Getting Around: Waikiki

We are not renting a car for our trip to Hawaii. This shocks many people on Cruise Critic and Tripadvisor. Yes its probably much cheaper to rent a car plus you get to stop whenever and go wherever. But the simple reason is in America they drive on the other side of the road and its much too confusing for us! Also that means the driver would probably miss half the sights and the added stress of not knowing where we are going.

So with all that being said we have decided to use The Bus, booking tours and shuttles and using the trolley buses.

There are many trolleys to choose from in Waikiki. The Aloha bus is a double-decker bus that runs 3 different loops. I have used a similar service ( in fact it could be this company) when I travelled to Sydney last Easter. The second story is open meaning you can take photos and videos without the pesky glass reflection.

Another trolley is the Waikiki Trolley this does a similar trip to the Aloha Bus in in a smaller bus. They have a great deal for a 7 day pass where you get entry into the Aquarium and Zoo included. We were planning on going to those places anyway so it works out very cheap even if we don't use the service everyday.

One thing I love about these sorts of buses is you can essentially sit on the bus for an hour or so and see all the sites, then get off at the places that interest you. A 7 day pass goes for about $50 which is amazing value as the one in Sydney charged $39 for 1 day!!

Booked Part 2

Last weekend I booked my sister and myself on a photography tour in Kauai. This tour is going to be her Birthday present from me. I didn't think she's want to do something like this but I showed her some of the example photos and she was inspired! I originally found Kauai Photo Tours by just Googling "photo tours Kauai" and after reading some review from Tripadvisor and Cruise Critic I was certain this would be a great tour for us.

I was very impressed with the fast email responses, especially considering the time differences. I decide to call to make my reservation ( international calling using Skype is amazing- so cheap) and spoke to Kris. He answered all my questions and gave me great instructions on where to meet the transfer bus.

One thing I love about booking all these tours was there is no money needed up front. Most just need your credit card info and charge you that day of your tour. This is great as it allows you to confirm your tour plus have some extra time to save!

Since booking I have read a lot more reviews on Cruise Critic and everyone seems to have a great tour.

Saving Money

As I've mention before we are on a pretty tight budget for this trip. While we are not one of those families that you see splashing money around on useless junk on holidays, we are also not those cheap people who wont even spend a dollar. We like to have fun but in a responsible way lol

Here are some money saving tips that we have found to be very useful.

Before your holiday

Save coins

As soon as I've booked a trip I start to collect my coins. At the end of the week by purse is usually full of coins. I used to only collect $1 and $2 but i found out the silver coins were adding up much faster. In about a year since I booked my cruise I saved over $450 in coins. 

Swap currency when you get 'extra money'

As we are venturing overseas we are going to have to swap our Aussie money for USA dollars. I like to travel with a bit of cash as I can track it better than credit card purchases ( and no nasty bill to pay off at the end of the holiday) So to take advantage of the excellent exchange rate I have been swapping a bit of money as I get it. I had a friend owe me about $150 and instead of spending it on stuff I swapped it into US dollars. This will prevent me from spending it before hand and I wont need to rush about nearer to the trip.

Look for deals and Groupons

The whole buying a voucher online is quite a new thing so I haven't used it on a trip before. At the moment I am looking for voucher for activities. There's heaps of food and drink vouchers that you can purchase. I know that in Australia we had some trouble with businesses not honoring the voucher so I wouldn't spend a lot of money on them. But for reputable businesses I wouldn't hesitate. 

During the trip

Eat out less

Eating out is nice on holidays but can add up fast. We like to go to a local supermarket and stock up on breakfast things like milk, yougurt and muffins. This only costs a fraction at the supermarket compared to a cafe or restaurant. We do like to go to nice restraints so we limit ourselves to either a nice lunch or dinner. Some places are cheaper if you have dinner before a certain time so make sure you know when that is so you can plan your day. 

BYO snacks and drinks

Bottled water or cans of soda are cheaper when you buy in bulk. We like to get those 24 packs of water and 20 cans of coda boxes and keep them in our room. When we go out on tour of walking about we just bring a bottle with us for when we get thirsty. This saves us at least $4 per drink and saves us getting ripped off in touristy places. Same goes for snacks. Those little packet of chips are a great little snack that takes up hardly any space in your bag. Its great for when you are in  between meals or your not hungry enough for a full meal. We also get some bags of lollies to eat during long drives or tours.

Booked!

