9 yrs, 4 mths ago

Hawaii

Hi beauties
Im heading off to Hawaii in a couple of weeks time and would really appreciate any tips on what to do, where to go and very importantly where to shop!
Looking forward to all your responses 🙂

12 comments 32 voices

Replies

  • 9 yrs, 3 mths ago

    If you are going to Oahu, my advice would be to do a day tour around the island. Honolulu is very touristy and built up, but a short drive out of Honolulu and you will find the most amazing scenery! I did a tour that included snorkelling with green sea turtles and I loved it.

    I would have loved to visit other islands too, so I would recommend seeing if your hotel have any tours they can organise for you.

    In terms of shopping, Ala Moana is good, so is the main street of Waikiki. I went to the Waikele outlet, which was good for Michael Kors and some other brands (I had friends spend up big at Guess), but I don’t think you need a lot of time there unless there are a lot of stores you want to see there.

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    I really didn’t like Oahu -it reminded me of the Goldcoast on steroids

    Ha, that’s exactly what my Dad thought when we were there the 2nd time! (He wasn’t with me the first time, it was just Mum & I.)

    I live on the GC – Oahu (Waikiki) is nothing like the GC. It’s what I wish the GC could be.

    Just got back from Hawaii last week. Went to the Big Island (where the volcano is) for 4 days, then to Waikiki on Oahu for 10 days.

    There are 3 Sephoras within easy reach of Waikiki – one in Waikiki itself, opposite the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Centre, 1 at Ala Moana Shopping Centre, and another at Kahala Mall. Also at Ala Moana is Bath & Body Works – great for shower gels and other gorgeous smelling stuff.

    Also try to get to TJ Maxx and Nordstrom’s Rack (the outlet for Nordstrom’s) – I got a designer handbag (Kate Spade) at NR for $150.

    Be aware that it is not easy to get tickets to Pearl Harbor anymore, unless you go with a tour or are prepared to get there when it opens (7am, from memory) and queue for tickets, then wait around for your tour time. You used to be able to reserve tickets online up to 6 months in advance, but they stopped that a while ago, and now reservations are only available online at 7am Hawaiian time, for that day. And they go quickly. I only wanted to go in the morning, and every morning i had free, when i checked they had already gone for the day. So I gave up trying, as I have already been there a couple of times. But as you have obviously not been there, I really recommend it. The first time I went to Hawaii, some years ago, Pearl Harbor was very low on my list of things to do, but I had some free time towards the end of our trip, so we went. It ended up being one of the highlights of that trip.

    I also recommend Bishop Museum – great source of Polynesian (not just Hawaiian) history and culture.

    If you’re not renting a car (i never have), do the Trolley tours. They have 4 lines (red, pink, green and blue). A one day pass costs $28 with the next day thrown in for free. The green or blue line (I can’t remember the color, but it’s actually a double decker bus) makes for a great afternoon tour – it leaves from Waikiki and goes around the east side of the island, and on to Sea Life Park. They stop for a few minutes at quite a few scenic spots, so you can get out and take a few photos. Most people just seem to do the whole circuit, which takes 3 hours. And the red trolley is a great way to see downtown – Chinatown, Iolani Palace, the State Judiciary and the statute shown at the start of Hawaii 5-0 etc. You can hop on and off the trolleys all day.

    I’d better stop here – this is turning into a book.

    If you have any more questions, just ask away.

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    I was in Honolulu August last year and I absolutely loved it!

    Shopping-wise I would recommend:
    – Ala Moana: has everything – Sephora, Forever 21, MAC, Victoria’s Secret, Macy’s, Nordstrom…
    – Waikele Outlets: check out their website for brands and current sales. Yep you should be able to get a coupon book from the tour guide, or if you’re heading there on your own you can print some coupons off the website when you sign up to be a VIP club member – that’s what I did
    – Pearlridge shopping centre (near Pearl Harbour): I loved this place! I was hunting down some specific Tarte products that were sold out in both the Sephora stores in Waikiki, but this place had lots of stuff in stock! They have a TJMaxx as well which sell some designer names…handbags, shoes, clothing etc
    – Walmart, CVS & Walgreens: Walgreens have coupon catalogues in store and they even let me sign up to become a member to get instant discounts!
    – ROSS: They have ROSS stores all over and if you’re lucky and have the patience to hunt through the rows of products then you can find some pretty good bargains like Nine West shoes & bags, Nike, Adidas… They apparently restock a few times a week and each store might have different stock available. Even the men seemed to like shopping here!

