Tide/Swell/Surf Information and Recommended Ocean Activities

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/tide-swell-information-and-the-recommended-ocean-activities

So, this is generalized ocean knowledge that locals know, but is not so obvious to the tourists and vacationers.  I'm going to present this information in table and bullet point format for clarity and simplicity. These are just generalizations, so depending on the day, the week, the month, or the year, these facts may not be true.  They are just generally true.

Summary Tables:

Snorkeling Table

Season	Good to place/time to snorkel
Winter	South Shore (Hanauma Bay) during high tide
Spring	Generally anywhere with low surf during high tide
Summer	North Shore (Shark’s Cove, Pupukea) during high tide
Fall	Generally anywhere with low surf high tide

Surfing/ Bodyboarding Table

Season	Good to place/time to Surf/ Bodyboard
Winter	North Shore (Ekuhai, Waimea,) Windward Side during low tide
Spring	Generally anywhere with mid-high surf during low tide
Summer	South Shore (Waikiki, Ala Moana,) Windward Side during low tide
Fall	Generally anywhere with mid-high surf during low tide

How did I come up with these tables?  Here's the answer:

General Water Activity Information:

• Snorkeling - ideal when there are no waves – low waves because visibility is higher and water does not come down your breathing tube
• Surfing/Bodyboarding - ideal when there are mid waves – high waves for obvious reasons

•  Low Tide tends to have higher waves, shallower waters, reef/rocks may be sticking out of the ocean which is dangerous

• High Tide tends to have lower waves, deeper waters

Seasonal Wave Patterns In General:

• Winter – high waves in the North Shore (Ekuhai, Waimea, etc.)
• Spring – transition period of high waves moving from North Shore to South Shore
• Summer – high waves in the South Shore (Waikiki, Ala Moana, etc.)
• Fall – transition period of high waves moving from South Shore to North Shore

As with any water activity, please check out swellinfo.com before you go for up to date surf information, as the information presented here are just generalizations.

Costco Situation

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/costco-situation

Costco is great.  On the Islands, there are Island specific things that are sold at Costco that really make it a different experience from shopping at a mainland Costco.  They have gift packed chocolate macadamia nuts, body boards, surf boards, stand up paddle boards, snorkeling gear, fresh never frozen tuna sashimi, and poke, and these are just a few of the things I can remember that are available.  And Costco still maintains the standard for great quality products at great prices in bulk. 

The down side is that with great prices, comes great crowds, especially in Honolulu.  The Costco on Alakawa St in Honolulu (525 Alakawa Street, Honolulu, HI 96817) is just pure madness. 

The parking is horrible.  I came here with my wife when we first moved here, and we were renting a tiny gray Chevy Aveo.  We managed to find a spot very far away from the store.  We shopped.  We came back, and the rear right bumper was busted.  Not scratched, or bumped; I mean, it was about to fall off.  No note.  No sign of the perpetrator.  I guess this is a common enough occurrence which did not warrant any apologies or exchange of information.  Had we rented an Escalade or something, maybe that would have been understandable, but we had a Chevy Aveo, the tiniest car in the lot, and still they managed to not scratch, or bump, but completely take out the right side of the rear bumper.  We got the damage waiver so it was no big deal, but if it was a car that you owned, you would have been very angry.  From this moment, we realized that small cars are your best friends on Oahu, especially if you live in town.

The crowd is horrible.  If you like fighting other shoppers and standing in long lines, this is your store.  This Alakawa Costco is a sports shopping arena, where you get a physical and mental work out every time you shop here. 

So, after that experience, I gave up and tried the Costco in Hawaii Kai (333 Keahole Street, Honolulu, HI 96825.)  It was a much longer drive to get there, but this one is much better overall.  There’s fairly ample parking, not as crowded, and cleaner overall. 

Your other alternative is the Costco in Waipahu (94-1231 Ka Uka Boulevard, Waipahu, HI 96797.)  Although geographically, it did not make any sense for me to shop here, my friend Tim in Waipahu assures me that it is much better than the Alakawa Honolulu Costco. 

Actually, when you think about it, I can’t imagine any Costco being worse than the one on Alakawa.  Avoid the Alakawa Costco at all costs!

Hawaii News Now

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/hawaii-news-now

This is probably one of the most important discoveries I made while living in Honolulu.  As you probably know, local news is very local here, and it seems like each piece of news hits very close to home, probably because it occurred very close to home.  How could it not when you are on an island.  This also means that getting every piece of news quickly and accurately is very important to everyone on the island.  I have found that signing up for the news feed of Hawaii News Now in Facebook has enabled me read about local news as they happen.  It literally is "Hawaii News Now"  Here's the Facebook link for Hawaii News Now:

https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiNewsNow

Go to it, and click the Like button to start getting the news feed on your Facebook.  You will be able to check this on line at your desktop on Facebook, or on your smart phone if you have installed the Facebook app.  You'll be glad you did this the next time you read about a traffic report, a weather advisory,  a water line rupture, or a prison inmate escape in your neck of the woods.

