Hawaii
Hawaii Holiday
The Hawaii islands are off the West Coast of the USA were created by millions of years of volcanic activity in the Pacific Ocean.
The tropical sun drenched beaches lapped by clear blue waters make these islands a great holiday resort. Each island has a different charm and character. The main island of Hawaii is the largest and a trip to the island will give you a chance to see current volcanic eruptions. Lanai is an oasis dedicated to rest and relaxation while Oahu is more of a bustling, lively island.
Kauai has some stunning scenery including picturesque waterfalls and dramatic mountains. Most people visit at least two of the islands, and a popular choice with many travelers is to choose Hawaii as a beach extension after a coach tour or fly-drive of the Western States.
Isolated in the middle of the North Pacific, the 50th state of the USA is an archipelago of eight islands plus countless islets and reefs strung out in an arc 2,400 km (1,500 miles) long. The larger islands are clustered at the southeastern end, and seven are inhabited: Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Kauai and the little private island of Niihau. The eighth, Kahoolawe, formerly used by US forces for target practice, was handed back to the state in 1994 but the clean-up will take many years.
The Hawaiian Islands are the peaks of a mountain range raised from the ocean floor by a series of volcanic eruptions some 25 million years ago. Those volcanoes, a couple of them still active, have created richly varied scenery: towering cliffs, old craters now overgrown with ferns and trees, plunging waterfalls and barren cinder cones. At the island shores, pulverized lava forms jet black sands that contrast with the more familiar white beaches and waving palms.
The main islands are all remarkably different. In the past, Oahu with by far the most people and the only big city, Honolulu, tended to overshadow the rest. (Note: not to be called the "other islands" or any such phrase which diminishes their status! The approved term is Neighbor Islands.) Hawaii, called the Big Island to avoid confusion with the state name, is itself a land of enormous contrasts, from mountains with winter snow on their peaks to the red hot lava pools of an active volcano. Maui's resorts are renowned and the south coast is a wind-surfers' paradise. Molokai and Lanai see far fewer visitors but that in itself is a prime asset. Over the horizon, Kauai is a green garden which its devotees wouldn't exchange for the world.
Tourism is the chief source of income nowadays. Commercialism is inevitable, but the Hawaiian people are genuinely friendly. When they hang a lei round your neck and greet you with the famous Aloha, you can be sure that the welcome is real.