Hawaii Without a Guidebook
The following is a guest blog from Kim Tracy Prince.
I love books. I love guidebooks, too. Nothing is more comforting when traveling than whipping out a guidebook and flipping through it to find what you’re looking for. But on the way to my first visit to Oahu, I realized I hadn’t made time to get one. I looked over the shoulder of the guy sitting next to me on the plane, considering asking him if I could look at his. Turns out it didn’t matter. I had my computer, my iPhone, and Twitter.
I spent my first day on the island without internet access on my computer, because I didn’t see the ethernet cable that my hotel provided for access in my room, and I never felt like schlepping my laptop down to the business center just to look up directions. Luckily I was able to use my iPhone to find anything on Google, then the built-in Map application to make sure I was driving the right way to get to a restaurant or other destination.
And speaking of restaurants, the ones I visited were carefully selected from the internet. Not on Yelp or Google, but on email and yes, Twitter. I emailed friends who told me what restaurants they had visited on Oahu and which they recommended. In real time, when I was on my way to the North Shore, I asked Twitter where they thought I should eat. When the overwhelming favorite turned out to be closed, I went for the second choice. I was on the road, so I followed a link somebody tweeted, put the address into Map, and followed the little blue dot. I even used the phone to make phone calls to make sure the places were open.
(In turn, I Twitpic-ed and Whrrled my way around Oahu. It was the least I could do to let people know what I picked!)
As useful as my phone was, it was nice to have a full keyboard and a bigger screen and quicker load time when surfing sites for Pearl Harbor and Diamond Head to get detailed information before I headed out to those locations.
In a pinch, asking for directions and talking to people? Those work, too.
About Kim Tracy Prince
Kim Tracy Prince is a television producer and freelance writer in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. With two little boys under 4, she writes about the messy underbelly of family life at House of Prince, contributes to the colorful group of voices at Los Angeles Moms Blog, and guides parents to enriching activities at Being Savvy San Fernando. Kim also writes a column in the local newspaper The SFV News. When she and her husband can wrestle the kids into their car seats successfully, they enjoy trips within a 7-hour drive, max. Kim’s Favorite Vacations: My favorite vacations are the ones that get me away from as many people as possible. My honeymoon, spent aboard a 32-foot Beneteau in the British Virgin Islands, was the most relaxing time of my life. That said, family trips to places that delight my children can be worth the crowds. A recent vacation to SeaWorld for the opening of Sesame Place now ranks up there among the faves.