Episode 27: A Local’s Guide to Visiting Hawai‘i

Mary Herendeen:

Imagine being nearly 10,000 feet in elevation and walking through stark volcanic landscapes and subtropical rainforests to experience a rare and sacred landscape with the most amazing views and blue sky. You might be wondering, “Where is this magical place and how do I get there?” It's called Haleakalā National Park, located on the Hawaiian island of Maui. That's right, folks, we are heading back to the Hawaiian Islands.

Welcome to Traveling With AAA, I'm your host, Mary Herendeen. Today, we are joined by the editor of Hawai‘i Magazine, Kevin Allen, locally grown on the sandy surfer shores of O‘ahu's North Shore. Kevin graduated from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, where he was the features editor of the university's newspaper. Now living in Honolulu, Kevin likes to spend his off hours surfing and playing music with friends. Aloha Kevin, we're honored to have you with us today.

Kevin Allen:

Aloha. Thank you so much for having me, Mary.

Mary:

We're really excited. I know Hawai‘i has always been a traveler's favorite, and I'm wondering with the pandemic and everything, has tourism to the state returned to pre-pandemic levels? And how are Hawai‘i residents responding to that?

Kevin:

Tourism has absolutely come back since the pandemic. It was very slow for a little bit, which was actually a very interesting time for Hawai‘i residents. Someone who's lived in Hawai‘i has never seen the islands without visitors, so it was really surprising and just a different view for us when people weren't here, but people have definitely come back. We have all of our visitors back except the Japanese market has yet to return fully; they're still kind of trickling in. I know there are a couple more regulations that they have to get through. But we're definitely seeing a lot of our travelers back from North America and from internationally like Europe.

Mary:

I know you've mentioned that it was a really odd time not having visitors. What's the importance to Hawai‘i residents of having those visitors, and then also that delicate balance between visiting and enjoying their time, but also honoring and respecting the Hawaiian culture?

Kevin:

Yeah, it's really important. I think since the pandemic when things were shut down, a lot of residents were really able to see what it was like without visitors and see a lot of things were healing and were very quiet. Now that we've reopened, there are a lot of systems that have been put into place to emulate that healing and quiet again, especially for the culture, but also for the natural environment.

For example, they actually put together a new system where they take reservations for one of the most popular parks and hikes in Hawai‘i, the Kalalau Trail, which is in Hā’ena State Park. They actually limit the amount of visitors that can come into the park every day to help with some of the negative aspects of over-tourism. Too many people on a trail will lead to a lot of trail degradation, so this was actually a government and state response to that problem.

That's just one example of how we're trying. We definitely want visitors back; we love our visitors, but we're just trying to control it a little bit better.

Mary:

Yeah, that sounds important here with our national parks as well. We've seen a lot of reservation systems put into place just to help with overcrowding, with social distancing, things like that.

What are some of the other things that people can be aware of when they're travel planning to do that responsibly and more consciously?

Kevin:

I think there are definitely a lot of cases where people come into some maybe more sacred sites. There are public temples that people can go to and these native Hawaiian relics, and I think just being really conscious of where you're stepping, looking, and what you're touching is probably the most important thing.

We also have the saying, “Just take photos.” Don't take anything else. Don’t take lava rocks. Don't take things from the ground, and just leave footprints. Don't leave trash. Always remember to pick up your trash. Something that we always like to promote is that even if you're going on a hike, or you're doing something, going to the beach—maybe take a small trash bag with you, and if you can, just pick up a couple pieces of trash while you're there. That'll help if everyone does that, that'll help keep Hawai‘i beautiful because that's why people love coming to Hawai‘i.

Mary:

Right. I opened talking about the beautiful views, landscape, and all of those things, but that can easily be destroyed with a lot of visitors and not being responsible or aware of what they're leaving when they go.

Now, as travelers are gearing up for their plans, could you tell us about some of the latest developments, maybe some new attractions or restaurants that travelers can visit?

Kevin:

Absolutely, I was actually just on Kaua‘i and there was a wonderful hotel that just opened that I recently stayed at. It's called the 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay, and this is right on the North Shore of Kaua‘i. There used to be an older hotel there called the Princeville Resort, which was one of the nicest hotels on Kaua‘i, and so this hotel opened in that location—and as we were talking about views—it has a fantastic view of the North Shore, the coast, the mountains.