Eastbound 1 and the Vineyard Bypass

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/eastbound-1-and-the-vineyard-bypass

So, we’ve all been stuck on H1 at one time or another, perhaps every day.  The H1 near Pali Highway junction is always crowded.  Here’s a trick I learned after I wasted a lot of time on H1 going east, coming up on the Pali Highway junction.

As you get close to the Kalihi exit, get in the right most lane.  Get off on the Vineyard exit (20B).  Stay in the left lane on Vineyard and take it all the way down.  Vineyard will turn in to an onramp at the end.  You will see a sign to get back on H1 East.  It will pop you onto the H1, bypassing all of the traffic around Pali Highway.  Here’s a video:

Of course, if you want to take the Pali Highway exit, then you will have to stay on H1 and keep weathering the traffic.  In case you are wondering, I haven’t figured this out going west on the H1.

Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center Parking, Best Way to Get There

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/royal-hawaiian-shopping-center-parking-best-way-to-get-there

In my opinion, the best parking structure, location wise, in Waikiki, is at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center.  It is very close to the beautiful beach near the Royal Hawaiian/Sheraton Waikiki Hotel, and it is at the center of Kalakaua in terms of shops and activities.  I park here when I go to Kiwami Ramen for a Ume-Shio Tsukemen.  Afterwards, I always stop by the ABC Store in the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center and get $4 worth of stuff and get my parking validated.  The amount that you have to spend may change in order to get parking validated, so just ask the ABC Store shop attendant, and they will gladly let you know.  The reason why I do this is because if you don’t validate parking, they will charge you an arm and a leg.

Getting there can be a problem.  Most people will take Kalakaua all the way down and then try to make a right into the parking structure entrance on Royal Hawaiian Ave, but this can be frustrating since there is always a line of cars stuck in the farthest right lane on Kalakaua.  When it’s busy, at best, only 1 or 2 cars will be able to make a right in to Royal Hawaiian Ave from Kalakaua for every stop light cycle.  This is because you need to wait for the pedestrians to cross the cross walk before you can make the turn.

The best way to get to the parking structure is actually from Kuhio Ave.  Take Kuhio Ave towards Royal Hawaiian Ave.  Turn at Royal Hawaiian Ave toward the shopping center.  Stay in the right lane, and you should have a straight shot into the parking structure.  See the map below:

This method has worked well for me time and again, so much so that if I need to get there and I’m already on Kalakaua, I will find a way to get on Kuhio and make the turn on to Royal Hawaiian Ave from there.  Here’s a video that starts on Kuhio and Lewers:

In the video, I know it doesn’t look like it’s the best way to get in because of all of the tour buses, taxis, and trolleys, but I am telling you they are all there because they all know this is the quickest way to get through.  Try it, and you won’t regret it if you’ve waited in line on Kalakaua and know how that feels.  In any case, good luck!

Unavailability of Mainland Banks

The same information is available at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/unavailability-of-mainland-banks

So, if you live in Hawaii, you probably noticed that there is not a single branch of major banks from the mainland.  That includes Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Chase, Citibank, etc.  You get the idea.  There is one Chase ATM on Oahu inside the Aulani Hotel in Ko’olina.  You can only withdraw cash from it, and you cannot make any deposits.  That’s pretty much it for mainland bank presence here in Hawaii.

Your choices here are all Hawaiian banks not available in the mainland.  Here’s a list of major banks in Hawaii:

First Hawaiian Bank – http://www.fhb.com
Bank of Hawaii – http://www.boh.com
Central Pacific Bank – http://www.centralpacificbank.com

I am sure there are other options available on the islands, but I see ATMs all over town from these 3 banks, so for convenience, one of these 3 may be the way to go.  You can create accounts online from all 3 banks listed above, so it might be a good idea to do this before you move to the island.

I opened an account at Central Pacific when I moved here.  They have free checking and savings so it’s pretty good.  I haven’t had any problems with them, but as is the standard with new accounts at any bank, until you establish a relationship with them, they withhold funds available from deposited checks for a week, so it’s a good idea to plan for this.  They also have cheap notary services for $5 if you are an account holder with them, so it’s nice if you need this service.

If you insist on using mainland banks, it’s not too inconvenient to withdraw money, but it is a bit tough to make deposits.  I had to keep my Chase account for business reasons.  Although I can withdraw money from my Chase account from most ATMs on the island, I have to pay a non-Chase ATM usage fee.  Not too big of a deal.  Making deposits is another matter entirely.  Believe it or not, I deposit my checks by mail.

