No Fixed Plans

Earlier this year, I travelled to Hawaii with my mum (Lana), aunt (Kara), and some friends. We went for 14 days on a girls’ trip for my mum’s 50th birthday. This was a trip that had been in the works for 18 months and finally came to life on the 28th of August.

We arrived well before check-in time at the hotel but still made our way to the Pacific Monarch Hotel, hoping that at least one of the five rooms we booked would be ready. To our luck, four of the five rooms were. We headed up, and the one friend whose room wasn’t ready (Lorrie) stored her bag in one of the available rooms. Then we decided to check out the International Marketplace. We looked around Target, settled on some of our breakfast options, scoped out a few restaurants, and then headed over to the ABC Stores for lunch.

While there, we also noticed a Honolulu Cookie Company shop. Mum, Kara, and I had visited one six years ago and couldn’t wait to go back (Kara and I especially). When we went in 2019, these shops were hard to find, but they must have boomed after COVID — and thus began mine and Kara’s game for the rest of the trip: to see who could get the most free samples at the end of each day.

The thing that’s been at the top of my mum’s bucket list for a few years now is going on a helicopter ride. We talked about doing one early in the planning stages but decided that most companies were just too expensive and that the money was better spent elsewhere. After a lot of thinking and comparing companies, my brother (Harry), his girlfriend (Bonnie), and I decided we wanted to help Mum achieve one of her dreams and surprise her with it as her birthday present.

We found that Magnum PI Hughes had the best value, offering a 50-minute ride all around the island for AUD $578.11 per person. For reference, most other companies were offering 10–15 minute tours for a similar (if not higher) price. Going with this company was definitely the right move — especially towards the end of our trip, as we got to see from the sky some of the places we’d already visited. Magnum was amazing: they took lots of photos of us in and outside the helicopter, made sure we were comfortable with the safety precautions, and checked in when Mum and I were running late (we were exhausted from a false fire alarm at 1 a.m. and had trouble getting an Uber). They couldn’t reach us though, since I forgot they only had my phone number and I didn’t have access to it at the time.

Fifty minutes felt like the perfect amount of time, and I would highly recommend the experience.

Another highlight for me personally was waterfall rappelling. I found this on TripAdvisor — Chasing Waterfalls: Wild Hawaii Rappelling. I was the only one in my group interested, which I found a bit strange — who wouldn’t want to walk backwards down a rocky mountain while holding onto a rope tied to a tree? But to each their own. The tour cost USD $315, and I added a USD $100 package for drone footage and 100 photos.

Our tour guide, Caleb (it’s his own business), was super knowledgeable about the local wildlife and nature. Upon arrival at the trail, he lets you choose which waterfall to go to. Since I’m not the fittest person and my legs were still aching from the Diamond Head hike the day before, I opted for the smaller one (which is still by no means small) and comes with a shorter hike.

In the past, I’ve gone skydiving, bungee jumping, and abseiling — and if you’re into the same kind of activities, I would highly recommend this tour.

We filled most of our days with activities like those mentioned above, as well as Cirque du Soleil, the zoo, and the shopping centre. While many of these places are within walking distance, Uber costs can add up quickly. The good thing to note, though, is that Honolulu has an excellent public transport system. All you need to do is buy a pass from an ABC Store (you’ll have no trouble finding one — they’re on almost every corner) for around USD $5, and download the Transit app (green logo). The app is super easy to use and lets you track your trip on your lock screen, even showing how many stops you have left.

Honolulu is an amazing place to visit for all ages and will definitely be a well-enjoyed trip for anyone who goes. 🌺

I’m a 19 year old traveler chasing cheap flights and every story I can collect along the way

I started this blog because I didn’t want to wait until I “had it all figured out” to see the world – spoiler: you never really do. So instead of staying home and wondering what’s out there, I packed a backpack, booked a ticket, and decided to find out for myself.

At 12, we went on a family to Bali and at 14 to Hawaii (with a few interstate trips in between) and then Covid struck and we couldn’t travel anywhere. That’s what initially made me decide I wanted to travel anywhere and everywhere, any opportunity I could.

Since then, I’ve gone interstate to Cairns in February 2024, where I got to tick off 2 things off my bucket list (skydive and bungee jump), explore all throughout Europe in April/May 2024 with my Uncle Nathan for a month (which was also my first time on a group tour for the whole trip), and Hawai’i in August/September 2025 for 2 weeks as a girls trip for my mums 50th. This was for 2 weeks, where we went back to Pearl Harbour, did a 50 minute helicopter trip that went around the island (as my mums present) and I got to go rappelling down one of their waterfalls (surprisingly no one wanted to join me for this).

My upcoming trips include going to South America next year on a group tour (June- September 2026) where I’m visiting Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Colombia, and Costa Rica. I’ll get to go through the Amazon, see the top of Machu Picchu, experience the coffee culture in Colombia and Zip line in Monteverde, just to name a few things. On this trip I’ll also get to tick off a couple things off my bucket list; going across the salt flats in Bolivia and see one of their wonders of the world in Brazil (Christ of Redeemer).

In November 2026, I’m also going on a 10 day Indian Pacific train trip with my Uncle Nathan, where we’ll be in the train for 4 nights and in Perth for 6 days.

In the planning stages is also a 4 week trip to Japan with Cousin Erin, where we’re planing on staying in many different cities, and potentially Asia and Europe in 2028 with my Uncle Nathan.

I don’t know exactly where I’m headed (or how many wrong turns I’ll take getting there), but this is just the start. Here’s to new cities, new stories and being able to travel the world.