We have officially been on our first family vacation and out of all places, we decided to go to Waikiki! This is Madison’s second commercial flight and Maya’s first. The anxiety of traveling with toddlers was up the roof, I’m not going to lie. But we survived and had an amazing time.
Toddler Essentials
One thing I have learned about toddlers in the past 3 years is that if you give them a couple of new goodies, this will keep them entertained for a good while. If you haven’t read my old blog about the Busy Bag, you definitely should. Especially if you will be traveling soon. I made these for the girls and incorporated some of their favorite things at the moment and that was a hit! The long 5.5-hour flight from LAX to HNL was a breeze with their busy bag and of course their tablets. We downloaded a few of their favorite apps and movies. Between all of those things they pretty much just chilled. Our flight back home was a whole different story. They were so exhausted that they actually slept the whole way but just in case we had all the basics on us plus maybe a few gummies for bribery.
Accommodations
We stayed right Downtown of Waikiki at the ‘Ilima Hotel. It’s centrally located only 2 blocks from the beach. We absolutely loved this hotel! Our room was very spacious with two beds, a full kitchen, tv, Wi-Fi and the best part was that it included parking. It is first come first serve so be aware. The staff was amazing as well! They were very friendly and had a lot of great recommendations.
Things to Do
Since we were right in the center of Waikiki we mostly walked everywhere. We hung out at the beach most of the time just because we really wanted this trip to be as easy and relaxing for all four us. We did venture out to North Shore on our last day. They have some of the best food trucks there. Especially if you’re into seafood. Then we went to get some shave ice from Matsumoto’s. This was actually recommended by a lot of people. It honestly did live up to its hype! The line was a little long but totally worth it. And if you’re up for a nice hike I highly recommend Diamond Head. The view from the top is everything!
Overall this trip was the perfect way to start our spring! My girls had the time of their lives and just seeing their happiness was totally worth it! Steven and I can’t wait to plan another family trip. Hopefully this time it will be more of an international trip. Stay tune for that!
