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Honolulu recommendations

post #1 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:13pm
Thread Starter 
I'm going to Hawaii at the end of March for work stuff but I want to spend one extra day in Honolulu to see Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial. I can't get a good sense of how easy/expensive it is to get there from the Waikiki Beach area, which seems to be where all the hotels are. Any one been and can fill me in?
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post #2 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:16pm
Ha ha ha, fuck you. Nice.
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post #3 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:18pm
http://www.hawaiiactivities.com/us/h...sg/106/ag/8419
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post #4 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:20pm
Thread Starter 
Interesting, but I'm not really a tours kind of guy. I like to go it on my own. Have you been? Is it only tour buses that go to the Arizona?
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post #5 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:22pm
Honolulu is right on Waikiki beach. Like, as in, across the street.

I went for a hike through the jungle on the main mountain at the center of the island, and it was unbelievable. North Shore's pretty awesome as well. I spent most of my trip enjoying the seafood and the outdoors (along with a heart-wrenching trip to Pearl Harbor), so if those things sound appealing, you'll have a good time.
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post #6 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by devincf View Post
Is it only tour buses that go to the Arizona?
I went years ago, so I don't know how much it's changed, but no, we drove to the memorials, that much I recall.

You should PM Diva - she just went to Hawaii a few months ago.
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post #7 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:27pm
Originally from Honolulu. I can't recall how good the public transportation was for getting to the memorial, hence the tour suggestion. Run by the NPS, so open to the public (and not accessible solely by tour).

Here's the NPS link to the site. http://www.nps.gov/usar/

On the website, it lists directions. Toward the bottom are details for the buses that service the park site.
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post #8 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:27pm
You're really going to hate Honolulu. Well, unless you like ABC stores.
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post #9 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by LisaNY View Post
I went years ago, so I don't know how much it's changed, but no, we drove to the memorials, that much I recall.
Yeah, we borrowed a friend's car and drove there as well (1/2 hour+ on the highway from Honolulu if I remember correctly). The island's not huge, but you may wanna consider a car rental (or check a bus schedule).
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post #10 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Amphibatron View Post
You're really going to hate Honolulu. Well, unless you like ABC stores.
It rained the entire week I was there in November '03, and I still had a blast, you naysayer you. I talk about going back with my wife all the time.
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post #11 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:33pm
Thread Starter 
I'm only interested in doing Pearl Harbor. I am staying in Honolulu only to do Pearl Harbor. And I don't have a license.
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post #12 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DARKMITE8
It rained the entire week I was there in November '03, and I still had a blast, you naysayer you. I talk about going back with my wife all the time.
I'm specifically talking about the tourist hell of Honolulu and Waikiki beach. Nothing against the rest of Oahu. Kauai, though...fucking paradise. I'd move to Kauai permanently if I could.
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post #13 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:34pm
I was stationed there for a time while I was in the Army(I know, someones gotta take the rough tours) and we tended to go to the Arizona memorial and the USS Missouri a handful of times per year for re-enlistment ceremonies. The Missouri(where the WWII treaty was signed with Japan) is easy enough to get into but at the Arizona expect a good sized line and a long wait. Luckily we were able to skip the line since we got there at 6 before it opened but the line was already forming for the tourists. You have to take a boat over to the memorial site itself and since both the site and the boat dont hold many people its a long process.

The bus system in Hawaii is actually decent so that may be your best bet. The Arizona is part of the national park system so admission is free.
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post #14 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by thalasi View Post
I was stationed there for a time while I was in the Army(I know, someones gotta take the rough tours) and we tended to go to the Arizona memorial and the USS Missouri a handful of times per year for re-enlistment ceremonies. The Missouri(where the WWII treaty was signed with Japan) is easy enough to get into but at the Arizona expect a good sized line and a long wait. Luckily we were able to skip the line since we got there at 6 before it opened but the line was already forming for the tourists. You have to take a boat over to the memorial site itself and since both the site and the boat dont hold many people its a long process.
I didn't have any of those waiting problems (maybe I was there during the off-season?), but I did wish I had set aside more time for that excusion while I was in town. There's plenty to see there, and it's imperative to take your time absorbing it.

