What's New

Nearing the end of the first decade of the 21st century, Hawaii is reinventing itself with big upgrades and renovations at all the major resort areas, improved air transportation to and within the state, more outdoor and ocean activities, and great eateries for every kind of cuisine, from gourmet to plate lunch, to shrimp trucks parked by the side of the road.

And more people are coming to the 50th state -- some 8.45 million people visited Hawaii in the last year, 4% more than the previous year.

Below is a brief overview of the Aloha State's latest changes that can make your vacation to Hawaii better than ever.

Planning Your Trip

Getting Around -- Joining Hawaiian Airlines as an interisland air carrier is go! (tel. 888/IFLYGO2; www.iflygo.com), owned by Mesa Air Group (which has more than 1,000 flights to 166 cities across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico). The new airline began service with 50-passenger Bombardier CRJ 200 jets with service from Honolulu to Maui, Kauai, and the Big Island (both Hilo and Kona). go! offers the cheapest interisland fares in Hawaii.

In 2007, visitors to Molokai and Lanai got not one, but two new commuter airlines which began flying from Honolulu to Molokai and Lanai. go! airline started a new commuter service from Honolulu to Molokai and Lanai, under the name, go!Express, on their new fleet of Cessna Grand Caravan 208B planes. Another commuter airline, Pacific Wings, started operating their discount airline, PW Express (tel. 888/866-5022 or 808/873-0877; www.flypwx.com), with daily nonstop flights between Honolulu and Molokai and Lanai, plus flights from Kahului, Maui, and Molokai.

As we went to press, on the horizon was the proposed Hawaii Superferry (www.hawaiisuperferry.com), a 350-foot vessel which could carry 866 passengers and 282 cars and trucks between Honolulu and Kauai, Maui, and the Big Island at speeds up to 35 knots. The State of Hawaii has committed some $40 million for harbor improvements to accommodate the new ferry service. Hawaii briefly had a ferry service (Super Flite) in the 1970s, but the high winds and waves took its toll on the hydrofoil boat and it lasted only a few years. Proposed fares range from $42 to $62 for passengers and $55 to $75 for cars.

However, environmentalists have been fighting the Superferry for years because the company was not required to do an environmental impact statement. Recently Hawaii legislators have gotten into the flight and have called for a more thorough review of the impact of the Superferry, and Maui County has joined a lawsuit with environmentalists on whether state improvements to Kahului Harbor are adequate to handle increased traffic from the Superferry. Stay tuned . . . .

Ocean Safety -- Sharks may make the headlines, but drownings claim far more lives. The City and County of Honolulu has a staff of 200 professional lifeguards (the largest in the nation), but most of the drownings occur at beaches where there are no lifeguards. To educate people about ocean safety and how that beautiful blue ocean may look calm but have numerous dangers under the waves, the state has launched several websites, including Hawaii Beach Hazard Forecast http://oceansafety.soest.hawaii.edu), a partnership between the University of Hawaii and Honolulu's city ocean safety office. The site informs beachgoers statewide (you can click on the island of your choice) on ocean conditions at hundreds of beaches, including whether they are safe for swimming. The island of Kauai has an even better website, www.kauaiexplorer.com, with daily updates from lifeguards around Kauai on the beach conditions.

Hawaiian Airlines airs a brief water safety video on all flights from the mainland explaining what those warning signs posted at beaches in Hawaii mean.

Tips on Accommodations -- For the first time, the number of new hotel units is down and the number of new time shares and condotels (condominium units in a hotel which are sold to private ownership but remain in the hotel's rental pool) is up. Since the arrival of the big boys of the vacation industry into timeshares (Hilton, Marriott, Ritz Carlton, etc.), the industry has taken off in Hawaii. Statewide, Hawaii has some 15,000 condotel rooms and more than 7,000 timeshare units. Even the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua is selling some of its suites (some will stay in the hotel rental pool). Also, at Kapalua Resort on Maui, a new concept called fractional ownership on luxury homes and condominiums allows you to stay there 21 days per year. Units are priced in the high six figures.

