I had the best of intentions for this post. I had wanted to share our Hawaii adventures with you while we were actually there. But with so much fun to be had, I just couldn’t find the time to sit down and write.
Instead, this post comes to you with a little help from my big explorer (the 5 year old). On the plane ride home, I asked him to tell me about his favorite parts of our trip. These are his recommendations:
1. EXPLORING THE GARDEN MAZE AT DOLE PLANTATION
The maze at Dole Plantation is the largest in the world and is also only one of a handful of permanent botanical mazes in the U.S. What makes it so fun for the kiddos is that there’s a challenge: Find eight stations throughout the maze and mark the stencil on your card.
It took some time and some help from the adults, but our explorers found them all.
Along the way, they also spotted beautiful Hawaiian flowers, butterflies and birds.
2. SWIMMING WITH THE FISHES AT HANAUMA BAY
As I mentioned in my post on 5 Ways to Explore Nature With Kids in Oahu, my kids aren’t quite water-savvy. So I was a little reluctant about heading to Hanauma Bay to swim with the fishes. And yet it made my son’s list!
For the big explorer, we bought a boogie board with a window inside.
My husband led him out to the reef to see fish. It was a simple, safe way to introduce him to marine life up-close and personal.
Dad also took the little explorer out to the shallow reef to see fish, which he seemed to enjoy. But he also loved hanging out at the shore chasing the tide and splashing away to his heart’s content.
3. MAKING LEIS AT WAIMEA VALLEY
This is one of those serendipitous activities that absolutely made our visit to Waimea Valley. The center provides loads of free activities that promote Hawaiian culture and I was happy we stumbled upon this one.
Educators from the center provided all the materials and easy-to-understand instructions to get us through the lei-making process. The big explorer chose flowers and greenery to help my friend make him his own lei. I’m glad he enjoyed it so much.
4. DISCOVERING THE RAINFOREST AT LYON ARBORETUM
Lyon Arboretum was probably my favorite part of our entire trip, so I was happy to hear it made my son’s list, too. He agreed that seeing such enormous trees was just “cool.” And although we decided that photos just can’t do it justice, I’ve gotta try:
This was our first visit to a tropical rainforest and I was simply awestruck. Trees so tall you can’t see the tops,
flowers so strange you can’t believe they exist
and sounds so bizarre you know you’re not alone.
5. PLAYING “GOOD GUY,” “BAD GUY” AT THE BISHOP MUSEUM’S SCIENCE ADVENTURE CENTER
The highlight of our trip to Bishop Museum was the Science Adventure Center. Not only could the kids walk inside a volcano, they could also play a little nature dress-up game.
Here’s how it works: You grab a creature costume, put it on, then decide if you’re one of Hawaii’s “good guys” (you help Hawaii’s existing ecosystem) or “bad guys” (you harm it).
I was surprised to see the kids not just enjoy trying on every single costume, but also ask us parents what made them a good guy or bad guy. This simple display gave us a priceless opportunity to talk about the precious balance of nature in Hawaii and beyond.
So there you have it. I’ll be posting more about each of the places we visited in upcoming weeks. I look forward to sharing our Hawaiian adventures with you.
@missionarymama: Sounds like you had a wonderful time in Oahu! I really wished we could have gone to the zoo & aquarium – maybe next time! 🙂
On a return trip from Asia we took our 8 children to Ohau and they all loved it too. We did each of the activities you listed too. We also gratly enjoyed the aquarium, the zoo and seeing China Man’s hat on the North Shore. For a large family like ours prices work best when we join as a family. So we were able to go unlimited to Waimea and the zoo…Love your blog!
Debi – this is a fantastic post! I love the pictures and everything you list here is exactly the kind of thing that my children love to do.<br /><br />Just like you, I always like to ask my children what they enjoyed most when we've been on a trip. I'm often surprised by their answers.<br /><br />I've to to see that rainforest some day!
Dawn, my 5 yo is very opinionated, so I almost feel like I don't have a choice about whether or not to ask for his thoughts! 🙂 We try to get him involved in the trip planning, too. All this in the hopes that the kids will know their opinion counts.
What great adventures… love the good guy bad guy interactive. It is always fun to hear what the kids liked best. Sometimes I am surprised by what they choose… good stuff!
Carolina, I'm actually already dreaming of future visits to other islands. I would love to visit Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island next.
So when you go to Hawaii it's nice to unplug a bit anyway, paradise just needs to be savored. And it sounds like you guys did just that. Great list! I'd like to make it to the arboretum on my next trip. We usually only get to spend a few days on Oahu, on our way to another island, so we still have lots to explore there.
Cat, you would definitely love Hawaii. It's a fantastic experience if you get the opportunity to go some day.<br /><br />Sharlene, just want to thank you for all the great posts you shared over on DoubletheAdventure. A lot of our activities were based on your reviews. And the Lyon Arboretum was just heaven (at least for me!). Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Sounds like the perfect trip! I am glad you all had so much fun. I still haven't done the Dole Maze. Next time….
Sounds like you had a great holiday. I'm definitely thinking about travelling to Hawaii now.
Daniele, Hawaii is a nature lover's paradise. It just feels good to be there. I hope you get to experience it some day, too. With your camera along, of course! 🙂
Looks like you had a wonderful time Debi! I would love to some day take my family there and experience it all first hand. It is really impressive that you asked your son's perspective on the trip. So many times we forget to get the children's perspective and they always have so much insight.
Jana, we did have an absolute blast. It's hard not to in Hawaii! 🙂 My friend & I tried with no success to find the name of that flower. I suppose it's fitting that such an unusual creation couldn't be found online or in any book.
Looks like you guys had soo much fun. I loved the rain forrest photos, and that pink flower. It was so different! I love the idea of the good guy bad guy museum. I wish there was somewhere local that did that. Now I just need to go to Hawii so I can see all of this for myself.