The Islands where surfing was born more than three centuries ago is now the first state in the U.S. to recognize surfing as an official high school sport. In an announcement made on Waikiki beach this week, Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie announced a plan that would allow Hawaii public high school students to be able […]
Two tail slaps — both courtesy of a humpback whale yearling. That’s what a Sea Quest tour captain witnessed on Mon., Sept. 26 in Honaunau Bay, which edges the Big Island. The slapping event marked first confirmed whale sighting for the 2011-12 whale-watching season in the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. The sanctuary,
Not all ecotourism operations in Hawaii — or anywhere else, actually — are the same shade of green. Most provide some sort of nature experience, anything from a hike in a remote area to a snorkeling cruise circling an offshore reef. But which ones are most respectful of the host culture? Which contribute to environmental
Continental Airlines is offering round-trip airfare deals to the Islands from more than 20 Mainland cities through a sale dubbed Tropical breezes of Hawaii. Flights touch down on Oahu, Maui, Kauai and the Big Island. The special offer, which took effect this morning, includes roundtrip fares as low as $422 from Los Angeles to Hilo.
Citing public safety concerns, Grove Farm Company is installing fencing and rolling in boulders to discourage trespassing at Kipu Falls, a popular Kauai swimming hole. Grove Farm, which owns the land edging the falls near Puhi in East Kauai, is also posting “private property “and “no trespassing signs” to inform area visitors that they may
Tucked into tranquil Lawai Valley, near Kauai’s south shore, is Lawai International Center, which features 88 miniature shrines inspired by a thousand-mile pilgrimage in Shikoku, Japan. This Sunday (Aug. 12), the center will celebrate its 12th annual Pilgrimage of Compassion during which visitors will be invited to walk a hillside path lined with the shrines
The 26th annual Koloa Plantation Days, a nine-day festival that celebrates Kauai’s sugar-plantation past with more than two dozen events, will get under way Fri., July 22 with barrel racing and a preliminary round of roping for the annual Plantation Days Rodeo, followed by a paniolo (cowboy) cookout. Founded in 1835, Koloa Plantation, near Kauai’s
To experience one of Kauai’s most unexpected local libations, one doesn’t go to a bucolic winery or a bustling brewpub. Instead, you go to a nondescript strip mall hidden just off two-lane Kuhio Highway, which cuts through Kapaa town. It’s an unlikely location for a meadery, but Nani Moon Mead owner Stephanie Krieger makes it
Hanalei, Kauai’s charming north shore surf-and-beach town, is blessed with white-sand beaches edging crescent-shaped Hanalei Bay. Formidable mountains and lush ridgelines encircle the bay. In the current July/August 2011 issue of HAWAII Magazine, we take you in images and words to our favorite north shore Kauai town, beach, bay and river in the photo essay
Bon dance season in Hawaii is now under way. The Japanese custom of o-bon — Hawaii shortens the word to bon —honors the spirits of family members who have passed away. You’ll find o-bon festivals slated for just about every weekend at Hawaii hongwanji missions and temples, from June through August. According to tradition, it
Hawaii will celebrate its 95th annual King Kamehameha Day this weekend — and next weekend — with ceremonies, parades and other cultural celebrations paying tribute to King Kamehameha the Great, who unified the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810 and was its first monarch. The first King Kamehameha Day, proclaimed by King Kamehameha V to honor his
In the just-released movie trailer for The Descendants, you’ll see a flustered-looking George Clooney running in slippahs down a damp residential street in a leafy Oahu neighborhood. Other Hawaii scenery tucked into the 2:15-minute clip range from glimpses of canoes gliding along the Ala Wai Canal near Waikiki and South Kohala’s lava fields on the
