Hawaii Planning a Trip
How to get there, how to get around, where to find stuff and how to ask for it. These are tips from the local insider to make your stay here a breeze
Best Beginner Surf Spots: Part 2
PART 2
Canoes, near Waikiki, has been a long-time learner’s hot spot on Oahu. Known for its easy-to-ride waves and friendly leaner’s vibe, it has the reputation of being the place to try out surfing for the first time. However, it is also almost always crowded and you may find yourself trying harder to avoid other inept surfers as trying to catch the ever-elusive perfect wave. Luckily, there is another great learning spot not very far from Waikiki and with a whole lot less bodies and boards.
A great spot about a 40 min drive from downtown Honolulu is White Plains Beach (aka Kalaeloa), which was formerly a part of Barber’s Point Naval Station, but is now open to the public. The break here is nearly identical to Canoes with a lot fewer people. The beach also attracts everything but an eastern swell and has consistent surf year-round. The waves here are notoriously easy to catch for beginners and if you paddle far enough out you may even get lucky enough to catch a 100 yard ride into shore (ok, maybe not on your first day out, but it can be done). Pro surfer Jason Shibata credits White Plains as the place that taught him how to surf.
Date: June 20th, 2008 |
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Kauai Dining
Vacationers visiting Hawaii are often on a quest to sample some of the famously delicious fresh island fish and other fresh, tropical ingredients. Hawaii is known for a plethora of gourmet restaurants satiating tourists’ taste buds for fresh island fare. One of these restaurants is Postcards Café on Hanalei Bay on Kauai’s North Shore. This vegetarian and seafood restaurant not only provides diners with a picture-perfect view overlooking the bay, it also serves up fresh island fish dishes inspired by the produce and flavors of the tropics.
Postcards is located in a charming, plantation-style building that used to serve as the Hanalei Museum. Now the building provides pleasant ambiance for diners. The menu is healthful and Hawaiian inspired with dishes like grilled or blackened fish with macademia nut butter or peppered pineapple sage sauces. You can also start with a Hawaiian twist on chips and salsa by ordering the taro fritters served with fresh papaya salsa.
Date: June 18th, 2008 |
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Surfing the Hawaiian Waves
Sun, surf and sand are three things that immediately come to mind when you think about a Hawaiian vacation. For those who want to take the adventurous route and enjoy the surf there are a few things that you should take into consideration before facing the full fury of the Pacific Ocean—though in my opinion enjoying the sand and the sun is a perfectly acceptable way to go (preferably with a cocktail).
If you want free, good advice, a great place to go is a local surf shop. Stroll in and talk to the local surfers about tips of where to go and where to avoid. Depending on your experience and skill level, they will give probably be more than apt in pointing you the right direction (and outfitting you with proper equipment if you should need it). If you are nice, they may even let you know the overly crowded spots to avoid and the local spots that may not be the friendliest to tourists attempting to catch a wave.
Date: June 6th, 2008 |
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Airfare Rising for Hawaii Flights
With gas prices soaring to nearly $4 per gallon, filling up your car’s tank is not the only thing getting more expensive. With the summer travel season quickly approaching and gas prices higher than before, your plane ticket to Hawaii is also getting pricier. Delta Airlines recently announced they will be adding a $110 round-trip fuel surcharge to its Los Angeles to Honolulu flights. This added fuel surcharge comes on top of rising airfare prices, which began to climb after ATA and Aloha Airlines declared bankruptcy and discontinued flights in recent months.
Travelers still hoping to make it to the Hawaiian isles can count on lower airfares starting in September, with airfares dropping from summer highs of nearly $700 roundtrip from LAX to Honolulu to a lower $425 range.
Date: May 5th, 2008 |
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Horseback Riding on Kauai
Although visitor’s to Hawaii don’t usually immediately associate horses, cowboys and a ranching history with the islands, the archipelago has a long standing cowboy culture and influence. The first long horned cattle arrived on the islands in 1793 and by 1830 ranching and cattle were an important part of the Hawaiian economy. Hawaiian cowboys, called Paniolo’s, are often part of local festivals and gatherings and are a celebrated part of island culture. Horseback riding is a popular tourist activity for visitors to the island. On the island of Kauai, where only about 10% of the island is accessible by roads, horseback riding can be a great way to explore and see interior parts of the island. Here you can follow trails on horseback into pristine and unspoiled areas, and enjoy the beauty the Garden Isle has to offer.
