Hawaii - Jeff Campbell [60]
Foreign-currency exchange counters are located in strategic sections of the airport; in the international arrivals hall, most operate 6am to midnight. ATMs are scattered throughout the airport. You’ll find visitor information booths near baggage claim, the international-arrivals area, the interisland terminal, and at both ends of the main lobby. Counters for car-rental agencies and courtesy phones are located near baggage claim. A business center (831-3600; 8am-5pm) in the main lobby offers telephone and postal services, as well as computer workstation rentals.
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GETTING AROUND
O′ahu is an easy island to get around, whether by public bus or rental car.
To/From the Airport
From Honolulu International Airport, you can reach Honolulu or Waikiki by airport shuttle or public bus. Cab fares from the airport will cost about $30 to $35. For other points around O′ahu, it’s usually more convenient to rent a car. You can travel to downtown Honolulu, the Ala Moana Center and Waikiki via TheBus 19 or 20 from the airport. Buses often fill up, so catch them at the first stop at the airport in front of Lobby 4. Buses run every 20 minutes from 5am to 11:30pm daily; the regular fare is $2. Luggage is restricted to what you can hold on your lap or stow under the seat. In Waikiki, buses stop every couple of blocks along Kuhio Ave.
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BE YOUR OWN TOUR GUIDE
Unlike on many of the other Hawaiian Islands, you won’t need to rent a car or take a boring ol’ bus tour around O′ahu. You can travel at your own pace and save not only money, but also the environment by circling the island on O′ahu’s public transit system, TheBus.
Starting from the Ala Moana Center just outside Waikiki, the No 52 Wahiawa Circle Isle bus goes clockwise up Hwy 99 to Hale′iwa and along the North Shore. At the Turtle Bay Resort, on the island’s northern tip, it switches signs to No 55 and comes down the Windward Coast to Kane′ohe and back over the Pali Hwy to Ala Moana. The No 55 Kane′ohe Circle Isle bus does the same route in reverse. These buses operate every 30 minutes from 6:30am to around 10pm daily. If you take the circle-island route nonstop (though why would you, since the point is to get off and look around along the way?), it takes about four hours.
For a shorter excursion from Waikiki, you can make a stunning loop around southeast O′ahu by taking ‘The Beach Bus’ No 22 (no service on Tuesday) or No 23 to Sea Life Park, then transfer to No 57 bound for Kailua and back over the Pali Hwy to the Ala Moana Center. Because you’ll need to change buses, ask the driver for a free transfer when you first board. With fast connections, this loop takes about 2½ hours, but allow extra time at the end to catch one of the many frequent buses from the Ala Moana Center back to Waikiki.
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There are several door-to-door airport shuttles. Roberts Hawaii (954-8652, 866-898-2519; www.robertshawaii.com) operates 24-hour shuttles between the airport and Waikiki hotels. For airport arrivals, proceed to the ground-transportation median outside baggage claim. Shuttles pick up passengers every 20 minutes; the fare is $9/15 one-way/round-trip, not including surcharges for bicycles, surfboards, baby gear or extra baggage. The ride from the airport to Waikiki averages 20 and 45 minutes, depending on your destination and traffic. For return trips to the airport, make reservations at least 48 hours in advance.
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USEFUL BUS ROUTES
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If you’re driving yourself, the easiest way to Waikiki is via the Nimitz Hwy (92), which turns into Ala Moana Blvd. Although this route hits more local traffic, it’s hard to get lost on it. For the fast lane, take the H-1 Fwy eastbound, then just follow the signs ‘To Waikiki.’ On the return trip to the airport, beware of the poorly marked interchange where H-1 and Hwy 78 split; if you’re not in the right-hand lane at that point, you could easily end up on Hwy 78. It takes about 25 minutes to get from Waikiki to the airport via H-1 if you don’t hit traffic; allow