Not to worry -- there are still 73,000 hotel rooms statewide, and the majority of visitors (63%) prefer the old-fashioned way of traveling versus staying in a condotel (21%), a timeshare (10%), a vacation rental (3.3%), or a B&B (1%).

Oahu

Where to Stay -- One of the biggest projects to take place in Waikiki in decades is the total renovation of an 8-acre area (bound by Saratoga Rd., Kalakaua Ave., Lewers St., and Kalia Rd.) called the "Waikiki Beach Walk." The project, by Outrigger Hotels & Resorts, cost some $460 million.

Phase I, completed in 2007, reconfigured the formerly very congested area (narrow streets with double-parked delivery trucks, crowded sidewalks, and no vegetation) into an oasis of broad sidewalks, tropical foliage, water features, open space, and new, totally renovated hotels. Eleven hotels were razed, upgraded, or changed to suites or condos. Five hotels and one unit of timeshare condominiums remain.

The bad news is, most of the budget hotels, neighborhood eateries, and small independent shops in the area have been replaced with luxury (higher-priced) properties and swank shops and trendy restaurants to match, all linked through pedestrian bridges and connecting walkways.

These changes inspired other hotel groups to make changes of their own (details in the Oahu chapter). Aqua Hotels and Resorts entered the Waikiki market by upgrading and rebranding several off-the-beach properties. Hilton added a property -- the former Radisson Waikiki Prince Kuhio, after massive renovations, was rebranded the Hilton Waikiki Prince Kuhio Hotel.

Not to be outdone, Starwood announced renovations, demolition, and additions to their Waikiki hotels.

And finally, the other new property coming to Waikiki is the Trump International Hotel, estimated to open in 2009. When the hotel-condominium went on sale in December 2006, every one of the 460 luxury units sold out within just a few hours. The ultra-upscale property will have hotel suites available and offer 24-hour concierge and room service. Other amenities will include a lobby bar, cafe, outdoor swimming pool, private fitness center, and separate lobbies for hotel guests and residents.

Beaches -- You may notice on your next trip to Waikiki Beach that it seems bigger and better. Yes, it is bigger -- about 40% bigger than it has been in years. Waikiki, like lots of other beaches on Oahu and Maui, has faced chronic erosion problems for the past 50 years. A pilot project in Waikiki (costing $425,000) dredged up 9,500 cubic yards of sand from a half mile off the shore, and then pumped the sand, underwater, back to Kuhio Beach, fronting the Duke Kahanamoku statue. The former 20-foot-wide shoreline is now 40 feet wide.

Big Island

Golf -- For those interested in improving their golf game, Darrin Gee's Spirit of Golf Academy (tel. 866-GOLF-433; www.spiritofgolfhawaii.com) has developed a 2 1/2-hour clinic that helps golfers gain focus and relax under pressure, among other skills. Classes meet at the Big Island Country Club or Mauna Kea Resort's Hapuna course.

Shopping -- New shopping and dining opportunities are underway with the opening of the Queen's MarketPlace (www.waikoloabeachresort.com), located across the street from the Kings' Shops in the Waikoloa Beach Resort.

Seeing the Sights -- Don't leave Hilo without visiting Imiloa: Astronomy Center of Hawaii, University of Hawaii at Hilo Science and Technology Park campus, 600 Imiloa Pl. (tel. 808/969-9700; www.imiloahawaii.org). Some 300 exhibits in the 12,000-square-foot gallery connect the Hawaiian culture and its explorers, who discovered the Hawaiian Islands, with the astronomers who explore the heavens from the observatories atop Mauna Kea. Imiloa, which means "explorer" or "seeker of profound truth," is the perfect name. The center's stunning architecture, featuring titanium cones, sits on 9 landscaped acres overlooking Hilo Bay. Allow at least a half a day to wander around.

