A split second decision in January after seeing a flight sale and a month later I was on my way to Hawaii. A little backstory – one of my closest friends from college is currently living on O’ahu. This meant a free tour guide and a great place to stay. Over the entire 4.5 days spent in Hawaii we covered a lot of ground! Everything we did on my visit was so worth the time and money. I’ve given a bit of detail for everything below, I hope you enjoy and get inspired to opt outside on your next vacation.
Hunama Bay – O’ahu Hawaii
With such limited time in Hawaii and a list of activities the size of a mountain, I had to be realistic. This meant strategically planning hikes I could enjoy while still doing other activities on my trip. If I am being honest, I could have spent the entire time just hiking. But the ocean was calling, so I divided my time between hiking and SCUBA Diving. Sprinkling in a little snorkeling too, and a day at the Polynesian Cultural Center. Buckle your seat belts, because this post is a little longer than past posts.
Hiking on O’ahu
Makapu’u Lighthouse
Within 3 hours of landing in Honolulu I had already finished a hike and seen majestic humpback whales! Where? Located along the Kaiwai State Scenic Shoreline driving from Honolulu to Kailua is the trail head for Makapu’u Lighthouse. The scenic hike takes you to the most eastern point on O’ahu and is a “must do”. It is a high traffic out and back trail, completely paved, and offers amazing views over the channel between O’ahu and Maui. On a really clear day you can even see Maui in the distance. Unfortunately, that was not the case on the day I hiked to Makapu’u Lighthouse, but it still provided for some amazing, sweeping ocean views.
Makapu’u Lighthouse
Taking my time, I made sure to stop and enjoy the views. Lets be honest though – I was really looking for humpback whales! They are often seen breaching in the channel from this particular hike. It was one of the key reasons my friend picked this hike. The first whale I saw, I lost my mind. Then I kept looking for more as we continued. It was amazing to see them breaching, even in the distance. If you bring binoculars you can get an even better view.
Whether you are active or not, all fitness levels can realistically make it to the top of this hike. The views and breeze along the way make it worth it, trust me!
Lanikai Pillboxes
This hike is definitely one that qualifies as a workout – and lucky for me it was walking distance from the house I was staying at. “Pillboxes” have a significant place in Hawaiian military history. Serving as defense and observation locations across the islands, the bunkers date from shortly after Hawaii was annexed into the US through WWII, . The Lanikai Pillboxes were specifically used for observation purposes.
The Lanikai Pillbox hike is heavily trafficked, so I was not alone on this trail. If I hadn’t been told there are actually three pillboxes you can hike to I would have turned around after reaching the first pillbox. I was exhausted! But the toughest part of the hike was over. Getting to the next two pillboxes was much easier. The views on the way up and from the top are spectacular. Panoramic views of Lanikai Beach and the Mokulua Islands (“the Mokes”), and looking inland views of the mountains that divide the middle of island.
View from the second Lanikai Pillbox looking over Lanikai Beach
I was lucky enough to walk to the trail head. If you do have to drive, be sure to pay attention to parking signs. You will have to park on the main road and walk to the trail head.
After the hike, I walked back to the house and changed for the beach! Grabbing my snorkel gear I headed out to check out the reefs just off Lanikai Beach! A great activity before an afternoon nap and heading to Waikiki for the evening.
Scuba Diving O’ahu in February
In Hawaii, diving and snorkeling are two HUGE tourist attractions. As a certified Scuba Diver, this was definitely part of my mountain size list of activities. A big shout out to Aaron’s Dive Shop in Kailua for the rental gear and tanks for our day of shore diving. We also did a morning of advanced boat dives with them of “The Honey”. They run a tight ship around there and I highly recommend using them for your diving needs on the east end of O’ahu.
All underwater photos were taken by one of my closest friends – Austin.
Hunama Bay
Probably two of the toughest shore dives I have ever done or attempted. Diving in Hunana Bay was no joke! This nature preserve on the east end of O’ahu is gorgeous and a huge attraction for snorkeling. Visiting my friend, who is also an avid diver, we chose to venture out to two dive sites in the Bay: Witches Brew and Toilet Bowl.
As the morning progressed the rip current and conditions got worse. After finishing our first dive with less than normal visibility at Witches Brew and battling an intense rip current to get back in, we decided to call our second planned dive at Toilet Bowl. Instead opting to snorkel around in the protected portion of the bay before moving on to the next shore dive location. I do not recommend attempting to dive here unless you know where you are going and are an experienced diver.
Even with the less than idea conditions we managed to see some really cool things during our dive and snorkel. I spotted a cute eel eating his breakfast at the Witches Brew dive site. A huge plus to leaving the more protected portion of the bay is the amazing coral coverage, nearly 80%. This is almost unheard of these days in diving and it was a gorgeous sight. In the protected portion of the bay we found a HUGE Morey eel and a flounder hiding in the sand.
