Ko Olina/Waikiki/Oahu Suggestions - Activities and Good Eats

[ChefGirl]

Hi all,
Four more weeks until our HI trip. I have yet to plan our activities. I was hoping you guys will hit me with your suggestions. We are staying in Ko Olina. We'll have a rental car so do plan on driving into the City. So far, we plan to do the Pineapple Plantation Maze, Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor. Our kids are 11, 9 and 6. I'm sure the old ones want to go snorkeling. Can you send me some of your favorite things to do and some of your favorite dives or nice restaurants please. TIA.

[MMMommy]

We always stay at the Ko olina Beach Villas in Ko olina. Love it there! However, we are not a fan of the food/restaurants in Ko olina or nearby Kapolei. Which is why a rental car is a must for our family to seek out good, local dives and restaurants.

One of our fav places for local comfort food is The Alley at Aiea Bowl. The Alley is about 15 to 20 minutes away from Ko olina (assuming no bad traffic). They have a delicious Lemon Crunch Cake, oxtail soup (with or without ramen), kalbi plates, and other rice plates. Big portions and satisfying.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-alley-re...d-grill-aiea-2

Another fav of ours is this tiny onigiri/musubi place where you can order all kinds of rice balls with different fillings. Excellent spam musubi there. The Keeaumoku location is far more convenient than the hard to find Waikiki location.

http://www.tonsuke.com/eomusubiya.html

We always enjoy visiting the huge food court at Ala Moana Shopping Center - my fav is Yummy Korean BBQ, but there are lots of ethnically diverse food stalls.

Shirokiya (at Ala Moana Shopping Center) has a renovated, entire second floor dedicated to food. Lots of food stalls, bentos, etc. Huge selection.

One very popular restaurant is Side Street Inn. I am a fan of Anthony Bourdain, and went there after seeing him eat there on one of his shows years ago. I admit, that I was not wowed by this place at all. It is very popular though:

http://sidestreetinn.com/

Not far from Ko olina is Leonard's Jr. (Leonard's Jr. malasada truck) for fresh, hot malasadas. It is much closer to Ko olina than the original Leonard's Bakery. You can get fresh, hot malasadas at Leonard's Jr. It is in a parking lot near Home Depot, not far from Ko olina.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/leonard-jrs-...asadas-kaneohe

Zippy's, a chain restaurant, is in nearby Kapolei. Famous for their Zippy's chili and rice and other homestyle dishes. I like their Korean Fried Chicken plate.

Costco, Safeway and Target are not far from Ko olina and are in nearby Kapolei. Costco is great for stocking up on snacks, water, etc. There is also a big Walmart in Pearl City, about 15/20 minutes away from Ko olina.

Roy's is prob the better of the restaurants in Ko olina. However, we think it is overpriced for what you get. I would much prefer to venture out than eat there, but it is right there if you seek a nicer, close by restaurant for convenience.

I love Ko olina! Have a fantastic trip!

[geochick]

We like Matsumoto Shave Ice and the shrimp trucks on the north shore. Have fun. You'll love Ko Olina!

[ChefGirl]

We always stay at the Ko olina Beach Villas in Ko olina. Love it there! However, we are not a fan of the food/restaurants in Ko olina or nearby Kapolei. Which is why a rental car is a must for our family to seek out good, local dives and restaurants.

One of our fav places for local comfort food is The Alley at Aiea Bowl. The Alley is about 15 to 20 minutes away from Ko olina (assuming no bad traffic). They have a delicious Lemon Crunch Cake, oxtail soup (with or without ramen), kalbi plates, and other rice plates. Big portions and satisfying.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-alley-re...d-grill-aiea-2

Another fav of ours is this tiny onigiri/musubi place where you can order all kinds of rice balls with different fillings. Excellent spam musubi there. The Keeaumoku location is far more convenient than the hard to find Waikiki location.

http://www.tonsuke.com/eomusubiya.html

We always enjoy visiting the huge food court at Ala Moana Shopping Center - my fav is Yummy Korean BBQ, but there are lots of ethnically diverse food stalls.

Shirokiya (at Ala Moana Shopping Center) has a renovated, entire second floor dedicated to food. Lots of food stalls, bentos, etc. Huge selection.

One very popular restaurant is Side Street Inn. I am a fan of Anthony Bourdain, and went there after seeing him eat there on one of his shows years ago. I admit, that I was not wowed by this place at all. It is very popular though:

http://sidestreetinn.com/

Not far from Ko olina is Leonard's Jr. (Leonard's Jr. malasada truck) for fresh, hot malasadas. It is much closer to Ko olina than the original Leonard's Bakery. You can get fresh, hot malasadas at Leonard's Jr. It is in a parking lot near Home Depot, not far from Ko olina.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/leonard-jrs-...asadas-kaneohe

Zippy's, a chain restaurant, is in nearby Kapolei. Famous for their Zippy's chili and rice and other homestyle dishes. I like their Korean Fried Chicken plate.