Touching back on the sustainability aspect of travel, 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay definitely pushes a lot of sustainability initiatives. Even from the construction of their hotel, they've used a lot of recycled materials and a lot of materials from the old hotel. All of the activities, the culinary aspects, it's all about sourcing locally and using what they have on hand which is a really hard thing to do on Kaua‘i because the island is really small. There are not a whole lot of natural resources to actually use, but they really use everything that they can in a really wonderful way. So, if you're looking for an interesting accommodation, I absolutely can recommend 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay. It was a wonderful, wonderful stay.

If we're talking about food, my associate editor and editor-at-large both checked out this place called Waikīkī Stix in Waikīkī on Oʻahu.

Waikīkī is actually really cool. It's a very electric city; there's a lot of energy happening in Waikīkī all the time. This is an underground food hall that used to be a ramen food hall—all Japanese ramen and really good noodle dishes—that unfortunately closed due to the pandemic. Unfortunately, a lot of businesses ended up closing due to the pandemic, so we are seeing a lot of new businesses open up in those places, like Waikīkī Stix. However, Waikīkī Stix is not just Japanese ramen, they actually cover a lot of Asian influences like Filipino, Vietnamese, Japanese as well, but also Korean. They have a lot of different Asian dishes there, which I think is really great because Hawai‘i is really this melting pot of cultures, especially Asian influences. During the plantation era when we had a lot of immigrants coming here, a lot of them were coming from Asian countries so it's a really a great place to taste what Hawai‘i has to offer because that really is indicative of Hawai‘i's culture.

Mary:

I'm a foodie, so it sounds great. Now, you said it's underground, so are we talking about literally underground? Or are we talking about speakeasy underground? Where can I find it?

Kevin:

No, it's not hard to find. Yeah, it's a food court under one of the major shopping centers.

Mary:

OK, so no one is going to keep me out.

Kevin:

Right. You did bring up a speakeasy though, and I did want to bring up one speakeasy that I recently visited for a story in our upcoming issue. It's called The Lei Stand, and this one is also on O‘ahu; it's downtown, our Chinatown district, which is a really great district because there's so much art and culture there. People always say that Chinatown is where the locals go to hang out. Waikīkī is where a lot of the visitors go because a lot of the hotels are there, and it's just really geared towards visitors, but the locals love Chinatown.

The Lei Stand is actually a speakeasy. On the front, it looks like it's an old mom-and-pop lei stand, which was really common in that area. There are a lot of those old lei stands there, but if you go inside, pass the doors and then in this little doorway, you open up into this really beautiful bar and lounge area that does craft cocktails and elevated bites. It's not a pumping club full of 20-year-olds. The owners, Ryan Kalei Tsuji and Tara Shimooka, it’s their take on a New York lounge. Somewhere where you can get a seat, listen to live music, have really good drinks, and hang out with friends. You don't have to necessarily contend with the hullabaloo that is going to a bar, getting a drink spilled on you, all that kind of stuff. So, I recently went there and it's also fantastic.

Mary:

That sounds nice! Now, that's more of my jam. I know that there are still folks and a lot of younger travelers that are interested in that pumping club. Is there anywhere like that for those travelers to go?

Kevin:

Oh, absolutely. Waikīkī is absolutely packed with clubs. I think there's one on every corner. Sky Waikīkī is a really fantastic place to go and be a visitor because it’s kind of in the name—I don't even know how many stories high it is. It's very high up, which is really kind of exciting for Hawai‘i because we don't have a lot of high buildings here. Most of our buildings top out around the 20th floor, and it's a club that is about 20 floors high, and you get this really great view of Honolulu, Waikīkī, and pretty much half the island because you have such a high-up view. That's a really fun club.

I'm a big fan of this bar that’s also in Chinatown called NextDoor. It is a live music venue, which is probably why I like going there. I actually just played a show there last night, but that bar gets really packed on a Friday or a Saturday. We definitely have some of the best local talent playing songs and live music there.

Of course, Duke's in Waikīkī if you're a visitor and want a nice beachfront right on the shores of Waikīkī. You can hear the waves, you also get a lot of really good live Hawaiian music. I definitely recommend Duke’s. They have good food, great drinks, one of the best Mai Tais in Hawai‘i for sure.

