Tourism in Hawaii

Hawaiokinai is the name of a chain of several islands and are among the numerous Pacific Islands in the Pacific Ocean. Of these, the islands which have significant tourism are: Hawaiokinai, Ookinaahu, Maui, Kauaokinai, and Lānaokinai.

In 2003 alone, according to state government data (see [http://www.hawaii.gov/DBEDT] ), there were over 6.4 million visitors to the Hawaiian Islands with expenditures of over $10 billion. Due to the mild year-round weather, tourist travel is popular throughout the year. The summer months and major holidays are the most popular times for outsiders to visit, however, especially when residents of the rest of the United States are looking to escape from cold, winter weather. The Japanese, with their economic and historical ties to Hawaii and the USA as well as relative geographical proximity, are also principal tourists.

2006 and 2007 saw a big increase in tourism, with over 7.6 million visitors.

History of Travel to Hawaiokinai

Hawaii was first populated no later than the 2nd century A.D. by people of Polynesian origin, most likely from Tahiti. [Young, Kanalu G. Terry. "Rethinking the Native Hawaiian Past" New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1998. 5.] Subsequent Western contact began as a consequence of European Enlightenment exploration and was continued by Protestant ministers of New England origin in the early 19th century.

18th century

The first recorded western visitor to Hawaiokinai was Captain James Cook on his third and fatal voyage in the Pacific. His French rival La Pérouse is also a potential first visitor, but his expedition was lost and no record remains of any visit.

19th century

19th century travelers included journalist Isabella Bird. American writers include Mark Twain aboard the "Ajax" as a travel journalist with the San Francisco Chronicle, and Herman Melville as a whaler. Twain's unfinished novel of Hawaii was incorporated into his A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, with King Arthur bearing striking similarities to Kamehameha V, the first reigning monarch Twain was to meet. The "modernizing" potential offered by the Connecticut Yankee from the future is a satire of the potentially negative Protestant Missionary influence on Hawaiian life. Melville's writing of the Pacific includes Typee and Omoo (considered factual travel accounts when published) and his Pacific experiences would develop, infamously, into the portrayal of the fictional savage Queequeg in Moby-Dick. Like Twain, Melville's character Queequeg is critical of some of the darker effects of missionary influence on island life.

English writers include Robert Louis Stevenson and his subsequent "In the South Seas" was published based on his voyages. During his stay in the islands, he wrote a stunning defense of Father Damien's work with the lepers of Kalaupapa against the politicized views of Father Damien's Protestant detractors. Consequently, Hawaiokinai is home to the eponymous Stevenson Middle School. Stevenson later died in Samoa.

20th century

In 1907, Jack London and his wife Charmian sailed to Hawaii learning the "Royal Sport" of Surfing and travelling by horse back to Haleakala and Hana as chronicalled in his book "The Cruise of the Snark". Since then, Hawaii has seen an explosion of tourists from the American mainland and Japan. Native Hawaiian Academic and Activist Haunani-Kay Trask's "Lovely Hula Hands" is a severe critique of the huge influx of tourists to Hawaiokinai, which she terms a "prostitution" of Hawaiian culture. She ends her essay with "let me just leave this thought behind. If you are thinking of visiting my homeland, please don't. We don't want or need any more tourists, and we certainly don't like them. If you want to help our cause, pass this message on to your friends." [Trask, Haunani-Kay. "Lovely Hula Hands." "From A Native Daughter: Colonialism and Sovereignty in Hawaiokinai." Maine: Common Courage Press, 1993. 195-196.] Her criticism is not without controversy.

Hawaiokinai (The “Big Island”)

The Island of Hawaiokinai, often called "the Big Island", is the largest island in the chain. Since the entire chain is also named Hawaiokinai the term "Big Island" also specifies that someone is referring to the particular island instead of the entire archipelago. Unique features of interest to tourism include: active volcanoes on its southeastern coast, two of the world's largest mountains (Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa), and the resort area of Kona.

Ookinaahu

Ookinaahu is the most developed and highly populated island. It is home to the city of Honolulu where some eighty percent of the state's residents live. It is the commercial center of the state as well as the seat of state government. Waikīkī is one of the most well-known tourist destinations in Hawaiokinai. The North Shore of Ookinaahu is popular with surfers and hosts world championship competitions in the winter. The atmosphere fits with surfing culture; laid back and reminiscent of the 1960s. It's an easy drive from Honolulu and worth a visit. The Polynesian Cultural Center is the island's oldest and most visited attraction. The USS Arizona Memorial is also very popular visitor destination for the island of Ookinaahu. The Hanauma Bay preserve and Manoa Falls are two of the most common places tourists seeking an outdoor experience choose to visit.

