Food and Ocean Lover’s Guide to O’ahu’s North Shore

Places to visit:

• Pūpūkea 

• Hale’iwa

• Kahuku

Accommodation:

• Kalani Private Lodging

  • I had a really good experience here. Kalani’s is a beautiful and quiet place with both dorms and private rooms. The people who work there are kind and there is a sense of community with the other guests. I met many nice people and had a comfortable stay.

  • Link: https://kalanihawaii.com/

Kalani’s

There is a long walkway that leads to Kalani’s with lots of flowers

Beautiful outdoor shower

And roosters

Beaches:

• Sunset Beach

  • This was my favorite beach to watch sunsets and have my morning coffee

Sunset Beach

Sunset at Sunset Beach

And another sunset:)

• Papa’iloa Beach

  • a great place to watch for turtles

Walking to see turtles at Papa’iloa Beach

Beautiful sunbathing turtle

• Ali’i Park Beach

  • another great place to watch for turtles:)

• Waimea Bay

  • wonderful for swimming, , snorkling, and hearing or even seeing whales

• Sharks cove

  • good for snorkeling

• Pua’ena Point

  • good for surfing including people with little experience

• Rocky Point

  • good place to surf, also good place to watch surfers. Depending on tide, it’s also possible to walk to Volcom house/Banzai Pipeline along the shore

Food and Coffee:

• Sunrise Shack

  • My absolute favorite place for coffee. It is a cute little shack across from Sunset Beach. They have bullet coffees, açaí bowls, and yummy banana bread. I like cold brew and they added a little coconut cream to it. The açaí bowl with added peanut butter is also delicious. Would 10/10 recommend grabbing breakfast here and then walking across the street to enjoy coffee by the waves:)

Sunrise Shack - Sunset Beach

Sunrise shack açaí

• Farm to Barn

  • By far my favorite restaurant in Hale’iwa. All the food is locally sourced and fresh. The waffles and fruit are a yummy option if you want something sweet and the bagels are also good for a savory option. The restaurant is outdoors, a little outside of Hale’iwa town.

Bagel from Farm to Barn

• Elephant Thai Truck

  • this food truck is located in the parking lot of the gas station down the road from the Sunrise Shack. I had the phad Thai and it was really fresh and yummy and the tofu was delicious. Also a good option to take and have a little picnic dinner at the beach.

• No. 7 Sushi Truck

  • This food truck is at the far end of Hale’iwa town and has really yummy sushi rolls and bowls.

• Hale’iwa Bowls

  • At the entry to Hale’iwa, this little place has good smoothies and açaí bowls. The Paniolo smoothie with peanut butter, banana, dates, and added coffee shot was my favorite. Great post swim or surf snack.

• Coffee Gallery

  • A great place in Hale’iwa for coffee. It is known as one of the best coffee places and also has yummy baked goods

• Waialua Bakery and Juice Bar

  • Next to Malama Market, this bakery has homemade sandwiches and cookies, and the cookies are $1 and delicious

Waialua Bakery and Juice Bar

• Raised by the Waves

  • Located in Kahuku, this little restaurant is in an area with a lot of other little restaurants off Kamehameha Highway. I had a the most refreshing açaí bowl there.

Activities:

• My most favorite activity is swimming and snorkeling

• Surfing

Sunset surfer at Sunset Beach

• Wandering around the towns along the North Shore. The Kamehameha Highway is one long road that goes along the coast. Part of this highway is just busy highway road, but a lot of the highway is also surrounded by little communities and towns. There are many yummy food trucks and restaurants, coves and beaches, and even big surf pipelines (in the winter months) between Pūpūkea and Hale’iwa.

Hale’iwa town

• Hiking

• Trying some of the food

• Learning about the Hawaiian culture

Transportation:

• All places are accessible with Bus 60 that goes from Honolulu to the North Shore. The buses come about every 20 minutes and are reliable. Tickets cost 3usd. It is also possible to rent a bike. There are bike paths between the Kamehameha highway and the ocean shore as well as walking paths that make the beach very accessible. Most people rent cars, and that is the ideal mode of transportation as you have the ability to go anywhere you want on the island. However, renting a car is the most expensive option.

Getting to the North Shore from the airport:

• Going with the bus is straight forward. Bus 10 goes from the airport arrival area to Waikiki (you would get off at the city center in Honolulu), and then you can catch Bus 60 to the North Shore. All together it costs 6usd and is the cheapest option. The ride takes about 2.5 hours and has beautiful scenery.

• It is also possible to take an Uber, that will take about an hour. It costs about 60-70usd and is a more direct option without having to rent a car.

• Rent a car at the airport and go!

Some extras from this beautiful trip:

Thank you for being here!𓇼