There are restrictions in regards to traveling during the Covid-19 pandemic. We recently visited Oahu and had a great experience. Here’s everything you need to know about Covid preparations, regulations, and of course, fun things to do once you land.
We love Hawaii. In the twelve years that we’ve been married, this is our fourth visit to the islands together. We traveled to Maui twice prior to having kids, and most recently, we’ve visited Oahu twice in just under two years. Our two Oahu trips were quite different, as one was pre-Covid and one was during the pandemic. We also did more touristy things on our first trip, and took the second time around to relax more and simple tour the island on our own. I’m excited to take you along on the best parts of our trip; the places we loved to eat, the beaches we couldn’t get enough of, and the excursions we’d definitely do again.
Travel, Corona-Style
The Prep
This trip was vastly different with regards to preparations. Once we realized that we could test prior to departure and not have to quarantine on the island, we decided to book our trip. The Covid test was easy, fast, and the results came swiftly. We ordered our spit tests from Vault Health a couple of weeks ahead of time, as this company was recommended by friends of ours that had traveled to Maui in December. They also recommended that we fly Alaska, more on why that was in a bit.
The key to the test was it had to be taken NO MORE THAN 72 hours prior to the flight leaving the mainland. We flew from Medford to Portland on a Sunday, and from there flew to Oahu. Our Portland flight departed at 930am, so we knew we had to take the test after 930am the Thursday before our trip. We took our tests around noon to give us a slight cushion were our flight to be delayed. The test requires a live Zoom call with a Vault Heath agent, who watches you unpack and open the test, spit into the small vial, seal it up, and package it for overnight delivery to New Jersey. We popped them into the mail that Thursday and they went out at 430pm. On Friday at 830am we got a message that they had arrived in New Jersey, and by 330pm that day we had our negative results. It was incredibly fast and we were so relieved. We had sent our tests out during the snowstorms blanketing much of the US, so we definitely had a backup trip planned just in case our tests didn’t come through in time.
Once we got the green light from our negative tests, we proceeded with getting ready to go. Vault Health provides a unique QR code per user to show upon arriving at the airport, and any subsequent rentals and / or stays (IE, car rentals, hotels, some excursions as well). We kept a screeenshot of each of our QR codes on our phones for quick access if we needed to prove we had been tested. We only had to show them at the airport, and at the car rental. Those were quick interactions and we didn’t feel that any of this interfered with the quality of our trip. The only stressful moments we had were waiting for our test to arrive and come back negative, but that was less than a day and definitely worth it.
Once at the airport in Oahu, we were able to simple walk out thanks to flying Alaska. Alaska pre-screens their passengers prior to arrival in Hawaii, so there is no need to wait in what has been described as customs-like lines on the islands for those not pre-screened. In Portland, an Alaska attendant came around to each passenger and scanned each QR code while we waited for departure in the airport lounge. He gave each of us a bracelet, much like the ones you get when staying at an all inclusive resort, and that gave us access to freedom immediately upon landing. We simply kept our bracelets visible and walked right out of the airport to the car rental. We showed our QR code there to check out car out, and were on our way. Some hotels require showing the negative test as well, I can’t recall if ours did or not. But either way, it was a very seamless and easy process that didn’t make travel any harder than usual.
The Regulations
Masks were mandated on the plane at all times, except when eating. They were incredibly strict about this, strongly suggesting that passengers put their masks back up in-between bites. If you fell asleep and your mask drifted below your nose even slightly, they announced that those passengers would be woken up to fix their masks. Now I believe in safety, and the general wearing of a mask doesn’t bother me. I like respecting and protecting the vulnerable among us, it’s what I feel that Jesus would do. However, most, if not all airlines boast that they run hospital grade air purifiers that give passengers an almost 0% change of contracting Covid on their flight (“One explanation for the apparently low risk level is that the air in modern aircraft cabins is replaced with new fresh air every two to three minutes, and most planes are fitted with air filters designed to trap 99.99% of particles.” Excerpt from this article). They also sanitize and clean regularly to ensure germs are kept to a minimum. With these protocols in place, I did not personally feel that they needed to be so strict about masks. I would have preferred to wear a shield for a five hour flight, and with that almost zero percent change of getting Covid, I would have felt safe doing this for myself and others. But these are the rules, and if you want to fly, just know, that mask can’t move unless you’re taking a bite of food or a sip of your drink. We had a red eye home, and my getup was almost comical. I was wearing a light-blocking eye pillow, my mask was on, and a neck pillow was securely fastened with a snap in front. All of these items were black, and Richard was laughing about the fact that he couldn’t see even a speck of flesh on me. Good think I’m not claustrophobic ... 😏
Masks were also mandated across the island at various restaurants, hotel lobbies and hallways, and outdoor strip malls. We didn’t wear them simply walking outside or on the beach, as that was a matter of personal preference. This was fine in my book, as we spent plenty of time at the beach and cruising around the island in our Jeep.
