Tag Archives: Hawaii

Hawaii – Oahu 2025 Day 5

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Started the morning with hiking! We first went to Diamond Head for our 9am ticket. The hike was fairly easy and fast, only taking us about 45 minutes to complete. 

So we then decided to try a harder hike, Koko Crater. This hike was definitely intense. Needed to take five 30 seconds to 2 minutes breaks for the last 1/3 of the climb. Made it up to the top in 30 minutes, and slightly under 30 minutes back down. Definitely great view of Haunama Bay and Waikiki.

After, went to The Pig and the Lady at a town called Kaimuki (the town is a log the way back to the hotel. Apparently not really anything notable to do in the area except if you want to eat at a certain restaurant). Details can be found here:

https://food.johnmatienzo.com/2025/11/29/the-pig-and-the-lady/

We then headed to South Waikiki for coffee (started at the Aston at the Waikiki Banyan). Went to Kai Coffee. Details can be found here:

https://food.johnmatienzo.com/2025/11/29/kai-coffee/

Wanted to explore going from South Waikiki back to our hotel (which is considered North Waikiki), so we ended up walking back (without stops probably a 25 minute walk). 

Started walking close to the beach, where we ran into an old Banyan tree. Then the road sort of splits from the beach, so then explored where all the high end shops are, and the International Marketplace Mall. Then ended up in the “resort area” near our hotel (where we had been at night a few days ago), and then back at our hotel for Pina coladas.

After taking a quick nap, we headed over to the Ala Moana Center for some shopping (surprisingly it wasn’t busy for Black Friday).

Some stores we visited included: Rolex (wanted to confirm the fit of their 40mm Explorer), Grand Seiko (spent 40 minutes in this store. friend wanted to get a watch with Spring Drive), Travis Matthew’s, Uniqlo (got a tank top), and Foodland Farms (for a poke bowl, but just missed their poke station time. They close at 9pm while the store closes at 10pm).

After shopping got a lite bite and cocktails at a place called Eleven:

https://food.johnmatienzo.com/2025/11/29/eleven/

To end the night, saw an EDM show at a place called Hawaiian Brian’s Social Club (called HB), which is like a 5 minute walk from Ala Moana Center. Fake Illenium, Sabai, performed (gotta say he was better than the first time I saw him at midway).

Hawaii – Oahu 2025 Day 3

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Started off the day with getting a ham quiche from a pastry / drip coffee place at the hotel, plus a latte from Lappert’s.

After took a long and non trivially priced uber to the north side of the island to Kualoa Ranch.

I ended up booking the Jurassic Adventure tour. Here are the highlights:

-Kualoa ranch has Kualoa Mountain behind it (hence its name).

-First stop was Jurassic World (the gate where the two kids in a jeep crash through).

-Second area pointed out the bunkers used in WWII by the military.

-The third area pointed out was the u-shaped military tunnel that goes through the mountain.

-The fourth stop was another Jurassic World scene.

-The fifth stop was from Jurassic Park (most of it was shot in Kaui, but this particular one was shot in Oahu).

-Sixth stop was Godzilla foot prints (they were 8 feet deep originally, but they filled them up since).

-There was also a shot in Pearl Harbor that was shot here that we drove by.

-The next stop was an area also from Jurassic World

-The final stop was also from Jurassic world

Overall I liked the tour as it gives you good coverage of the ranch and the movies that were shot there. Also great views! However I think it could have easily been under 2 hours instead of 2.5. Also waiting for an uber to pick me up took 30 minutes!

After decided to finish the Pearl Harbor Musesum (so yes Ubers there from Kualoa Ranch) and go to the USS Bowfin. Took only 20 minutes to go through the sub. 

Afterwards we explored around the Waikiki resort area (where our hotel is located. I will say that there are really nice resorts in the area. One of them is the Sheraton. We walked through it to get to cocktail bar called Mai Tai bar. Details can be found here:

https://food.johnmatienzo.com/2025/11/27/mai-tai-bar/

We then headed to another resort I would consider staying at, the Outrigger Reef Waikiki Beach Resort, which had the restaurant we were getting dinner at, called Monkeypod. Details here:

https://food.johnmatienzo.com/2025/11/28/monkeypod/

And that pretty much wrapped up the day. Next time would try to find maybe a rooftop bar in the Waikiki resort area.

Hawaii – Kona Day 14

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Last day in Hawaii, which was pretty packed with small stops.

Started the day going to Green Flash Coffee. Here are the details:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/30/green-flash/

Then headed to Kahalu’u beach to get in some last minute snorkeling. I gotta say I liked the diversity of fishes here better than Captain cook monument (but the corals at captain cook were much better, and there were dolphins there). NJ did mention though he saw a turtle in the water while snorkeling.

After the beach, we cleared out our AirBnb (will always have the memories of watching season 28 of survivor there). We then dropped our bags of at Janie’s new place which is near Da poke shack.