South Shore
CJM Country Stables, Koloa, HI
On the South Shore of the island, CJM Country Stables provides visitors with a great opportunity to experience the varied and diverse terrain of the island on horseback. The experienced guides share ancient and historic Hawaiian legends and local lore along the journey in the rugged Mahaleapu area of the island.
In addition to their riding opportunities, CJM also has rodeo shows featuring famous Hawaiian cowboys. To see their rodeo schedule click here.
There are 2 different rides for visitor’s interested horseback riding at CJM:
Date: April 23rd, 2008 |
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Best Beginner Surf Spots: Part 1
PART 1
Launiupoko State Wayside Park
Located along the Lahaina Coast off of Highway 30 south of Puamana Beach Park and before Kulanaokala’i Beach, near mile marker 18.
Located just south of Lahaina on Maui, Launiupoko is the perfect spot for beginning surfers. It generally has long, rolling waves that are easy to catch and not overwhelming in size. It is also reef protected, which means you have to be a little careful of not cutting yourself on the sharp rocks, but also shields the biggest, scariest waves.
Date: June 19th, 2008 |
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Hawaiian Shave Ice
Looking for the perfect refreshing treat to cool down on a hot Hawaiian day? Shave ice, which is a lot like a snow cone with a finer, more snow-like consistency, is a delightful flavored ice treat that can be found in road side stands and grocery stores throughout the islands. Sometimes, you’ll even find variations that include a scoop of ice cream at the bottom. Enjoy uniquely tropical flavors like pineapple (my favorite), passionfruit and guava. A popular combination is a rainbow, with three flavors lined up side by side. And because shave ice has a fine consistency, the flavors stay better separated for longer.
Date: June 9th, 2008 |
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Kauai Helicopter Tours
While tens of thousands of tourists enjoy The Garden Isle Kauai every year, far fewer get to experience the beautiful and totally inaccessible majority of the island. Hidden in the interior of the older island in the Hawaiian chain are waterfalls, ancient volcanoes and spectacular scenery that can only be experienced from the air. With no roads or hiking trails penetrating the interior beauty of the island, a great way (and the only way) to catch a glimpse of these spectacular sights is on a helicopter tour.
Date: May 20th, 2008 |
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Pololu Valley
Pololu Valley
End of Highway 270, Big Island
Pololu Valley is a pristine and beautiful valley once inhabited by early Hawaiians, but long since abandoned because of fear of Tsunamis. The valley, however, offers spectacular vistas of green sloping cliffs dropping into the ocean below. Pololu Beach, located at the bottom of the valley, is also a gorgeous black sand beach. Because of these areas inaccessibility to cars, the area remains calm and pristine and is a great out of the way destination.
To get to Pololu Valley, drive to the very end of Highway 270 on the big island. At the parking lot/trailhead at the end of the highway you can either enjoy the spectacular scenery from your car, or you can take the adventurous route and hike down into the valley and onto the black sand beach below. The hike is relatively short (about 25 minutes), but is rather steep and can be wet and treacherous. In fact, the trail was long closed due to earthquake damage, but has now re-opened to the public. The zigzagging dirt path will take you through beautiful ironwood trees, through marshland, lead you past the creek flowing through the valley and offer you stunning views of waterfalls and the cliffs dropping into the ocean.
Date: May 2nd, 2008 |
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Lanai’s Pineapple Festival
Are you planning spending the Fourth of July in Hawaii and want to know a great way to celebrate our nation’s independence? What better way than eating pineapple, listening to good music and watching a spectacular fireworks display? On July 4, 2008, Lanai City will hold it’s 16th Annual Pineapple Festival. The festival celebrates and commemorates Lanai’s pineapple plantation and ranch history. The island, which is now home to several high end resorts and a golf course, was once owned by James Dole, who grew and canned his famous pineapple on the island. In fact, Lanai once produced 75% of the world’s pineapple. In order to pay homage to this past, the colorful Pineapple Festival, held at Dole Park in Lanai City, will have pineapple eating contests, pineapple cooking competitions, live music and entertainment, local arts and crafts, delicious food, and a fireworks display. If you are spending your vacation on Maui, but want to visit Lanai for the festival, it is a quick jaunt on a ferry over to the Pineapple isle can be a great day trip. The ferry service runs between the two islands throughout the day and costs as little as $25 per adult. For more information on this ferry service, click here.
Date: April 16th, 2008 |
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