Mary:

Well, that sounds exciting and definitely also up my alley.

Now, speaking of talent, you mentioned some local talent and you're a musician as well. I was going to ask you about this. Where could we find you? Are there some local spots that you would suggest music fans go to?

Kevin:

For sure. I'm playing in a punk band, so I play in a lot of weird dive bars. It’s funny with live music and Hawai‘i because we actually don't often get bands from the continental United States because it's really expensive for them to travel to Hawai‘i. A lot of the time, if they're going on a worldwide tour and they're in Australia and they're on their way back to the mainland or the continental United States, they'll kind of drop by Hawai‘i as kind of like a, “Oh, we'll just swing by here.”

But we have definitely have some really big venues. The Republik is one of our top venues where a lot of the main larger shows will go, as well as the Neal Blaisdell Center. These are both on O‘ahu, by the way. The big bands very rarely go to outer islands. It's kind of tough, maybe Maui, but the Neal Blaisdell Center is definitely our biggest musical venue, that and the Waikīkī Shell which is right in Waikīkī. I think Mariah Carey plays the Neal Blaisdell Center regularly. If you're a big music fan and you want to see a real big act, that would be the place to go. I think Weird Al Yankovic is playing there this month, so we definitely get some big names over there.

Mary:

I've been to Maui several times, but I like to travel like a local and see where the local spots are. It's a slowdown place for me. It sounds like the local talent is pretty good as well, so exciting stuff. Maybe we'll catch you and your band playing there. I'm not averse to punk music.

This seems like a good place to take a break. When we come back from the break, we're going to hear more about some local talent and maybe some great surf spots.

Mary:

Welcome back and thank you for joining us on Traveling With AAA. I'm your host, Mary Herendeen, and today we are in the Hawaiian Islands with our guest, Kevin Allen. Before the break, we were talking about some local spots to get some music.

Now, let's learn about where Kevin and his friends go for the best surf. Would you mind sharing with us where we can find some surf without giving too much away from the locals?

Kevin:

Absolutely not! No, I’m kidding of course. That's a great part about being in Hawai‘i; pretty much everywhere you look, there's a wonderful surf spot. We're surrounded by ocean. I always recommend Waikīkī Beach if you're a visitor and maybe new to surfing or just getting your feet wet. I know it's the answer everybody gives, but it is such a gentle wave. The thing about Hawai‘i is that the waves are pretty powerful, especially on the North Shore when we have swell coming in. Even on the southern shore, like in Honolulu and in town, the waves are very strong. Fortunately, Waikīkī Beach is a very friendly wave and there are a lot of sand bottoms, so you're not going to hit the reef.

There are also really fantastic surf lessons there for beginners. And these are people who have been doing surf lessons their entire lives. We call them “beach boys” because they live at the beach. This is what they do, and if you want to learn how to surf from anybody, it's from a beach boy in Waikīkī. When it comes to all the islands, I definitely recommend surf on the southern side because typically, the waves on the southern side of the island will be a lot more gentle.

The only thing I would say new surfers and visiting surfers have to take into account is what the swell is looking like. So, how big are the waves in the water? And there are a lot of ways to find this information out. I definitely recommend Surfline. You can even see a live camera of the waves. You definitely don't want to go out if it’s over 2 feet and you're a beginner, and it's your first time or second time. It can be dangerous, and there's a saying here, “When in doubt, don't go out.” If you're ever looking at the water and you're not sure, just don't go out. It'll be safer for everyone, and you don't want a scary moment to ruin your trip to Hawai‘i. But on O‘ahu, I recommend Waikīkī Beach 100%.

Mary:

That's great advice.

Kevin:

And I won't give away any of my other spots. That's all you get.

Mary:

Well, thank you for sharing with us!

Hawai‘i is beautiful. Like we said, it's green, its lush plant life is just gorgeous. Now, that also means there's some rain to contend with. What can a traveler do on a rainy day?