The Big Island After Dark -- The Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa has a new luau and show: Kamaha'o, The Wondrous Myths of Hawaii (tel. 808/930-4828; www.kaikehawaii.com), featuring lavish theatrics woven into Hawaiian chants, legends, and hula, with acrobatic performing arts. This is definitely not a typical, tired Polynesian revue.

Maui

Several new restaurants have opened on the Valley Isle. E&O Trading Company, Lahaina Cannery Mall, 1221 Honoapiilani Hwy. (tel. 808/667-1818; www.eotrading.com), serves eclectic Southeast Asian cuisine in an elaborate setting. At Mala Ocean Tavern, 1307 Front St., in Lahaina (tel. 808/667-9394; www.malaoceantavern.com), you can enjoy an ocean view as you dine on "tavern food" such as ahi burgers or cheeseburgers, one of the tempting salads (the beet and Kula goat cheese salad is divine), or something off the "big plate" menu (perhaps wok-fried moi fish or glazed baby back ribs). Tastings Wine Bar & Grill, Kihei Kalama Village, 1912 S. Kihei Rd. (tel. 808/879-8711), a tiny, tiny hole in the wall, produces "island-inspired American Cuisine" and features excellent food and wine pairings.

Maui now has an organic vodka, OCEAN Vodka (www.oceanvodka.com). It's made from water 3,000 feet beneath the ocean off the Kona coast of the Big Island which is shipped to Maui, where it's blended with organic corn and rye to produce this one-of-a-kind libation. A number of Maui restaurants serve OCEAN Vodka -- visit the website to find out where to try it.

Lanai

The Lodge at Koele has joined its sister hotel, Manele Bay Resort, in being rebranded a Four Season Resort (tel. 800/321-4666 or 808/565-2000; www.fourseasons.com/koele), with plans for a free-standing Wellness Center and Spa to be built in 2008.

Kauai

Where to Stay -- The Outrigger Waipouli Beach Resort & Spa (tel. 800/OUTRIGGER or 808/823-8300; www.outrigger.com), a $200-million luxury condominium project on 12.6 acres between the historic towns of Wailua and Kapaa, opened recently with high-end one- and two-bedroom units and a long list of amenities, such as a 4,000-square-foot Aveda spa and a 300,000-gallon heated saltwater fantasy pool complete with flowing river, garden, dual serpentine waterslides, a sand-bottom children's pool, and three sand-bottom whirlpool tubs.

Hilton renovated and rebranded the old Radisson Kauai, opening as the Hilton Kauai Beach Hotel Resort (tel. 800/HILTONS or 808/245-1955; www.hiltonkauairesort.com), one of the few hotels on Kauai offering complimentary airport shuttle service.

Where to Dine -- In the culinary world, Mediterranean Gourmet (tel. 808/826-9875), located next door to the Hanalei Colony Resort, was awarded "Best New Restaurant" on Kauai for chef/owner Imad Beydoun's Middle Eastern dishes, which he embellishes with an island twist.

Smoke-Free State

Hawaii has gone smoke-free with one of the toughest smoking laws in the country: It's against the law to smoke in public buildings, including airports, shopping malls, grocery stores, retail shops, buses, movie theaters, banks, convention facilities, and all government buildings and facilities. There is no smoking in restaurants, bars, or nightclubs. You cannot smoke in parking garages, public lobbies (anywhere where there are employees is considered public), lanais, patios, covered walkways, or bus stops that have a roof or have two sides enclosed. The fine is $50.

Most bed-and-breakfasts prohibit smoking indoors; more and more hotels and resorts are becoming nonsmoking even in public areas. Also, there is no smoking within 20 feet of a doorway, window, or ventilation intake (so no hanging around outside a bar to smoke -- you must go 20 ft. away).

Where can you smoke? Curbside along the street (but not within 20 ft. of a door or window), in your car, or in a tobacco shop. Even some beaches have no-smoking policies. On those that do allow smoking, you'd better pick up your butts instead of using the sand as your own private ashtray, or you could face a stiff fine.