Aloha Vacation, part 1

   ** Let me just start by saying that eight days was too many. Mostly, we just missed our kids too much towards the end so it was difficult to enjoy so much down time. Don’t get me wrong- we LOVED the down time- but, four or five days would have been ideal. Lesson learned on that one. **

   Our flight left Tucson at 8 am Wednesday morning. We flew that first short leg to Phoenix where we boarded a nonstop to Honolulu. It was a long flight. It’s been more than 2 years since we’ve flown anywhere, but if I didn’t know better I would swear they made the seats more cramped.

   We were greeted at the airport with a lady holding a sign saying ‘Intuit’. She helped gather our bags and we loaded up into a Cadillac escalade for transport to our hotel. The Royal Hawaiian is a beautiful resort and one of the oldest in Waikiki. The CEO and other upper-level management were in the garden to welcome us with drinks, leis, snacks and chair massages. How cool, right? We knew immediately that we were in for quite a treat over the next few days.

   We said our hellos and headed up to our room to freshen up and prepare to hit the beach. Dave was anxious to get in the water. Our room was to die for! Ocean views with a huge balcony- couldn’t have hoped for better. Our bed was beautifully made and had vouchers for a free pair of sunglasses for both of us.

   That night we had a welcome banquet. Lobster and chicken were on the huge ocean-side grill and the table of sides was massive. The stage was set up for Hawaiian performers to start after we were all seated. We hit the hay pretty early after a long day of traveling and sleep wonderfully in the most comfortable bed ever.

   The next morning, after a $100 breakfast at the resort restaurant (for instance, $14 bowl of yogurt with fresh berries, $8 glass of juice, $26 plate of potatoes and eggs), we loaded up in buses and headed to the northern shore of the island to the Polynesian Cultural Center. We were divided into teams and used the hour on the bus to read the instructions about the ‘games’ and prepare our strategies. We were so busy running around to different stations, we didn’t get any pictures of us racing (and winning) the canoe race, doing the blindfolded obstacle course, opening coconuts, throwing spears, bowling, and the eight legged race attached to saddle boards. Team ‘Light Pink’ tied for third place over all because we couldn’t start our fire at the end. It was fun and we made friends with our team members.

The games were followed by a buffet lunch and then we loaded up for our tour of the north shore. We drove by some famous surfing beaches, stopped at a shopping center for some shaved ice, and then the Dole Plantation for some Dole Whip. The BEST pineapple soft serve imaginable! David and I both took naps on the bus ride back to the resort, which was good because we got stuck in Honolulu's stop and go highway traffic for nearly 45 minutes (or so we heard).

   That night was our ‘night out’. Upon check in we were given an envelope with $100 cash and a list of local restaurants. We decide upon a cheap dinner at Jimmy Buffet’s across the street. We were seated, with 3 other couples from Tucson, on the roof top over looking the busy streets of Waikiki. I had a yummy burger and Dave had a grilled fish sandwich, and the bill, including a large tip, came out to less than $50. SWEET! We quickly spent that extra $50 bucks at the ABC Store on essentials and souvenirs.

   The next day, after a less expensive breakfast at the neighboring hotel, was our adventure day. We chose to take a 2 hour catamaran snorkeling tour. Very cool. We saw sea turtles right next to our boat! That afternoon, we sat on the beach. Well, I sat and David swam. This is when the sun burning happened. Nice. Not really. I actually applied sunscreen and then laid in the sun for obviously too long, I guess. But it was nice, minus the burning part.

 

 

   That evening was the big reception. Because David was #1 in his department, he was invited to a reception with the CEO in his suite. There were less than 40 people at the reception, and their suite balcony overlooked the garden where our reception was being held. Great views, great food, great music, and FIREWORKS! Not even kidding! Right on the beach! We got about a 10 minute firework show finished with a giant lit up Intuit sign at the end. Beyond cool. The band played covers for about 2 hours that night, and it was so fun! It was nice to be brushing shoulders and being called by name by the highest people in the company.

   Saturday, we were free to do whatever we wanted. We took a van ride up to Hanauma Bay.

It is famous for it’s reef snorkeling and it didn’t disappoint. It was the best snorkeling conditions we’ve ever seen. Tons of variety of fish, great views of the reef, mostly calm waters, and even a sea turtle that came up right next to us! We loved it and would love to spend the day there if we are ever in Oahu again.

   That night was the picnic concert on the lawn. The food was good, but probably the least good of all the meals. Our performer was a Grammy-winning Hawaiian star, Henry Kapono, and he put on a really good show (I even got Dave to get up and dance with me for one song). We left a little early to walk over to The Cheesecake Factory for a couple slices. Yummy! I was craving something chocolaty and it was so close (less than 50 yards) that we couldn’t not take advantage of it while we were there. We could hear the concert from our room, so we had our cheesecake up there for the end of the concert.

   Breakfast on Sunday was our last free meal. Up to this point we had spent less than $80 bucks, including the $50 we spent for the Hanauma Bay transport, entrance and rentals. We ate lots of breakfast, put a few apples in my bag and said our goodbyes to The Royal Hawaiian. When we chose to extend our vacation, we priced different hotels. To stay at The Royal, it would have cost $350 each night. We opted to cross the street and save more than $200 each night. The room at the other hotel was still more than nice, and if we stepped onto the balcony, we could still see the ocean. ;)