One of my all time favorite travel destinations: Oahu, Hawaii. I have been to the island of Oahu twice and I continue to fall in love with Hawaii’s natural beauty.

In March of 2021, I traveled with my husband on a week long trip. We chose to stay in Honolulu, as that is the biggest city and the islands’ capital.

Where to Stay

We stayed at the Sheraton Waikiki. This property was the perfect location for lounging on the beach or at the pool. It is also walking distance to all the restaurants within the Waikiki area. While the rooms interior was slightly dated, the ocean front balcony view made up for it. The property was not lacking when it came to amenities. There are multiple pools, areas to layout and daybeds available for rent. The adult infinity pool was mine and my husbands favorite. We also enjoyed the drinks and food the hotel offered during our stay. If you are on a budget I would suggest looking into airbnbs as they are much cheaper, but often have less amenities.

What to do, Where to eat

If you plan to adventure to other parts of the island, I would highly recommend renting a car. We went early in the morning to go hike the Lanikai Pillbox trail. A short 30-50min drive from Honolulu. After the hike we drove to town and grabbed Acai bowls from Nalu Health Bar & Cafe. After a leisurely breakfast and walking around the “downtown” area of Kailua before we headed to Lanikai beach. There we spent the rest of the afternoon swimming in the water and hanging out on the sand. Then headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner.

After an eventful day, we wanted a quick and easy dinner. We headed to locals favorite Maguro Brothers for some of the best Poke bowls of our life. I still dream about the ahi ceviche poke bowl. There is very little sitting area as it is more of a takeout place. We grabbed ours to go, ran into the convient store next door, grabbed some local seltzer and headed back to our hotel to enjoy on our balcony.

The following day, we spent the entire day relaxing on property. We also spent some time on the public Waikiki beach. That night we headed out to Hide out Laylow Waikiki for dinner. The food drinks and ambiance were all 10/10.

After a relaxing day we were ready for another adventure. This day we got in our rental car and drove to the North Shore. We grabbed acai bowls from the famous Sunshine Hut. A perfect instagram photo opportunity. I wanted to go rock jumping at the beaches but the waves were quite big. I opted to stay on the shore and watch the seasoned surfers. The North Shore was beautiful and a much different feel than in Honolulu. It’s a must when visiting Oahu.

We grabbed brunch at Duke’s Waikiki. We have been here before in California; as it is a chain, but everyone says you have to eat at the original Hawaii one. In my opinion, there isn’t much of a difference and I could have skipped this restaurant. Then we headed to spent a day with some of my husbands’ family celebrating our birthdays all together which was a great time.

We got up early the next morning to head to the Hoʻomaluhia Botanical Garden. We could have spent all day here. It was beyond stunning and the picture opportunities are endless.

We ended with dinner at DECK. at Queen Kapiʻolani Hotel. It was a rooftop bar and restaurant that offered scenic views of Diamond head.

Our last day we tried to go snorkeling at Hanauma Bay, but we got there around 9am and all the parking was full. Do not make our mistake and go early 7AM! We ended up driving to a blow hole and just sightseeing. Then we went snorkeling off the shore outside of our hotel and saw a few fish. We wanted to do a catamaran but they were all sold out in advance. I would recommend planning all your adventure activities in advance.

I hope this blog post helped you have a better idea of where to eat and what to see on your next trip to Oahu, Hawaii. I rounded up a quick easy guide below of everywhere we went and fun things to do.

QUICK LISTS – Screenshot to reference on your next trip to Oahu.

Restaurants

• DECK. at Queen Kapiʻolani Hotel
• Duke’s Waikiki
• Sunshine Hut
• Maguro Brothers
• Hula Grill Waikiki
• Doraku Sushi Kaka’ako

Hikes

• Diamond Head Crater Trailhead
• Mānoa Falls Trail
• Pillbox Hike

Things to do

• Dole Plantation
• Pearl Harbor National Memorial
• Hoʻomaluhia Botanical Garden
• Snorkel
• Helicopter ride

Don’t forget to give me a follow on Instagram @Jordyns_Journey to keep up with all my travels.