Kevin:

Yeah, we are a tropical island, so we definitely get rain. This is kind of a weird one for me, I'm going to start kind of out of the box. I actually recommend going to the beach when it rains, which I know might sound a little bit weird, but typically when it rains, people will not go to the beach. So, if you ever want to go to a beach and not have anyone else around, it's a great time to do it. And if you're going to go swimming, you're going to be wet anyway, so it's not like the rain is really stopping you at all. The cool thing about when it rains in Hawai‘i is that when it stops raining, you'll get some of the best rainbows you've ever seen. If you're lucky enough to be outside when it stops raining, you will see postcard-perfect rainbow.

Obviously, there are a lot of things to do inside. You can go to one of our many malls. I definitely recommend Ala Moana Center which is a wonderful mall to spend indoors. It's definitely our biggest mall, and I believe it's actually one of our largest outdoor malls in the nation. It's a wonderful place to just hang out, definitely spend the day if it's raining. We have a lot of really wonderful coffee shops and cafes to go to when it's raining. Even just staying indoors, I like to remind visitors that when you're in Hawai‘i, you are on vacation; it's time for you to relax. If it's raining, just take that as a day to stay inside, sit down, take a couple of naps, just have a good time.

But yeah, we have a lot of indoor attractions as well. In Pearl City that's on O‘ahu, there is the Ice Palace, which is our only ice skating rink. That's a fun thing to do when it's raining because that's all indoors and you can actually be ice skating in Hawai‘i, which is always a funny concept to me.

Mary:

That's interesting. It would’ve never occurred to me that you might have something like that there. During my travels, because you're there such a limited time, rain has never been a big deal and it's never been cold.

Kevin:

Yeah, even when it rains, it's not very cold. Sometimes, it can actually get hotter when it rains because a lot of humidity enters the air and it gets pretty humid. Just go to the beach when it rains and you're not going to be cold. You'll have a good time.

Mary:

Especially for those that don't prefer a crowded beach.

Kevin:

Absolutely. Yeah, that's an insider tip right there; it's a local tip.

Mary:

Thanks for that tip.

Now, another insider tip I'm looking for is, where can I find the best malasadas?

Kevin:

Oh man, that's pretty contentious. That's a tough one. I have 2 on O‘ahu that I really prefer. I think growing up on O‘ahu, if you have a malasada as a kid at a potluck or a family get-together, it's probably going to be from Leonard’s Bakery. They were kind of the ones who even introduced the concept of malasadas to Hawai‘i, or at least commercialized them to the point that they're at now. Malasadas are really wonderful donuts that were introduced by Portuguese immigrants and they're covered in sugar. It's funny because the malasadas that actually are from Portugal do not look like the malasadas we have here. The Hawai‘i version of a malasada is very fluffy and pillowy, especially the ones sold at Leonard’s. I think that's what people really love about the malasadas here, how fluffy and pillowy they are, and it's such soft dough when you bite into it. So, I really recommend Leonard’s Bakery.

On Kauaʻi, the malasadas at Kauaʻi Bakery are really good. We have our Readers Choice Awards every year, and they actually overtook Leonard’s Bakery for the first time in a decade. That was a shock to everyone.

If you want a more traditional malasada, like the ones they make in Portugal, there's a place in Kailua, I believe it's called Agnes Bakery. They're actually a food truck, but they make a more traditional type of malasada that is smaller and a little bit crunchier. It's a little bit more fried. It's got a really good texture if you want a chewier, harder malasada that I also really appreciate. Another big contentious thing is whether or not you get a malasada that's plain or with filling. That's a kind of a thing now too, you can get it with filling. Try both; they're cheap, just get as many as you can. You'll love them.

Mary:

Well, that's what I had in mind. I was thinking about a filled one, and I'm like, “When's he going to talk about the filling?” What do people get inside these? Like a jelly donut or fruit?

Kevin:

It's definitely like a jelly donut. There are all types of fruit fillings. Again, the diehard local malasada fans will not agree with that, but I think they're both good.

I also actually forgot to mention there is a place called Pipeline Bakery that sells malasadas, but they actually also ship malasadas nationally. They have free shipping, so you can buy a pack of 12 malasadas and they'll ship them out to you the next day and they'll be fresh enough. They'll also give you instructions on how to reheat them properly to kind of make them doughy and fluffy again. I also definitely recommend Pipeline Bakery.

Mary:

I'm actually writing that down. Pipeline.

We're talking about the different islands here and I'm wondering, what are your thoughts on interisland travel? Would you recommend it? And if so, what type of traveler do you see doing it?

