When we were inquiring at our hotel’s front desk, everyone said that it was far. The commuter’s map also indicates it was about 2 hours from Waikiki. But we still took our chance since we had one free afternoon.
By public bus, it did take more than 2 hours! 2.5 hrs to be exact. We reached the Waikele Premium Outlets by 4pm.
Every time I go to an outlet store, my first destination is the information center so I can get a coupon book because on top of the big discounts given in the stores, you can still get additional discounts if you have a coupon book. :)
Fortunately, while at the information center we just randomly inquired if they have transfers going back to Waikiki and the attendant said she’ll check with the bus driver. And they did have 2 seats! Yay! At least we didn’t have to commute on the way back (if you miss the public bus transfer, sometimes you have to wait another 30 minutes for the next one). But the catch was - we only had 2 hours to shop because the shuttle leaves at 6pm!
That means 2 hours for 50 stores! Of course, we weren’t able to see all of them. We just selected about 5 stores we wanted to check. Two hours of shopping was enough – at least it won’t break the bank. Haha…
Anyway, on our way back to Waikiki, guess how long the travel time was? Only 30 minutes!!! 1/5 time saved from public commute! In terms of cost, it wasn’t that much difference – USD5 for the public bus vs USD10 for the private shuttle - the difference is immaterial if you consider that you could save more than 4 hours of travel time (2-way) if you take the private shuttle.
So the biggest lesson for the day was - it’s still best to research online. When I checked online, the website of Waikele’s Premium Outlets did list down several service options including the shuttle service . For more info, here's the link to Waikele's Premium Outlets' official website - http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=29.
But anyway, we didn’t regret taking the public transportation because during the ride, we have witnessed how the bus driver (a lady driver at that!) gladly helped disabled people get on the bus, secured their wheelchairs and assist them out of the bus. The task wasn’t easy and it took time but there was not a bit of trace in her face that showed she was hassled by it.
For sure, assisting the disabled is a big part of a driver’s job but there’s something about the way she treated them that was so admirable. She did it with sincerity and even went an extra mile by happily chatting with them. That lady driver inspired me that day and in retrospect, I don’t regret losing 2 hours of shopping opportunity for witnessing that. :)
