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.