Queensland , Australia

Well I was going to wait until about January to start booking tours and activites but the suspense was killing me!! Last weekend I went ahead and booked 3 tours. Fhew!

The first one was Valley Isles Hana trip. I had previously emailed them to confirm bookings were being accepted for so far in advance- they were! Being a cruise ship passenger they require you to call them ( i'm still not sure why...) Anyways being in Australia i had to figure out the easiest and cheapest way to call. My mobile was going to charge me $1 per minute plus connection fee- no way i thought! Then i remembered Skype. I've found you that you can buy credit in $16 lots and can call the US for 2 cents a minute! That's more like it!! So I purchased my credit and made my first ever overseas call. The booking was very simple all they require is a credit card number and your names. I was asked if we would require a vegetarian lunch or chicken and he explained where to meet them in Maui. I was also emailed the confirmation and photos of where to meet almost instantly too. I was very happy with my decision to go with Valley Isle!

Next I contacted Ricky from Ricky's Tours. I emailed him to see if he was available that day and he replied about 2 hours later! His prices has increased slightly from last year but is still way cheaper than NCL tours. Since we've never been to Hilo before we have no idea what to expect. The itinerary looks really interesting and we love supporting local businesses so we booked that as well. No need for a credit card as you pay Ricky in cash on the day. All he needs is your name and cabin number for entry into the port.


Then finally i booked a helicopter trip for my father and I. I've always wanted to do a helicopter trip and seeing youtube clips of various flights in Kauai I knew this was the place to do it. I searched a lot of different companies before deciding on Mauna Loa Helicopters. Every helicopter is essentially private with only 2 or 3 passengers from the same group allowed. This means every person gets a window!! I was always fearful of paying all that money to then be stuck in the middle no being able to see. Its not that much more than other companies and the promise of a private trip and window was good enough for us. They just needed a credit card to hold the booking and names and weights of those flying.

Yesterday I also booked a photography tour in Kauai for my sister and I but I'll blog about that later!

Planning and Planning : Oahu

There is so much to think about! The planning for this trip has been left up to me. My mother had one job to do. Book a simple 1 hour flight that we've done about 10 times in the past 5 years and somehow she managed to muck that up! So now i'm in charge!

We are in Oahu for 10 nights before our cruise and 3 nights after. I think. So many dates going around in my head right now! But anyways, we are there for quite a while. Now that i'm in charge I have been given a free range in planning the days activities which is awesome and horrible. I loved the tour i research for days in Melbourne, but my parents hated it. hhhmmm... My only constraint is budget. We are in a bit of a limited budget. Our wonderful jobs are cutting hours like crazy in this unstable economic time. Yay. But we wont be missing out! Even if we have to eat sandwiches in our hotel rooms every night I plan on making the most of our time in Hawaii!





So far on my list of things to do in Oahu is

• The Zoo

• The aquarium

• Peal Harbour ( and for me a photo tour instead)

• Round Island Tour ( potentially 2 with different companies as they both go to slightly different places)

• North Shore ( either tour or catch The Bus)

• Ala Moana ( shopping!!)

• Outlet Mall ( a must for Aussies so i've heard)

• Stand Up Paddle Boarding/surfing ( Typical touristy things lol)

• Diamond Head Hike

• Pali Lookout

• Eat Shave Ice

• Swap Meet

Photography Tips and Advice

Wake up early

I'm an early riser even on vacation! Im always awake by 6am no matter how late I stay up the previous night! I like to be up on deck about 30 minutes before the ship docks in port. I love this time of morning as there are usually only a few people up on deck which means you can walk around getting a lot of nice shots without having to battle 2000 other people with cameras. Also the lighting is much nicer.

Invest in a polarised filter

A polarised filter is a must for anyone travelling with a dslr camera. They are a little pricey but they make you photographs look a million dollars. They are very simple to use; just screw on the end of you lens, then once your ready to take a photo look through your lens finder and gentle rotate the filter. You will notice the sky will go lighter and darker. Once the sky is the darkest you are ready to take your photo like normal. Remember to rotate the filter for every shot. The results are amazing and no doubt you'll be impressed. I like to remove the filter for photos with people in them as I find the result is very dark and not that nice. The filer will come with a little box to keep it in which is handy to keep in your pocket or bag.

