Waikiki
The largest tourist destination in Hawaii, Waikiki is a long stretch
of picture-perfect white-sand beach just southeast of downtown Honolulu.
Its shores are lined with swanky high-rise hotels set against the scenic
backdrop of Diamond Head. On any given day, the tiny area is thronged
with package tourists from Japan and North America: 65,000 of them on
average, in addition to some 25,000 residents. It boasts more than 30,000
hotel rooms; close to 1000 restaurants, bars and clubs; and more shops,
shams and shysters than anyone cares to count.
If you've come to Hawaii for the luaus, hula lessons and lazy days on
the beach, you'll hit the motherlode in Waikiki. But independent travelers
needn't be discouraged - if you're one of those with less packagable
predilections, you'll be happy to find activities such as outrigger
canoe clubs and Japanese tea ceremonies to distract you from the masses.
And there's always the natural beauty of the area, with its spectacular
orange sunsets, bath-warm waters and night skies overrun with stars.
The 2-mile (3.5km) stretch of white sand that runs from the Hilton Hawaiian
Village to Kapiolani Beach Park is commonly called Waikiki Beach. Although
it teems midday with beach boys and betties, sunrise strolls here are
downright meditative. By midmorning, the surfers, sailors and swimmers
begin to amass, and by noon it's a challenge to get to the water without
stepping on somebody. Fronting the Hilton, Kahanamoku Beach is one of
the calmer swimming areas, ironically named after one of Hawaii's wildest
native sons, Duke Kahanamoku, a local swimmer and surfer who won the
1912 Olympic 100m freestyle. At the southern end of Waikiki Beach, boogie
boarders cluster at Kapahulu Groin, delighting onlookers with their
daredevil wave riding.
Away from the waves, Kapiolani Park contains the Waikiki Aquarium, the
Honolulu Zoo, a bandstand and hula show grounds. It's at the Diamond
Head end of Waikiki and was a gift to the Hawaiian people from their
last king, David Kalakaua.
Waikiki's Hawaiian-style entertainment ranges from Polynesian extravaganzas,
with beating drums and hula dancers, to mellow duos jamming on ukuleles
or slack-key guitars. Duke's Canoe Club is the most popular venue for
contemporary Hawaiian music, while any of the big resorts can provide
you with the other stuff. The area around the hotels is the best place
to look for nightclubs and bars. Honolulu's gay scene is focused on
the venues along Kuhio Ave between Kalaimoku and Kaiolu Sts.
Chinatown
A walk through Chinatown is a bit like a whirlwind tour across Asia
- although it's predominantly Chinese, there are sizable Vietnamese,
Thai and Filipino communities as well. The bustling market area could
be right out of a Hong Kong back street, and the fire-breathing dragons
curled around the red pillars of the Bank of Hawaii are as celestial
as any you're likely to run across. In these few blocks, you can get
a tattoo, consult an herbalist, munch moon cakes or slurp a steaming
bowl of pho, and there are plenty of temples, shrines, noodle factories,
antique shops and art galleries to explore.
The heart of Chinatown is along Maunakea St around N King and N Hotel
Sts. Head south on N Hotel St and you'll be treated to a tour of Chinatown's
seamiest side, with peepshows and nudie bars sporting evocative names
like Club Hubba Hubba. Heading north on N Hotel St you come to Wo Fat,
a big pink restaurant shaped like a Chinese temple at the corner of
Maunakea St. The River St Pedestrian Mall, three blocks north of Wo
Fat, is lined with food stalls and old men playing mah jongg and checkers.
Towards its eastern end is a Taoist temple and, just across Nuuanu Stream,
a Shinto shrine. Respectful visitors are welcome in both.
At the eastern end of the pedestrian mall on Chinatown's northern boundary
is a former royal estate that now houses the city's finest greenbelt,
the Foster Botanical Garden. Near the entrance is yet another worship
spot, the ornate Buddhist Kuan Yin Temple. The main entrance to Chinatown
is the Chinatown Gateway Plaza at S Hotel and Bethel Sts, five blocks
north of Iolani Palace.
Bishop Museum
The Bishop Museum is considered to be the best Polynesian anthropological
museum in the world. Its Hawaiian Hall has three floors of exhibits
documenting the islands' cultural history and includes among its treasures
a feather cloak made for Kamehameha I, the king who first united the
Hawaiian islands. Other halls brim with masks, weapons, musical instruments
and artwork from Pacific cultures as well as Asian and European items
brought to the islands by traders.
The Bishop is also home to Hawaii's only planetarium, a natural history
hall, and an area where craftspeople demonstrate traditional Hawaiian
quilting, lauhala mat weaving and lei making. The museum is about 2.5
miles (4km) northwest of downtown Honolulu, accessible by bus or by
car via the H-1.
Diamond Head
Diamond Head is a tuff cone - a hill composed of compacted volcanic
ash - formed by a violent steam explosion deep beneath the island's
surface long after most of Oahu's volcanic activity had stopped. Its
760ft (230m) peak provides a majestic backdrop to the flair of Waikiki
and, as such, it's one of the best-known landmarks in the Pacific.
The Hawaiians called the hill Leahi, and at its summit they built a
luakini heiau, a type of temple used for human sacrifices. But ever
since 1825, when some British sailors noticed calcite crystals sparkling
in the sun and quickly mistook themselves for rich men, the hill's been
known as Diamond Head.
The best reason to visit Diamond Head is to hike the trail to the crater
rim, where those who persevere are treated to a showstopping 360? panorama
of the entire southeastern coast of Oahu. Buses from Waikiki stop near
Diamond Head - it's about a 15 minute walk from the bus stop to the
trailhead. If you come by car or taxi, the trail begins at the parking
lot off Diamond Head Rd on the crater's northeastern side.
Tantalus & Makiki Heights
Just 2 miles (3.2km) from downtown Honolulu, a switchback road cuts
its way through the lush forest reserve land of the Makiki Valley to
the top of 2010ft (600m) Mt Tantalus. A continuous circuit just under
9 miles (14km) long, the western stretch of the road is called Tantalus
Drive and the eastern portion is Round Top Drive. As a loop, it offers
the finest views of Honolulu available without wings.
Winding past some of the city's swankiest mountainside homes, the well-paved
route meets up with several trails leading into the Honolulu Watershed
Forest Reserve and Puu Ualakaa State Park. Surprisingly, the only walking
most people do here is between their car and the scenic lookouts. Bring
your hiking boots along, and you may well have the whole trail to yourself.
Nestled at the base of Makiki Valley, just off Tantalus Drive, you'll
find the Contemporary Museum, a quality modern art showspace on an estate
surrounded by woodsy gardens. A new building on the lawn holds the museum's
prize possession, an installation by David Hockney based on his sets
for a Ravel opera. The galleries feature changing exhibits of national
and international artists.
Although daytime is best for hiking and taking photos, the upper reaches
of the valley also offer great spots to watch evening settle over the
city. The museum can be reached by bus from downtown Honolulu, but to
get to the mountaintop you'll need a car. |
