Help for first timers.

Making our first trip to the US in August and plan to spend 7 days in Hawaii. Would love to hear your recomendations on where to stay, places to go, sites to see and some shopping advice for my wife. Kids are 10 and 11 (boys) and would love some tips on what is good to ocuupy them and keep them interested. Thanks.

Help for first timers.

First -- budget is always the question. For cheap but clean w/a great view -- Waikiki Circle Hotel. For moderate try Pacific Beach Hotel. For moderate to spendy, try the Sheraton or the Outriggers. All great places, all right in the middle of the action.

Second - make sure and rent a car or book a trip around the island. Renting a car will give you more flexability to stop and sunbathe at many of the great beaches outside of Waikiki. Even if you only do it for a couple of days. I love visiting the North Shore to watch the surfers, the Dole Plantation will interest you (did you know it takes over 2 years before one pineapple is ready?), and there is always kayaking and sailing galore.

Third -- if your boys are good swimmers, get them beginner surf lessons. I saw a lot of younger boys doing this.

After you get back, let me know how you liked it. I heard a rumor that Sydney%26#39;s beaches are some of the most beautiful int he world. I would like to know how they compare. Maybe after college, I can get to your part of the world and find out for myself!

Have fun! And Aloha.

Help for first timers.

We just returned and had a great time. Like the other reply, you really should rent a car. Try North Shore the waves a really big and fun there! We took a day trip to the Big Island which was really fun and interesting, but it was a very long day (4:00 am pickup and returned about 8:00 pm) so may not be good for younger children. They may like Sea life park, which is where they filmed 50 first dates. Also the Atlantis submarine tour is very fun. We stayed at Waikiki Shore and had a very nice and clean room, there is also a washer and dryer which we liked cause we were able to pack less. Also try the Shore bird restaurant in the Outrigger Reef Hotel, reasonable prices, great service, and it was really fun because at dinner you get to grill your own entree. Pearl Harbor is nice and free if you only see the Arizona Memorial, to see the Missouri it is $16 I think, but if you don%26#39;t book the tour get there early, so you don%26#39;t have to wait as long, and get a good parking spot. We got there at about 9:00 am and parked right across the street and waited about and hour. We occupyed our time by visiting the on site museum, it is very interesting. The kids would proabably like Diamond Head, but it is a challenging Hike. Hope you have a fun trip!!

Be aware that Waikiki, which is where most of the hotels are, is the heart of the tourist area, and is very dense with hotels. This can be useful to the first-timer- all your tours, surfing lessons, etc., are located right there at the beach, which is very convenient. Plenty of shopping, too. But it is not the ';quiet resort'; area that many people feel they need when they visit Hawaii. If you have a car and spend some time on the North Shore and the windward side, you will see some of those idyllic beaches. (no big waves on the north shore in August- that%26#39;s a winter thing...) You can also stay on that side of the island, but that will require driving wherever you want to go.

Most importantly, remind your boys that when they cross the street, they have to look left!!

lol macjack -- I mean not really funny -- but when travelling to London -- I recall having to remind myself to look right first!! Almost got hit once!

aussiefamily4 - my sister lives in AUS but that is not what you wanted to know. Check out my post titled observations from a just returned traveler. That has lots of info and I can give more if you need it. There is much to do there - have fun!!

We returned just a few weeks ago - my children are 12 and 14 and here%26#39;s some highlights of things we did: DiamondHead Hike - they will definitely enjoy that. We rented snorkel equipment at Snorkel Bob%26#39;s and they were VERY helpful suggesting where to go for snorkeling. Also near Snorkel Bobs is an authentic Hawaiin Foods restaurant named Ono%26#39;s. If your children are not picky eaters and you%26#39;re willing to try different foods - definitely go there. Both kids took surf lessons on Waikiki Beach - very fun. We stayed at Breakers - which was perfect for our family - the kids stayed in the main room with twin beds and my husband and I shared the masterbedroom. It%26#39;s a nice location in Waikiki - it%26#39;s a small hotel but we spent little time at the room - too much to see and do. We snorkeled at San Souci - and checked out the aquarium. We spent four days on the North Shore - which the kids enjoyed as well - it%26#39;s VERY laid back. In the summer you won%26#39;t have the big waves - but we enjoyed watching surfers and the most awesome sunsets. DO ENJOY - wish we were going back.

All excellent recommendations, shoremama. I%26#39;m glad to hear you enjoyed The Breakers. I think it%26#39;s a real bargain that often gets overlooked compared to the big chain hotels.

Next time, however, when you%26#39;re up on Kapahulu Ave. renting the snorkels and having lunch at Ono%26#39;s pick up some dessert- malasadas at Leonard%26#39;s bakery. I just can%26#39;t recommend malasadas enough!!

Agree with macjack - malasadas are sooo good. Wish we had those on the mainland. Try them at the swap meet as well, those were actually the first ones we had and then again up on the North Shore. Never tried the custard filled ones tho since the others were so good I figured who needed the extra calories...

Ooooh and you must eat the Malasaldas while they%26#39;re still warm........ ONO!

Will be going for first time April 22-29. Weather? Will a not-so-young-and-trim hot mama have fun or is it all for hardbodies and families? Night life?