Travel Guide: North Shore, Oahu

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We had such a good time during our two nights on the North Shore of Oahu. Truth be told, we liked Wakiki Beach but we LOVED the North Shore. If we ever visit Oahu again, we will spend all of our time on the North Shore. It is far less touristy then Wakiki and feels more authentically Hawaiian. This is the place to go to see beautiful places, slow down and relax.

Where We Stayed

We rented an awesome Airbnb that was attached to a house. It had everything we needed including its own separate balcony area. The host also had everything we needed for the beach including chairs and snorkelling gear. It was so quiet and peaceful when we sat out here at night after a day of exploring. At the end of the quiet street there is a private beach access, both times we went there we were the only ones swimming. It was pure heaven. I highly recommend staying here and if we head to the North Shore again we’d definitely go back!

Our very own private beach 

Things To Do

Snorkelling / Swimming

The beaches on the North Shore are stunning and way less crowded then Wakiki. We spent a lot of our time here swimming and snorkelling on the beach next to our rental. There are some great surfing areas on the North Shore as well if you want to try it out!

Turtle Bay Resort

We stopped and spent a happy hour one afternoon at the Turtle Bay Resort. Anyone can visit the resort and parking is free. We had amazing cocktails here and the people watching was excellent. Lots of people were surfing on the beach which was awesome to watch!

Hiking

So we decided to try and hike the Kanunala Loop Trail while on the North Shore. However, we ended up taking a wrong turn somewhere and taking the wrong trail. We still had a great time getting lost in the woods, the trail we took was still stunning and we even saw a wild pig.

 

Places To Eat

Kono’s Restaurant

We had breakfast at Kono’s Restaurant on our second morning and it was incredible. Bruce had the sliders and I had a burrito, both were delish! The coffee we had here was the best coffee we had on all three islands we visited. One of our regrets is not bringing home a bag, do yourself a favour and bring some home and if you live in Newfoundland bring me one as well. 🙂

Cafe Haleiwa

We had breakfast at Cafe Haleiwa on our first morning on the North Shore and it was really good! There is a reason it was rated number one on Trip Advisor. Bruce went with the Hawaiian breakfast and I had the traditional one. I had an iced coffee with coconut milk and it was so so so good.

Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck

You cannot visit the North Shore and not try Giovanni’s Shrimp truck! Their garlic shrimp is incredible, be prepared to get messy and try the hot sauce on the side. We waited over 30 minutes in a line for this plate of deliciousness but it was totally worth it!

Jerry’s Pizza Mill

After a day of hiking we decided to grab a pizza on the way back to our rental and of course some of Hawaii’s finest beer – Big Wave by Kona Brewing Co. We searched Pizza places on trip advisor and found Jerry’s Pizza Mill. We took the pizza to go but noticed you could BYOB to the restaurant. The pizza was so good, we ate the leftovers for lunch the next day. One of my favourite memories of our trip was this night, sitting out on the deck eating pizza and drinking beer listening to the sounds of Hawaii.

While we only spent 2 nights on the North Shore, we had an amazing time here. If you are headed to Oahu spend at least a few nights on the North Shore, you won’t regret it. The drive back from the North Shore to Wakiki is stunning. I snapped lots of pictures along the way, it was breathtaking.

Looking for an Airbnb in Hawaii? Use this link to save $45. Here is the link to the Airbnb we rented.

Planning a trip to Hawaii? Check out all my Hawaii posts and guides including a two week itinerary for Oahu, Maui and The Big Island!

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Have you visited the North Shore? What was your favourite thing you did?