As Ibiza is to the Brits, Hawaii is to the Americans, or so the story goes.  However, Hawaii is a whole lot more than grass skirts and cocktails.  On the contrary, it is an exotic location worth paying a visit.  Steeped in centuries of history from the Polynesian sea voyagers to the ancient traditions of the Hawaiian family values known as Ohana, there is much to see and do.  Hawaii is known as the Big Island and then there are the five smaller islands, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Maui and Lanai.  On the Big Island, you are never more than 26 miles from the coastline wherever you are.  The great thing about Hawaii is that it is extremely child friendly.  The island offers lots to do from lush green forests to explore to Volcanoes, snow capped mountains or just splashing around on the beach in the white, black, grey or green sand.  The Kilauea volcano on the Big Island is legendary and home to Pele, the Hawaiian Volcano Goddess.  The story goes Hawaiians respected and honoured Pele, “and made offerings to please her or placate her wrath.”  Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is the country’s 13th National Park and its number one visitor attraction.  The most popular beach centres are Kailua Kona and the super resort of Kohala on the dry west coast.

Oahu, the next big island, is the main island holding the capital, Honolulu and the adjacent Wakiki Beach.  Maui is the second most visited island and Kauai, the garden island.

Surfing is a national past time and if you love to ride that wave then this is the place to be.  Check out www.hawaiiansurfingadventures.com for a real Hawaiian experience at the gorgeous Hanalei Bay.  And not forgetting the girls, check out the aptly named, www.girlswhosurf.com based in the island of Oahu, they provide good quality surfing lessons in crowd free locations.  Other activities in Oahu include interactive Dolphin excursions especially if you’ve got kids and you don’t fancy the surf, check out www.dolphinquest.org

There’s so much to see and do in Hawaii, it is one of those places you return to time and time again.  Golfing, Surfing, Weddings and Honeymoons, it’s all here just waiting for you to see.  The weather in Hawaii is regular and rarely drops below 25*c.  In fact, there are only two seasons in Hawaii, Summer and Winter.  Although, you’ll find in the Summer months, recognized as May to October and known as Kau in Hawaii, are an average 29.7*c.  Whereas in the winter months, normally November to April, the temperature is still a balmy 25.6*c.  The average cost of a flight to Hawaii is around £505 per person return travelling from Heathrow to Hawaii’s main airport in Honolulu.  United Airlines are the main operator.

Check out the following websites for information and holidays:

www.gohawaii.com, www.hawaii.com, www.expedia.co.uk, www.americansky.co.uk, www.americanairlines.com