Weddingbee Blog

We’re still waiting to receive our wedding pictures, but in the meantime, I’ll tell you all about our beachy and beautiful honeymoon! We spent two weeks in Hawaii—one in Maui and one in Oahu. I’ll spare you all the newlywed mushiness and try to cover the experiences we’d recommend along with helpful tips in case you decide to go!

The first thing we did in Hawaii was the Road to Hana. No wait, the first thing I did was pick up free magazines at the airport. Those are awesome. Then we checked into our hotel. Here, I’ll put it all in order:

The magazines. While Mr. Parfait picked up our luggage, I loaded up on the free Maui magazines near the baggage claim. They’re filled with maps and articles about tourist traps and local gems. We found directions and recommendations for all of our favorite day trips and meals in these things. Plus, they were free magazines to flip through while lying out in the sun!

The Maui Coast Hotel

We wanted a budget hotel for our week in Maui, since we were splurging on Turtle Bay the following week. Maui Coast is located in Kihei, right across from three beautiful beach parks. Besides the beaches and deserted movie theater, there’s not a ton to do in town, so we rented a car to explore the rest of the island.

The Road to Hana! Our day trip to Hana included plenty of hiking, sightseeing, and driving through mountains—quite the adventure for the second day after the wedding! I loved all the beautiful sights; Mr. Parfait enjoyed driving like a maniac on the curvy coastal roads. We made a bajillion stops along the way, and one favorite was the beautiful black sand beach at Waianapanapa, 32 miles into the drive. You can see it surrounded by lush greenery below:

We’re deprived of waterfalls in Chicago, so we visited as many as we could on the way to Hana. Watch for road signs pointing to waterfalls—all of them were totally worth the walk/climb/slosh!

Half of this couple enjoyed climbing trees overhanging the ocean while the other half pleaded with him to get down… and back away from that blowhole… and omgosh, did you read that danger sign? Some of them had the word “death” in it, which scared me off pretty well. Mr. Parfait remained undaunted.

Although the Road to Hana is more about the journey than the destination, I LOVED the destination! My first name is Hannah, so I had a whale of a time shouting, “There’s my school! There’s my ranch! I am queen of this landdd!”

It seemed like every person we met during the honeymoon had driven the Road to Hana and didn’t like it! The main reason was car sickness. Smaller complaints included gas prices in Hana, lack of food choices, the amount of time it took, and the mosquitoes. Okay, that last complaint was mine. I love all God’s creatures, but what is WITH mosquitoes and their creepy obsession with my legs?

I still have a three-inch scar. Thank you, bugs. And thank you, unreasonably sensitive skin.

Here are our Road to Hana tips: Fill up on gas beforehand. Pack water and snacks. Plan for a long day (7AM-8PM for us). And bring hand sanitizer or soap. I’d recommend bug spray, but it obviously did nothing for me.

What fun adventures did you go on during your honeymoon? Or if you haven’t gone yet, what adventures are you planning? Up next in our honeymoon tales: a luau, a whale, and some beach-hopping!