No matter where we are in the world, whether it be skiing down the slopes in Whistler, taking a food tour, or viewing the cherry blossoms in Tokyo, Hawaii will always be home to us. As most of you know, I am Hawaiian, while my husband is Lebanese – we met while living in Dubai back in the 90’s and moved back to Hawaii a few years ago to start our foodie-loving family.
Our family has grown from just me and my husband to include my two Hawaiian-Lebanese kid-foodie children, Lou Lou and Jaf. Oh, and we recently got a dog named Legend, too!
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When we’re not traveling the world (which we’re getting ready to do – follow along on Instagram), we spend our time on the island of Oahu, my hometown.
Hawaii is an extremely diverse state – just read about the diversity that exists in my family – which is why we love watching our kids grow up here. The spirit of aloha can always be found, and after slow traveling through Europe in an RV, we’ve grown to enjoy the slower-paced island life.
So if you and your family find yourself on Oahu, here’s what I’d recommend you see and do. All the places mentioned below are where the local families (like my own) go to spend time, hang out with their ohana, and just be grateful of the nature that fills the islands.
THINGS TO DO ON OAHU WITH KIDS – TIPS FROM A LOCAL
Table of Contents
The Beach
Actually, beaches would be more accurate. If we’re not at home, the next best place to look for us is at the beach. Us locals love spending as much time as we can at the beach, and with good reason – the Hawaiian islands are home to stunning coastlines and we have something for everyone. Whether you’re into snorkeling, SUPing, or surfing the big waves – there’s a beach for you on Oahu.
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It’s hard to pick a favorite, but our favorite family-friendly one has to be Magic Island at Ala Moana Beach Park. Check out our list for more family-friendly beaches on Oahu.
Take a Hawaiian Art & Culture Class
It’s very important for my kids to learn about both mine and my husband’s culture, and as homeschoolers in Hawaii, I found the lack of art & cultural immersion classes to be a problem. Which is why I created
The Art Loft – it’s a DIY community arts space in Honolulu’s Kaka’ako emerging arts district that aims to support the development of Hawaii’s arts scene through its arts program, educational initiatives, and community projects.
In addition to arts workshops and DIY paint sessions, we also offer adult and kid Hawaiian Art to both tourists and locals. Check out our April Events schedule here: http://bit.ly/april-artloft-events
Hawaii State Art Museum
This free art museum, known as the “People’s museum” is located in downtown Honolulu and if you’re looking to spend the afternoon getting acquainted with Hawaiian art, this is the place to go. It’s not a big museum, which is perfect if you have small children – expect to see paintings, sculptures, traditional Hawaiian crafts and even some digital art.
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FYI, the museum is open late (from 6:00pm-9:00pm) on the first Friday of every month and offers live-entertainment making it the perfect way to start your weekend.
Eat the Street
It should come as no surprise that one of our favorite weekend activities includes food…Eat the Street is a food truck rally that happens every Friday in Kaka’ako, with each week showcasing a different culinary theme.
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It’s a great way to sample Hawaii’s thriving street food scene, and hang out with the locals. Check out the Eat The Street Facebook page for upcoming events.
Manoa Falls
Oahu is home to some breathtaking hikes – you can spend a couple of hours climbing and your reward is a refreshing panoramic ocean view. One of our favorite kid-friendly hikes is Manoa Falls takes you away from the beaches, and into the valley: this relatively easy hike is through lush rainforests filled with bamboo and ends at the stunning Manoa Falls.
The Manoa Valley gets the highest amount of rainfall annually, which means a wonderful waterfall, but also muddy trails. We recommend going earlier in the morning, around 6-7am, before the tour buses start pouring in – it’ll feel like you have the waterfall all to yourselves!
Eat a Plate Lunch
If you’re looking to try the local cuisine, skip the hotel luaus and eat like the locals do: a plate lunch. A lot of Hawaii’s diversity is seen in what we consider “Hawaiian food” and the plate lunch is the perfect example. We love (and pretty much every local) Rainbow Drive-In. Opened up in 1961, they’ve been serving affordable plate lunches for decades – I would go there as a kid growing up, and now I’m happy I can take my kids there…check out our vlog on what the kid-foodies ate when they visited.
We love traveling and seeing what the world has to offer our family. But there’s nothing better than when we fly back home, spend time with grandma and our ohana on our island. When we hashtag #luckywelivehawaii, we really mean it!
Are you planning a family visit to Oahu? We’d be happy to help answer any questions or give you family-friendly recommendations! Be sure to check out our Hawaii archives as well.
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