We spent a glorious 10 days on the Big Island of Hawaii for Spring Break at our favorite home away from home, Kona Hawaiian Resort. This was our 6th time at this resort.
On this trip we decided we DID NOT want to do the tourist things we had already done multiple times and we wanted NO schedule. We had a list of a few places we wanted to go and we had a few new things we wanted to do. We woke up each morning and during breakfast we would come up with a plan for the morning and then we just did what we wanted as the day went on.
✈️ Thursday, March 20 🌈
We started our morning early on March 20th with a quick flight to the DEN airport. We had some Capital One lounge time where we were lucky enough to catch the last of breakfast
and the start of lunch.
Then a LONG 7.5 hour (freezing cold) non stop flight to Kona.
We got to our condo around 5:30 pm HST and checked in. This time we had a partial ocean view.
We had dinner at Willy's Chicken while it rained and rained, then a quick dip in the pool before bed. Because of the 4 hour time change, we were swimming at midnight Colorado time, which Anikka thought was funny.
🍍 Friday - March 21 🍍
Breakfast in Kona: Acai bowls and a smoothie for me.
Then we did "errands" to get our condo all ready for our stay. We like to eat in most meals, especially breakfast, and we always get stuff for sandwiches to have on-the-go lunches at the beach. We went to Costco first for bulk items, then Safeway for the smaller things. It took all morning.
When we got back to the condo and had everything unloaded the girls went to the pool while James and I took naps - best benefit of this trip since we now have older kids.
We went to Kahalu'u State Park around 4. James and I snorkled while the girls had some "beach time".
We cooked mahi mahi for dinner and enjoyed sunset on the lanai,
then to the pool for a night swim.
🔆 Saturday - March 22 🔆
POG juice and malasadas from Paradise Bakery for breakfast.
We decided on Hapuna Beach for our daily beach activity. We backed up ALL the gear and lunch and found a nice spot on the beach.
We spent most of the day playing in the water...
then to Umeke's for dinner
and shave ice downtown.
⛱️ Sunday - March 23 ⛱️
The girls and I went to the market in Kona on Ali'i for souvenirs.
When we got back James and I walked to "little beach" (Honl Beach) while the girls relaxed.
We decided to head south to have lunch at Shaka Tacoz. They are unbelievably delicious!
We stopped by a farmers market that was across the street (bought fresh green beans to add to our dinner) …then decided to have Pina Coladas for a little treat.
More pool time….
…then dinner on the lanai at the condo …
…and a walk to little beach to watch the sunset.
🌸 Monday - March 24 🌸
We got out early to play Pickleball but by the time we found a court that wasn't busy, it was already SO hot that we didn't play long.
We decided on the Keiki ponds for our beach time so we did quick change at the condo, packed up lunch and spent our afternoon there.
James had booked a night snorkel with the Manta Rays for our evening activity. The Big Island is the only place in the world where you can swim with Manta’s. The boats put lights out to attract plankton and the Manta’s come for an easy meal.
I was so excited! This has been on my bucket lists for years. Our last trip to Kona I had this excursion booked and it was cancelled twice.
We left out of the harbor just after sunset to head north to the snorkel area. The girls were VERY skeptical of this activity in the dark ocean.
Neither of them were very interested in getting off the boat.
The boats put out long floating boards with pipe around them. Lights shine down into the ocean to attract the plankton and Mantas. You swim a very short distance to the board and just hold on and float. It looks like this (not my photos),
We got to snorkel for 45 minutes. It was so amazing. There were 8 Manta's in the water and they barrel roll up to the lights to catch the plankton. I didn’t realize they are bioluminescent which surprised me at first. One even brushed up against my stomach. James and I were the last two people to come in. These are my photos.
🌺 Tuesday - March 25 🌺
We went to town for mac nut pancakes at Lava Java.
Spent some time at the girls favorite store….
Then decided on Waialea Beach (beach 69) for our daily beach time.
This is one of my favorite beaches to just chill. It has the most beautiful trees.
We had a little photo shoot of the girls in their cute swimsuits
and played in the water and relaxed.
James found some good trees for his hammock and spent some time taking a nice nap with the sound of the waves. It was peaceful and quiet at this beach. And not crowded.