Costco, Safeway and Target are not far from Ko olina and are in nearby Kapolei. Costco is great for stocking up on snacks, water, etc. There is also a big Walmart in Pearl City, about 15/20 minutes away from Ko olina.

Roy's is prob the better of the restaurants in Ko olina. However, we think it is overpriced for what you get. I would much prefer to venture out than eat there, but it is right there if you seek a nicer, close by restaurant for convenience.

I love Ko olina! Have a fantastic trip!

We are renting a condo at Ko Olina Beach Club. It'll be our first time there with the kids and my parents. I don't need any fancy places. But, i will have to celebrate two birthdays that week for my kids. lol.....Definitely will cook some at home/condo too....will need to seek out a fresh seafood market too! Huge fan of sushi! I know I will hit Costco and Target for some day to day items...water, milk, etc. How do you like the Beach Club? Good for kids? TIA

[MMMommy]

We are renting a condo at Ko Olina Beach Club. It'll be our first time there with the kids and my parents. I don't need any fancy places. But, i will have to celebrate two birthdays that week for my kids. lol.....Definitely will cook some at home/condo too....will need to seek out a fresh seafood market too! Huge fan of sushi! I know I will hit Costco and Target for some day to day items...water, milk, etc. How do you like the Beach Club? Good for kids? TIA

Am I correct to assume that you are staying at the Marriott Ko olina Beach Club?

http://www.marriott.com/hotels/trave...na-beach-club/

If so, it is not the same place as Ko olina Beach Villas. I am not familiar with the Ko olina Beach Club, but we really like Ko olina Beach Villas. We usually get the 2 bedroom partial ocean view, which is really nice. Kitchen, two bedrooms, dining area, two bathrooms, living room, washer/dryer, and parking space. Right on the beach (as are all the other resorts in Ko olina).

http://koolinabeachvillasresort.com

All the lagoons at Ko olina are really nice, so you cannot go wrong with the properties bordering the lagoons. Very family friendly area and fun. Ko olina is really just one exit off the freeway and is not big. It consists of several resorts, private residences, golf course, a pier, some restaurants, and the lagoons.

[ChefGirl]

Am I correct to assume that you are staying at the Marriott Ko olina Beach Club?

http://www.marriott.com/hotels/trave...na-beach-club/

If so, it is not the same place as Ko olina Beach Villas. I am not familiar with the Ko olina Beach Club, but we really like Ko olina Beach Villas. We usually get the 2 bedroom partial ocean view, which is really nice. Kitchen, two bedrooms, dining area, two bathrooms, living room, washer/dryer, and parking space. Right on the beach (as are all the other resorts in Ko olina).

http://koolinabeachvillasresort.com

All the lagoons at Ko olina are really nice, so you cannot go wrong with the properties bordering the lagoons. Very family friendly area and fun. Ko olina is really just one exit off the freeway and is not big. It consists of several resorts, private residences, golf course, a pier, some restaurants, and the lagoons.

We are staying at the Beach Villas in Ko Olina. I think it's the same place you stayed at....... not the Marriott. Did you drive out much? Is it easy?

[MMMommy]

I think you will be very pleased with the Ko olina Beach Villas because even though you mentioned you do not need fancy, the units are pretty fancy and upscale. Sub-zero and Wolf appliances, granite countertops, even a rice cooker! If you booked a partial ocean view, I personally prefer the Beach Tower's partial ocean view (facing Aulani side). The Beach Tower has two views - either overlooking the general pool or facing Aulani. I did not want to face the general pool and usually request the Beach Tower with Aulani view. If you like to overlook the pool, request the pool view side. The Ocean Tower is closer to the quiet/adult pool, whereas the Beach Tower is closer to the general pool. The free parking is a big perk. Each lagoon at Ko olina has its own public parking lot. Those spaces are gone VERY quickly each morning, and lagoon/beach visitors tend to hang out all day. So those public lot spaces do not open up very frequently. So having free parking because you are staying at the Beach Villas is very convenient. If you have guests that are visiting you, they too can park for free at the Beach Villas. I think they have to be buzzed in by the front desk to park there.

We regularly drove out each day for all meals, except when we cooked Portuguese sausage, eggs, and rice in the condo! Driving in and out of Ko olina is easy. There is a security checkpoint (stall) in Ko olina where a guy waves you on towards the resorts. Kapolei is just an exit or or two away, so the convenience of Costco, Target, and Safeway is quite nice. The negative is the traffic on that one highway to get to Honolulu. There us only one highway that gets you to Ko olina, and traffic can get bad. We did our best to avoid any rush hour times when going to and from Honolulu.

Ko olina is also not too far from the Waikele Premium Outlets. Maybe about 15 minutes away.

What I love about Ko olina are their lagoons (beach). At the Beach Villas, you just cut through the pool area and enter the beach through a gate from there. In fact, we would spent time at the beach, then just finish off with pool time. The lagoons are safe, have milder waves and tend to not be as crowded as the usual beaches of Waikiki. Ko olina is off the beaten path (away from the hustle and bustle of Waikiki), but in a good and relaxing way. You will have a great time.