Entries tagged 'honeymoon'
Hawaii Hotels: Scoop on the Renovated Rooms at the Kahala Hotel & Resort
Family crashed as the Kahala for a 4-night stay two weeks ago and got lucky enough to snag one of the newly renovated rooms at the classic resort which had been struggling of late, according to many online posters. A...
Ask Hawaiirama: Papakea OK?
I am reviving the long dormant "Ask Hawaiirama" feature on this blog. Send me questions. I'll tell you no lies. The latest comes from Cindi. "Hi, Hawaiirama: My husband and I will be on Maui the first week of March...
Hawaii Top Honey Spot -- Or Not?
A kinda funny dispute has cropped up between dueling publications, Honeymoon Review Guide and Modern Bride. Modern Bride dropped a bomb with its recent poll finding that Hawaii was no longer the top honeymoon destination for American brides. That honor...
Hawaii Beaches: Mahaulepu Beach, Pick of Kauai's South Shore
The drive to Maha'ulepu Beach takes you through the dusty remnants of a now dormant suger cane plantation along Kauai's sunny southern shore. Go to the eastern end of Poipu Road where the pavement turns into a rutted dirt road....
Hawaii Beaches: Untouched Oahu Gem -- Kawela Bay
I almost hate telling people about this spot. It's so perfect, and its right on Oahu. Kawela Bay is one of the last semi-secret beaches on this most populous of Hawaiian Islands. "Magnum P.I." and "Lost" have both filed scenes...
Hawaii XMas Shopping: Spring for Vera Wang
Who doesn't like Vera Wang? Her designs are timeless, clean, and classy. Her color selection is subtle. The fabrics and materials she uses are sublime. I was in the Vera Wang Boutique at the plush Halekulani Hotel in Waikiki this...
NYT Travel Mag Does Oahu
Props to my good friend Lesa Griffith, who is also a lifestyle editor at the Honolulu Advertiser, for this solid piece in NYT Travel Mag covering Oahu. A good read for anyone coming to Oahu soon. One caveat --...
Hawaii Video of the Day: Na Pali Coast, Kauai
This helicopter-shot video is almost surreal. The spires of the Na Pali Coast and the 3,000 foot cliffs, along the western side of Kauai, look as if they were dropped in off the moon. Probably one of the most...
Hawaii Hotels: Room with a View -- Sheraton Maui
View from the 4th Floor of Building 6 at the Sheraton Maui in Kaanapali. Beyond the swaying palms, the island of Molokai is visible. Image via Flickr/anasofia...
Cool Shops: Cina Cina Hawaii
Asiaphile shopaholics tend to lose their minds in Honolulu. You can buy hard-to-find purple chinese clay teapots from Taiwan, rare antique Japanese tansu chests, and jade of all shapes and shades. There's also a ton of nifty east-meets-west fusion...
Hawaii Honeymoon Helper: More North Shore of Kauai Info
After a brief hiatus, the Hawaiirama Honeymoon Helper is back. Send all queries to honeymoon at hawaiirama.com and we'll try to post an answer pronto. From Sarah: "My husband and I are spending Dec 1-7 in Kauai for our...
Hawaii Spa Reviews: Waikiki Planatation Spa -- Big, Nice, Loud?
Note from editor: I am going to be publishing a series of spa reviews here on Hawaiirama. These are based on first-hand experiences and are not complimentary or reduced rate treatments. I personally know nothing about spas. So I'm sending...
Hawaii Hotels: Lodge at Koele Makeover
Last fall Four Seasons Resorts took over management of the two big resort hotels on Lanai, the Lodge at Koele and Manele Bay Hotel. Both had gotten, shall we say, a little tatty around the edges. The owner agreed to...
Honolulu Hotels: Hyatt Regency Waikiki -- Boxy But Safe
Pros: Like most Hyatt properties, this hotel is extremely clean and well maintained. Service is strong. Rooms comfortable. The pool deck is a great place to hang out and watch the waves but avoid the hoi polloi on Kuhio Beach....
Cake Couture: Hawaii Wedding Delight
The cake makes the wedding. Not really, but having a stunning cake is certainliy something every bride hopes for on her perfect day. Cake Couture, based in Aina Haina on Oahu, is a standout. Owner Carrie Emerson-Bass was raised...