Camera bag that does't look obvious

I was given a nice camera bag when I purchased my camera several years ago. Its lovely and comfortable however its bright red and has Canon written in large font across the front. Its ok for when i'm at home taking photos but overseas I feel like it draws a lot of attention for the wrong crowd. I had a look online for suitable bags but they all looked very obvious camera bags or were extremely expensive. A cheaper solution was to purchase a triangle shaped bag, which was padded, and put it inside of a normal handbag. My camera is nice and protected and stays nice and hidden inside my boring looking satchel bag. If you didn't want to purchase a triangle shaped bag you can also wrap your camera in a jumper or t shirt.

Use flash for people photos

It breaks my heart when i see friend's holiday photos of beautiful sunsets or landscapes and their faces are in darkness. Its simple to force the flash in all cameras now and the results are amazing. Have a look at the photos after you have taken them to make sure everyones face is in focus and bright.

Charge your batteries

Make sure you get into a habit of charging your camera batteries when you return to the room. Always bring a spare battery that is fully charged incase the battery dies suddenly.

Put your chargers in you carry on

I always like to take all my various chargers in my carry on luggage. This way I know where they are at all times and wont have to worry about if my main luggage gets lost or doesn't make the ship!

Luncbox for camera stuff

If your looking for a nice simple solution for carrying your camera charge/batteries/memory cards or makeup and jewellery just head to your local junk store and buy a $2 hard lunchbox. Its waterproof and will provide a nice strong box to protect and also store your items. Its also handy once onboard so you can locate and store all your memory cards, batteries and filters in one nice location.

Things I'm looking forward to in the USA

It might seem sad to some people but I've seen so many movies and read books set in America that I want to experience some things for myself. This isn't a completed list- I'm still thinking of things! 

* Walmart- I must go here! I cannot imagine a store that sells clothes, electronics and groceries all in one!! 

• Macys - Its just a store but i'd love to go there!

• Mc Donalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, Burger King and similar - Just to see the difference!

• Forever 21 and Victoria's Secret - I've heard its amazing and am bringing and empty suitcase!

• Ranch flavour Doritos- Ok this is a weird one. I read a lot of Babysitter Club books growing up and Claudia always used to eat these flavoured chips. We don't have this favour in Australia and I'd really like to try it!

• Police and Fire Brigade- Hopefully not for the wrong reasons but I'd love to see their vehicles up close.

• Taco Bell- Fascinated by this- must try! 

• Driving on the other side of the road- I've had a day here and there over in Noumea where they do this but not for an extended amount of time. 

• Television- On past cruises we've been able to get some American stations and loved watching shows like Nancy Grace and Cake Boss. I'd love to see the news and some more programs

• Talking about American TV programs- We don't get Parks and Recreation, we stopped getting The Office past season 5, no one knows about Cake Boss here, How I Met Your Mother is still 2 seasons delayed- I would love to talk to people who watch Parks and Rec! 

Airport Transfers

So now we've figured out where we are staying the next part is wondering how we will get there!

We are not renting a car at all this trip ( confusing left hand drive plus driving on the other side of the road- no thanks!) so getting ourselves to the hotel is out. Initially I was thinking a shuttlebus or transfer service but I asked my workmate his thoughts and he recommended just taking a taxi.

I thought about this for several days weighing up the pros and cons before deciding to go for a shuttlebus.

Pro
Taxi: It will just be us and will head straight to the hotel
Shuttle: I think Roberts only goes to 5 different hotels in 1 trip
Taxi: Take our time through customs
Shuttle: Price is know and paid for upfront ( no surprises!)

Con
Taxi: Apparently we arrive at peak time
Taxi: Trying to find a taxi
Taxi: Trying to get change immediately for the taxi ( will be swapping Au$ for US$ and the smallest note they'll give is $50)

 I discovered Roberts were not only very highly recommended but extremely reasonable. Its only $20 each return from the hotel to the airport which we thought was fantastic value. It will give us piece of mind knowing that the service is waiting for us and I think we'll be very tired/jetlagged after a 10 hour flight.

We've also decided to book Roberts to take us to the cruise terminal and back. Its only $7 each way!

Where to Stay: Waikiki

Having never been to Hawaii we had no idea on where to stay. We don't plan on hiring a car so close to public transport is very important. We also wanted to be close to the nightlife so we wouldn't need a taxi to go out. We weren't terrible fussed on being close to the beach or a hotel with a nice pool area. We knew we needed two hotel rooms and one had to have 2 beds. We started looking around at prices and deals and got completely confused!

