Our 7 Day Family Trip to Oahu Hawaii
At the beginning of the summer, cheap tickets for Hawaii popped up (Going is where I get cheap flight alerts) and Bart said “let’s go for fall break!”
We’d never been to Oahu before as a family – Bart had been 25 years ago with his dad and siblings – so we picked that island since we’d already done Maui and Kauai.
I got a ton of recommendations for things to do and places to stay in Oahu (you can see those Oahu recommendations here, if you’re curious) and before our trip, we asked our girls what they were most interested in for this trip.
We said “Do you want a trip where we get out and explore a lot or would you rather a trip where we mostly hang out at the pool and beach?”
They were all very much in the pool and beach camp – I think they’d have been thrilled if we never left the resort at all – so our trip leaned heavily that way.
Here’s what our trip to Oahu looked like:
Day 1 (Travel Day)
Our flight was at about 9 a.m. so we got up early to get out the door. Traffic was pretty terrible, so it was tighter than we expected, but with TSA precheck and carry-on luggage only, we made it with time to spare.
When we landed in Honolulu, we picked up our rental car and headed straight into the city for lunch at The Pig and the Lady (because we have Sapphire Reserve credit cards, we get a $150 dining credit at specific restaurants every 6 months and this is one of the restaurants, so we’d made reservations). It felt like almost dinner time for us, so we were all glad for a hot meal and this one was delicious!
I was especially pleased because our total came out to $149.10 (this is the kind of thing that delights me) and we all left happy.
When we got back in the car, the display would not connect to our phones which meant no navigation system and no music or audiobooks, so we swung back by the airport and swapped out for a new minivan (and because my dad has always taught me that the worst thing they can say is no, I also asked if they’d upgrade us to a Honda minivan instead of a Chrysler which they did without a second thought).
Now with a working nav system, we headed to Costco and picked up groceries for the week. Our plan was to go out for one meal a day and then do breakfast and easy foods (potstickers, scrambled eggs, etc) for the other meal of the day.
Once we were loaded up with food, we headed to the Beach Villas at Ko Alina where we’d rented a 3 bedroom/3 bathroom condo for the week. We took all our belongings up to our rooms, unpacked the food, and then changed into our swimsuits and headed down to the beach
(The condo had beach chairs, a big wagon, snorkel gear, boogie boards, a large cooler and sand toys, which was awesome!).
The girls played on the beach while Bart and I went for a walk along the path that runs between the four hotels on the lagoons. There are 4 little lagoons and they’re so peaceful and gorgeous!
When we came back, we watched the sunset and then headed back to our condo for a quick dinner. We made blueberry pancakes and by about 8:30, we were all passed out for the night (that Hawaii time difference will get you!).
Day 2 in Oahu
Everyone was up by about 6:30 a.m. and we made more blueberry pancakes (the frozen blueberries were bought were going fast!) and then headed down to the beach to enjoy the water before we needed sunscreen.
The beach was very quiet and we stayed for a couple of hours before packing up and heading to lunch at Broke Da Mouth Grindz.
We came back and I worked out at the resort gym with my 13-year-old and then we played some games and hung out at the condo until 4 p.m. when the UV index had dropped and we headed back out to the pool and beach until dinner time.
We had another easy dinner – rotisserie chicken this time with a bunch of fruit – and then everyone was in bed and asleep by 9 p.m.
Day 3 in Oahu
Another early morning for the two little girls and after I made some pancakes for them, Bart and I went down to the beach with them and made sandcastles and swam in the lagoon for an hour or so. When Bart and I went back to our beach chairs, the two teenagers rolled in to meet us and we all hung out at the beach for a while before heading back to the resort to enjoy the pool. I read my book for a while and then we pulled out Tap 4 and learned how to play it.
We walked down to Farm to Barn for lunch (the coconut sorbet bowls was incredible and everything else was delicious too) and ate outside.
After lunch, I’d really wanted to scope out Aulani (the Disney resort next door to our resort) so we walked through there.
It was really fun to see and beautiful, but I was frankly really glad we weren’t staying there because it was at least 5x as busy as where we were staying. It absolutely felt like a waterpark rather than a relaxing pool and the lagoon beach was packed! It was crazy to walk through it and then over to our lagoon and pools and see the difference. We spent a fraction of the money and for our tastes, a way better experience.
We played a bunch of rounds of Flip 7 (which turned out to be the game of the trip) and then Bart and I got changed to go for a fancy date night in Honolulu (it was time to use the restaurant credit from Bart’s Sapphire Reserve card!). We left the girls to make themselves potstickers for dinner and watch a show and we drove into the city (traffic!).
Maze only does tasting menus (and they only have two – the one with drink pairings and dessert and the one with no drinks or dessert although you can add them on). We picked the one with no drinks and no dessert and sat at the bar and watched them make each course.
It was so fun and so delicious – we especially loved the smoked salmon toast and the lemon crab risotto was incredible.
