Accommodation at Big Island Hawaii

As I've mentioned previously, various members of my family have visited Hawaii before, but our recent trip in September was the first time we all travelled there together. Last time I went I went to Hawaii I checked out Honolulu and Maui. So this time, around I wanted to visit another island and after asking a few friends for their suggestions, Big Island was recommended as the next best  island to see.

Review of Aqua Pacific Monarch

During our first week in Hawaii we stayed at Waikiki, on the island of Oahu. Originally we had booked an apartment that could accommodate my whole family, but six days before we were about to leave I get an email from the owner saying she had double booked us for a few days and couldn't check in until 3 nights later. The only compensation she was offering was to remove the cleaning fee and of course not charge us for the days we weren't going to be staying. This completely annoyed me, and I refuse to give her our business any longer and asked for a refund of what we had paid to date. So that left us scrambling for some place to stay that could accommodate our large party. Eventually we decided on Aqua Pacific Monarch based on hotel's location, consistent positive reviews and was within everyone's budget. However we were separated into tree different rooms, but I think that was actually a good thing.

Unfortunately I didn't take any photos of the room we stay in before we messed it up. I was a zombie by the time we checked in and I like to take photos of the accommodation we stay at when I first walk/check in. If I'm doing a review I like to give readers a view of what I see when I first see a room. But there are photos of the rooms available on their website and on Trip Advisor and that's where I got the photos you can see below. 

Ok so the pro's and con's of Aqua Pacific Monarch.

Positives:

• Rooms had a kitchenette which comprised of a electric stove, microwave, fridge and basic utensils for when you can make your own meals. 
• Spacious room for the boys to play around in, and plenty of storage space for our things. 
• The hotel is two short blocks away from the beach. The hotel is close to the nicer side of Waikiki beach where there's more sand real estate, and there was barricades to filter waves, so  it was a very child friendly spot to swim. 
• Some great food joints within hotel's door step, (I strongly recommend that Korean BBQ place across the road) as well as various convenient stores for essentials. 
• Staff were always friendly.
• Guest collect beach towels and beach chairs for free from the front desk. 
• We all stayed in studio style room apartment where there was a kitchenette and living room space. The price was reasonable, we paid roughly $130 AUS a night per room. 

Negatives:

• Although you can tell the room has elements of modern fixtures it's still quite outdated. The hotel is probably really old so it could do with a complete renovation - but that's just my opinion.
• Weak air conditioning. None of the rooms have ducted or built in air conditioners, so there was a unit in one corner of the room that supplied all the cool air. If you're not in the room during the day it's fine, but we kept our thick curtains closed at all times to keep the heat out and cool air in. 
• Small bathroom with poor ventilation so would steam up quickly when taking hot showers.
• Poor lighting in the room.
• In our room house keeping was terrible. They would either not come so we'd have to call them to come in and do it, or arrive at 9am when we're still in the room. This happened everyday during our stay. 
• Although hotel was close to the beach it was a little bit of a hike to the retailers and popular food joints. I don't mind walking however with young children four blocks to get anywhere can be challenging if a child is not in the mood for walking. 
• There was a free shuttle bus that takes guests to Ala Moana Mall but it was always full from collecting other guests from other hotels. Plus it only came around every 30 minutes. It was easier and quicker to catch a bus from across the road, buses that included Ala Moana Mall in it's route came every 5 minutes.

Would I stay at Aqua Pacific Monarch again? No. There's are so many more other accommodation options available in Hawaii. Given we were forced to find an alternative so soon to our departure date, this was what we could find that met everyone's requirements.  

Have you stayed at a hotel around Waikiki before? Where did you stay? Would you stay there again why or what not?

Linking up with Jess

Tips For Traveling With Kids

We did it again. We travelled overseas with two kids under 5. This time we took an even longer flight, a 9 -10 hour flight each way.

Post Holiday Blues

We arrived back from Hawaii on Thursday evening. Arrived back to the cold and wet weather of Sydney, so of course I was missing Hawaii instantly. I remember just complaining about how cold it was the whole car ride home. I really despise the cold. 