From there, we headed to Kona Coffee and Tea to pick up some souvenirs (got some medium roast coffee. I also wanted to get the chocolate covered espresso macadamia nuts, but they ran out :().

We then headed to Kona Brewery, where we had a late lunch. Details can be found here:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/30/kona-brewery/

After the brewery, we stopped by a small chocolate shop called Puna (had an art exhibition in the upstairs). Got a chocolate covered stroopwafel, which was pretty good.

We then headed to HiCo, where I got an iced mocha plus a spam musubi. Here are the details: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/25/hico/

After, we went to costco to grab some additional souvenirs (macadamia nuts plus Kona account Crunch coffee).

After Costco, we quickly rushed to Pine Trees Beach to see a glimpse of the sunset. Afterwards, headed to ABC to get some souvenirs (a shot glass, a coaster, some chocolate covered macadamia nuts, and a shirt).

The last stop before heading to the airport was Janie’s place to eat a Sushi dinner (ordered from Sushi Cocoro & Udon, which details can be found here: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/30/sushi-cocoro-udon/).

We then dropped off our Jeep at Hertz, and boarded our flight. Till next time Hawaii!!!

Some things to check out next time I visit Big Island:

-Narnia

-Resort area 25 miles north of Kona (where there is other types of nightlife)

Hawaii – Kona Day 13

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We started off this day by traveling along Alii drive. We went into town first, where I was able to try an açaí bowl at Kona Wave Cafe (recommended by several of our friends). I thought it was was really good. Here are the details:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/29/kona-wave-cafe/

We then meandered to this beach in Kaloko-Honokōhau national park. We were promised several turtles by the park ranger, but only found one (see the pic below).

After the beach, we headed back to Keck, to see the sun set below the clouds, and the telescopes. Some tips about getting to the summit. First, you should drive to the visitor center and stay there for 15 minutes to acclimatize to the altitude. Second, the summit is like 1 degree Celsius, so wear winter clothes if possible. Third, you need a 4×4 to go past the visitor center. Four, park your Jeep facing the telescopes and sunset (so you can hop in and out of the car).

After Keck, we drove to Ola brewery to have dinner, and then stopped by MyBar for a quick drink. Updated Ola Brewery comments are in here: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/22/ola-brewery/

We then headed to Dersu and Elsa’s to end the night with more drinking 🙂

Hawaii – Kona Day 12

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We spent this day on the east side of the Big Island, Hilo.

Started off the day driving through the two highways that cuts through the center of the island (190 and 200). Great scenic drive, where you can see the volcano mountain, and where the solidified lava stopped flowing, and the mountain where the Keck is on.

First stop when we approached Hilo was Rainbow Falls. This was an easy attraction (just needed to drive up to it). Unfortunately no rainbow as found at the falls 🙁

We then made our way to Akaka falls. There was a $5 fee per person at the entrance, but definitely worth it. The trail to the falls was a tropical rainforest. It was awesome to see so much biodiversity. It was like being in Animal Kingdom in Disney land, but it’s actually the real thing!

After the falls, we drove by the main part of town, and even saw the statue of the last King of Hawaii. We then drove along Kamehameha street (it was along the perimeter of water at Hilo and it’s actually the word used in Dragon Ball Z), leading up to the place where we had a late lunch near Carlsmith beach at a place called the ponds. Here is the info:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/28/ponds-hilo/

(On a side note, I definitely see how Kona is a more developed and richer part than Hilo. Also, Hilo’s older part of town is really run down).

After eating, quickly made our way to Carlsmith beaches we didn’t really get into, but the water looked pretty clean, with really no rocks or coral or waves. Would have been great to take a dip at this easy beach. Also, the greenery leading up to the beach was different.

We then headed over to the adjacent beach, Richardson. The greenery leading up to the beach was amazing. We also saw several (large) turtles, and the waves at the beach were pretty awesome.

After the beach, we quickly swung by University of Hawaii. It’s not that big, was looked like a typical University. To end the night, we quickly checked out the Keck (visitor’s center). Temperature was pretty chilly, but it was definitely noticeable you were closer to the stars. Hot chocolate plus looking through binoculars made a difference.

Hawaii – Kona Day 11

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This day was mainly focused on Thanksgiving.

Started off the day by going to KTA to buy groceries and alcohol for Thanksgiving dinner. Also grabbed poke for lunch / snack from KTA. You can find the details here: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/?p=1156

After KTA, we spent a couple of hours at On the Rocks, since Ben has not been before, and I definitely wanted him to check out the view. Here are the details: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/25/on-the-rocks/

We then got back to our AirBnB to make the food for Thanksgiving dinner. I made bacon Mac and cheese, plus regular Mac and cheese (both from the “deluxe” version of Kraft Dinner). Ben made meatballs (and regular meatballs) plus spaghetti.

