Oahu, Hawaii, is a busy yet beautiful Hawaiian island with a lot of things to see and do.  Soak in the culture at a luau, swim in a waterfall, hike a crater, explore the laid back vibe of the North Shore, catch a wave on Waikiki Beach, and pay your respects at Pearl Harbor.  With one week on Oahu, you can keep as busy as you like, although you may also just want to relax with a Mai Tai under a palm tree, too!

Oahu, Hawaii is the most populated of the four main Hawaiian islands:  Oahu, Maui, Kauai, and Hawaii (also known as The Big Island).  Oahu is home to the capital of the state of Hawaii, Honolulu, and holds about 70% of the state’s population.   While Oahu is busier than the other islands it has great shopping and restaurants, iconic hotels, and a plethora of things to see and do.  

Oahu’s location within the Hawaiian islands

Where We Stayed

We stayed at Disney’s Aulani Resort in Ko Olina with one night spent at the Royal Hawaiian in Waikiki.  We loved our stay at Aulani as it was very family friendly yet not overkill Disney.  There were a few Disney touches here and there but mostly the excellent service is what we were after.  Here, we had a one-bedroom villa with a king size bed in the bedroom, queen size pull out sofa bed, and single pull down bed in the living room.  The room also had a full kitchen and washer and dryer.  These amenities are great for families and we definitely appreciated the space.  We actually have a full article with our review on our stay at Aulani:  Full Review of Disney’s Aulani Resort.

We stayed at the Royal Hawaiian for our final night before we flew out the next day.  With a totally different vibe than Aulani, the Royal Hawaiian is historically beautiful.  It is known as the “pink palace” due to its iconic pink exterior.  In fact, we could pick out The Royal Hawaiian from our view on top of Diamond Head Crater!  Here, we had two rooms with very comfortable beds.  We loved all the carefully curated historic aspects of the hotel and the old Hawaiian bungalow feel.  Steps from Waikiki Beach, we had a blast boogie boarding and rolling in the waves.  It was great to have experienced both places.

When We Went

Mid-June.  The weather was warm with a lovely breeze.  The Hawaiian weather is just amazing!

In the map below, I pinpoint all the stops we made.  I traveled with my kids as well as my 12-year-old nephew.  Mike had to stay back this trip due to work conflicts.  This itinerary was perfect for the older kids and we had the best time! 

Above is a map of Oahu with all our locations, listed in the itinerary:

• Purple Markers – Aulaini Resort in Ko Olina and Royal Hawaiian in Waikiki
• Red Marker – Ka’Wa Luau at the Aulani Resort
• Blue Marker – Waikiki Beach
• Yellow Marker – Diamond Head Crater
• Teal Marker – Pearl Harbor
• Green Markers – Our stops on the North Shore

DAY 1:

• Travel Day

Traveling to Hawaii from the US is a long trip.  In fact, at this point it was our longest flight to date!  We traveled from Louisville, KY to Atlanta, GA and then direct to Honolulu.  The second flight was just under ten hours.  It is worth the trek to get to paradise!

I pre-booked a shuttle with Hele Hele Shuttle to our resort, Aulani.  Once we had our luggage in hand, we met our greeter who took us out to the shuttle and then it was off to Aulani.

I had already checked in at Aulani on the app so securing our room key was a quick process.  We unpacked and settled in before checking out the resort to get a lay of the land.  It was beautiful! 

Disney’s Aulani Resort, a beautiful place to stay on Oahu

For dinner, we grabbed pizza and salad from Ulu Café and took it over to what we called Sunset Point.  In front of Aulani, follow the path to the left until you get to the grassy area.  We enjoyed our picnic dinner on our first night here in paradise while watching the glorious Hawaiian sunset.

The most beautiful grassy area for a picnic

Enjoying a pizza picnic

And a beer!

DAY 2:

• Resort Day
• Dinner:  Monkeypod

Today was a resort day.  Water slides, lazy river, swimming pools, and the beach!

One of the pools

The lazy river

Still on east coast time, we were up at 4 am!  We were ready for breakfast at 6:30 when Ulu Café opened. 

We watched the beautiful sunrise on the beach after breakfast.  

Good morning, Hawaii

Today was all about the resort amenities.  We swam in the ocean, enjoyed the pools, rode the slides, floated in the lazy river, and of course indulged in shaved ice and Dole Whip!

Aulani

For dinner, we headed across the street from Aulani Resort to Monkeypod, located in the Ko Olina Center.  It was delicious!  After dinner, we checked out a few of the shops.  Then it was back to Aulani for an early bedtime.  

Back to Aulani

Having a low key day after arrival is something I almost always try to plan.  With traveling and jet lag it is nice to not have major plans and get the lay of the land on the first full day.

DAY 3:

• Oahu’s North Shore

Oahu’s North Shore beckons travelers away from the hustle and bustle of their resorts and the busier parts of the island such as Waikiki and Honolulu.  We had a full day planned!

The first stop of the day was securing our rental car.  Aulani has a rental car company on site, Enterprise.  I had pre-booked our car before we left home so we would have our own wheels for exploring.