I started looking at hotels then considered renting a condo, but after some interesting reviews I went back to hotels. The condo option would have us all in the one place sharing 1 bathroom which is a recipe for disaster!

Luckily an old friend from school had just returned from a week long trip to Honolulu and I was able to pick her brain! I got some great advice and finally settled on the Aqua Waikiki Wave. There's two queen beds in each room and a nice balcony. With the great exchange rate ( at the time) I splurged and booked us a partial oceanview room.

Some of the reviews said it was a bit noisy at night as there is a night club underneath. In March I had a weekend away with my friend in Sydney. We stayed in a nice hotel above a pub in the heart of Sydney. Yes it was noisy even though we were on the 12th floor but so worth it for the convenience of not having to rent a car, plus it meant we didn't sleep late and could get an early start!

We have booked the Aqua Waikiki Wave for both portions of the land holiday. Initially I wanted to book somewhere else but we couldn't decide where and we figured that we'd probably know our way around after 10 nights there and it would just be easier.

After booking I got onto Google Maps and had a look at the area. Nice and close to Mc Donalds (yes we are super keen on trying American McDonalds), the Apple store (massive geeks), the International Marketplace, a thousand ABC shops and the bus.

As I said before we are not fussed on a pool as we have one in our backyard and it hardly ever gets used or the beach ( sand-yuck!) but we would like to have a look at it and possibly get into the water. So long as no one looks at our pale skin in our swimwear!

Port of Call-Maui

So on our cruise we have two whole days in Maui. I've been told this is the most nicest port by several different people! To make the most of our days there I went onto Google, Cruise Critic and Trip Advisor to seek out the best plan of attack. There were so many things I wanted to do in this port and not enough time!! Aaahhh!! What to do?? After comparing and researching for weeks we have finally decided!

Day 1 - Hana Highway with Valley Isle Excursions

I likes the sound of the Valley Isle Excursions. The buses are small and they only take 12 at a time. We recently went to Melbourne and did the Great Ocean Road day trip. It was fantastic because we paid slightly extra and went on a small bus of only 13 including the guide/driver. We could easily get off the bus in less than a minute and we managed to stay ahead of the schedule all day allowing us more time once we got to The Twelve Apostles.

We wont be hiring a car at all in Hawaii and this seemed like the best option of seeing a lot of different places and not worrying about taxis or bus timetables.

The Hana Highway looks amazing. The scenery looks beautiful and i love how big the windows on the bus are. Its a very long tour but doesn't bother us- Great Ocean Road was 13 hours and we could have easily gone for a few more hours! We looked at all the reviews and there didn't seem to be too many negative reports.

I like to pick up some tips from previous travellers they are
• Wear old shoes that you wont mind getting muddy
• Bring snacks to nibble on. Lunch is included but its always nice to have a little something incase you dont like the food or start to feel light headed
• Bring some sort of travel sickness remedy. We thankfully dont suffer with motion sickness ( ignoring the time we were in a cyclone at sea and pretty much the whole ship was sick!)
• Bring water. Yes its included but I like to have my own 'stuff'
• Camera cleaning cloth. My lens is always getting mucky from the salt water splashes or sunblock. Bringing a little cloth to wipe the smudges saved me so many times ( also handy for sunglasses and glasses)


Day 2 - Haleakala Crater at Sunrise

I worried over this day for weeks! I wanted to do so many things. Finally I decided to visit the Haleakala Crater. I did plan on doing the day time tour but I got to reading so many reviews about the sunrise tour and somehow I managed to convince the others! So we are doing it. A 3am (or earlier) departure isn't really bothering me ( yet!) its just the coldness.

Temperatures can be as low as 2 degrees Celsius! Plus add in the wind and possible rain- what have we done! We've spent a week looking for thermal clothes to bring with us but where we live in Australia it doesn't really get that cold and there is nothing in the shops! I've Googled how to stay warm and what to bring and they've all said a down jacket - which isn't available in shops anywhere near here!

Here's the plan
• Jeans ( was bringing them anyway)
• Tights under the jeans ( was bringing them as relaxing clothes/ pyjamas)
• Long sleeve t shirt ( the thickest one I have)
• Cardigan ( was bringing one anyway)
• Hoodie ( was bringing it for the plane)
• Scarf, beanie and gloves ( will weigh nothing in my bag and take up no space)
• Bring a blanket from the ship ( hope they dont stop me!)