Kevin:

Absolutely. Yeah, I definitely recommend interisland travel if you're in Hawai‘i long enough. If you're in Hawai‘i for maybe a week, I think being on 1 island for a good amount of time will help you get a sense of the place. You'll feel comfortable after a week on an island, but if you're staying for 2 weeks or longer, I definitely recommend doing a quick trip over to one of the other islands; even for a couple of days just to get the feel of the island because the islands are so different from one another. They're all beautiful. They're all Hawai‘i, but the cultures there are different, the food is different, the scenery is even different.

I think it's a really great idea. Again, if you have the time to jump over to another island, it's also very cheap to travel interisland. It's maybe $50 for a ticket with a local airline. Yeah, it's very cheap and I think the flights are only 30 minutes. You're up in the air, and then you're back down in no time. It's so fast. So, it's really not too much work to travel interisland.

Again, I just recommend you have enough time to get the feeling and sense of the place, especially the island that you want to spend the most time on—I would say at least a week. But if you're staying more than a week, you can definitely jump over to a different island. They're all so close to one another and there's just so much to do, too.

Mary:

That's great advice. It sounds like you should work with your travel advisor to get that planned as well as any reservations if you want to go to any of the national parks.

Great, great tips. Any other tips that you would have for first time visitors?

Kevin:

Yeah, absolutely. I would just say a lot of people come here and they're really rushing around. They want to do as much as they can, and I don't blame them. They’re coming to Hawai‘i; it's probably the trip of a lifetime for them, but just remember to slow down a little bit. We have this concept here. . .

Mary:

Island Time?

Kevin:

It's called Hawai‘i Time or Island Time, yup. Yeah, you know it. The great thing about being in Hawai‘i is that everything moves a little bit slower here, and that’s what makes it feel like Hawai‘i. People are more relaxed, they're more accommodating. I feel like that’s where that Aloha Spirit comes from. People aren't running around all the time at 110%. I think as a visitor, especially if it's your first time, it's really easy to get into that mindset where you got to be running around because there's so much to do. Just take a second and take a breath when you get here. Remember that you're on vacation, you should be relaxing, and you'll just have such a better time.

You'll definitely connect with the people more. Instead of running from one shop to the next and moving all around town, just stop at a shop, talk to the owner, and you'll probably make friends with them. People here are really nice. Just slow down a little bit. You're in Hawai‘i now, so everything is going to be okay. Just take it easy.

Mary:

It sounds like great advice. I know me, I'm very agenda-driven and I've had to pull back on that a little bit so I could be present and really enjoy the vacations I was taking. I'd come back from vacation and feel like I needed a vacation from the trip.

Kevin:

Right, exactly.

Mary:

And I'm like, “Why is that happening for me?” Because of the agenda, and the stress of feeling like I hadn't accomplished everything that I had intended to on my trip.

Finally, what is the single most important thing to know when you're planning to visit the Aloha State? What would you tell our listeners?

Kevin:

Oh my goodness. There are so many important things to know. I guess we get this question the most, so I think it's probably the best to answer now. People always ask us, “When is the best time to come to Hawai‘i?” There is no bad time to come to Hawai‘i. We are a tropical island, we have sunshine and clear blue skies. I'm looking at Diamond Head right now and it's gorgeous. We have this every single day of the year.

Mary:

Wow.

Kevin:

At Hawai‘i Magazine, I feel like we always get a lot of questions, “When do I come? When is the best time to come?” There is no bad time to come. You do not have to worry about planning trips around seasons or weather patterns. We don't have seasons here. It's really just summer all the time. It's really beautiful every single day.

I guess that's the most important thing, don't worry too much about planning the timing of your trip. It's going to be nice. Don't worry about it. It's going to look wonderful when you get here.

Mary:

I love it. Come now, come later, just come over.

Kevin:

Just come over!

Mary:

Well, perfect. Thank you so much for being with us, Kevin Allen of Hawai‘i Magazine. It's been our pleasure.

Kevin:

Thank you so much for having me.

Mary:

And thank you to our listeners for being with us. If you're planning a trip, be sure to connect with a AAA Travel Advisor, check out AAA.com/travel or visit your local branch. If you enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe. I'm Mary Herendeen, thank you for traveling with AAA.