The last time we were in Hawaii, we were in our mid-20s. Despite a limited budget, we enjoyed our visits to Oahu, Maui and Kauai. 35 years later, we're now retired and have traveled throughout the world but, interestingly, never back to Hawaii. Our kids often asked why we took them to New Zealand, UK and France but never Hawaii!
On this return trip, we''re traveling to Hawaii via a cruise ship, round-trip from the mainland. This translates into nine days of at-sea transit and four single days to visit four islands. Not anywhere near the time we had to spend on the islands when we visited in 1979, but we think that this itinerary will give us time to see a few local sights and also a chance to observe some of the changes that have occurred over the years.
On Oahu, we're planning a hike up Diamond Head and then a visit to Doris Duke's estate, Shangri La. The Honolulu Museum of Art manages the estate tours. We enjoyed viewing Doris Duke's Roughpoint estate in Newport, Rhode Island, and thought this visit would allow us to see the Asian architectural and interior design influences on her island residence.
Other planned highlights on this trip include a visit to Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island, a hike to Twin Waterfalls on Maui and a visit to the McBryde National Botanical Garden on Kauai.
One advantage of a cruise to Hawaii from a California port terminal, is that, for Northern Californians, air travel can be avoided. Thus, luggage weight limits are not an issue and it is much easier to transport a few bottles of wine with us. In the past, we've shipped wine to a hotel at the embarkation port rather than in our check-in luggage. This generally works out fine, but the wine does have to be packed for rough handling. I recall retrieving one wine package from a hotel in which one bottle broke during shipping. Luckily, the shipper repackaged the remaining bottles and cleaned up the broken bottle and most of the evidence of the spilled wine.
As we progress during our cruise, we'll periodically post updates.
On this return trip, we''re traveling to Hawaii via a cruise ship, round-trip from the mainland. This translates into nine days of at-sea transit and four single days to visit four islands. Not anywhere near the time we had to spend on the islands when we visited in 1979, but we think that this itinerary will give us time to see a few local sights and also a chance to observe some of the changes that have occurred over the years.
On Oahu, we're planning a hike up Diamond Head and then a visit to Doris Duke's estate, Shangri La. The Honolulu Museum of Art manages the estate tours. We enjoyed viewing Doris Duke's Roughpoint estate in Newport, Rhode Island, and thought this visit would allow us to see the Asian architectural and interior design influences on her island residence.
Other planned highlights on this trip include a visit to Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island, a hike to Twin Waterfalls on Maui and a visit to the McBryde National Botanical Garden on Kauai.
One advantage of a cruise to Hawaii from a California port terminal, is that, for Northern Californians, air travel can be avoided. Thus, luggage weight limits are not an issue and it is much easier to transport a few bottles of wine with us. In the past, we've shipped wine to a hotel at the embarkation port rather than in our check-in luggage. This generally works out fine, but the wine does have to be packed for rough handling. I recall retrieving one wine package from a hotel in which one bottle broke during shipping. Luckily, the shipper repackaged the remaining bottles and cleaned up the broken bottle and most of the evidence of the spilled wine.
As we progress during our cruise, we'll periodically post updates.
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