I'm also going to carry my camera and tripod with me. Am praying my hands dont freeze and I can still use all my equipment.

Originally it was just going to be myself doing the tour ( am going with NCL so everyone was happy I wasn't going to go by myself in the middle of the night) but then I showed my sister some photos and reviews and she decided to join me. Then we showed our dad and he decide to come, then my mum was going to be left by herself so she decided to come- yay! They wasn't impressed about the coldness or the departure time he he :)

Its going to be a crazy few days but hopefully it will be worth it!

Victoria- Great Ocean Road Trip- This size bus was perfect for us

Victoria- Great Ocean Road Trip- Nice country side

Victoria- Great Ocean Road Trip- Beautiful sunset

Victoria- Great Ocean Road Trip- The 12 Apostles 

Port of Call- Honolulu

I've been reading loads of cruise reviews for months now and have noticed something strange- well strange for Australians. It seems that lots of people do tours and activities on the first day of the cruise (the embarkation day) before getting to the port in the afternoon to check in and board the ship. This seems odd as this is not the norm on Australian ships. We usually start driving to the terminal at 9am and arrive at 10am to check in an wait. Its not just our family- its everyone. We all gather in the terminal waiting and waiting to be allowed on the ship. Boarding usually starts at 11am and everyone is on by 2pm at the latest. 

Another strange thing is the cabins aren't ready until the afternoon. That's the first thing we look at as soon as we board. I'm not knocking it, im just fascinated :)

With all that said and I think we are going to head to the terminal as soon as we can and get rid of our luggage. The Aloha Tower seems close by so maybe we'd go and check that out. 

We are super excited to cruise with a different cruiseline- after 9 cruises with P&O Australia we are ready for a change! 

Overseas Passanger Terminal- Sydney Australia

Portside- Brisbane Australia

Princess Ship going under the Sydney Harbour Bridge

Ship docked in Noumea New Caledonia

Why we are cruising

When we decided to go to Hawaii our first thought was to do a land based holiday with a few day trips to the other islands. I really wanted to visit Maui while the other wanted to see the Big Island. After researching these day trip and figuring out they were over $300 each to each island we soon began to search for other options. 

A 7 night cruse on the Pride of America seemed like the ideal cruise. Stopping at 3 different islands with 2 days in Maui and Kauai- perfect! And no days at sea! 

So without any delay we booked our cruise. We would have liked a balcony cabin but with so little time spent on the ship an outside obstructed room felt like a good choice not to mention very cost effective.

Cruising is the ideal way to travel. Food is included, its safe to walk around at night or by yourself, your cabin is only a few flights of stairs away, loads of people to talk to and something is always happening! 

We've done 9 cruises since 2004 so here are my tips

* The laundry room is great for unofficial news and gossip

• Start a conversation with people in lines or when waiting for the shows or activity to start

• Organise your clothes and day bag the night before- its loads easier waking up early when you know your camera is ready to go and your clothes are laid out

• Whenever you are in your room charge your camera batteries!

* If you plan on collecting the daily newspapers bring along a plastic sleeve. This will keep them neat and tidy in your luggage.

* Book your tours before you leave and seek out an alternative activity if it gets cancelled.

* Wait till the second last day to buy any photographs from the ships photographer- they often have specials that will save you money

*Bring a spare bag to store dirty clothes

* Wake up early to see the ship sail into port

• Always bring a light jacket for nights on the ship- the air conditioning can be really cold

Introduction

Well here we go. We have 216 very long days till our trip- the big one.

We originally started booking parts of this trip with about 600 days to go so at least we are now counting months not years.

This trip was booked to celebrate my younger sisters 21st Birthday. We looked at Orlando and New York before deciding on Hawaii. Lovely nice weather and very reasonably priced.

After much convincing we decided on a cruise and land combo holiday. We love cruising and have done 9 cruises as a family since 2004. We had planned about a week pre cruise and fly home pretty much straight after the cruise- a nice compact holiday.

Thanks to my constant googling I stumbled on a 2 for the price of 1 sale with the local budget airline. We had planned flying with Hawaiian Airlines. But the prices were too amazing to pass up so we booked it. This meant to take advantage of the ridiculously cheap airfare we would now be spending 10 nights pre cruise and 4 nights post cruise- 3 weeks total. Let the planning begin!

This blog is a way to keep my notes in order as well as posting my findings in relation to tours, food and stuff to do. Hope you like it!