    How exciting!! Enjoy!!

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    Ala Moana is a massive shopping centre with almost every store you could imagine
    definately check it out

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    I really didn’t like Oahu -it reminded me of the Goldcoast on steroids

    Ha, that’s exactly what my Dad thought when we were there the 2nd time! (He wasn’t with me the first time, it was just Mum & I.)

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    I don’t know what island(s) you are going to but I was there in March and can thoroughly recommend Maui for snorkelling and scuba diving and the Big Island (east side) for some serious relaxing, lava viewing and volcanoes. If you can, get up Manua Kea summit; you will see snow on a tropical island!!! And it has the most amaaaazing views..

    Wherever tourists are, expect there to be lots of street hawkers and people trying to sell you timeshare. Anywhere that’s offering tickets to something cheap will be doing so on the condition that you waste 2 hours of you life having them try to pressure you into buying into a timeshare.

    I really didn’t like Oahu -it reminded me of the Goldcoast on steroids but they do have sephora and all the big USA stores there and being where the international airport is, it is the best for shopping.

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    How exciting! I went in September for my honeymoon. It’s so amazing. Macy’s is a great place to shop. You get an extra 10% off everything in store including sale stock if you ask for their tourist discount At some counters you have to show your passport, but others can usually recognise your Australian accent and will offer it.

    I stocked up on MAC products as they were half price compared to Australia. I do regret not buying any Lancome, Estee Lauder or other high end brands skin care as they were so much cheaper as well. Swarovski jewellery is also about $50 cheaper on most items, so its actually affordable.

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    Yep, there’s a Sephora at the Ala Moana shopping mall in Honolulu. When I last went to Honolulu 5 1/2 years ago (I’ve been twice), I went there and that was long before I had any interest in beauty. At the time Victoria’s Secret was about to open at that mall in a few months, so didn’t get a chance to go there. I think there’s a Sephora on the island of Maui as well.

    A couple of tips from memory…these are all for Honolulu/Waikiki, not for any of the other islands:

    • Do Pearl Harbour…it is great if you’re into history. I’d recommend booking a specific tour for that because it takes forever to get there on Honolulu’s bus system – I noticed that when I was last there. Try & get a tour that will get you out to the USS Arizona Memorial, which is a bit offshore.
    • Don’t, whatever you do, take a dinner cruise! They’re completely lame, trust me. Do a luau if you want to though. (I went to one at Paradise Cove – the scenery was lovely, the food not so.)
    • Watch out for schoolkids trying to sell you half-dead leis on Waikiki Beach around dusk. My folks & I got scammed by some when we were there last…we got told they were free at first, but once we got them, we got told we had to fork out $10 each for them. So not worth it. We should’ve just thrown them back at them in hindsight.
    • Don’t be surprised to see some homeless bums, people flogging timeshare accommodation and…shall I say…ladies of the night wandering around the main streets of Waikiki. Hopefully that’s changed now, but the difference between when I was there in 2005 to 2009 (5 1/2 years ago) was stark in that regard. The timeshare folk were there the first time, but the rest weren’t so noticeable that first time. I hope for your sake that there’s been a clean-up of all that since then.

    I haven’t got too many other tips and I apologise for being a bit negative on my last 2 points (I don’t mean to be, that was just my own experience last time around), but I do hope you have a really good time & have fun. :o)

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    You are so lucky RK2002! I’ve never been to Hawaii (but have always wanted to!), so I’m afraid I can’t be much help. I do hope you have a fabulous vacation and a safe & fun trip!! 🙂

  • 9 yrs, 4 mths ago

    Yes they have Sephora there and Mac is really cheap as well as Victoria Secret. I love their body lotions as they smell delicious. I bought 7 for $35.

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