Day 1 – Arriving to Honolulu

I arrived to Honolulu from Sacramento at 12:30pm and made my way to baggage claim where the shuttle to my hotel was waiting for me. I stayed with my mom at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort – which she got free using her hotel points! After navigating traffic and stops along the shuttle’s route, I made it to the hotel around 2pm to drop my bags and go. I met Chris for a much needed and long awaited acai bowl from Sunrise Shack; I literally dream of these acai bowls.

We walked along Waikiki Beach until he had to leave for work and my mom arrived to the hotel. I watched the incredible sunset from the balcony of our hotel room before my mom and I got ready for dinner. We wound up at Maui Brewing Co. and both got fish tacos and the pineapple mana wheat beer. This meal was about $70 for the two of us. Sticking with the theme of good timing, there was a special fireworks show gifted to Waikiki from Japan that we got to watch right on the beach! These fireworks were more grand than I’ve ever seen before.

Day 2

Morning

We woke up early every day on this trip due to the time change being 5 hours behind. One of our hotel amenities included continental breakfast, coffee, and juices so, since we were up so dang early, we went downstairs to grab fresh fruit and coffee to hold us over until a normal breakfast time. We coordinated to meet up with Chris for breakfast at Eggs ‘n Things around 8am. This is another staple food spot in Waikiki – it’s a small restaurant and the line builds up quick, so plan to get there early! I got an omelette and we shared ube pancakes. Breakfast for 3 cost about $60.

We wanted to do some type of excursion, so we headed back to Kualoa Ranch like we did on our first trip. This time we were going for horseback riding – $155/person! This is about an hour drive from Waikiki, so we planned to leave early to avoid any traffic. Since we had enough time on the way, we stopped at Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden.

The road into the botanical garden is the first thing you’ll see if you look up “things to do in Hawaii” on Pinterest, because it is such an epic view! Entry is free and a must-see. There are many pull-off spots to get out of your car, walk around, and take pictures. We spent about 1.5 hours here, getting out several times to get pictures and take in the view. Then we continued on our drive to Kualoa Ranch.

Afternoon

We arrived 45 minutes early for our 2pm activity, so we got poke bowls at one of the food trucks here. We ended up having a private horseback riding tour since no one else in our time slot showed up, so it was just us 3 and our guide. It was a very relaxing and leisurely 2-hour stroll through the ranch and into the incredibly scenic mountainside that everyone calls Jurassic Park. I took 1 million pictures, but none of them do it justice.

We headed back to Waikiki, getting some 7/11 spam musubi as a roadtrip snack (iykyk). We passed by Leonard’s Bakery and didn’t see a line, so we took that as our sign to stop in! This was on my list the first time we came to Hawaii, but never ended up making it there. Another famous food spot on the island, known for their fresh malasadas – and let me tell you, the are famous for a reason!

We freshened up and went to dinner at Dukes Waikiki and sat in the open bar area so we didn’t have to wait for a table. I got a mai tai and BBQ pulled pork sandwich. An average meal but we had a long day and didn’t want to wait anywhere else to eat.

Day 3

Morning

We started our day eating our free hotel breakfast followed by grabbing coffee down the street at Kai Coffee Roasters. I drank my iced coffee as we walked along Waikiki Beach witnessing a beautiful rainbow before the crowds of people made their way to the beach. The day before, I reserved our entry time for Diamond Head State Park; this is a requirement if you want to do the hike or visit this park. It was $20 for parking and entry between 10am-12pm. It is a moderate hike, but didn’t take more than 40 minutes to get to the top at a leisurely pace. There will be crowds of people you’ll have to maneuver around, but nothing too crazy.

We spent a total of an hour and a half here before heading back toward the hotel and jumping in the water at the beach just across from our hotel. We then made our way to the Royal Hawaiian hotel for appetizers and drinks on the beach at the Mai Tai Beach Bar. I got a mai tai and we split the kalbi flatbread. Finally, we did some shopping at local boutiques and walked through the mall area in the heart of Waikiki.

Evening

Chris recommended we try Marugame Udon for dinner, as he had been here 3 times during his work trip because he loved it so much. As a ramen lover, I was 100% in, but my mom needed some convincing. Marugame has handmade in-house ramen noodles along with other sides (think chicken katsu, gyoza, musubi). There is a line every day of the week here during dinner, but it moves quick! We waited maybe 20 minutes before ordering and finding a seat. We got 2 small bowls of ramen, spam musubi, pork gyoza, and shrimp tempura for $44! Incredible price for the quality and amount of food.

Day 4

Day 4, we really only planned one activity and the area we wanted to go to, which was the North Shore/Haleiwa area. I booked a one-on-one 2-hour surf lesson through TripAdvisor for $125 at the North Shore. In hindsight, this was a bold move, as the North Shore is known for its waves for skilled surfers to enjoy. And on this particular day, it was high surf and choppy. I still went through with it because I’ve always wanted to try surfing. I spent just under an hour on the waves before I decided enough was enough. I had stood up on the board and road a wave twice, and that was enough for me. I was getting rocked out there and the fear of drowning set in, so I called it a day.

After appreciating the fact that I didn’t drown out there, we stayed on the beach for a little longer before heading toward Haleiwa. We got 2 acai bowls at Haleiwa bowls for $30 – incredible acai bowls here. We then hit up Green World Coffee Farm to get some afternoon caffeine and get fresh coffee for some family Christmas gifts. This coffee farm radiates coffee smell all around it, and it is a charming local spot if you can make a stop here!

My mom and I wanted to do one fancy dinner together, so we read lots of reviews and found Roy’s Waikiki. It was about a mile walk from our hotel, and we had a reservation for 7pm. We got drinks, an appetizer sampler, entrees, and a dessert for $250 for the 2 of us. I definitely felt like the price was justified, as the food was impeccable and unique! If you want to splurge for a meal, I highly recommend this place!

Day 5 – Heading Home

Day 5 was our last day, but neither of our flights were until 4:45pm. We had the whole morning to galavant, so we started at Makapu’u Point Lighthouse Trail. There is no reservation or entry fee required for this hike. It’s about 2.5 miles with slight elevation gain and a paved path the entire way. The top of the hike, you will see a lighthouse along the cliffside and miles of ocean. We really enjoyed this hike, and I appreciated the movement I got from it before being crammed on a plane for 8 hours.

We then drove to Byodo-In Temple. Entry is $7 per person. There is a rich sense of history, culture, and peace when you visit here. We spent about an hour here before finding a place to eat lunch before heading to the airport. We got to the airport around 3pm to return my mom’s rental car and drop our bags. My mom and I went our separate ways and I got on my 8.5 hour, red-eye flight to Detroit feeling refreshed and grateful that I got to visit beautiful Hawaii again.