As an aside, it was a tad surreal to see such a large percentage of Japanese tourists there at Pearl Harbor. And yes, I'm fully aware that Hawaii has a large Asian population.
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post #15 of 29
2/29/08 at 6:58pm
My mom lived there for a few years. If you're interested in snorkling on a reef I could ask her the name of the place we went. It was really nice, and if I remember closeish to Pearl Harbor. The jungle hike Darkmite mentioned is pretty fantastic. The horse ride through the place where they filmmed Jurrasic Park was shitty. Really bad horses. Mine had a little fence around his mouth.
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post #16 of 29
2/29/08 at 7:00pm
Thread Starter 
All I am doing in Honolulu is Pearl Harbor.
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post #17 of 29
2/29/08 at 7:05pm
I don't think you can go snorkeling at Pearl Harbor.
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post #18 of 29
2/29/08 at 7:10pm
Too bad you don't have a license. Renting mopeds is easy in HI, and a fun way to get around.
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post #19 of 29
2/29/08 at 7:19pm
http://www.a8taxi.com/

But I'm fairly sure all the major hotels in Waikiki have cheaper in-house shuttles to/from there every couple of hours.
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post #20 of 29
2/29/08 at 7:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Amphibatron View Post
I don't think you can go snorkeling at Pearl Harbor.
No you can't. The place I was referring to was near-by.
And my recollection of Honolulu traffic is even worse then my recollection of L.A. traffic. I wouldn't recommend driving even if Devin had a license.
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post #21 of 29
2/29/08 at 7:43pm
I was just joking, Gabe. But I agree that driving in Honolulu is a nightmare.
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post #22 of 29
2/29/08 at 7:48pm
Ah, my sarcasm sensor was turned off. As was my "read what Devin wrote the first time fully before posting" censor.
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post #23 of 29
2/29/08 at 8:55pm
Devin, I was just there in December. Arrange something at your hotel and you should be fine; there are plenty of buses.

Do it early in the day. As was mentioned, the line gets long and they only issue a finite amount of tickets per day to visit the memorial. Get there late on a busy day and you're SOL.
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post #24 of 29
3/1/08 at 12:19am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Judas Booth View Post
Devin, I was just there in December. Arrange something at your hotel and you should be fine; there are plenty of buses.

Do it early in the day. As was mentioned, the line gets long and they only issue a finite amount of tickets per day to visit the memorial. Get there late on a busy day and you're SOL.
Perfect. Thanks.
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post #25 of 29
3/1/08 at 7:55am
And if there's any way you can swing it (if you have time, and if you can manage a short little commuter flight), head over to Maui. I can't recommend it enough - it's just beautiful.
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post #26 of 29
3/1/08 at 9:05am
try to avoid being white in the wainae area.
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post #27 of 29
3/1/08 at 12:49pm
My group didn't experience too long of a wait and we went early summer. If that's all you're doing then there shouldn't be any reason you'd get there late and you should be fine.

Be ready to feel feelings at that memorial. Enjoy yourself, that's a beautiful fucking state - every bit of it.

(If that is all your going to do, it will be plenty. If you did have extra time there is one pretty pertinent thing you could do. There is an interesting tour of one valley where they have filmed many a movie. In this valley are Godzilla's footprints, the golf course from lost, Mr. Miyagi's house, and some stuff from Jurassic Park. A few months after we visited it, Snakes on a Plane opened with a guy on a motorcycle driving on the road we took to get to it.)
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post #28 of 29
3/3/08 at 1:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Amphibatron View Post
I'm specifically talking about the tourist hell of Honolulu and Waikiki beach. Nothing against the rest of Oahu. Kauai, though...fucking paradise. I'd move to Kauai permanently if I could.
Truth. Honolulu is an overcrowded tourist trap.
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post #29 of 29
3/3/08 at 1:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by KaPabLe View Post
try to avoid being white in the wainae area.
Too true, too true. A friend of mine was mugged in broad daylight...and all they took was his cell phone (which didn't work) and his barracks room key, which didn't have a room number on it. You can't accuse Wainae muggers of being intelligent.
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