Day 10-The saying goes, all good things come to an end, and that's where we found ourselves reflecting of the wonderful days we've spent as a family on the island of Oahu. Kids grow up fast, so one needs to take advantage of times like these we have together. We chose to stick around Pat's at Punaluu on Day 10 (a separate review of Pat's at Punaluu Condo's is on Travel Advisor) and be one with the sand and surf, that is, beach bums. We swam after elusive sea turtles that poked their wary heads above the surf not 10 feet [View Full Entry]

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It was "Ground hogs Day" as in the Bill Murray movie, a return to Waimea Bay. Again, Ted's Bakery (make those chocolate eclairs illegal!) and we finally got a parking spot within the parking lot, at 7:45am. The kids wanted to return to this beach as the rock jumping was just too tempting for brave souls. Peer pressure got to me and I had to jump as well. I had to plug my nose as I hate salt water going the wrong direction in my sinus cavities. The rock was busy today so I only did two jumps, but the kids [View Full Entry]

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Today started with another beautiful sunrise on the windward side of the island, bringing with it the light of day and transluscent blue waters that dance around the island we call Oahu. We made another attempt at Waimea Bay as parking here is an issue. We stopped for a 2nd time at Ted's Bakery for a post-breakfast fat pill and I made comment to the lady behind the counter that the Barvarian Creme Eclair should be made illegal as they are most definately addicting! Arriving at Waimea Bay parking area at 8:45am, we were still too late for a prime parking [View Full Entry]

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This was the first day I actually slept past 6am (Which is 9am my time). The day started with breakfast at Keona's just 3 blocks from the Outrigger for under $30.00 for all 4 of us with one coupon. The kids finally had an opportunity to swim in the Outrigger pool (the pool was reserved the night before for a private party) and I took the opportunity to take some photos around Waikiki. After checking out at 9:45am, we headed up Hwy 72 to take in some sites such as the blow hole, Sandy Beach, Makapu'u beach and finally settled on [View Full Entry]

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Wet-n-Wild Waterpark is not exactly a Disney World class water park, but it's great fun for the kids regardless. Located WNW of Honolulu, HI, our trip from Punaluu took about 45 minutes. A couple of "don't miss" slides are the Tornado and the "Shaka". The wave pool is fun but shortlived fun as it gets old pretty quick. If you have kids under 14 y/o, they'll enjoy this waterpark. After the waterpark we headed to Waikiki to check into the Outrigger on the Beach. Hulu's was in store for our Open Table reservation at 6pm and we arrived early at 5:30pm [View Full Entry]

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Today took us to Boots and Kimo's for breakfast before heading out to Kaneohe Bay Sandbar by Kayak. Boots and Kimo's restaurant is world famous for the banana pancakes with Mac Nut sauce on top. They tasted as advertised, simply wonderful. We arrived at 7:45am (15 min after they opened) and had a short 10 min wait, whereas they gave us a menu to browse, then about 5 minutes later a waiter came out and took our order as we waited on the benches outside the restaurant before seating us. That made the wait for breakfast that much quicker! We did [View Full Entry]

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Our intentions today were to rent personal water craft from the Watercraft Connection in Haleiwa, however once our 13 year old discovered that he would not be able to take control, even with an adult riding, the excitement of doing this dimished to non-existent among our boys, which was fine with us, considering that we had really no interest in doing it. So, off to Waimea Bay in search of a parking spot. Upon arrival at Waimea at 11:15am, it was impossible to park without walking a 1/2 mile with lunch, chairs, umbrella, snorkeling gear in tow, so we headed to [View Full Entry]

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Our original 10 intinerary had the week-ends free of any activities but loafing and exploring, and week-days full of activities such as kayaking, golfing, jet skiing, surfing and such. Our day today found us on the beach at Shark's Cove at the North Shore and Malaekahana State Recreation area, both just a hop-skip-jump from our central Punaluu residence. Naturally I've included the mandatory pic or two of the kids enjoying the trip (waves to grandparents), and today they really enjoyed the tide pools at Shark's Cove after a good 2 hours of snorkeling the fish-fill cove. The population of th [View Full Entry]

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Day 2 found us with the time difference kicked in as our bodies woke up at about 4:00am today, which was plenty of time to get a couple of cups of Kona Coffee in our stomach before a beautiful sunrise here in Punalu'u. The weather today was partly cloudy with showers, and 80 degrees. Our kids had money scorching the bottom of their pockets so that only meant one thing: FLEA MARKET at Aloha Stadium. We arrived at 8:45am and wheeled and dealed with vendors. Surprisingly, they were more willing to negotiate price this time compared to Februrary, perhaps with the [View Full Entry]

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The day began at 4:00am to an alarm clock, but this time listening to an alarm was GOOD! A 8:55am flight brought us back to Oahu, North Shore. After a 6 hour uneventful direct Alaska Airlines flight, we picked up a Dodge Magnum rental ($318 for 10 days), and met with our condo owner at Pat's at Punaluu at 1:45pm (Hawaiin time). Just as advertised, and pleased as punch!Pictures from our double Lanai view. After dropping our bags off, we headed to Hauula to grocery shop, then back to the condo for some R&R. The kids frolicked on the beach while [View Full Entry]

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