to the Chief’s Luau and it was great. The chief is really a chief and the luau is very traditional showing various dances from the various Polynesian countries. We were picked up at our hotel and had a short 25min ride or so to where we needed to be. Our host on the bus was very entertaining and kept us laughing while debriefing us about the night. We arrived at Sea Life Park, where the luau takes place in a big outdoor area. They bring people in by wristband color as each represents a different package that people paid for. They had some fun activities to do while waiting to eat such as, temporary henna tattoos, stick dance, hula dancing lesson, headbands woven out of palm leaves and spear throwing. Then we got to eat, and when we were finished eating the luau began. It was very intriguing and had lots of audience involvement. Even called up all those celebrating special occasions and had a little something special for them all. It was a great experience and would definitely recommend it to everyone. Just a heads up that we were picked up at 420pm, got into the luau area with the activities about 530 and was eating at 630pm. The luau started about 7pm and lasted at hour. We were very hungry by the time we ate so would recommend preparing for a late supper.
We took a short 5 min walk to Kings Village where there were a bunch of little shops. Very cute and good prices.
The fireworks tonight were good but we were under the impression that they would be about 15mins long…they were 5mins. They were at the Hilton Hawaiian Village hotel. They are supposed start at 745 but was about 8pm. There were a lot of fireworks shot off all at once. It was about a half hour walk back to our hotel. The main street is very pretty to walk at night as they has torches and lights up everywhere for lighting.
Our last day we started at the International Marketplace, then popped in at Duke’s Lane for last minute shopping as well as Kings Village which we found had better prices.
Then we went to the zoo as it was only a 10min walk from my hotel. It is a 40 acre zoo with a lot of birds and African animals. We were there 2.5hrs or so and that included having lunch there. The food is reasonably priced which was a nice surprise, around $8. Admission to the zoo was $14USD for an adult.
Tips for travelers:
-Bring good walking shoes
-Make reservations for Duke’s restaurant ahead of time.
-Friday night fireworks at Hilton Village if you’re interested. Their restaurant called Tropics was packed and a long line up, so prepare for that if you want to eat there.
-Book Friday night dinner cruise ahead of time as they stop to watch the fireworks too.
-There is no free WiFi at the Honolulu airport, but you can buy WiFi time.
-Most of the shops don’t open til 10am.
-If you want to surf, shop around for pricing if you have the chance as they do vary.
-The Chiefs Luau and Magic of Polynesia shows are great to see.
I really enjoyed my time in Waikiki, Oahu. I highly recommend visiting this lovely destination and I would love to help you with this fabulous vacation.
Thanks and Mahalo.