(The dessert, which we didn’t have, was a shave ice bowl with balsamic vinegar, whipped goat cheese, figs, and candied pecans. I loved seeing them make them!)
We drove back home (much less traffic!) and the girls were all ready for bed and watching their show. We got ready for bed and everyone turned in for the night.
Day 4 in Oahu
We spent the morning at the beach again and then we had tickets for the Polynesian Cultural Center, so we all got changed and drove north (on the way, we listened to I Survived the Bombing at Pearl Harbor in preparation for our visit to Pearl Harbor the next day).
We stopped for lunch at Kua Aina which had come highly recommended, but frankly, I didn’t think it was anything special. I definitely wouldn’t go out of my way to go back. We also watched the BYU game while we ate and all died a little inside as BYU lost in double overtime.
We got back on the road and the traffic to the PCC was insanely bad. Bart said “is there any way we can change our tickets?” So I called and they quickly and easily switched them to Monday instead and we headed back to our resort.
We played games for an hour or two and I got our tickets to Pearl Harbor (they open $1 tickets to the USS Arizona memorial both 56 days in advance and 1 day in advance, so I was ready and waiting at 3 pm. and was able to snag them for the following morning).
Once the sun wasn’t going to fry us, we headed down to the pool and stayed for hours. It was absolutely gorgeous and there was live music and it felt like I was living in a movie. It was perfect.
Finally, around 7 p.m., we went back to our hotel and had dinner and watched two episodes of The Floor.
Day 5 in Oahu
We got up early again, had breakfast and got dressed for church and packed the cooler with sandwiches, fruit, chips, and drinks and headed to church.
After a lovely service (and a friendly hello from an Everyday Reading reader!), we drove to Pearl Harbor.
We picked up Junior Ranger booklets for the three younger girls and then got in line to board the boat to the USS Arizona memorial which was stunning and so special (I’ve wanted to come here for years – I’m both a huge history lover and my grandfather was stationed at Pearl Harbor in 1944-1945).
We took the boat back to the main visitor center and walked through the exhibit halls and then went in to watch the movie which my 9 year old said was her favorite part.
Afterward, they got their Junior Ranger badges and then we got back in the car and drove to the Hoʻomaluhia Botanical Garden.
These were stunning – you can see why this side of the island is where they film so many movies like Jurassic Park and shows like Lost. We found a picnic table at the visitor center and ate our lunch and then walked down the path to the pond where we had the best time watching allllllll the fish.
Afterward, we got back in the car and drove to the end of the road. With music playing and a light breeze and the windows and sunroof open, it felt like absolute magic.
When we got to the end of the road, we turned back and stopped at Kilonani Mauka and climbed to the overlook (it’s very short). What a view!
We loaded back up in the car and headed back to the resort. We played some more games and then at 4 p.m. when the UV index was down again, we went back to the beach to watch the sunset (and for my oldest to keep working on her watercolor painting she worked on all week!).
We came back and had scrambled eggs, chicken, and toast for dinner and then watched a few more episodes of The Floor until bedtime.
Day 6 in Oahu
This was our last full day, so we headed down to the gym for a quick workout and then we all went down to the pool.
We played until about 11 a.m. and then went back to change and eat lunch before heading out to the Polynesian Cultural Center.
We arrived around 2 p.m. and spent the next four hours exploring all the different islands (it was NOT busy at all and I was so glad we’d changed to come on a Monday since my guess is that Saturday would have been much more crowded). We were all blown away by how fun and interactive it all was and each of my girls said it was way more fun than they were expecting! Even my youngest, who had been the most reticent about coming, said she wanted to come back, so that was a huge win.
We went to the buffet, which was probably the best buffet I’ve been to (and I grew up in Vegas so I’ve been to my share of buffets!) and then we headed to the HĀ: Breath of Life show. Aside from the mosquitos eating us alive, it was an incredible show and we all loved it.
By the time we headed to our car at around 8:30, we were all exhausted and most of our kids fell asleep on the hour long drive back to our hotel.
Day 7
Last day! Usually I’m so ready to go home by the last day, whether it is a 3 day trip or a week long trip, but I didn’t feel that way at all on this trip. I could have stayed another week!
Bart and I woke up before any of the girls and we headed down to the gym for a quick workout and then came back and got changed into swimsuit and went down to the beach for a final time with the girls who were now up and had eaten breakfast.
After a while at the beach, we stopped at the pool for a last 10 minutes or so before finally heading back to our room to pack up.
Our flight was at noon, so we were out by 10 a.m., filled up with gas, and dropped off the rental car and arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare (including a stop at the lounge).
And then a long flight home and a late night arrival.
Frankly, Hawaii really does live up to the hype for me! Bart asked if I’d stay the same place again and I said probably I’d want to try the North Shore just for variety, but I absolutely loved where we stayed – quiet, beautiful, and perfect for families!
If you have any questions about our trip to Oahu, let me know and I’m happy to help!
