hawaii

Kona coffee farm tour

 in General Fashion / Travel  tagged family / hawaii / hawaii big island / summer 2019 / travel / travel tips by

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One of the crops the Big Island is famous for is coffee. Kona coffee is arguably some of the smoothest, most luxurious coffee in the world. If you are a coffee connoisseur, you know what I am talking about! While I don’t drink coffee often now, when I used to drink it all the time, Kona coffee was always my favorite. So visiting a Kona coffee farm while visiting the Big Island was a no-brainer.

Now, when I say Kona coffee, I mean 100% Kona coffee. Not the coffee found in most supermarkets and big box stores which claim to be Kona coffee. If you look closely at the boxes of those mass-marketed brands, you will find they only contain 10% Kona coffee. The rest of the beans are from other countries, and are inferior to the premium beans grown in Kona. There is a huge difference! Don’t pay for Kona coffee marketing, if you are going to pay for Kona coffee, be sure to read the fine print. It must say 100% Kona to have that Kona coffee deliciousness.

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Although my kids don’t drink coffee, and I only drink it occasionally, I thought it would be cool to take my kids to a coffee farm and see how it is produced. After all, it’s one of Kona’s biggest farming industries; and they are famous for it!

There are many coffee farms in Kona which offer tours. Some tours are free, while others are not. I was thrilled to find Mountain Thunder Coffee Farm in Kona while googling. They not only offered free tour, they were a quick fifteen drive from our hotel. That’s win-win!

The farm is small, but the tour is broad and informative. For forty-five minutes we learned about Kona’s coffee industry, coffee history, and how coffee is produced. We toured a few plants, saw machinery, and learned so much! The farm is family owned, and they take their business seriously. After the tour, we were able to taste all of their coffee varieties, and they were so good! My favorite was the organic followed by the French Roast. If you love coffee, this is the farm to tour!

kona coffee tasting

My kids tasted a little bit of coffee too, but they really enjoyed the chocolate covered coffee beans. Um, so did I! They were delicious! If you visit, buy a can of them! You will thank me when you taste them . Yum!

You can learn more about Mountain Thunder Coffee Farm in Kona on their website.

My Kona coffee farm tour outfit:

Thanks for stopping by, and be sure to stay tuned for more coverage from Hawaii!

Aloha!

Cathy

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Family friendly luau on the Big Island

 in General Fashion / Travel  tagged chicos / children / family / hawaii / hawaii big island / mens outfits / outfits / summer 2019 / teens / travel / travel style / vacation outfits by

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My luau outfit: bold silver earrings c/o Chico’s / prescription sunglasses / summer lipstick / convertible silver necklace c/o Chico’s / palm print dress c/o Chico’s / summer nail polish / woven handbag c/o Chico’s / ivory espadrille wedges (I own these in 3 colors-love!)

One of the must-do’s while visiting Hawaii is to attend a luau! Luau’s can be expensive, so when I researched which luau to attend on the Big Island, I wanted to make sure it was both family-friendly, and really good! There were several reports from all over the internet which suggested the Island Breeze Luau, on the grounds of the Courtyard by Marriot King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel, was one of the top five luau’s on the Big Island. Thankfully, it was located at our hotel! Win-win!

When I realized our hotel played host to one of the best luau’s on the Big Island, I needed to make sure it was family friendly before dropping several hundreds of dollars on tickets. Thankfully, I could tell from their website that they were a great luau for families. Score!

There are two types of tickets you can buy for the Island Breeze luau. They have general admission, and then there is the Hanohano upgrade, which is basically VIP. Oh you know I am all about VIP! So of course, I made sure to buy the upgrade. If you plan on attending the Island Breeze luau on the Big Island, I highly recommend getting the upgrade. It allows you to enter the luau first, and sit in the front. This is key when you have kids who cannot see over the heads of adults. My kids loved being able to sit front row! In addition to sitting front row, you get to line up for the buffet first. VIP all the way bay-bee! You can book it online here.

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On my husband and kids: Men’s Hawaiian shirt / little boys Hawaiian shirt / floral dress on my teenager / white dress on my tween /

There were so many fun activities to do at the luau. They had games on the lawn, live music, and the last hour consisted of a hula show which showcased hula dances from all the Polynesian islands. It was really well done, and my kids loved it! If you ask what they enjoyed most about Hawaii, they will tell you the luau. This luau is top notch!

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Of course, when attending a luau, you have to look the part! This dress from Chico’s was perfect. The exclusive palm leaf design was right in theme with the Hawaiian luau. I also made sure my kids and husband had in-theme outfits as well.

We also made sure we put lay’s on before entering the luau. I mean, did you attend a luau if you didn’t wear a lay? It’s a must-do! You must also try poi, I really liked to dip my fish into the poi, I thought it had a nice flavor. Yum!

Shop my Hawaiian Luau outfit:

Shop my husband and my kids outfits:

Have you been to a luau before? Which one did you attend?

Thanks for stopping by and stay tuned for more Hawaii coverage!

Aloha!

Cathy

luau outfit ideas

Exploring Hulihe’e Palace in Kailua-Kona

 in General Fashion / Travel  tagged chicos / hawaii / hawaii big island / outfits / summer 2019 / travel / travel style / travel tips / vacation outfits by

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wearing: sun hat c/o Chico’s / bold silver earrings c/o Chico’s / summer lipstick / sunglasses (avl in prescription) / bold convertible necklace c/o Chico’s / black tee c/o Chico’s / palm print kimono c/o Chico’s (on major sale!!) / black slim fit pants c/o Chico’s / bold blue bracelet c/o Chico’s / summer nail polish / woven handbag c/o Chico’s / gold ankle bracelet / black espadrilles (super comfy!)

One of the first things I wanted to do when we arrived in Hawaii, was to show and teach my children some Hawaiian history. After breakfast on our second day on the Big Island of Hawai’i, my husband and I took the kids out to tour the grounds and buildings of the famous Hulihe’e Palace.

We took a few family photos around the grounds until 10am when the first tour was supposed to start. Unfortunately they didn’t have a docent available, so we ended up doing the self guided tour. It was incredible to view the interior of the Palace, and learn the history behind Hawaii’s last royal family; and the grounds themselves. I wish we were allowed to take photos inside the Palace, but they only allowed outdoor photography. Boo!

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My kids enjoyed seeing the Hulihe’e Palace, and learning the local history. It was fun to learn that the Prince had studied in San Mateo, and ended up having a San Francisco Bay Area connection. The museum included a large amount of historical facts and items, including what happened to the monarchy of Hawai’i. The self-guided tour took us close to an hour to read through and absorb. It was truly amazing, and a must-do if you ever visit the Big Island of Hawai’i.

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Since we were doing a lot of walking, I was so happy to have a comfortable outfit which had an island theme. These pants and this tee were the perfect canvas for this amazing kimono from Chico’s. I received so many compliments from both tourists and locals alike! This kimono was the hero piece of my look, and it was so much fun to wear! If you are looking for one fabulous piece this summer to get you into a vacation vibe, this is it! Plus, it’s on major sale, love that!

If you visit Kona, don’t miss touring the Palace! It’s on beautiful lands, and the history is just incredible. It is so important to learn about the places you visit around the world, otherwise, what’s the point?

Shop my Hawaii sight-seeing outfit from Chico’s:

Thanks for stopping by, and stay tuned for more coverage from Hawaii!

Aloha!

Cathy

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