Electric Beach
This dive site is unique to say the least. Once in the water, we followed the giant water pipe from the electric plant across the road out about 200 yards offshore. All along the pipe coral and fish are abundant, and nudibranches – a first time sighting for me.
We did two dives at electric beach, and I even managed the dive flag and reel for one of them. We spotted several large green sea turtles, some Hawaiian Lizard Fish, Cornet Fish, Trumpet fish and so much more.
Corsair and Anglers Reef
The second day of diving was our boat dives. First we dove on an old Corsair plane wreck. The conditions were pretty unforgiving with a ripping current making our decent to 100 feet and our safety stop after the dive ROUGH. But the dive itself was really awesome. I saw my first octopus and a huge garden of garden eels. These guys are all so shy getting photos was really impossible. Just before heading back to the surface a reef shark made an appearance and we managed to dig up a crab from the sand.
The next boat dive location was Angler Reef. This dive was a welcome break from the ripping currents, which my legs and lungs appreciated. We spotted several different eels along the reef edge for this dive, and at the end were treated to a huge, very curious sea turtle.
Hawaii North Shore
This adventure was very “spur of the moment”. Exhausted from diving, I was not sure if I was up for any more activities. BUT, with only 4.5 days in Hawaii I had to make the most of it.
The Drive
The drive up to the North Shore from Kailua is BEAUTIFUL. You pass the infamous Jurassic Park Ranch, Kualoa Ranch, and have a view of the ocean and beach the entire way. We got really lucky and spotted a Monk Seal basking in the sun on a beach and stopped. We met a volunteer there who told us that this particular seals name was Sadie and she was actually pregnant! Which is great news considering there are only 1,400 Monk Seals left in the entire world!
Sharks Cove Snorkeling
Our destination for our North Shore drive was Sharks Cove, a very popular snorkeling area. We snorkeled for nearly 2 hours exploring all the different areas of the cove and spotted way more sea life than I was expecting.
Sunset on the North Shore
Sunset and beer anyone? That is exactly how we ended the night on the North Shore. If I am being honest, I think this is probably the most unexpected highlight from my trip. It was probably my favorite hour from the entire 4.5 days I spent in Hawaii. So simple, and not planned at all. Walking over to snorkel at Sharks Cove I spotted a trail that went out onto a small peninsula of volcanic rock. Jokingly, I suggested to the two guys I was with that we should “watch the romantic sunset over there.” Well they actually went for it after we finished snorkeling. The pictures are worth a thousand words, so here are my two favorites.
Polynesian Cultural Center
One of the only things my parents were insistent that I do while visiting Hawaii was to spend a day at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie. After going, this would be the only thing I insist on everyone taking a day to do when you visit O’ahu.
From traditional song and dance to crafts and games to food and the way of life, the Polynesian Cultural Center really does it right. They highlight all the nuanced, and not so nuanced, differences between the cultures of six different Polynesian Islands. The entire experience is interactive, meaning you get to play the games, learn the crafts, sing and dance, talk to experts in traditional woodcarving, and so much more. If you opt for a package that does not include a tour guide, they have an app with QR code placed around each of the island villages you can use to learn even more.
Daytime Canoe show at the Polynesian Cultural Center
You can’t forget the shows! Throughout the day there are 20 minute long cultural presentations at each island as well as activities. Their are two big shows: the daytime canoe show which is spectacular and tells the history of the islands; and the evening show, Ha: Breath of Life, which tells the tail of a young man growing up in the different cultures of the islands featured at the Polynesian Cultural Center. I hear the Luau dinner and show is delicious and an experience in itself. I actually skipped the Luau dinner because of a series of unfortunate events that lead to arriving at the Polynesian Cultural Center really late. Instead of going to our Luau, we opted to spend more of the time exploring the islands and participating all the activities. We grabbed some food just outside the entrance to the Cultural Center from a local food truck.
Planning your Visit to Hawaii’s Polynesian Cultural Center
Visit the Polynesian Cultural Center website, to see everything the offer and get information about ticketing. I bought the Ali’i Luau Package, which includes the 4 PM Luau. If I ever go back, I would spend a little more money to purchase the Ambassador Luau Package. With this package, you get a tour guide and a later Luau time (6 PM), giving you more time to explore the center.
An interesting fact: all of the employees there are also full time students at BYU’s Hawaii Campus. Ticket pricing goes toward running the center and scholarships for native Hawaiians to attend college.
Check out more of my Travel blogs, including planning, things I would do differently, and more, here! Visit the archives page to see what else Winter and I have been up to in 2019 and 2020!
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