As we were leaving, the girls decided they wanted to go boogie boarding at Hapuna Beach … it is just 5 minutes up the road…so we stopped there for a few minutes.
We were driving into town just as it was almost sunset so we stopped at old airport beach to watch the sun go down.
Dinner and pool time again before bed.
🌈 Wednesday - March 26 🌈
We had a later morning today and everyone wandered up to the pool when they were ready.
In the afternoon we decided to have lunch out then stopped by Ululani's for THE BEST shave ice EVER. They make the syrup more like fruit juice so it is not as sweet. It was so delicious.
We wandered around downtown for a bit, watched some canoes and checked out an ocean side pool (it was gross). Then watched sunset at the rock church.
🌴 Thursday - March 27 🌴
Kua Bay was our destination for beach time. It has become one of our favorites. Perfect water, white sand, waves. It is one of the best beaches on the Big Island but it is always very crowded.
We spent most of the afternoon playing in the water and relaxing. This beach has good waves for boogie boarding and bobbing.
We made a "quick" stop by Costco (that wasn't so quick) where Elin did her parking lot hula for everyone.
A little late afternoon time at the pool ....
and dinner on the lanai.
We went into Kona Town for a shopping. This picture has become a tradition...
These are the receipts we collected from the ABC store during our trip --- you get a free gift if you spend enough money. Yep, we qualified for 2 free gifts.
Last stop before bed was Mauna Kea Pie at Huggo's On the Rocks .
🐠 🐟 🤿 Friday - March 28 🤿 🐠 🐟
James had booked us another excursion for this morning. We were paddling an outrigger canoe about a mile to Kealakekua bay. We normally do this activity on the Fairwinds catamaran, but this trip we wanted to try something different.
James helped them get the canoe into the water
It was a perfect morning with glassy water. Our guide brought us malasadas to eat along the way.
We paddled to the bay and got to snorkel for about an hour.
It was nice to be there in the morning before the tourist boats arrived. It is always an amazing place to see fish.
After snorkeling we paddled back to our starting point. We all had a really fun time.
Since we were already in Captain Cook we made a quick stop at Two Step to snorkel....the girls chose to wait for us in the car.
Then we stopped at Randy's Huli Huli chicken for lunch on the way back to Kona.
Seriously, I think it is the BEST meal we had on our trip. They smoke the chicken with a wood that is only found in Hawaii.
When we got back to the condo the girls took themselves to the pool while I had a quick nap, then I met them there.
For dinner we drove to Waikoloa to the Lava Lava Beach Club.
🌴 Saturday - March 29 🌴
Sadly, we had to check out of our condo this morning. Nine nights didn't feel like enough time. Our flight out on Sunday was from Hilo (cheaper price) .
We stopped by little beach for one last picture.
We learned on this trip that Anikka really likes Lychee flavor so we had to stop by Jamba Juice for a lychee lemonade because it is a Hawaii-only flavor. She loved it.
We drove east to Hilo with a stop for lunch and malasadas at Tex's.
We stayed one night at the Grand Naniloa Hotel (in the distance).
After checking in we walked around Liliuokalani Gardens. Well, everyone except Anikka. She chose to have quiet time alone in the hotel room.
We had dinner at our favorite restaurant on the island, Cafe Pesto.
The girls went swimming....
…. then to bed. We had an early flight in the morning.
🌈 Sunday - March 30 ✈️
We had an 8 am flight out of Hilo, luckily the airport was literally 7 minutes away. We flew Hilo to Honolulu, had a short layover, then a 5 hour flight to Phoenix. 2 hour layover there then to Colorado Springs.
The last leg from Phoenix to COS arrived around 1 am (Monday morning). We were finally home and in bed around 3 am CO time.
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On the last night in Kona Ani asked me what Aloha means because she sees so many signs that say “Aloha - pass it on”. So, we had a little discussion about Aloha. It’s not just hello and goodbye, it’s a way of living. I found this and thought it was perfect.
It’s no secret that aloha is one of the most well-known Hawaiian words — both in the islands and around the world. As the song says, not only can aloha be used as a greeting, but also a farewell or good-bye. But there really is much more to this word
🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸
Mahola A Hui Hou Kona
🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸🌺🌸