We were out the door at 7:40 am and joined others in the rental car line.  I wanted to get an early start to the day, as did several others as I was the fifth party in line.  By 8:20 am I had our car keys in hand and we hopped in to our jeep to explore the North Shore.

Our first stop was Waimea Valley & Falls.  We explored the cultural and historical sites as well as the amazing botanical gardens along the way. 

Beautiful Waimea Valley

It rained during our visit but the rain did not take away from the experience.  In fact, it made it that much more enchanting!  We loved swimming in the falls as the water was very refreshing!

Braden & Ava in Waimea Falls

From here, we headed to Shark’s Cove about one mile to the east of Waimea Valley.  We were met with one of the most beautiful and unique beaches we had ever seen!  Volcanic rocks tumble down from the shore into the cove.  This not only keeps the water warm but is a haven for marine life.  We explored the cove and snorkeled for about an hour. 

Beautiful Shark’s Cove

At this point we were ready for lunch!  It was time to hit some food trucks which are iconic in Hawaii.  We headed to Surf N Salsa as I can never pass up Mexican food and this one was highly rated.  It was ah-mazing!  Seriously, those of us that got Surf N Salsa all agreed it was the best Mexican we ever had! 

Delicious Mexican fare from Surf N Salsa

Drake got Korean BBQ and loved every bite! 

Yummy Korean BBQ food truck

After lunch, we stopped at Kaimana for dessert and then headed to North Shore Marketplace for some shopping.

Kaimea, yummy shaved ice after lunch

North Shore Marketplace has great shops with friendly shopkeepers. 

North Shore Marketplace

After a little bit of shopping, we grabbed a cold brew coffee from the Coffee Gallery and drove about one hour back to our resort. 

Want to read a more in-depth guide to our North Shore Day?  Read that post, here:  One Perfect Day on Oahu’s North Shore.

DAY 4:

• Diamond Head Crater
• Ka Wa’a Luau

We were up early again for a 7:00 am departure with our rental car.  Destination:  Diamond Head Crater! 

We have an in-depth article on planning, logistics and our experience at Diamond Head Crater, which you can read here:  All About Hiking Diamond Head Crater.

We reached Diamond Head at about 7:50 am which great timing for our 8:00 am time entry slot.  The hike took us about 30 minutes, from the parking lot to the summit.  The views are incredible and definitely worth the uphill hike in the hot sun. 

A steep hike takes you up to the top of the crater

Incredible views of Honolulu from the top of Diamond Head Crater

Looking down at the crater rim – the white building is where the parking lot is

Diamond Head Lighthouse

We stopped off for famous Leonard’s Malasadas at the Leonard’s Malasadsmobile Wagon.  We followed these delicious treats by getting gas and vacuuming sand out of our rental car.  Then it was back to Aulani to turn the rental car in to the valet.

We enjoyed a few hours of beach, swimming, and pool time.  Then we had a special evening planned, the Ka Wa’a Luau, at the Aulani Resort.

The luau was incredible.  Disney does everything well!  The story telling and show was amazing and the food delicious. 

We enjoyed our evening taking in the beautiful Hawaiian culture. 

Such beautiful and exciting dances to share Hawaiian culture

DAY 5:

• Pearl Harbor

We spent the morning working out, eating, and swimming.  Mid-day it was time to get ready for a visit to Pearl Harbor.

We have an in-depth article on visiting Pearl Harbor which includes pertinent planning info and what to know before you go:  Visiting Pearl Harbor – Helpful Information for your Visit.

On December 7, 1941, the Japanese launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, decimating the base and much of the fleet.  Over 2400 servicemen and women perished that day.  The attack on Pearl Harbor catapulted the United States into World War II.

Ava and Drake at Pearl Harbor

During our visit, we watched the USS Arizona Documentary, visited the museums, and honored those lives lost at the USS Arizona Memorial. 

The USS Arizona Memorial

The visit to Pearl Harbor is a very moving experience, especially visiting the USS Arizona Memorial.

DAY 6:

• Waikiki

We had one more full day in Oahu and it was off to Waikiki.  We moved from Aulani to the Royal Hawaiian located right on Waikiki Beach.

The Royal Hawaiian

What a different vibe!  Waikiki is busy, bustling, and full of life.  No laid back vibes here! 

Busy Waikiki Beach

We rented bookie boards while on Waikiki Beach and had a blast! 

Boogie boarding in Waikiki

The waves kept rolling and would either throw you onto shore or roll you along the water.  We swam for a few hours before heading up to get ready for the evening.

Waikiki has great shopping including luxury stores and other shops such as Aloha and Honolulu Cookie Company.  The streets were very busy with people everywhere and live music blasting from speakers.

Bustling Waikiki

After shopping, we caught one last sunset in Hawaii.

Waikiki Beach

We were ready for dinner and ate at Mai Tai at The Royal Hawaiian.  I had to get a Mai Tai as it was invented here! 

Mai Tai at the Royal Hawaiian:  good food, great music, fabulous Mai Tais!

It was every bit as delicious as I had imagined!  Enjoying it under the tiki torches beachside was an amazing way to end the trip.  Throw in live music featuring ukulele and we had the perfect end to a wonderful trip to Oahu.

DAY 7:

Travel day home!