For Thanksgiving dinner, we headed to Brittany’s place. Pictures can speak for themselves 🙂

http://travel.johnmatienzo.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/img_7272-1.mov

Hawaii – Kona Day 10

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Started off the day by visiting Da Poke Shack for lunch. Here are the details:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/26/da-poke-shack/

After lunch, we headed off to Kealakekua Bay to pick up kayaks for visiting the Captain Cook monument. Used this rental company: https://fareharbor.com/embeds/book/ehuandkai/items/?flow=19754&full-items=yes

Kayaking took about 30 minutes to the monument. The waters for kayaking and snorkeling were not too bad. This bay I supposed to have the best views for snorkeling in Hawaii. I thought the view under the water for snorkeling was ok. The view closer to the edges of the rock walls and shore were better than ones further out. I also added some more snorkeling tips after this trip here:

http://lessons.awesomenessoflife.com/2020/11/24/snorkeling-tips/

After snorkeling, we headed to a hotel bar in the Royal Kona Resort to watch the sunset while drinking pina coladas. You can find the details here:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/26/royal-kona-hotel-bar-don-the-beachcomber/

Ended off the day having dinner at Janie’s where Sam made a veggie pizza (starter kit from Costco, and NJ brought the fake sausage and vegetables), plus lobster pasta.

Hawaii – Kona Day 9

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This day was used to explore the eateries / bars in Holualoa.

Started off by going to a “dive” bar called Humpy’s Big Island Alehous, which has a really good view of the water. Of course I ordered the Pina Colada. Here are the details: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/25/humpys-big-island-alehous/

Next, we stopped by a place with an even more dope view, a place called On the Rocks. Had lunch there, with a mai tai. Here are the details: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/25/on-the-rocks/

Needed to get some orange juice and tide detergent, so ended up going to a Hawaii convenient store chain called “ABC”.

After some solid morning/lunch drinking, decided to get some coffee at a HiCo. Got an iced mocha, which was really delicious. Here are the details: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/25/hico/

We then chilled at Janie’s place for a bit (which is where the sunset picture is from), and then had dinner / tried Kava at Kanaka Kava: http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/25/kanaka-kava/

After drinking kava, we chilled at the volleyball courts for a bit at the same complex the Kava and Island Lava Java places were at.

Ended off the night drinking back at Janie’s place, where we played a game called Therapist (basically two rules are made up and two people designated as the therapists have to try and guess the rules). Great game.

Hawaii – Kona Day 8

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This day was a day of snorkeling.

Started off the day going to Costco to pick up some snorkeling gear. Decided to get the full face mask, but also had to buy the set with flippers.

We headed off to two-step beach at Captain cook, where I basically learned how to use the snorkeling face mask (key part is to make sure the face mask is tight enough using the straps at the back, and just breath with your nose normally. Admittedly it is difficult to breathe with it, and don’t really like to use it longer than 30 minutes), and got comfortable with the flippers. To finally get out there, as Dersu said “don’t think”. Another tip (but I think this is for the goggle type snorkels), to have no fog, you spit in your goggles (need to figure if this works for the full face mask).

The ocean floor had very few sea urchins. There were a good amount of fish. At the time I didn’t know this, but there were sea urchins between some holes in the rocks on the steps coming out of the water (although I had my flippers on, so my feet would have been ok regardless. I was using those holes with my hands though).

After two-step, we headed to Honokohau Harbor for our night time manta ray snorkeling adventure.

First time wearing a wet suite. Definitely see how it warms you up, and would consider buying one if I did more water sports (but would get between a small and a medium size).

To get to the snorkeling spot, we spent 30 minutes getting there. The boat ride was definitely bumpy. While we were there, we spent 45 minutes attached to this surfboard looking device, that shines light down the water to attract plankton, which attract the mantarays. I was fortunate enough to get a manta ray kiss (it’s bottom part touched my right hand). Gotta say it felt pretty rough lol.

The last 10 minutes I did start to feel light headed. Didn’t think I needed to throw up, but my stomach was also not super settled. Might have been a good idea not to drink a seltzer beforehand.

The ride back it started raining, but covering myself with a towel plus the wet suite helped.

We ended off the day having dinner at a ramen place, which you can catch the details here:

http://food.johnmatienzo.com/2020/11/24/daichi-ramen/

Hawaii – Kona Day 7

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This day was basically a day for just golfing.

We started off the say by just having brunch at our AirBnb, then drove to Makalei golf course for our Tee time at 1pm.

We golfed for 4.5 hours. You can find the details about the course and some golfing tip ani learned here:

http://lessons.awesomenessoflife.com/?p=63

We stopped by KTA Supermarket before dinner. It’s similar to Safeway, but it is a local grocery store for Hawaii, which means they do have Hawaii specific food like poke. I do think they’re alcohol selection was a bit expensive.

The rest of the say was spent having a bbq at Dersu and Elsa’s.