A longtime friend and I are currently on what has become a yearly trip to Hawaii. We call ourselves “The Traveling Grandmas” and use our yearly trip to relax and rewind from our busy lives as parents, grandparents, and employees.
While a Hawaiian vacation is a “bucket list” thing for many people, it doesn’t need to be. Getting there is straightforward: no passport required, a relatively short flight from California, and plenty (or nothing) to do.
If you want to travel somewhere warm and tropical but don’t want to break the bank, keep reading. These tips focus on Waikiki, but many can be used elsewhere.
Getting There
My favorite airline is Southwest: they don’t charge to change your flight, so if you decide to extend your vacation, it’s simple to do so. Also, if you’ve bought your ticket and then see a sale, you can rebook the same flight and get the difference in travel funds to use later. One downside that some people don’t like is their boarding group system. It is not assigned seating, so that can be a challenge.
As with airlines, you have many choices on accommodations. You will find everything from “it’ll do” hotels with small rooms and cheap price tags to five-star luxury resorts. While we usually stay in the middle of Waikiki, where there is more action, more restaurants, and easier walking distance to everything, we tried something new this year, and we’re delighted with the hotel. It is on the main beach-front street in Waikiki, at the end by the zoo. Previously the Aston Waikiki, the Twin Fin was remodeled and re-opened in November 2022. Across from the Twin Fin is a walled-in beach area like a swimming lagoon. With the Twin Fin facing the lagoon and just across the street, it is a perfect location for families with children. This area of Waikiki is quieter than the others, and you can see Diamond Head from your lanai if you get an oceanfront or Diamond Head view room. The Twin Fin is not a five-star hotel: the hallways are very plain, as are the rooms. But it is clean and comfortable, has a nice pool, and the staff is the most friendly we’ve encountered.
Here is a savings tip we discovered that most hotels don’t advertise but will give it to you if you ask: if you stay 14 nights or longer, they will waive the resort fee. That is a significant savings and allowed us to go from a two-week vacation to a 17-night break.
Exploring
The initial inclination is always to rent a car. However, you can save a lot of money by bypassing the rental car and taking a taxi to your hotel. As mentioned, much of this information is about staying in Waikiki where you can walk to almost everything you need. On the days you want to visit the North Shore or another part of the island, you can rent a car for the day on Turo. This saves money on both car rental costs and parking. Even at the less expensive hotels, parking is about $50 per day. If you use Turo or one of the other small rental companies, you can schedule to pick up in the morning and drop off at night.
One last area where you can save money is dining. Of course, you should splurge on a pricey meal or two (if that’s your thing) while on vacation. But there are many less expensive (and healthy) options available. If you’re a fan of Poke, there are many excellent and affordable options. There is also a variety of Asian food choices. One of my favorite places is Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ. Go in the afternoon and order off the lunch menu. Lots of meat choices are served with rice, salad, and soup.
For breakfast and snacks, there are little stores all over called ABC Stores that have single-serve cereals, oatmeal, sandwiches, and fruit.
Activities
As far as activities, every family or individual is going to want to do something different. Lazy days on the beach are my speed. On this trip, we went on a distillery tour at Ko’olau Distillery to learn how whiskey and gin are made and sample the goods. It was informative and fun. For the active person, there are dozens of hiking trails for every experience level. Snorkeling, parasailing, shark diving, kayaking, paddle boarding…all great outdoor activities. Look for deals via Groupon, or call the company directly for the best deal. If a one-hour cruise on a catamaran sounds good, look for the Na Hoku II boat on the beach out in front of the Moana Surfrider Hotel. The morning cruises are more family-friendly, and it includes drinks for all.
One last piece of advice: put your trip together yourself. Packages can be enticing. But, my experience is that I can find better prices by looking at options often not offered in a package, such as different flight times or out of a smaller airport rather than a busier one. Also, I have saved money by booking the legs of a trip as separate one-way flights rather than one big trip.
This has given you some tips on getting your vacation started. Whatever you do to decompress and relax, enjoy it completely!
TRICIA VLASAK works in law enforcement when she isn’t writing about parenting, hiking with her dogs, or going on adventures with her grandchildren. Tricia received a Gold Award for personal essay from Parenting Media Association in 2022.