Maui

Maui is the second largest island and also attracts many visitors each year. It is often called "the Valley Isle" because of the narrow plain between the huge 10 thousand foot high Haleakalā and the West Maui mountains. Famous resort areas on Maui include Lāhainā, Kāokinaanapali, Kīhei, Kapalua, and Wailea. Also of note is the tiny village of Hāna on the far eastern coast known for its remoteness, with access for the rest of the island being from a single narrow and windy roadway (see Hana Highway). Maui also contains a number of sacred stones and ancient temples.

Kauaokinai

Known as the "Garden Isle," Kauaokinai includes has spots such as the Wailua River, Waimea Canyon, Nā Pali Coast, and Mount Waiokinaaleokinaale, which is referred to as the wettest spot on earth.

Regions

Kauaokinai can be divided into five regions: North Shore, West Side, South Shore, Līhuokinae-Wailua region, and Coconut Coast.

The North Shore has Nā Pali Coastline, Hanalei Bay, Lumahaokinai beach, and the Kīlauea, which is at the northernmost point of the island.

The West Side of the island has the Waimea Canyon and Polihale Heiau.

The South Shore has several beaches, such as Māhāokinaulepū Beach, Shipwreck Beach, and the Pookinaipū Beach.

The Līhuokinae-Wailua region is the island's county seat. The Hulēokinaia National Wildlife Refuge and Wailua Falls are located here.

The Coconut Coast, located on the northeastern portion of the island, is the home of many sacred sites and Hawaiian cultural attractions. The 19th century plantation town of Old Kapaokinaa is found here.

Activities

Kauaokinai is a paradise for nature lovers. Hiking, kayaking, camping, a helicopter tour (~$180) and/or a boat tour (~$115) are the only ways one can see the true beauty of the island. A visitor who doesn't hike hazardous trails or does not have the budget to take a helicopter or boat tour won't be able to see much on Kauaokinai, because the roads only reach about 5% of the island.

There is one main highway, which does not circle the entire island. The highway goes along the coast from the north at Keokinae Beach, goes around the east side where the town of Līhuokinae and the airport are located, continues along the south shore and then west, ending at the remains of a town called Mana and Polihale State Park.

The northwest part of the island contains the Nā Pali Coast State Park, a range of breathtaking, rugged cliffs that are inaccessible by car. A view of this spectacular vista, either by hiking, helicopter or boat, should not be missed when visiting Kauaokinai.

In the northwest interior of the island are the Waimea Canyon, also known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific and the high altitude Alakaokinai Swamp. In the center of the island is the top of the inactive Waiokinaaleokinaale volcano. The summit is shrouded by clouds 300 days a year and gets an average of convert|1.5|in|mm of rain everyday, making it is the wettest place on Earth.

Almost the entire island is lush green wilderness, perfect for hikers and campers. Some of the hiking trails along the cliffs are very steep and are not for beginners. There are streams and rivers at the bottom of the Waimea Canyon and throughout the island. Kayaking on these rivers is a popular activity. Ocean kayaking is also popular.

One way to see the scenery is by taking a helicopter tour. Tours leave from Līhuokinae Airport and fly over the shorelines, the valleys where the ancient Hawaiians used to live, the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, and the swamp at convert|2000|ft|m elevation. The waterfall where the visitors to "Jurassic Park" landed is located on Kauaokinai.

Some helicopters fly into the shaft of an old volcano. Half of the crater had fallen off due to erosion. The remaining half forms a semi-cylindrical opening. When a helicopter is in the opening, the passengers are surrounded by a vertical wall 270° around. The cliff walls are covered with plants and numerous threads of tiny waterfalls. The Hawaiians called it the Wall of Tears. The ceiling of the shaft is always covered by clouds. On the rare occasion when the mountain clouds clear up, the helicopter can fly up the shaft vertically and it feels like you're looking up from the bottom of a well. Even most seasoned pilots have seen the sky from the shaft only a few times.

Another fun thing to do is to take a raft expedition. The trip leaves the north shore on a motorized raft (temporarily discontinued by US Government authorities due to environmental concerns), which holds 14 passengers and a crew of 2. The raft travels along the west shore to see spectacular views of the cliffs. When the lava flowed from the volcano to the sea, it cooled to form the rocks and continued to flow in underground tunnels. When the flowing lava stopped, the tunnels became sea caves along the shore. Rafts can enter into the sea caves; some of the cave entrances are covered by waterfalls. Some raft trips land on a beach for a lunch break, followed by time for snorkeling in the coral reef. The colorful coral fish swim to the divers begging for food.

Large power and sail catamarans also tour the island coasts, with the primary port being Port Allen on the southwest coast. Catamaran tours offer from as little as simple sight seeing of the Nā Pali or the southern coasts, to dinners at sunset, to snorkeling off coral reefs.

Another way to see the island is by car. One can basically drive the entire stretch of the highways on the island in a few hours. At one end is the viewpoint at Waimea Valley and Kokeokinae to see part of the sea cliffs and lush green valleys and the desert-like Grand Canyon of the Pacific.