What I love about holiday's is obviously spending time away my family, but for a blogger it's the content possibilities! I can't wait to recommend places we saw, things we did and share our experience with traveling overseas with two kids under five - I'll get to publishing those posts in due time. 

3am

I dunno I can't sleep. I was asleep, but one of the boys woke up and woke me up. Ian put him back to sleep, but now my body alarm has been awaken. It has been for the past hour and half now, and instead of surfing, I thought why not get ahead of work, why not blog. I miss you blog. 

To be honest, nothing has really inspired me to blog on here. My business has taken over a lot of my free time, so my head space is always thinking about ideas for other people's businesses, or ideas to grow my business, that unfortunately it consumes all my mind. I'm not complaining, it's a good thing - but I don't want to do another work post.

But something more interesting to read about than my business is the fact that in a few days we're off to Hawaii! I'm so excited! My whole family is going, it will be our first family holiday overseas with the extended members i.e partners and kids. We've all been before, several times actually. So we've seen a fair amount of the island, but the good thing about going back somewhere you've been before is checking out new places, or returning back someplace you enjoyed before. 

When travelling I usually like to plan detailed itinerary' so I have an idea of what I'll be doing when I get to a destination. I don't like to waste my time, so I like to research and know what I could potentially do in advance. However I guess because we've been to Hawaii before, and partly cause I've been distracted with the business, I haven't planned anything - I haven't even created a spreadsheet! 

So since I'm awake at 3am, I might as well start putting together a list of things I want to do while we're in Hawaii. 

1. Hike up to Diamond Head

Diamond Head is a look out point of Honolulu. You hike up a dormant volcano cone to see views of the city. Last time I was at Hawaii I was 28 weeks pregnant, and Ian refused to let me hike up for safety reasons. So this time I'm coming for you Diamond Head! Just Googled directions from where we're staying and its only 2miles (3.3km) away by car. I've already decided to make the trip as one of my morning runs. 

2. See more of the North Shore area

Last time we went we only drove up for the day. The North Shore has some of the picturesque beaches of Ohau in my opinion. Plus the drive up with the various stop options makes it one of my recommended things to do in Hawaii. I definitely want to allocate more time traveling to and seeing this area. 

3. Paddle Board

Again because I was pregnant, someone dictated what activities I was and wasn't aloud to do. This time I'm taking full advantage of all the sports and water activities and paddle boarding is on the top of my list, along with snorkelling and learning how to surf.  

4. Ko Olina Lagoons

I've heard Ko Olina are the most child friendly beaches because they're lagoons, so the water is usually flat. Here you can do an array of water activities or just relax by the water. 

5. Giovanni's Shrimp Truck

I know there's heavy debate on which shrimp truck is the best in Honolulu. I have to admit I haven't tried the competitors, but Giovanni's makes amazing bbq garlic shrimp (prawns for us Aussies). I can't wait to go back and have more, this time I'm not sharing!

Have you been to Hawaii before? What do you recommend I try or do?

Philippines 2015

I finally went through all our photos from our recent trip to the Philippines and picked a few to share with you all. Here's some of my favourites from Boracay.

Happy Tuesday!

If you want to know where we stayed, you can read about it here.

Linking up with Jess

Review of Henann Garden Resort

I finally made it out to beautiful Boracay. Where is Boracay you ask? It's one of the island of the Philippines, known for its white sandy beach and torques water. Its simply picturesque, just like the images you see online when you Google this place. I've heard of Boracay and its beautiful island scenery for several years, however it was only now I (and my family) got to finally see it with our own eyes.

Months leading up to our holiday we researched various accommodation options as there are so many at Boracay. It all depends on how much you're willing to spend and what creature comfort's you need while holidaying. 

We decided on Henann Garden Resort, which is located on Station 2 of Boracay. In Boracay's White Sand Beach, which is the main beach of the island, is divided by three stations, 1, 2 and 3. Station 1 has mostly the more expensive resorts and known to be quieter. Station 2 has mid range priced hotels and resorts, its the more central location therefore lots of restaurants, bars, and activities can be booked and done around here. And Station 3 accommodates the budget traveller who's happy to enjoy the beach all day without being pestered by vendors and avoid the heaving crowd.

