Oahu is a relatively small island, measuring 26 miles long and some 44 miles across at its widest, totaling 608 square miles of land, with 112 miles of coastline. Everyone ventures to Oahu seeking a different experience. Some talk about wanting to find the "real" Hawaii, some are looking for heart-pounding adventure, some yearn for the relaxing and healing powers of the islands, and others are drawn by Hawaii's aloha spirit, where kindness and friendliness prevail.

 

The Big Island is the largest island in the Hawaiian chain (4,038 sq. miles—about the size of Connecticut), the youngest (800,000 years), and the least populated (with 30 people per sq. mile), and has an unmatched diversity of terrain and climate: fiery volcanoes and sparkling waterfalls, black-lava deserts and snowcapped mountain peaks, tropical rainforests and alpine meadows, a glacial lake, and miles of golden, black, and green (!) sand beaches. A 50-mile drive will take you from snowy winter to sultry summer, passing through spring or fall along the way. The island looks like the inside of a barbecue pit on one side, and a lush jungle on the other. It’s a bizarre place, in a word, and takes some people aback because it doesn’t fit the tropical stereotype.

 

Maui, also called the Valley Isle, is just a small dot in the vast Pacific Ocean, but it has the potential to offer visitors unforgettable experiences: floating weightless through rainbows of tropical fish, standing atop a 10,000-foot volcano watching the sunrise color the sky, listening to the raindrops in a bamboo forest, and sunning on idyllic beaches. The island is also packed with interesting cultural sites and colorful history. Here, you set foot on the spot where ancient Hawaiian royalty and priests once walked, gathered, and worshipped. Later, at the turn of the century, it became a bustling home to native Hawaiians, immigrants, and missionaries. Cruise ships call on two ports, Kahului and Lahaina.