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Food: An authentic Hawaiian meal at either Helena's on School Street or Ono's on Kapahulu (the former on the airport side of downtown, the latter on the Diamond Head side of Waikiki).
Shopping: Saver's thrift store on Dillingham or Goodwill on Beretania for aloha wear and occasional brand-name surf stuff. It's secondhand but is often a fraction of the cost is bought new. Also, if timing is right, the Aloha Bowl flea market.
Cultural: The Bishop Museum, followed by the Honolulu Academy of Arts.
With just 6 hours, though, and all the time to get in/out of the airport I think you're very limited. Would take as long to get to/from Waikiki on the 19/20 bus as you'd have to spend there.
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by RustyC:
With just 6 hours, though, and all the time to get in/out of the airport I think you're very limited. Would take as long to get to/from Waikiki on the 19/20 bus as you'd have to spend there.</font>
Not that bad. On one transfer, I managed to make it from HNL to Sam Choy's BL&C for breakfast, go to Waikiki to walk around, and catch a bus back from the park, and have an hour to spend in the NW lounge.
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Ok, here's my thoughts.
Traffic on a Friday afternoon from Downtown Honolulu to the airport can be dicey. If it should happen to be raining, even worse. So, for an 8 p.m. departure, I'd probably hit the road by 6 p.m., 6:30 at the latest.
Also, most places of culture, like the Bishop Museum close around 5 p.m.
So, will you be getting the most bang for your buck?
How about this - find your way into Chinatown. Up and down Maunakea Street are a bunch of flower shops - drop in on one and buy yourself some leis for the plane ride back to the mainland (I used to frequent Cindy's myself). There are a few small art galleries on Nu`uanu Avenue. The Hawai`i Theatre area has some small stores as well.
To eat, there is the great Indigo Restaurant across from the Hawai`i, Palomino's Grill, or several spots at the Aloha Tower Marketplace (or, again, Sam Choy's). Aloha Tower would be a great place to watch the sunset, as it's on the waterfront of Honolulu Harbor. It should not be a problem hailing a cab from any of these locations, and all are also convenient to TheBus.
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What would I do? Funny you should ask, because for the last couple of years my wife and I have scheduled our flights just so we could spend the last evening of our vacation watching the sunset while sipping Mai Tais at the House Without a Key, at the Halekulani hotel. (www.halekulani.com has menus for the HWAK) If you haven't been, this place is on the oceanfront, has a terrific view of Diamond Head, has nightly entertainment, and makes (IMHO) the world's best Mai Tai. The food is ok, nothing really special but not bad....but the setting is perfect for a last evening. We're doing it again in February, before catching an 11:00 flight back to winter in Washington.
Thanks for the ideas. I think we'll do the Bishop Museum and then head to either Dukes, House With Out a Key or Nick's Fishmarket for dinner.
Anyone know the price of a cab from the airport to Waikiki? Will probably take the BUS but would like to know the price of a cab in case we have too many Mai Tais and can't find the BUS.
[This message has been edited by philemer (edited 11-05-2003).]
I just did this a week and a half ago. Did the bus thing--$2.00 each way. The information station in the airport can give you a flyer showing the bus stops on a map.
Note that it gets dark early this time of year, and it's hard to see out of the busses after dark. I rode down to Waikiki, had a couple of hours to explore & eat dinner, then back to the airport.
A map of the area you're going to is recommended. I was a bit turned around getting off the bus, and ended up skipping the beach because I was unsure which direction to take.
Whatever you do, do something--you've got plenty of time, and don't want to spend it all at the airport there.
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by FlyinHawaiian: Traffic on a Friday afternoon from Downtown Honolulu to the airport can be dicey. If it should happen to be raining, even worse. So, for an 8 p.m. departure, I'd probably hit the road by 6 p.m., 6:30 at the latest.</font>
Agreed, agreed, agreed...
Wow you guys are quick!
Traffic is bad on the H-1 and viaduct these days especially with the number of cars on O'ahu significatly raising above the number of insects on the island... no joke.
Suggest you do leave at 6:30ish as well, however, the security lines at HNL have been horrible since 9/11 (depending on when you go).
Aloha Tower Marketplace is a great idea, Ala Moana is another one. Kalakaua might be a good idea as well.
I would def. suggest Sam Choy's Brkfst Lunch and Crab... great place. If you're in a rush, they have rush items on the menu that come out in 5 minutes or less... but if the three more upscale restaurants are what you're looking into, I'd say any of the three is your best bet, although Nick's Fishmarket (is what I think you're trying to say) might have slow service especially on a Friday night.
Speaking of which, if you're only staying for 6 hours, have you considered renting a car through Priceline? Might be something to look into -- especially if you'll be going from the Bishop Museum to Waikiki. You can probably rent for under $20 depending on the day and how well you can play the Priceline game (more info www.biddingfortravel.com)
Good luck and hope you have a great layover...
Now this gives me inspiration to build the "what to do with an x hour layover" website...
Thanks for the feedback. Yes, renting a car might be the most economical but it might be the most stressful too. I remember the traffic there from our visit 4 yrs. ago. And trying to find a parking spot in Waikiki -UGH!
Our flight leaves at 10:30 but I thought we should be back at the airport by 8:30 to be safe. That will give us about 6 hrs. Yes, Nick's Fishmarket is what I meant.
Someone who went to the FT PiP in Honolulu Oct.24/25 said they were disappointed in the dinner at Sam Choy's. I'm not sure which of the 2 Sam Choy's they went too. Isn't there one near Diamond Head?
Anyway, I'm sure it will all work out. No matter where we go we'll have a great time. Where's the best Mai Tai in Waikiki, slippahs?
On Nov 12 a cab from the airport to Waikiki was $32. I have to agree on the Mai Tai Bar. The mai tai is good and potent and they have the pineapple drinks in the pineapple.
Long Layover in HNL (4 hours) any ideas on what to do?
My sister has a long layover when she flys KOA - HNL (4 hours) before getting on a HNL-SMF (Sacramento) flight next April. She and her husband and 14 year old son are wondering if there's anything to do to escape the airport for awhile. Of course, they won't have a rental car. Any ideas?
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