The positives:

• We booked a Grand room. Now that we’re a family of four and with two young children we need space for all our stuff and enclosed space to let the boys be boys. The room was modern and had everything we needed to be comfortable, such as big comfy beds, a clean and functioning bathroom, tv, a two seater couch, a mini fridge, cupboard space and a safe. We were allocated room 284 so on the second floor with views of the pool. 
• We booked directly with the resort and got a package which included our airport to resort (by speed boat and van) transfer. (The two airport options you can fly to to get to Boracay island isn't on the island itself, you need to catch a boat to get to Boracay island). The package also included all our breakfasts and dinners during our stay. I'd recommend this package as it made the process of getting to the island seamless and really quick and the option to have dinners at the hotel if we wanted to. 
• The hotel's boat transfer area to get to Boracay island literally across the road from Caticlan airport. It's a lovely. comfortable waiting area too with lots of space, couches to sit and enjoy the view and shade from the heat. 
• The service from the moment we stepped off the plane was exceptional. There was staff outside to collect guests, and as soon as they collect you, they collect your stuff, so you don't have to worry about lugging your own gear until you get into your room. This was a plus for us as we had small children to also carry. 
• Where we were located we couldn't hear the any of the noise from the hustling beach, especially at night when it was the busiest. 
• Beach towels, beach beds and pool side cabanas were all free, you just got to get in first. 
• Staff were warm and lovely. They were always saying hi to my boys and trying to get their attention. 
• The resort had direct access to the beach so easy walk to main areas like D'Mall, and access to various restaurants and bars. 
• Lots of pools to swim in. 
• Rooms thoroughly cleaned everyday unless you ask house keeping not to. With free bottles of water provided every day.

The negatives:

• Although all rooms are non smoking, the resort doesn’t restrict smoking in public areas. So smokers can smoke around the pool areas where kids are. It was annoying when a chain smoking couple get the chair beds next to you and your kids.  
• Some of the rooms in the resort are older and needs to be updated. Not sure if this is the plan anytime soon, as this is not communicated to guests or on their web site. The images of the rooms you see online are of the newer building/rooms, so if you get allocated one of the less modern rooms, this is certainly a surprise. This was the case for our friends, who got older rooms, and in the most undesirable areas of the resort.
• Resort didn’t run any activities or host any events for guests. So we found ourselves finding activities, and eating outside of the resort. In my opinion resorts that don’t offer more than just accommodation for guests, are actually disadvantaging themselves.
• No kids club. They do run child minding services and I’m sure at a fee. I’m not one of those parents who can just let a stranger babysit their children – I’m not there yet. But if there was a kids club where they’re doing activities with other kids, I’d be more comfortable. 

 Bathroom. Don't worry there were blinds you could pull down so your family doesn't have to watch you do your business.

 Grand room with twin double beds

The view from our balcony

Hotel grouunds

Ascott Makati

During some of our time in Manila we stayed at The Ascott, a serviced apartment at Makati. What we loved about this accommodation is that it was a an apartment which had a full kitchen to cook our own meal and a washer and drier to do laundry - a requirement for any family who travels overseas. Here's a list of the pro's and con's I identified with staying at The Ascott. 

A Year Ago

Can you believe it? A year ago today my family and I left on a plane bound for Hawaii. I was 28 weeks pregnant at the time and now that I think about it, I was probably delusional to be going anywhere overseas. Not that women who are pregnant shouldn't be enjoying themselves and traveling. It's just that I'm such a risk adverse person now and the thought of what I did seems so .... risky to me now.

I think I now understand the fear and anxiousness my husband felt throughout the holiday. I knew I really wanted our family to travel overseas after I was let off at my last job; and I guess finding out I was pregnant shortly after fuelled my desperation to travel.