About one mile (1.6 km) from the north end of the highway is a dry lava cave that the visitor can walk inside. The end of the highway offers the trailheads for Nā Pali hiking. Along the ways are numerous resorts and white sand beaches.

There is a place called Spouting Horn on the south shore near Pookinaipū, where the ceiling of an undersea lava tunnel is cracked; the sea waves push water into the tunnel and water spout shoots convert|30|ft|m into the air.

There is a famous coral reef on the north shore, one can stop by any rental store to rent snorkeling gear for $1.99 per day (in 1996's US dollar value). Drive to a place called Tunnel Beach, it is the largest reef on Kauaokinai. Park the car on the roadside and just walk into the water. There is no road sign to Tunnel Beach, one has to look it up in the map and guess the way there. The map actually shows many coral reefs around the entire shore line, but Tunnel Beach is the best around May when the ocean waves are pounding on the south shore, the north shore is perfect for snorkeling.

Tourists can also attend a lūokinaau. They cook a pig in the "imu" (the ground oven) and serve shredded pork with "poi" (mashed taro root) and other traditional dishes in the buffet-style dinner. Afterwards, they have a show of different Polynesian dances for the tourists.

Lodgings on Kauaokinai are primarily available at timeshare resorts, but a significant number of hotel rooms are also available. Taking an afternoon and visiting a timeshare sales agent for a no-obligation ownership presentation can net you significantly discounted, or free, activities, such as helicopter rides, boat tours, and luaus. But a significant number of conventional hotel resorts are available. In addition to traditional hotels and resorts, try a vacation home rental, they often offer more privacy and space than a traditional hotel room. Vacation home rentals can be budget or luxurious, often with a full staff ready to pamper.

The island of Kauaokinai was featured in Disney's 2002 animated feature film "Lilo & Stitch". It has also served as the backdrop to many other feature television shows and movies, such as "Six Days Seven Nights", "Fantasy Island", "Jurassic Park", and "Blue Hawaii" (Elvis — Coco Palms Resort) (From [http://cp_lai.tripod.com/hawaii.htm] , by permission. See top of source webpage).

Lānaokinai

There are three hotels on Lānaokinai:
*Hotel Lānaokinai - the oldest hotel on Lānaokinai. Contains 10 rooms and one cottage.
*The Lodge at Kōokinaele - Known as a highland resort hotel. The hotel is erected on the hilltop, at the center of Lānaokinai. Lodge at Kōokinaele is like a villa of Europe, with a pastoral mood. The temperature here is less than usual for Hawaiokinai, so it is a very good choice for a summer resort. Elected as one of the best hotels in the world.
*The Four Seasons Resort at Mānele Bay - twin hotel of The Lodge at Kōokinaele. Known as a beach resort hotel. This hotel is erected in the south of Lānaokinai, besides the Hulopookinae Beach. The hotel takes in Mediterranean Style, and the resort is very elegant. Visitors can hear the sound of rippling waves and smell the sea. Like The Lodge at Kōokinaele, The Four Seasons Resort at Mānele Bay is also elected as one of best hotels in the world.

Golf Courses

The Cavendish Golf Course - A free 9 hole golf course in the pines that requests a donation for its upkeeping. Bring your own clubs!

The Experience at Kōokinaele - A golf course made with The Lodge at Kōokinaele. Placed besides the hotel, the course is designed by golf legend Greg Norman. It makes the most of the abundant nature on Lānaokinai. Therefore, there are lots of up and downs, and it is a difficult course. However, even beginners can enjoy many natural features while playing; such as lakes, waterfalls, and streams.

The Challenge at Mānele - A golf course made with The Mānele Bay Hotel and placed beside the hotel. The course is designed by golf legend Jack Nicklaus. Since the course sits beside the beach, players can see the wonderful, clear blue sea of Lānaokinai from all 18 holes. However, the course is very challenging.

Molokaokinai

Molokaokinai is the most rural and undeveloped of Hawaiokinai's islands. There are not a lot of tourist amenities on the island.Fact|date=March 2007

ee also

*
* List of National Historic Landmarks in Hawaiʻi

External links

* [http://wikitravel.org/en/Hawaii Wikitravel:Hawaii] - Wikitravel's Guide to Hawaiokinai
* [http://hawaii.gov/dbedt Hawaii State DBEDT] - the state's Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism provides resources and statistics to promote tourism
* [http://www.gohawaii.com Hawaiokinai Visitors & Convention Bureau] - information for tourists and business travellers
* [http://www.visitmaui.com Maui Visitors Bureau] - visitors information for Maui
* [http://www.kauai-hawaii.com Kauaokinai Visitors Information] - official county visitors site
* [http://www.visitlanai.net Lānaokinai Visitors Bureau] - travel information for Lānaokinai
* [http://alohaboatdays.org Aloha Boat Days Committee] - tourism in Hawaiokinai via cruise ship
* [http://kauaian.net The Kauaian Institute] - sustainability in Hawaiokinai and ahupuaokinaa maps

References