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United States |
|
 |
Language(s) | English |
 |
Currency | U.S. dollar |
 |
Phone Code | +1 |
 |
Population | 304,102,000 |
 |
Area | 9,826,630 sq km |
 |
Capital | Washington, D.C. |
 |
GDP | $13.8 trillion |
|
United States |
|
|
Language(s) | English |
|
Currency | U.S. dollar |
|
Phone Code | +1 |
|
Population | 304,102,000 |
|
Area | 9,826,630 sq km |
|
Capital | Washington, D.C. |
|
GDP | $13.8 trillion |
Hawaii, the island, is Hawaii’s “Big Island.” And for good reason: it is more than twice as big as all the other major Hawaiian islands combined. It also has two of Hawaii’s tallest mountains, Mauna Kea (13,796 feet) and Mauna Loa (13,679 feet), one of the world’s most active volcanoes, Kilauea, and some of Hawaii’s largest orchid gardens and macadamia nut farms.
Kauai is Hawaii’s “Garden of Eden.” It was the locale of South Pacific, Jurassic Park, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Elvis Presley’s Blue Hawaii. It is the tropical paradise people dream about, with lush valleys and towering green mountains, cascading waterfalls and freshwater lagoons, secluded beaches and wild gardens bursting forth in bunches of plumeria, hibiscus, anthuriums, orchids, ginger and birds of paradise. Kauai is also Hawaii’s oldest island, steeped in history and intertwined with Hawaii’s mythical little people, the menehune, more than any other island.
Lanai is first and foremost a private island (which Bill Gates “rented” for his honeymoon in 1994—yes, the whole island!), owned in its entirety by a single entity, Castle & Cooke Company. It is also a paradox, at once primitive and refined, where rugged, almost-inaccessible, four-wheel-drive country and the trappings of five-star, luxury resorts coexist.
Maui is an incredible draw, and always has been. But the throngs of visitors have hardly dampened its appeal. In fact, the word from the islands is that Maui is “no ka oi!” (the best). Island residents and visitors alike will tell you that Maui has some of Hawaii’s best beaches, best resorts, best golf courses, and best weather, with an average of 320 days of sunshine a year.
Molokai may well be the most Hawaiian of the Hawaiian islands, and as far away from the rat race as you can get. It was one of Hawaii’s first islands to be inhabited, yet, in the absence of any resort development and the “modernization” process that accompanies it, it remains largely in its natural state, with pristine rain forests, dry expanses of ranch land, and one of Hawaii’s largest, most uncluttered beaches.
