What do I HAVE to see/experience in Honolulu before I leave?

What have you already done?

deep sea turtles….maui wowie..just because they dont snorkel, doesnt mean they should knock you out of it.

They may like a little snorkel action.

The ocean. It would really be a pity to go to Hawaii and not see the ocean.

http://www.dukeswaikiki.com/

Someone suggested Dukes long ago before we visited the islands. We had a few days in Honolulu and Dukes was one of the highlights. Go outside terrance and nice views of the beach.

If you have time…go to Polynesian Cultural Center on the eastern side of the island and drive up to North Shore…and drive straight in middle of the island to visit Dole Plantation to experience a bit of different parts of the islands.

The Waikiki strip has fabulous shopping.
Diamond Head
Pearl Harbor
Honolulu Screamer

Seconding Diamond Head. Just bring lots of water.

@lilikoi – Went to a luau, did some shopping at Ana Moana and went to Honolulu zoo.

USS Arizona

@cfrydj Thanks…...... any beach in particular?

@Jill_E Is Duke’s a restaurant?

@lostinyoureyes

How long are you going to be here?

Dukes is a restaurant. Yelp it. They are a huge tourist attraction. The food is mediocre. The exception is the salad bar that comes with dinner. The caesar salad is good but I make it better. The bar scene is good if you like hanging out with other tourists, they can have good live music, their happy hour specials used to be a good deal, their breakfast bar has so much potential but was a huge disappointment for me.

@lostinyoureyes

Here are some ideas in no particular order:

Hike diamond head, manoa falls

Take a walking tour of Downtown; hiking books and guide books for Oahu print a suggested route.

Bishop Museum

Arizona Memorial (but I went a couple weeks ago and they were closed due to construction)

Brasserie Du Vin, Meditteraneo, Yama’s Fish Market, Side St Inn, Murphy’s, Nico’s @ Pier 38, Jimbo’s (make their own noodles), Haleiwa Eats are a few of my favorites.

Liliha Bakery’s cream puffs and Leonard’s malasadas are local favorites (but are overrated so don’t get too excited).

Hanauma Bay for snorkeling; if you are fit you can do the koko crater hike in the same day – they are right next to each other

Waikiki

Waikiki Aquarium (the Natatorium is right next to it, and is the focus of decades of debate)

Stadium swap meet (W and Sa)

Kapiolani Community College’s Saturday morning farmer’s market

Kailua town has lots of cute shops; Byodo-in Temple, Ulupo Heiau, there are a couple of other attractions along the windward side of the island going in that direction – consult a guide book for all the info.

I won’t divulge my favorite beaches because there are way too many people there already.

the Polynesian Cultural Center is really awesome but make sure you have the whole day, because it is giant and theres is lots to do. i also suggest that you stay for the luau and show. if you want a taste of what the locals eat the go to zippy’s there everywhere so its not to hard to find. one other thing is that if your into shopping the go to the swap meet in the football stadium parking lot.

Iolani Palace… The only Royal Palace in the US… The golden statue of King Kamehameha is across the street from it… Chinatown has great and cheap food.

Dukes and Pearl Harbor.
There is so much history to see at Pearl, the Arizona Memorial, they have a movie to see and a submarine as well. Make sure you go over to Ford Island and check out the Missouri.

I forgot what we ordered for food at Dukes..

But we didn’t forget the views and the atmopshere. And on the walls they have history of surfing. It is a fun surfy environment. There is another restaurant in Malibu, CA. Only two of a kind I believe.

They did have good drinks. We forgot what we ordered. But the drinks plus being outside plus middle of Waikiki.

If you have time…the North Shore beach is fun to look at. and drive by..and there is shaved ice stands nearby. It is where Lost is being filmed. Nature and not much people when we visited in March. I am sure it is busy in the summertime.

@Jill_E Duke’s is part of a larger chain called TS Restaurants. There are 3 Duke’s – CA, Waikiki, and Kalapaki Beach on Kaua’i. The Kaua’i one is the best by far. There are other restaurants in the same chain but the only one I can recall is Hula Grill.

The north shore is good, but be prepared for insane traffic.