Day 17

Pink Palaces, Waikiki Sunsets and Packing for Japan 🌴✈️

We both had another pretty good sleep last night, although that may be about to change again considering we’ll be flying into another time zone tomorrow. Ted was keen to head down early again this morning to feed the birds and fish with some leftover bread from yesterday. As it turns out though, somewhere along the way the feeding mission changed course slightly and he apparently ended up eating the bread himself while going for a walk instead. I stayed back in the room to do my stretching routine and have breakfast before he returned.

Once Ted got back, we headed out together to grab a coffee. Yesterday we’d noticed an enormous queue outside Kona Coffee Purveyors, which is famous for its premium Hawaiian coffee and particularly for the pastries supplied by the renowned Japanese bakery B. Patisserie from San Francisco. We thought arriving early might help us avoid the crowds. It absolutely did not. Even at seven in the morning the line was already stretching almost an entire block

Instead we walked to Duke's Lane Market & Eatery, which is a much more casual local-style café and convenience market tucked away behind the main Waikiki strip. It has a really relaxed atmosphere and serves coffee, sandwiches, pastries and takeaway meals mostly aimed at both tourists and locals wanting something quick without the chaos of the larger restaurants. Even though the service was surprisingly slow considering how early it still was, the prices were reasonable by Waikiki standards which immediately made it feel like a victory.

Since the morning weather was still cool and pleasant, we continued walking towards Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort, which is almost like a small city in itself — a sprawling beachfront resort complex filled with pools, lagoons, gardens, restaurants and shops spread across multiple towers right on Waikiki Beach. Walking through the property and along the beachfront path offers some amazing views back towards Diamond Head, so we walked for a while enjoying the breeze and scenery. On a previous visit we’d even spotted turtles swimming nearby.

Somehow while wandering around we accidentally found ourselves inside the famous “Pink Palace”, officially known as The Royal Hawaiian. We’d seen it countless times from outside before but had never properly explored inside the property itself. Opened in 1927, the Royal Hawaiian is one of Waikiki’s most iconic and historic luxury hotels, famous for its distinctive pink exterior, tropical gardens and old-world Hawaiian glamour. Walking through the open-air corridors and courtyards genuinely felt like stepping backwards into another era of Hawaii tourism. Despite Waikiki becoming increasingly modern and commercial over the years, the hotel still has this elegant, timeless atmosphere that feels very classic Hawaii.

The beach itself looked far too good not to enjoy properly, so Ted asked if I could quickly head back to the hotel and grab towels for us. Thankfully the beach wasn’t overly crowded and the weather remained comfortable for most of the morning. One thing that was pretty entertaining though was watching endless groups of young influencers and content creators posing dramatically in front of either the ocean, Diamond Head or both. To be fair though, you probably need a certain level of confidence to do that publicly, so credit to them.

Ted was then keen to walk all the way towards Diamond Head itself, which I probably would’ve agreed to if the weather had been cooler. Unfortunately somewhere along the return walk Ted started feeling quite unwell and really hasn’t bounced back properly since. We’re thinking it may have been the chips we shared at Hula's Bar & Lei Stand yesterday, which were absolutely drenched in oil.

For lunch Ted wanted Mexican food, so we headed to Oahu Mexican Grill for what turned out to be fairly average Mexican. Not terrible, but definitely not something we’ll remember long-term either. Afterwards we picked up some snacks and food supplies for tomorrow’s flight on ZIPAIR Tokyo. When I originally booked the flights a couple of months ago I accidentally selected a non-vegetarian meal. Even after contacting the airline more than six weeks before departure, they still refused to change it, which seems a little ridiculous. Hopefully I can still buy something onboard instead.

Back at the hotel we spent part of the afternoon reorganising and repacking our bags before heating up our frozen supermarket dinners downstairs in the communal microwave. Not exactly glamorous Hawaii dining, but we’ve reached the point where we’re quite happy not spending a fortune on every single meal.

Later in the evening we headed out for one final Waikiki walk, which is my favourite time of day here. There’s just something about Waikiki after sunset that feels relaxed and atmospheric in a way that daytime Waikiki often doesn’t. We wandered down Lewers Street where there were small evening markets selling handmade wooden carvings, local skincare products, jewellery and various Hawaiian souvenirs beneath fairy lights and palm trees.

We also passed Cat Café MOFF, one of Waikiki’s newer quirky attractions where guests can relax with coffee while interacting with resident cats. Japan has made cat cafés famous worldwide, so it somehow felt appropriate seeing one just before we head there tomorrow.

Ted was craving cheesecake, so we ended up back at The Cheesecake Factory where he picked up another sugar-free cheesecake to take away. Afterwards we cut through Moana Surfrider, often called the “First Lady of Waikiki”, where we sat overlooking the beach while he enjoyed dessert. The atmosphere down there after dark was genuinely beautiful — soft lighting, warm ocean air, waves rolling onto the sand and people quietly strolling along the shoreline.

We’re being picked up at 6am tomorrow morning for our flight to Japan, so tonight is another reasonably early night for us. Hawaii has definitely been a relaxing stopover.Read more