Hawaii Hotels: Royal Hawaiian Hotel
Pros: A true classic hotel and one of the most architecturally interesting buildings in Hawaii. The Royal -- also called "the Pink Palace" -- retains the charming aura of a bygone era. It sounds cliched but the long, echoing...
Waikiki Hotel Review: ResortQuest Waikiki Beach Hotel
Pros: Not to be confused with the more upscale ResortQuest Waikiki Tower. Underwent extensive renovations several years ago. The swimming pool and common areas are very cool, kitschy Hawaiian (think Don Ho's bachelor pad). The flaming volcano above the...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Three Best Walking Beaches on the Big Island
Here's the latests in our series of beach lists from John Clark, the noted Hawaii beach expert and all around beach nut, will be feeding us his extremely informed take on best beaches around the Aloha State. At any...
Honeymoon Helper:
We're getting a few queries in for this feature and hopefully we'll get a lot more. Again, we want to save your honeymoon. Don't trust a travel agent who doesn't live here. Don't trust a magazine that drops a writer...
Top 3 Walking Beaches: Oahu
Here's the second in this series.. John Clark, the noted Hawaii beach expert and all around beach nut, will be feeding us his extremely informed take on best beaches around the Aloha State. We're breaking them down into all different...
Honeymoon Helper: Kapalua or Kaanapali on Maui?
Our second installment of this (soon to be) never-ending Q&A on Hawaii honeymoons. As we've said before, help us help you save your honeymoon. We have a question from Grace, who resides in coastal Maine with her husband who...
Last Real Tiki Bar in Hawaii For Sale: $3 Million
Long after the other classic Hawaii bars turned off their taps and put away their blenders, the La Mariana Yacht Club has served as the louche outpost for tiki culture mavens and those craving a sense of old Hawaii. In...
Small Inns: Palms Cliff House
This small inn has won mega kudos from the big travel pubs (T&L, Conde Nast Traveler, etc) and for good reason. The property is utterly gorgeous, an historic house that was formerly a cliffside plantation. The gardens have copious...
Hawaii Hotels: Best Bars -- Sheraton Keauhou Resort
Where: Lobby Bar at the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort Why: Do you really need to ask? If you must, the endless blue Pacific pulsing against a black lava landscape and the sea caves of Keahou Bay, kaleidescopic sunsets like...
Beaches We Love: Kauna`oa
This Big Island beauty fronts one of Hawaii's classic resorts, the angular, elegant and Frank Lloyd Wright-esque Mauna Kea Beach Hotel. The sand is quite fine and the surf generally mellow. Due to its strong westerly orientation sunsets are...
Hawaii In the News Roundup
A few select tidbits from around the web. * No Kidding! Dept. : Latest issue of Modern Bride mag sez Hawaii tops for honeymooners...again. Doh! * Hot! Hot! Hot Dept.: Travel & Leisure humorist visits HAVO, chickens out at Pu'u...
Places We Love: Makena
Why we love it: No hotels in sight, long enough for a really long stroll or to find some solitude, gorgeous views of Kaho'olawe and Lanai across the channel, generally good for swimming. The only downsides are the surf...
Honeymoon Helper: North Shore of Kauai in February?
It's Honeymoon Helper time at Hawaiirama. Each week, we're going to try to save one and possibly a few more honeymoons with timely advice on Hawaii travel with regard to honeymoons. Truth be told, we only got one question...
Green Hotels in Hawaii: Fairmont Orchid
You've all run into those little pamphlets in a hotel bathroom urging you to hang up your towel and use it another day. That's not enough for the Fairmont Orchid (pictured to the left), a luxe resort on the...
Hawaiirama Honeymoon Helper: Save Your Honeymoon!
On a flight back to Hawaii from New York not long agoI happened to sit next to a pair of newlyweds on their way to tropical bliss in the islands. I asked them where they planned to stay. They...
Hawaii Spas: Spa On High; "It's All About Me!"
The Waikiki Plantation Spa takes the pleasure principle to new heights in Hawaii -- quite literally. Located on the penthouse level of the Outrigger on the Beach Hotel - an unremarkable beachfront property recently buffed, polished and expertly repositioned upscale - the new spa floats serenely above the surfers, the blue waters and the crowded sidewalks of Waikiki.
