Outrigger Reef Hotel
Honolulu Hawaii
Island Of Oahu
In August of 1997, my husband and I stayed 2 nights at the Outrigger Reef Hotel on the island of Oahu in Honolulu Hawaii. It was our first stop on our 3 island adventure on our Hawaiian honeymoon. This hotel is a great value if you are looking for a standard accommodation that isn't going to break the bank. Since we were there over 10 years ago, the hotel has gone through a process of renovation. It seems that they are now calling the hotel Outrigger Reef (on the beach,) or Outrigger Waikiki On The Beach. The city atmosphere of Oahu is much different than touristy Maui and lush Kauai. The Outrigger Reef is a tower hotel and is located 9 miles from the airport. It is directly located on Waikiki Beach. It was a basic, beach front pool that was roomy, but didn't contain any special thrills. The pool area is currently being remodeled, so it will be interesting to see what the end results will be. The lobby has been changed and now includes a sit-down check-in desk. The rooms were remodeled in 2003. We had a small corner room when we were there. At the time we didn't care. We were young, it was just the two of us, and we were thrilled to be in Hawaii. The rooms are air conditioned and most offer ocean views. There are two restaurants. My favorite was the Shore Bird restaurant. It had an all-you-can-eat salad bar and grill your own steaks and fresh fish. There is also an Ocean House restaurant that served Pacific rim cuisine. There is also now a Starbucks Coffee. Across the street there were some shops, convenience stores, and a McDonald's. There is also now a new Waikiki Beach Walk that features numerous stores and restaurants. There is also the Outrigger Waikiki Shore which contains condos. If you choose to stay there, you can also use the amenities at the hotel. In the hotel there is also a spa. Besides the hotel being directly on Waikiki Beach, there is a wonderful view of Diamond Head.
When we visited Oahu, we visited Pearl Harbor and took the tour of the Arizona Memorial. We did not have a rental car on Oahu, so we booked a tour that picked us up at the Outrigger. Since we were still on central time, we took advantage of it and went on an early morning tour so that we would still have time the rest of the day to do other stuff. We only visited the Arizona Memorial and it was a great historical sight to see. Our tour director gave us a lot of history information and there is also a museum there to walk through to learn more. Many of the volunteers that work there are surviving veterans that were there when Pearl Harbor was attacked. You take a boat ride out to the sunken Arizona ship. There is a building built over the top of the wreckage. You can walk around and look down into the sunken Arizona. There is also a memorial wall with all the names of those who died. It is a very educational and interesting experience.
While on Oahu we also visited Hanauma Bay Nature Park. We have been there twice. Once in 1995 and once in 2000. We loved this place. It is a curved bay that is a protected marine life conservation area. There is a parking lot at the top and a long, paved walk that goes down to the beach. It is a fairly easy walk down, although I recommend riding the shuttle back up to the top, since it is steep. The park is handicapped accessible. The views are gorgeous. There is a large reef that is fairly protected by strong waves and fabulous snorkeling with abundant marine life. This was our first time snorkeling, and we were hooked forever. You used to be able to feed the fish, but it is no longer allowed. On our honeymoon, our tour guide had sold us a baggie of rabbit food to feed the fish. It was crazy how the fish quickly swarmed you and even jumped out of the water. There are lifeguards on the beach and there are picnic areas by the parking lot. Some rules have changed, since we have been there. It is now required that you watch an educational video about the bay, the marine life, and the conservation, before going down to the beach. The fees at Hanauma Bay are $5 per person, 13 years old and up. Children are free. It is $1 to park your car. It is also now $1 per person to ride the shuttle bus to and from the beach. There is also a concession stand by the entrance, restrooms, snorkel equipment rentals, lockers, and a gift shop. Both times we visited Hanauma Bay, there were people selling Hanauma Bay t-shirts outside the entrance of the park. These were some of the best t-shirts we ever found in Hawaii. Reasonably priced too. If you want to learn more about Hanauma Bay, visit www.hawaiiweb.com/html/hanauma_bay_beach.html
Someday, we will hopefully go back to the island of Oahu and revisit some of our favorite sights and explore many of the other places that the island offers.
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