Tag: golf

Hawaii- The Perfect Vacation for Families

Hawaii, translated from the ancient Hawaiian language should mean paradise, because that’s what it is. Hawaii has a climate that varies only several degrees in temperature year round and the sun always shines. The rainy season is in January, but it isn’t so rainy that it deters visitors. In fact, winter is one of the most popular times of year to visit Hawaii. This is probably because it is cold and dreary just about everywhere else in the United States. Hawaii makes for the perfect getaway for Californians because it is only about a three hour flight.

Hawaii makes for a great family vacation because of the wide variety of activities or no activity at all. (if laying on a perfect sandy beach is your thing) All of the islands offer a variety of family friendly activities. Such as swimming or surfing on one of Hawaii’s amazing beaches. Wakiki is a family friendly beach located on the island of Ohau. The waves are long and shallow offering a good family atmosphere. Wakiki is a good place for beginners to learn to surf because the waves or not so treacherous. Because Honolulu is a big city, you can even find fast food to satisfy those hungry youngsters.

While on Ohau, be sure not to miss the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. This memorial is both powerful and sorrowful. After watching a brief movie depicting the horrific attack on Pearl Harbor, visitors will take a short ferry ride out too the memorial. The memorial actually floats on top of the sunken ship. Once you get off the ferry, you can walk back to the wall that lists the name of every person that died that dreaded day in December.

Ohau is also home to the Wakiki Aquarium, the Honolulu zoo, and the Sea life park. The park has a 300,000 gallon tank, where you can see sharks, rays and thousands of reef fish. You can even swim with the dolphins here. The kid’s will love the dolphins.

The island of Maui hosts the Maui Ocean Center, which is the largest tropical aquarium in the United States. Maui is also a good place to windsurf, and has tons of different waterfalls. The resort area of Ka’anapali is located on the western coast of Maui, and is home to the island’s best golf courses. This is where you will find the large high-rise resorts. They have plenty of pools for the kids to swim in. The beach here, however, is not quite as kid friendly as Wakiki Beach. The rip currents can be strong and Maui is much windier that Honolulu. The calmer beach at Kihei, might be a little more kid friendly.

If horsebacking riding is more your style, you should visit either the North Shore of Ohau, or the big island of Hawaii or Kaua’i. Of course, don’t forget the Luau. Luaus make for great family fun and can be found on any of the Hawaiian islands. The fire eaters and beautiful Polynesian dancers are sure to impress kids of all ages. Whatever your idea of family fun, Hawaii is sure to please.

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Hawaii- The Island of Lanai

Lanai is the smallest and perhaps most exclusive island in the chain of Hawaiian Islands. The beaches are just as gorgeous as the other islands and the palm trees offer the perfect backdrop for a romantic island getaway. When visiting Lanai you can get to the island either by plane or by a ferry. You can fly into Lanai from either Maui or Honolulu. There are no direct flights from the mainland so you should take some time to visit one of the other islands first. If you take a boat to Lanai, it will be from Maui and you may just get lucky enough to see some migrating whales along the way, particularly in the winter months. If you do not have a lot of time to visit Lanai, you could take a day trip from Maui.

Lanai is home to a famous dive site known as Cathedrals located near Pu’u Pele rock. The tropical fish and coral are abundant here. Hulop’e Beach is another popular destination on the island. Here you can usually see spinner dolphin and a variety of reef fish making this a great place for snorkeling. The beaches here are white sand and gorgeous. They make for a great place to relax and unwind. Shipwreck beach is a nice place to take a stroll. It’s relatively quiet; in fact you are likely to be alone on this stretch of beach. You may find remnants of sunken ships in the form of driftwood washed up along the shore here. As the name implies there are several shipwrecks located just off the shore.

The island of Lanai is also home to two championship golf courses. Manele, located at Manele Bay Hotel was actually designed by Jack Nicklaus and is set amongst a gorgeous tropical backdrop complete with palm trees and ocean cliffs. Greg Norman designed the second course which is the Experience at Koele. It has been rated the number one golf resort in the world by Conde Nast. The course lies beneath the mountains and offers spectacular views of the neighboring islands. Lanai is also home to the Cavendish Golf course that is a local nine-hole course. The course is open to the public and all are welcome. There are no greens fees here (impressive) however, donations are accepted.

Horseback riding is another popular activity on the island of Lanai. The only place to ride is at Koele. They offer a variety of different ride options including pony rides for the kids. One favorite ride is a trail ride that will take you on trails along the coast. This offers breathtaking views, and if you look closely, you may be able to se Moloka’i and Maui. This ride also includes a picnic lunch, which can make for a romantic afternoon.

One hiking destination not to be missed while in Lanai is the Koloiki Ridge Trail. The 5-mile hike begins at the Lodge at Koele and will take you up to the Munro Trail. The hike will offer some breath taking views of the valleys, as well as Moloka’i and Maui. The island of Lanai will offer a great variety of activities, or none at all if you wish. It’s the perfect island for pampering and relaxation.

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Water Sports in Hawaii

Ah, Hawaii the perfect vacation spots for a magical getaway in a tropical paradise. There are few vacation destinations that offer as many attractions as Hawaii. The island of Oahu boasts huge cities with lots of shopping as well some cultural activities nestled amongst the North Shore surfing villages. The island also is home to the memorial at Pearl Harbor, which is on the top of the list of must see for Oahu

There are ample opportunities for playing golf as well. All of the islands have golf courses. They range from world championship golf courses to quiet laid back courses that have little or no greens fees.

But really Hawaii is all about the water sports. The state is an island surrounded by the Pacific Ocean that is home to some of the world’s best and largest waves. In fact surfing was invented here in the islands. Oahu and Maui are most well known for surfing, particularly the North Shore of both islands, but you can really expect to see some pretty great waves just about anywhere in Hawaii. If you are a beginner, you should stick to the beginner friendly waves like Waikiki Beach on Oahu and Lahaina in Maui. The big waves on the North Shore of the islands should be left to the experts.

Diving and Snorkeling are another popular pastime for vacationers in Hawaii. There are some world famous dive spots like the molokini crater located off the coast of Maui. You can expect to see a wide variety of sea creatures here, such as, sharks, sea turtles, rays, and tons of different tropical fish. This is a great spot for snorkeling, as well as scuba diving. If you are anxious to try scuba, but don’t think that you are quite ready; you could try a combination of the two called snuba. This is similar to scuba in that you have an air supply; however, it’s attached to the boat and it floats above you. With scuba, however, you have to carry your air supply with you in a tank on your back. This is a good compromise if you want to get a feel for breathing underwater, but are not quite ready to make the scuba commitment.

Maui in particular is great for windsurfing and kite boarding. Kite boarding is similar to windsurfing or wake boarding, but throw in the fact that you need to be able to fly a kite, and the sport suddenly becomes difficult to master.

Hawaiians have been kayaking since ancient times. If kayaking is your thing, Hawaii is the place to be. All of the islands have something different to offer. On Oahu, Kailua Bay is a popular kayaking spot, where you can paddle over to an uninhabited island for some respite for the very busy Waikiki Beach. On Maui Kealakekua Bay is a great place for Kayaking. These waters are responsible for the downfall of Captain Cook. Molokai offers some great kayaking for the more experienced paddlers. Whatever you water sport pleasure, Hawaii is sure to please.

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