I do want to convert the travel journal I kept during that trip onto this blog. I'll eventually get to it and hopefully it won't be too far off that the information I wrote is still current and valuable. In the mean time you can re read about our family holiday to Hawaii here. 

Long Driving With Children Under 3

We recently went to sunny Queensland for a week. I have family up there and when I was a lot younger my family would travel up frequently; and now that I have a family of my own we find ourselves making the trip often as well. Personally, I love Queensland. The warmer year round temperatures, the beaches, how cheaper everything is compared to Sydney; and I guess it's feels like home, having once lived there too. 

Again we drove up to Queensland. It just made sense economically to drive up when petrol is covered under our car lease. Plus if we flew not only would we be forking out money for fares but also a car rental, car seats and insurance. Then there's the hassle of carrying luggage and equipment, with two kids under three onto the plane ... no thanks. 

The drive to Queensland from Sydney is roughly about 10 hours without stopping, depending on who you ask and which route you take. I've been asked by a few people what's it like long driving with two kids and what advice do I have? So I've put together my tips on how to survive a long haul drive with children:

1. Pack lots of their favourite foods and drinks - even the food you don't like them having too frequently. The more bad it is for them the better, as this will distract and satisfy their boredom the most. This will also minimise the need to stop to get food.

2. Load the iPad or tablet with their favourite shows, movies, games or music. Eli watched a few Play School episodes online and played the Sesame Street Alphabet game until he got over it. 

3. Keep them comfortable. Put them in comfortable clothing and shoes. It was cold the morning we left so we also kept them warm with blankets. Place within their reach anything you think they need that will keep them comfortable, such as their favourite toys. 

4. Talk and have conversations with your children, given your child is already talking or thrives in conversation. Eli likes to be included in our conversations. If Ian and I are speaking and haven't addressed him in awhile he'll interrupt us and say "Talk to me!" We just spoke to him throughout the ride to keep in entertained and to pass the time. We asked him what he did last at childcare? Who is friends were? What's his favourite thing to do there? A conversation we probably repeated four times during the drive. We used the long period of time as an opportunity to teach, as we asked Eli to count as far as he could and tried to teach him the days of the week and what he did that day of the week. 

4. Play games with your children. If they're old enough you could play car games or maybe even create new one's together. Eli was entertained by the mountains he saw outside the window, so we'd make him count how many he can see. Not an overly interesting game but hearing his answers, then probing him to elaborate more on his responses, again distracts him from the long drive. 

5. Stop frequently and get everyone to stretch their legs. Admittedly this was something we didn't do only because we decided we would gauaged how our boys were doing to determine when we would stop. We agreed we would stop for toilet breaks, meals and for out of control crying. 

6. Play their favourite songs in the car. Have their favourite cd or tracks ready to play when you need another form of distraction. Sing along and encourage your child to participate. 

7. Be flexible and have realistic expectations of how the experience will be. I actually thought the worst and so I was pleasantly surprised of how well the drive ended up being. We were also open to potentially staying over night somewhere in the event we felt the boys were not settled and had had enough of sitting in the car.

8. Drive over night. This tip was actually recommended to us and crossed our minds. However decided not to do it because we feared we'd get "lucky" and they wont actually sleep during the night drive. Plus we would not have gotten any rest during the day leading up to the drive that evening. Driving over night does make sense because this is the period of time they're mostly sleeping anyways but I think its a strategy best suited for kids a little older or maybe infants. And if parents got rest during the day too - don't drive if you're tired parents!!

Overall I think the key to successfully driving for several hours with children is having lots of distraction strategies in place in the event they become restless; and being open to stopping frequently if required. For us we just let the boys be and enjoy the ride, pulling out one of mentioned strategies above when we noticed they were getting bored. The drive up we only stopped for petrol and an hour for lunch and we arrived at our destination in 11 hours. The drive back we stopped three times and for longer periods of time and end up arriving home 12 hours later.

What are your tips and recommendations for long haul travel with small children? What worked and what didn't work for your family?

TBT - The Westin Villas, Maui

In July 2013 when we went to Maui we stayed at the beautiful beach front property of The Westin Kaanapali Ocean Villas. During our seven nights stay we were placed in Villa 4123 which was a one bedroom with mountain views.