Once You Land
Fun Things to Do on Oahu
JEEPS. The literal only way to journey around Hawaii. We have had one on both Oahu trips, and it was worth every penny. We reserve the car through Costco weeks or even months in advance, and frequently check back for lower prices. We then re-reserve it if the price drops, or keep our reservation if the price increases. Both times our car rental has been under $300 for an SUV for the duration of our trip.
The first time we visited, we did a few touristy things. We visited Kualoa Ranch, which is the site where multiple movies have been shot, including Jurassic Park and Jurassic World. I was very excited to see the ranch, as Jurassic Park has long been my favorite movie, and I love the newer Jurassic Worlds as well. We did the Movie Sight and Ranch Tour, the Jungle Expedition, and the Farm Garden Taste Tour. We paid $260 total for both of us to experience all three plus a buffet lunch. In perusing their site, it looks like all tours are ale cart now, so they can’t be combined into packages like we did in 2019. If I had to recommend one, it would be The Jurassic Adventure Tour. This encompasses many of the places we stopped at, plus a few more that we didn’t get to see. If you like all things Jurassic, this is your tour.
We rented kayaks on both visits, and loved each experience. In 2019 we rented from a little beach side stand called See and Board Sports Hawai’i LLC in Haleiwa Beach Park. We took it out for an hour and went up a river that connected to the bay. It was calm and serene, and we were surrounded by lush greenery. The second time, we rented from Twogood Kayaks, a place Richard found on groupon. We had the Kayak for a day rental, and took it out to Kaneohe Sand Bar, which was off an adorable little marina next to a bay. Really it was exquisite. We were surrounded by the green mountains, the bay stretched out before us, and the trip out to the sandbar was around 45 minutes against the wind. We posted up on the bar for an hour. It was sunny and warm, so I rested on the kayak in the glorious sun while Richard went off to see if he could find any good snorkeling. He didn’t love the snorkeling off the bay, but we also didn’t adventure too far to the back that went out to the ocean. We stayed in the middle and it was about waist length deep.
Richard was excited to get into the water and see some sea-life. We found a pretty lagoon close to the Aulani’s Resort, and it was literally called Lagoon 4. We saw schools of pretty tropical fish, and although I’m not much of a snorkeler, I enjoyed the short time I was in the water and the amount of fish I got to see. Last time around, we visited Laniakea Beach (otherwise known as Turtle Beach) in Northshore, and it was so incredible to see these majestic creatures in their natural environment. We highly recommend this beach to snorkel, or just enjoy the beauty of Hawai’i.
The Food Situation
Albeit my favorite part of both trips (aside from the beaches, of course), the food is wonderful on Oahu. A mix of chains and local restaurants + food carts, there are optimum options for any and all food preferences.
Here is a list of our favorite places from both trips:
Seven Brothers - INCREDIBLE burgers and round potato fries; we visited them twice in two days this last trip because they were right next to our hotel.
NorthShore Taco’s Food Cart - this cart is stationed directly across from the beach, so you can sit and stare at the glorious pacific whilst you enjoy some amazing fish tacos, or in my case, the most bomb pulled pork quesadilla I’ve ever had.
North Shore Crepes Cafe - probably the cutest little place I saw on Oahu, it boasted a wide array of sweet and savory crepes + a full coffee bar. I had the Aloha, which was a buttery sweet and cinnamon filled crepe topped with whipped cream. Simply delightful.
Dole Plantation - this was an entire tour we did last time, and although we enjoyed the train ride around the plantation, the highlight was definitely the cafe. They had a killer teriyaki burger and you can get dole whips (yes, like the ones served in Disneyland!).
Maui Brewing Co - we dined here on our last night this past trip, and it was a beautiful downtown Oahu spot. We overlooked the city as we enjoyed pizza, beer battered halibut, and a glorious skillet cookie for dessert.
Matsumoto Shave Ice - while we didn’t visit this a second time due to the sheer popularity and theme-park-ride-like-line to get into the shop, but it was a fun try on our first trip. TIP: definitely get the ice cream under the shaved ice. Changes EVERYTHING.
We really love the islands. Oahu is such a fantastic mix of city + shore, and if you’re looking to mix it up and enjoy a little of both, this might just be the perfect island for you to visit.
I am happy to answer any questions that you might have, so don’t hesitate to reach out!
XO,
Heather
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