Chase has this service called “Chase by Mail.” You basically mail them the check you want to deposit through snail mail, and a week later, it shows up on your account as having been deposited.  It’s OK if you can handle not having funds available for a week, but it’s very inconvenient since you have to write a letter each time with instructions to deposit the check in the specified account number.  I was also uncomfortable with the fact that I was sending checks through the US Postal Service, but I have not had any problems so far with lost mail.  Nonetheless, the whole experience makes me feel like I am using banking service from the Dark Ages.

This last tidbit is not really related to banks, but the best place to exchange currency (foreign or US dollars) is at the DFS Galleria in Waikiki on Kalakaua and Lewers St.  They don’t charge a service fee, and you can get your parking validated for an hour if you buy something at the Galleria mall.  The only stipulation is that they will only let you change up to $1,000 a day.  The parking is kind of whack, as you have to go from Kalakaua, make a left on Lewers St, and then make a right after you pass Gyukaku into this narrow alley way with a sign that says “Public Parking”.  Kind of hard to find since they don’t tell you it’s public parking for the DFS Galleria.

Hope that helped!  Thanks for reading.

Free Parking for Waikiki Beach

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/free-parking-for-waikiki-beach

I think we’ve all wondered at one point whether there is free parking in Waikiki.  The short answer is no.  Long answer is yes, but they are always full, or yes, but they are far from the center of activity.  Let me explain.

An example of the first long answer, yes there is free parking, but they are always full; I’m talking about the parking along the Ala Wai canal.  It’s there, and it’s free, but it’s always full.  Not useful information unless you are willing to go round and round in circles along Ala Wai for an hour trying to compete with a dozen other drivers who are looking for a spot, while simultaneously pissing off the locals who are only trying to get out of Waikiki while you block traffic trying to find an open spot.

An example of the second long answer, yes there is free parking, but they are far from the center of activity; I’m talking about the Ala Moana Beach Park parking, or Kapiolani Park parking.  So, my favorite place to park free when I want to visit Waikiki is Kapiolani Park.  It’s free, and there is always space available, and it’s the closest free parking to the center of Waikiki.  I’m writing about this information because it took me a while to recognize this, and they are deceptively mixed in with the paid parking there.

Map of free parking along Kalakaua:

First, in order to get there, you will most likely be taking Kalakaua Ave all the way down.  Please refer to my page on the best way to pass through Waikiki on Kalakaua Ave.  Once you get to the end, keep to the right and stay on Kalakaua.

The reason for this is you might get lucky and find free parking on the right hand side of Kalakaua.  Don’t be disappointed if you don’t find any.  See picture below:

If you cannot find parking on the right side, as in the picture above, take the first u-turn back.  After you make a u-turn, do not park on the slanted metered parking spaces because it’s not free parking.

Go to the end of the road which will make you take a right on to Monsarrat.  As soon as you get on Monsarrat, there is free parking on the left side of the street.  Don’t be disappointed if you don’t find any here either.  Be careful to read the parking signs because there is a sign that marks the beginning of legal parking spots, and another sign at the end of it.  Do not park outside these signs or you will get towed.  See picture below:

Finally, on Monsarrat, if you take your first right, you will be in the free parking lot with plenty of spaces for all.  See picture below:

On the weekends, occasionally, there are marked spaces for vendors for some festival at Kapiolani Park, so don’t park there or you will get towed.

Map of free parking area:

It's a bit of a walk to Queen's Beach, which is the nearest beach to the parking area.  It's also a bit of a walk to the Marriott area as well, but if you need to go to the Cookie Corner or take your tourist friends to Cheeseburger in Paradise (Kama'aina discount available) or something, it's a nice option to no not have to pay for parking.  Good luck!

Walmart Situation/Parking Tips

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/walmart-situation-parking-tips

First off, let me clarify that by writing about this topic, I am in no way encouraging people to shop at WalMart.  I encourage people to shop at locally owned stores that sell locally produced goods to support the Hawaiian economy.

So, having said that, we've all been to the Honolulu WalMart on Keeaumoku at one time or another.  Getting to the store, and finding parking can be frustrating since the store attracts tourists and locals 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  From what I've heard, this particular WalMart is one of the busiest WalMarts in the United States.  I don’t find that surprising because the parking is horrible, and there is always a crowd at the register.  The locals shop here for the low prices, but I used to avoid going to the store because the traffic into the store was bad, and the parking was really bad, and the couple bucks I saved was not worth the pain and suffering I had to endure.

I have found that trying to park on the first floor is a nightmare.  The second floor parking is much better and smoother all around.  The problem is most people don’t even know that there are in fact 4 levels of parking at the WalMart parking structure.

