When our family travels, we love to try the local favorites with a side of tourist attractions. The east side of Ohahu has so many beautiful places to enjoy a good meal, stop for a tasty snack, go on an adventure, or just relax.
There’s truly something for everyone, every mood, and every personality in your family to enjoy.
In this post, I’ll be sharing some of our family’s favorite local and tourist attractions. Let’s go!
Lunch: Adela’s Country Eatery
Okay, this place is amazing. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
Adela’s Country Eatery is known for its handmade noodles, which locals and tourists alike, have come to know as Hawaiian pasta. These noodles come in a variety of flavors made from Hawaii-grown produce, including local Ulu, Taro, Okinawan Sweet Potato, Moringa, and Avocado.
Our favorite dishes are the lechon (pork belly) malunggay pasta pictured below, teriyaki braised short ribs (my son’s fave), and the local fried rice with ham, Portuguese sausage, bacon, topped off with two eggs (my daughter’s fave).
Their motto is, “Always fresh. Always local.” They should add, “Always good.” Although this is a takeout restaurant, it is NOT fast food. You do need to order ahead or order at the register. After you pay, they give you a number and tell you to come back in 30-40 minutes, sometimes more depending on what time of day you decided to come.
And if you love dessert, try one of their cheesecakes. The owner will say, “It’s the best on the island.” We’ll leave that up for you to decide, but we think the mango and ube cheesecakes are pretty tasty!
Once your order’s up. It’s on to the next spot to chow down!
Rest: Hoʻomaluhia Botanical Garden
Now that you have your lunch, you need a place to eat it. We highly recommend driving 10 minutes to the Ho’omaluhia Botanical Garden. It’s free to enter and park. Enjoy your savory meal under a canopy of trees and the sound of exotic birds chirping. You’ll be in heaven until you get bit by a mosquito, so don’t be like us and go without bug spray! We’ve lived to tell the story.
After you eat a third of your lunch, because you will have a lot left, I’m not joking, each plate is like three meals in one, take a walk through the gardens. Stroll down the trail to the lake and take some photos. It’s the perfect spot for a photo opp.
The walk to the lake is paved part of the way until it’s not. Be safe as you walk on the dirt trail, especially if it just rained. It can be slippery, so be cautious. I almost fell a few times. Also, take shoes or sandals, you don’t mind getting roughed up. If you do get dirty, don’t worry, they have a spot to clean your feet. Make sure you bring plenty of towels to dry off.
As you enter the garden, proceed with caution. Despite the many no-camera signs planted on the side of the road, I managed to miss them. You’d think I’d listen to the pleas of my husband and kids, but no. It wasn’t until I got hit with a branch full of lush leaves that I finally stopped recording, at least until the signs were gone. Oh well, it made for a fun family memory and video.
Snacks: Wholesale Unlimited
I don’t know about you, but when I’m on vacation I’m always hungry. After that beautiful walk to the lake, and back, because you have to walk back, our stomachs were talking again. It was the perfect time to visit Wholesale Unlimited. Wholesale Unlimited has been around since 1965 and sells all of Hawaii’s favorite snacks, mostly candy, and cookies by Betty’s Best.
So what are our favorite snacks? Hands down, Hurricane Popcorn in a bag is our ultimate family favorite. If you’ve never had this delicious treat, it’s a local mix of popcorn, furikake (Japanese dry seasoning with sesame seeds, seaweed, and other good stuff), Arare (Japanese crackers) & butter 😋.
We were sad that we waited until we got home to eat it. Had we known that it was that good, we would have brought more home. We’ve had the unpopped Hurricane Popcorn before, but the ready-to-eat bag was amazing. And the best part is, you just have to open the bag and start eating!
Of all the candies we bought, the one I chose for my husband and me to share was everyone’s favorite. Cue the mouthwatering goodness for li hing sour watermelon gummies! What’s your favorite Hawaiian candy?
Adventure: Kualoa Ranch Jurassic Adventure Tour
If adventure is what you seek, look no further than Kualoa Ranch. Kualoa Ranch is a private nature reserve with a rich history and many adventures for you and your family to enjoy.
From horseback riding, to zip lining, ocean adventures, and a Jurassic Adventure Tour, there’s sure to be an activity to get your adrenaline pumping or a story to pique your curiosity. Plus, it’s fun to spot some of the locations where Hollywood’s iconic movies were filmed like, 50 First Dates, Godzilla, Jumanji – Welcome to the Jungle, and of course a few of the Jurassic Park films.
This activity, and others like it on the ranch, will require that you plan ahead, book a reservation in advance, and have the flexibility in your budget to splurge, but it’s all worth it.
I’ll let the photos speak for themselves here.
Relax: Be a Kid & Skip Rocks at Kualoa Regional Park
After a long day, it’s nice to just relax, kick rocks, and just look out into the ocean. This is exaclty what we did at Kualoa Regional Park, but instead of kicking rocks, we skipped rocks on the shore.
I loved seeing the kid’s faces light up as they made their rocks skip two, sometimes three times. They laughed when either of us just chucked the rock straight into the water with no bounce.
These moments seem to be my favorite. When we’re able to have fun practically doing nothing but enjoying one another’s company. My son even said,
“I love getting dirty and playing like a kid again.”
It stopped me in my tracks because I loved that he said it and felt it, but I was also sad because it took him our vacation to feel that way. Why couldn’t we feel more like this at home?
In a screen-filled world where instant gratification is the norm, we forget to let our kids, and ourselves for that matter, just be bored.
I loved growing up in the 80s, running around, and riding bikes until the street lights went on. I feel like we need to create this atmosphere for our kids. I know they’re living in a different world, and I don’t want them to have the exact same childhood as I did, but I do want them to just be kids.
I’m vowing to be more intentional about getting out while at home. Not waiting for a vacation to “be a kid” just like I don’t want my husband and I to feel like we need to “escape” from our lives at home. I want it all to be beautiful and joyful, despite the circumstances.
Your Turn
Now it’s your turn and we want to know…Are any of these places calling your name?
What’s your favorite way to vacation? Do you love to rest and relax? Or are you always up for an adventure?
Let us know in the comments below.
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