The sun is shining, the sky is blue and, most importantly, the tide is low. Just 15 minutes from the shores of Kaneohe Bay, surrounded by the Koolau Mountains and its reef-protected waters, a literal slice of paradise reveals itself: The largest saltwater sandbar in the world. Because of its sprawling nature, the sandbar is […]
“This is a beast of a hike,” my friend says, as he slathers his face with sunscreen, the tinted kind that leaves streaks on your skin like war paint. I’m not easy to sunburn, but he tosses me the bottle anyway, a suggestion to rub in a little more than I already have. After all,
Photographer and hiking enthusiast, Mike Karas, knows a thing or two about this scenic, out-and-back hike to Crouching Lion. Why do so many love it? The hike is “doable for novices, average hikers and people who have hiked a little bit before,” Karas says. “Most fitness levels could manage the effort and hike up.” Located
Sure, you’re on vacation, and have been dreaming of relaxing on a white-sand beach with a shave ice in hand. But, vacationing in Hawaii doesn’t mean you have to abandon your exercise routine. Local tried-and-true running routes can be found all around Waikiki, within walking (or warm up) distance of many hotels. Ala Wai
The Aiea Loop trail is a popular hike along Halawa Valley in south central Oahu. You’ll see everyone on this hike, from small children and bounding dogs to trail runner and elderly hikers with walking sticks. We also saw a group of mothers, carrying their young children in hiking carriers. The 4.8-mile loop, although long, is
Cocktail menus across the Islands are abundant with rum: lava flows, Blue Hawaiis and the iconic mai tai. If you want to try top notch, locally made rum and learn how it’s made in an intimate setting, visit Manulele Distillers. It’s situated in the central plains of Oahu in Kunia, which was once a thriving
To inhale a butter-and-garlic sautéed shrimp plate lunch or sip a Tropi-Kale smoothie? That is the question. Kahuku Farms’ roadside farm café—home of the aforementioned smoothie, made with kale, apple banana and vanilla grown on adjacent acreage—sits just outside its namesake town on Oahu’s Windward Coast. It looks friendly enough, its bright yellow façade presenting
It’s 10 a.m. on a sunny Saturday at Kalaeloa Beach Park. Early in the day for resident beachgoers who, on most afternoons, flock to this lovely, hidden stretch of white sand in the backyard of one of Oahu’s largest industrial parks. Not so early for overnight campers already firing up small barbecue grills and popping
We weren’t even three minutes into the craggy dirt roadway to Kaena Point Natural Area Reserve when one of our companions busted a tire on his bicycle. A not-exactly welcome, if unexpected chance to absorb my surroundings. It was the first time in years I had been on the coastal trail traversing remote Kaena Point,
There’s no better time to venture to Oahu’s North Shore than in the winter months. Sure, there’s more traffic along Kamehameha Highway, as drivers gawk at the enormous waves that pound the shoreline. And sure, the neighborhood cafes and hole-in-the-wall lunch spots are packed with visitors who have fled colder climes for Hawaii’s perfect weather.
It’s not a coincidence that manoa, in Hawaiian, means “vast.” Not only is this lush valley on Oahu’s south shore immense in physical size — extending from the emerald peaks of the Koolau Mountains to the coral reefs off Waikiki — but its history, its culture, its people and its offerings are vast, too. A
So you’re on Oahu, on vacation, and indulging in our incredibly diverse and delicious local dining scene. Chicken katsu. Macaroni salad. Hawaiian plate lunches (with laulau, kalua pig, lomi salmon, poi, haupia, etc.). Ahi and tako poke. Multiple stops at the garlic shrimp trucks. Malassadas. Lunchwagons. Want to burn some calories—so you can keep eating