Positives:

• Large apartment for a family of 3 there was a lot of room to move around especially for my toddler who loved doing laps around the bedroom and bathroom.
• A one bedroom villa consisted of a kitchen, dining and living room area as well as a separate bedroom space. A massive bathroom with spa bath, twin sink basins and wardrobe.
• The bedroom was also very roomy we could fit all our luggage inside the bedroom and still have room to move around.
• Large balcony area with outdoor table, seats and sunbeds available.
• Kitchen was stocked with basic cooking appliances, large fridge, electric stove, microwave and cooking utensils.
• Apartment also had a washer and dryer and upon arrival inside apartment there was a small welcome pack provided which had washing detergent for kitchen and laundry.
• Large flat screen tv in both the lounge room and bedroom with ample channels available. There was also a DVD player, and MP3 stereo you can connect to.
• The Westin is a massive property with lots pools for both adults and children, spas which can be used 24hrs a day and direct access to an amazing beach.
• There are restaurants, 2 general store onsite, gym facilities and a kids club.
• Resort is very family friendly with lots of families on site during the time we were here.
• Free shuttle bus commuting patrons between the two Westin’s, The Sheraton and shops.
• Ample staff everywhere, very friendly and kept the resort in its immaculate state.    

Negatives:

• Pricey for non timeshare patrons. Don’t know if its also because we came during the peak July break season that played a factor but this resort was very very expensive but we wanted to stay here especially since we had a young toddler.
• Our view was not of the mountains but of the lobby drive way.  This was probably one of the most disappointing component of our stay, the room location considering how much we paid to stay here.
• Almost all activities are at a cost. I would say 10% of the activities the resort runs are free everything else has a cost associated to do them. There weren’t that many activities available either.
• Everything cost money to hire even the non motorised sports such as snorkeling. It was going to cost $18 to hire snorkel gear for 24 hours but you can buy your own from an ABC shop near the Sheraton for $15.
• Beach umbrella and chairs also cost money to hire every day.
• Our room was located in a dim part of the resort, even with the curtains open it was very dim so this meant we had lights on even during the day to see. 

Hawaii Photos - Maui

Knowing we were going to be in Hawaii for two weeks we knew we had the time to venture to another island. We (I) decided on Maui because I heard it was beautiful and a bit of a honeymoon spot and since we were on a babymoon ... why not?

Maui is only a 30 minute flight from Honolulu but both our departure and return flights were running three hours late. Never fly with Mesa Go airlines I've since learnt they are notorious for delaying flights, no wonder they were the cheapest.

We stayed at The Westin Kaanapali Resort Villas. I plan to write a post a review of this resort shortly. In the mean time here are a few of my favourite photos of our time in Maui.

Images include resort areas, Kaanapali beach which was right on our door step and the various activities we did during our trip.

Hawaii Photos - Waikiki (First 3 Nights)

Finally putting some of my favourite Hawaii photos together for the blog. 

I mentioned previously I totally missed the fact that we gained an extra day when we travel "back in time" i.e to the States, so instead of thinking we were only in Waikiki for two nights on our first leg it was actually three nights ... not complaining. We managed to stay the extra night at the same hotel we booked the two nights. Location was great, you definitely paid for it but I wouldn't say it's the best place to stay with a toddler. You can read my review of The Royal Hawaiian here.

   

Here are some of my favourite photos from the first three days in Waikiki.

Our First Overseas Family Holiday

I'm still slowly writing up and will be posting up reviews of places we stayed, ate and did while we were in Hawaii.

I've culled through almost all our photos I just need to review the one's taken from our underwater camera. Yep we carry 3-4 cameras on holidays as each have a different purpose or lense. Why go on these amazing holidays if you can't capture it on camera? Granted you may need to bring the right equipment but its so worth it when you have beautiful photos of the memories you've made. Although I'm not claiming to have the skills as a professional photographer but the right camera does help make your snaps look amazing.  

Here are some of my favourite shots, enjoy.