Honolulu & Waikiki Beach - Our arrival in Hawaii (Travel Report USA)

After almost 2 months on a world trip we left the American Continent today and flew further west to Honolulu in Hawaii… 12,000 kilometres from Frankfurt at the other end of the world.

Day

of our Trip around the World

Table of contents

Arrival in Honolulu on the island of Oahu

After a six-hour flight from Las Vegas with Allegiant Air, we landed in Honolulu on the island of Oahu in the early afternoon.

Aloha, Honolulu, Waikiki, Hawaii, USA, On Your Own, Travelreport

Welcome to Hawaii

Our travel plans for Hawaii

Our plan for the next 12 days is to see all the major islands of Hawaii. To do this, we fly:

(1) from Las Vegas to Honolulu (O’ahu)
(2) from Honolulu to Lihue (Kauai)
(3) from Lihue to Kahului (Maui)
(4) from Kahului to Hilo (Big Island)

From Hilo we return to Honolulu and from there to Sydney in Australia.

Route for Hawaii, Honolulu, Waikiki, Hawaii, USA, On Your Own, Travelreport

Our travel plans for Hawaii

Our Hotel Honolulu

Since we had booked our rental car only from the next day, we took the bus to Waikiki. This was super easy, as the city buses leave directly in front of the terminal. But beware: normally it is not allowed to take large suitcases or luggage on the bus (TheBus – Rules, Regulations and Rider Tips). But since there wasn’t much going on with us, the bus driver luckily didn’t say anything about it 🙂

For the next three nights we had booked a room at the Hotel Maile Sky Court (now Holiday Inn Express Waikiki). And best of all, we got a room on the 44th floor with a great view of Waikiki. The location and the price were the decisive criterion for us for the booking. During that period there was nothing cheaper in Waikiki. We had a room on the 44th floor with great views of Waikiki. The room is ok, but a bit old. But which is completely ok, because you are already on the road all day. It was a bit strange that such a large hotel only offers Wi-Fi in the lobby, which unfortunately worked only badly. Parking is very expensive in the hotel (25 USD per 24 h). Nearby you will also find free parking – you just have to be patient. In 5 – 10 min you are at Waikiki Beach. Shopping in the immediate vicinity. The bus stop for Pearl Harbor and the airport is just 2 blocks away. The staff at the reception were very friendly and helpful.

Hotel Maile Sky Court, Honolulu, Waikiki, Hawaii, USA, On Your Own, Travelreport

Our room at Hotel Maile Sky Court

Der Waikiki Beach

After we had dropped our things, we got out again immediately, because we wanted to look at the area a bit. The first port of call was the famous Waikiki Beach, which we imagined a bit bigger. We could see a few surfers, but the waves were not very high today. After that we walked a bit through the very clean and touristy (shops, restaurants, tour operators) area around Kuhio and Kalakaua Avenues and bought us something to eat at a market.

Alley with surfboards in Waikiki

Der Waikiki Beach

Surfboards at Waikiki Beach

Der Waikiki Beach

Statue Duke Kahanamoku

Der Waikiki Beach

Tree in Waikiki on the beach

Statue Duke Kahanamoku

The Starbucks Cup by Waikiki

We are collecting the Starbucks Mugs from the cities and islands we visit on our travels. Unfortunately, not every city that has a Starbucks store with an own mug. But if the city has an own mug we like to collect them as a souvenir. We only collect city mugs from the "Global Icon Series", which was released in 2008. You can see our complete collection here: Starbucks - Our collection of Mugs from the Global Icon Series

Waikiki has several Starbucks stores and also a really nice cup with a hula dancer, which is now very rare and correspondingly expensive.

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The Starbucks City Cup of Waikiki

All travelogues from Hawaii (2015)

Our world trip led us after almost 2 months from the American mainland to Hawaii. Situated in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, 3,600 kilometres away from the US mainland, the 50th state of the USA. For many, it is the epitome of the South Seas. During our two-week stay in Hawaii we visited four of the six main islands: Kauai, O'ahu, Maui and Big Island. Each of these islands has its own personality, nature and sights and offers different activities for all tastes: From the big city Honolulu with the famous Waikiki Beach, the fascinating Waimea Canyon and the breathtaking Napali Coast on Kauai, the famous Road to Hana on Maui to the most active volcano in the world on Big Island. The islands radiate a unique flair and have enchanted us very quickly with the famous Aloha charm.