Christine Hitt
Hawaii may not be Disneyland, but there are plenty of things for kids to love about visiting the Islands, from beaches to pools, to whale-watching and dolphin-spotting, to learning about Hawaii's history.
On Oahu, there are plenty of activities that kids of all ages will enjoy that are in or near Waikiki, including the Honolulu Zoo, Waikiki Aquarium, Bishop Museum and the Children's Discovery Center. At Pearl Harbor, older kids can learn about the attack, but there's also the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum, USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and the USS Battleship Missouri Memorial, with its many levels and compartments, to explore.
As for beaches, Waikiki Beach is generally a safe bet for older kids. Surf lessons and canoe rides can be arranged. If instead, you're looking for a beach with calm, shallow waters, try "Mother's" beach near the Kahala hotel on the east side of Oahu or the Ko Olina lagoons on the west side. At Ko Olina, there are four manmade lagoons that front the Four Seasons Resort Oahu; Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa; Beach Villas at Ko Olina; and Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club. All the lagoons are open to the public and are less crowded on weekdays. The Marriott has the most parking spaces.
The Aulani and the Hilton Hawaiian Village are kid-favorite hotels, but don't overlook others which may have less crowds and cheaper rates. The Embassy Suites by Hilton Waikiki Beach Walk has suites for the same price of a room at other hotels, and it has a large pool. Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore has multiple pools and two waterslides. Turtle Bay also has horseback and pony rides, a turtle tour by canoe or kayak and a mermaid academy.
Whale- and dolphin-watching tours are exciting for kids, especially when they see jumps and breaches. Also look into Atlantis Submarines Waikiki, which offers an underwater adventure.
The outdoors can be explored in a multitude of ways. Kualoa Ranch, where scenes from "Jurassic Park" were filmed, has 17 outdoor tours at my last count. The most popular are the ATV tours, which take guests past sites seen in movies. It requires a minimum age of 5.
Manoa Falls and Diamond Head are good beginner hikes for older kids. For the younger ones, you can push a stroller up the Makapuu Lighthouse hike or through Waimea Valley's botanical gardens to see a waterfall at the end. Gardens, such as the one in Waimea, are great possible alternatives that shouldn't be overlooked as Hawaii has some of the most beautiful ones, like Hoomaluhia Botanical Garden or Lyon Arboretum.
There's more than enough ways to fill a weeklong itinerary with kids on Oahu. The hard part is finding time for it all.