The entrance to the second and third level parking is on the Sheridan St side of WalMart.  All of the tourists go through the Keeaumoku side, so avoid that side of WalMart, and you should be fine.  WalMart occupies almost a whole city block, so if you are on Keeaumoku, turn on either Rycroft or Makaloa St towards WalMart.  Then, turn on to Sheridan towards WalMart.  When you get to the Sheridan side of WalMart, turn in to the entrance that is closer to Makaloa (south side.)

Here’s a video because a video is worth 10,000 words if not more.  It starts on Keeaumoku going south towards WalMart.  I make a right on Rycroft and a left on to Sheridan to get to the entrance:

As a side note, if you are on Makaloa, there is conveniently a ramp that nobody uses that takes you all the way up to the 3rd floor to Sam’s Club, so that is a nice option as well.

I really hope this helps because I wasted a lot of time in the first floor parking lot.  I hope that just knowing about this other entrance will help ease some of the pain for you. Thanks for reading!

Best Lane on Kalakaua Ave if You Want to Drive Through

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/best-lane-on-kalakaua-ave-if-you-want-to-drive-through

Why did the local go through Kalakaua Ave?  To get to the other side of Waikiki of course.  One thing I found useful is knowing which lane to be in if you want to drive through Kalakaua Ave in Waikiki.  There are tons of pedestrians, trolleys, buses, delivery trucks, and taxis that are just waiting to block your car if you want to get to Kapiolani Park on the other side of Waikiki, where there is free parking, which I will discuss on another page.  In any case, you want to get to the other side.  Here's the best way on video, which starts from McCully turning left on to Kalakaua Ave.

At the start, you will want to stay in the 2nd lane from the right as you get on Kalakaua Ave.  This is because everyone is trying to make a right in to a street, hotel, or shopping area, and the farthest right lane usually gets backed up because cars are not able to make a right due to pedestrians crossing the street on the right side.  Cars can get locked forever on the right lane.  You will want to avoid the left most lane as well for the same reason.  Pedestrians make it really hard to turn either way off of Kalakaua Ave.

After you pass the Moana Surfrider, you will see a trolley stop.  After the trolley stop, your best lane is actually to stay on the farthest right lane because there are no more shopping areas, hotels, or streets on the right side anymore.  After passing the trolley stop, just move one lane over to the right, and it's smooth sailing to Kapiolani Park!  Good luck, and may the traffic Gods smile on you when you enter.

Ala Moana Center Easy In/Easy Out/Parking Tips

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/ala-moana-center-easy-in-easy-out-parking-tips

So, we've all been to the Ala Moana Shopping Center for one reason or another.  This place is like the Frankenstein of malls because I guess they kept adding to the mall and kept making it bigger and bigger, so it's easy to get lost and it's confusing at times getting around.  One thing that my wife learned because she was so frustrated with traffic, is probably the easiest way to get in to the Shopping Center and finding parking.  Now, this will not work all of the time, but I've found that it works for me most of the time.

Here's the street map on how you should approach the Shopping Center.  You will have to get on Keeaumoku and go south on it in the center lane:

Here's a video of me driving in to Ala Moana.  I am taking a right on to Keeaumoku from Rycroft.  The center lane is usually the least busy on Keeaumoku.  Notice I turn right at the top of the ramp to steer myself away from all of the cars waiting to go to pretty much the same parking area:

If you want to get out, just retrace your steps back to the same ramp.  Get in the right lane on the ramp down and it will take you to Keeaumoku going north in what's usually the least busiest lane.  Here's a video of me driving out of Ala Moana:

Hope that helps.  If you have any other suggestions, please let me know and I will try it and update this page.  

Brown Water Alert

Update on March 10, 2013.  Due to heavy rain, there is a brown water alert for the entire island of Oahu, so please be careful.

http://emdweb.doh.hawaii.gov/cwb/wqd/viewer/

The same information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/shoheisoahutips/brown-water-alert


So, it is what you think it is, and it is gross.  When I first found out about this, I was shocked.  "How can this sort of thing happen in Paradise?"  Well, here's how it happens.  Hawaii has a sewage system that overflows occasionally after a lot of rain in a short period of time.  The water turns brown in the ocean due to the overflow, the water department issues a Brown Water Alert in the areas affected, and it is highly advisable to stay out of the affected ocean waters when the alert is effective.

I always go to this link to make sure after extended periods of rain:

http://emdweb.doh.hawaii.gov/cwb/wqd/viewer/

By all means, check this site before you go because it's better to be safe, than sorry and infected with God knows what.  Also do a reality check before you take the plunge into the ocean.  If the water's brown, don't come down.

By the way, it was my friend Kaeo's idea to do this page, so thank you Kaeo!