Hawaii

You might try Aqua Palms in Honolulu. They're a small boutique hotel about two blocks from the beach. The rooms are basic, but clean and comfy with mini fridges and microwaves. I believe they also have rooms for longer term rental as well. I stayed there about six years ago and really enjoyed it. Good luck with planning, Hawaii is amazing!
Lisa

Have you checked out Kay's Ali'i Vacation Rentals? My family had a reunion 10 years ago and found her properties on the Windward side of Oahu to be quite comfortable and reasonably priced. PM me if you want more details.

Linda

Waikiki Banyon condos. Close to beach park zoo etc.

I hope you are planning on moving about a bit.. a week maybe on another island.. or maybe on north shore .. three weeks in waikiki seems excessive when you have so many awesome choices.

You might try Redweek.com.

I also agree. You should do a second island. Also have you verified that award tickets are available. I'm pretty sure you won't be able to fly to Hawaii on American Airlines award tickets this coming summer.

Thank you for the ideas, everyone! I think we were planning on staying in one location because of just wanting to fly in or out of one airport. I’m not sure what the cost would be to fly between islands? I’ll look at it though. I’m not sure why it wouldn’t be award tickets through allen’s this summer? I miss something somewhere? We use a US Bank credit card, so we would use their flex points program.

Quick question. Have you been to Hawaii before?

My husband and I both have been to Hawaii. We’ve been to both Oahu and Maui, but it would be the first time for our children. Their age range is just so broad that it makes it hard to plan a trip.

Anything remotely close to Waikiki and yet large enough for your family will likely be prohibitively expensive. Suggest looking outside the Honolulu metro area and plan on driving into Waikiki from there. Might be able to find something suitable on Booking.com, in addition to your other search engines.
As was suggested, seems a shame to come all that way and not include one of the neighbor islands in your visit. All are unique and all (quite frankly) are nicer than Oahu. The Big Island, in particular, has a lot to see and do - from the Kilauea volcano, to the flower farms of Hilo, to Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, to the pretty beaches and quiet waters on the west side north and south of Kona (best snorkeling in the islands). Would guess that accommodations close to the beach on the Kona side would be a lot more affordable than similar places on Oahu (or Maui). If you absolutely must include Oahu (for the Arizona, Pearl Harbor, etc) I'd suggest researching a multi-destination flight plan that would involve flying into Kona, thence over to Honolulu, and home from there...or the reverse. Interisland flights cost nearly $100 apiece but you might be able to include them in your award travel by specifying a multi destination or open jaw itinerary.

If you haven't already check with the TripAdvisor Forum for Oahu but finding a house for 8 will be expensive for sure. You will have better luck on the island of Hawaii - on the Kohala Coast -houses in Mauna Lani in particular BUT you selected Oahu which will be much more expensive. Summer is high season for Hawaii so prices will be elevated anyway.

Check out Ewa Beach. It's on the west side of Pearl Harbor but an easy drive to Honolulu and the rest of Oahu. Our friends live there and we were grateful to stay with them (saved a lot on hotels) a couple months ago. We also went to Kauai but it was crowded, congested and expensive. AirBNB may have houses available for you.

I live in Hawaii, on the Big Island, and personally I'd find three weeks on one island quite boring. There is a lot to do on Oahu, but maybe fill one week or ten days and you'll be looking for something else. That being said, it will be expensive to move your large family to another island, with tickets costing around $80 one way (you can fly from the mainland to Honolulu and then return home from one of the neighbor islands).

Lodging on the Big Island will be cheaper than the other islands, especially a VRBO or AirBnB that's not right on the beach. As another poster said, there is a whole lot to do on the Big Island, and you could easily spend two weeks there.

If you do decide to stay on Oahu, I suggest looking at staying in Kailua or someplace other than Waikiki.

In Honolulu/Waikiki, check out the following properties (all walking distance to the beach) with suites that can sleep up to 8 (some rentals are on VRBO):
*Wyndham Waikiki Beach Walk
*Hilton Hawaiian Village
*Waikiki Banyan

Outside of Honolulu, but likely requiring transportation, would be:
*The North Shore of Oahu for large home vacation rentals - may not be on a beach
*West Oahu: Ewa Beach or Ko Olina villa vacation rentals (near the Disney resort)

*Kailua on windward side of Oahu for large homes (where the Obama family spent their Christmas vacations)

Oahu for three weeks is a guaranteed good time for a family with teenagers - they will not be bored!
Have some fun with this site and see what your kids want to do!
http://www.101thingstodo.com/oahu101/

First choice: Oahu;
Second choice: Kauai;
Third choice: Big Island (if you're not bothered by VOG and don't mind driving - that's why it's called the BIG island)

You should investigate cost to fly to other islands. I have been to Hawaii 3 times and if I were taking this trip, I would skip Oahu and spend half the time on the Volcano side of the Big Island and half on Kuaui.

Agree with other posters above who have suggested another island. We've made several trips to Hawaii (with and without children), and husband lived on Oahu for a time. I think you will find that your lodging dollars will go much further on the Big Island - more than enough to cover the cost of a flight there. As others suggested, fly into your first island (Oahu), flight to Big Island, and return home from Big Island.

My children would never have been entertained by 3 weeks on Oahu, but loved the Big Island. Suggest one week on Oahu to see the "sights" and visit Waikiki then move on to the Big Island. Friends (actually two families with six children between them) are staying on the Big Island right now in a home with room for all of them, and a POOL.

And Oahu, and especially, Honolulu will be crowded in July/August.

We’re looking into the Big Island. I had to convince my husband. 😂 Thank you for all the ideas!

Would you be able to get the information for the house from your friends by chance? I’d love to hear about it! It certainly seems like better housing options are available on the Big Island.

They will be back next week and I will see them over New Year's Eve weekend. I'll find out about the house. They had some fun activities planned, too. And the kids are around the same ages as yours. I'll report back.

The Big Island is a good choice for a second island. The Volcano National Park is a must see complete with volcano activity and a lot of hiking options. I sent you a PM with a B&B in the village of Volcano that we enjoyed.

Note that the Big Island is geologically the youngest. This means white sand beaches are not the normal, with black sand beaches being surf ground lava. Windward side (Hilo) wet and lush. Leeward side (Kona) sunny and dry.

Hilo. Check out the Hilo Farmers Market: http://hilofarmersmarket.com/
and for ‘ono comfort food, try a Loco Moco at Cafe 100: http://cafe100.com/

The original Loco Moco™ is a meal in a bowl...a helping of rice with a
hamburger patty and Hilo-style brown gravy topped with an egg. It’s a
simple, tasty and inexpensive breakfast, lunch, dinner or snack.

And if you are hungry, go for the Super Loco Moco.
http://bigislandgrinds.com/2005/08/cafe-100/

2 eggs, 1 beef patty, 1 slice spam, 2 pc. portuguese sausage, loads of
rice, mac salad, gravy all over, and kimchi (supposedly) on the side.

Big Island - spend a night or two down near VNP and the rest on the Kohala Coast...Mauna Lani beach park is great for kids of all ages and there are tons of housing options from hotels to houses.

I'd plan on spending one week on Oahu and the rest on Big Island.