Hawaii Travel

State of Hawaii Travel Guide, Honolulu City Attractions & Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Vacation Packages - SeeAmerica.org United Kingdom | Espanol | Portugues | Deutsch | Japanese About SeeAmerica.org Site Map Contact Events & Festivals Cities & Regions Activities & Attractions Hotels & Accommodations Shopping Restaurants & Dining Fast Facts Weather Transportation Local Media Travel Articles Multimedia Gallery Did You Know? Send an e-postcard Maps, Guides & More Official Hawaii Website Request Official Visitor's Guide Home > Hawaii Print Page Email this Page Add to Favorites Hawaii at a Glance Capital: Honolulu Nickname: Aloha State Bird: Nene Tree: Kukui - Cadlenut Largest City: Honolulu Official State Website http://www.gohawaii.com/ Request Official Visitor's Guide Official Contact Information Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau 1001 Bishop Street, Pauahi Tower, Suite 950 Honolulu, HI 96813 808-531-0244 Be reminded of upcoming events, learn about special travel deals and be notified of special offers and sweepstake promotions. Sign Up Today! Great Trip Ideas A Week In Hawaii by Tauck World Discovery Hawaiian Islands 12-Day Best of Hawaii by Tauck World Discovery Surfing Hawaii - Take a special surf trip to Hawaii Hawaii Adventure Cruise with San Francisco - Titan HiTours Show Me More... Hiking through Hawaii's lush rainforests... Lounging on a secluded beach... Cruising down a volcano on a mountain bike at top speed... These are just a few of the myriad of activities you can do while in Hawaii - The Islands of Aloha. From catching a sunset sail on a balmy, tropical evening to hitting the ski slopes at Mauna Kea crater, Hawaii offers activities to please each individual. You can snorkel, hike, explore and catch an afternoon luau all in one day. The choice is yours. Upcoming Events Show Me More... Travel Industry Services & Login | Link to Us | Suggest Content | About SeeAmerica.org | Site Map Contact Us | Home | Privacy Statement | Terms of Use | Advertise With Us © 2005 SeeAmerica.org and the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) All Rights Reserved.

Maui Snorkeling

Snorkel Maui: Snorkel Equipment Intro Snorkel Equipment The Mask: This is what you put on ummmm your face. This allows you to see underwater without getting your eyes and nose wet. It's important that the mask is a good fit when renting or buying a mask. If the mask doesn't fit well, you will experience some leakage of water in the mask. I would highly recommend using a mask that has a "silicon skirt". The skirt is the soft substance that is molded to fit your face, and prevents water from entering the mask. You can also rent or buy masks that use rubber ask the skirt, but the seal is not nearly as good as the silicon, and is quite simply a dated technology. Ask your local snorkel or dive shop about choosing a mask that fits well. They will know what to look for. The Snorkel: Well, this is what makes you a snorkeler. A snorkel is a hollow curved tube that is placed in the mouth that allows you to breathe while you are face down in the water. So basically, while you looking down into the water, the snorkel is sticking out of the water on one end while the other end is in your mouth. When looking for a snorkel, I would recommend asking for what is called a "purge" snorkel. The Fins: This is what makes life a lot of fun. Fins allow you to swim like a fish. Yeeeha! There are 2 kinds of fins, but for snorkeling in warm water, most people will do just fine with the close heeled kind. The open heeled kind is more for Scuba Divers which requires a special boot (bootie), or for colder waters. Anyways, make sure that the fins are a good fit, or else you will either be cutting off circulation to your feet, or they will easily come off. Make sure that they are a snug fit, but you should be able to wiggle your toes.

HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK

Bed and Breakfast, Hawaii B & B, Volcano Hawaii: Volcano Rainforest Retreat Home Page Guest Cottage Forest House Sanctuary Bamboo Guest House Gathering Hale Counseling / Reiki Healing Schedule of Events Volcano Area & Activities Hawaiian Links Information / Booking Explore... A few miles up the road is Kilauea Volcano, home of Pele, the Hawaiian Goddess of Fire. Hike , bike , or drive through this magnificent landscape at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park . A half-hour drive toward the sea is historic Hilo town with its picturesque bay, waterfalls and botanical gardens . Check out the current activity at the volcano lava flow . Discover... Just a short distance away is Volcano Village - a community noted for its distinctive blend of artists , scientists , and entrepreneurs. The village has two country stores, gas stations and a post office. Local restaurants and cafés offer a variety of dining experiences including the charm of old Hawai`i at Kilauea Lodge . Visit VolcanoWinery , home of Tropical Hawaiian Wines. Explore other Volcano Area Activities View our guest cottages the Guest Cottage the Forest House the Sanctuary the Bamboo Guest House or go directly to our Booking Information Or Return to Main Page Local/ FAX (808) 985-8696 Toll Free (800) 550-8696 email: volrain@volcanoretreat.com For fastest response to your Reservation Request please use our Information Form Volcano Rainforest Retreat Kathleen & Peter Golden PO Box 957, Volcano HI 96785 MORE ABOUT THE VOLCANO AREA AND ACTIVITIES Volcano is a relatively undeveloped rural area, adjacent to HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK , which has become the Big Island's most visited natural attraction. Explore the ambiance and activities of this back-to-nature destination and discover a truly unique Hawaiian experience. 4000 ft above the sea, giant tree ferns, lofty ohi'a-lehua trees and fragrant ginger create a lush refreshing appeal in contrast to the primal volcanic land. Temperatures are cooler than are typical of Hawaiian coastal areas. Rainfall is a natural part of the native rainforest with misty rains alternating with clear skies. Hike, bike or drive the CRATER RIM DRIVE in Volcanoes National Park. Be invigorated by its craters, steam vents, lava tubes, and rainforest trails. For the adventurous, the Chain of Craters Road winds down to the coast where vast systems of lava tubes carry active lava flows into the sea, creating the newest land on earth. Another exceptional experience while in the National Park is a visit to the VOLCANO ART CENTER GALLERY , with its collection of fine arts and crafts, available for purchase and displayed in the original historic Volcano House on the edge of Kilauea Caldera. The Volcano Art Center is currently developing an arts and environmental campus on 7 acres of land in Volcano Village. This new facility will expand its already well-established and ongoing programs in visual, literary, and performing arts. These include an acclaimed hula and Hawaiian music series which garnered a prestigious Kihili Award from the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau. The outlying community is a mix of scientists, artists and local entrepreneurs in a village-like town with a variety of restaurants and cafes. The village and its surrounding inhabitants blend almost imperceptibly into the native-forested landscape. The whole area has been designated by the United Nations as an INTERNATIONAL BIOSPHERE RESERVE AND HISTORIC SITE. Volcano is a destination in which to relax as well as be active, a place to be awed and slow down, to get in touch with oneself beyond the often busy pace of daily life. Surreal and serene, it is a place which is empowering, enduring and ever-changing. The harmony of man and nature here attracts aware and sensitive individuals whose values show concern for the earth and its remaining places of great natural beauty. "Perhaps this village of 3,600 (inhabitants) can show us how to better tend the land and each other as we move into the new millennium." HONOLULU STAR BULLETIN DAY TRIPS FROM VOLCANO PUNA Experience old Hawaii along the old road on the PUNA COAST with its papaya farms, hot pools, black sands beach and newly-created land - 1-hour drive each way. HILO AND HAMAKUA Explore the lush tropical Hilo area and Hamakua Coast, which offer a local farmers market, restaurants and shops in the old town on the picturesque bayfront, botanical gardens, scenic coast views and waterfalls. 1/2 to 1 hour drive each way. KA'U Wander the rural, sparsely-settled land beyond Volcanoes National Park. Visit WOOD VALLEY with is hidden Tibetan temple, and nearby PUNALUU BLACK SAND BEACH with its green sea turtles, often seen sunning themselves on the shore. Walk the old forested trail at Bird Park, in KIPUKA PUAULU , an island of old lava and vegetation surrounded by more recent lava flows. Within 1/2 hour of Volcano. HAWAIIAN LINKS Go directly to our Booking Information Or Return to Main Page Local/ FAX (808) 985-8696 Toll Free (800) 550-8696 email: volrain@volcanoretreat.com For fastest response to your Reservation Request please use our Information Form

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

Hawaii's Volcano Parks Let Visitors Go With The Flow Welcome to TBO.com. Skip directly to: our Keyword Search , Section Navigation , Content . TBO.com Life TBO.com WFLA The Tampa Tribune Search: Keyword Site News | Weather | Hurricane Guide | Things to Do | Sports | Jobs | Cars | Homes | Shopping | Classified Travel TBO.com Life Travel Hawaii's Volcano Parks Let Visitors Go With The Flow Skip directly to the full story . By TANYA BRICKING LEACH For The Associated Press Published: Dec 18, 2005 ADVERTISEMENT More from this channel: This feature requires the Macromedia Flash Plugin. Please visit http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer to download this plugin. Search our archives: Type keyword(s) 30 days 6 months 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990 All Past 7 days most viewed | Tribune archive from 1990 VOLCANO, HAWAII - About the time jagged edges started poking through my T-shirt as I wormed my way through a tight spot in a lava tube, I began to wonder: What am I doing here? We could have been relaxing on the famous Green Sand Beach at South Point of the Big Island of Hawaii. But in the spirit of adventure, we were instead exploring the world underground. I had convinced my husband that it would be neat to go hiking to see flowing lava at the Kilauea Volcano on the first night of our weekend getaway, and then get up early the next morning to go caving in 1,000-year-old lava tubes. He was agreeable, even after twisting his ankle on the initial hiking excursion, which lasted past midnight. Once we got back to our cabin at Volcanoes National Park, we understood why each room had a Jacuzzi. But we weren't about to let our sore muscles get the best of us. Watching the orange glow of waxy-looking lava hiss into the ocean had intoxicated us. We wanted to see tunnels formed by the molten stuff. The Dawn Patrol So we caught just enough sleep to wake at the crack of dawn and drive to South Point in search of a labyrinth of lava tubes at a place called Kula Kai Caverns. To get there, we punched in a pass code and entered a remote neighborhood built on lava rock. Then we saw our guide's landmark, a thatched hut that looked like something out of "Gilligan's Island." Our tour guide, Kathlyn Richardson, led us into the yurt and handed us spelunking helmets, lights, gloves and kneepads to gear up. We looked like coal miners without the soot, and we were about to go on a two-hour spelunking tour. So she tested us a little. Would we like to try shimmying up parts of the cave and crawling around in tunnels? We were game. Let me just say my previous experience in caves was limited to a guided tour years earlier on a heavily traveled pathway at Kentucky's Mammoth Cave. Although it is considered the granddaddy of American caves - and the longest cave in the world - I saw only the easy-access "tourist" part of it. No shimmying through narrow passageways was involved. And I had seen Thurston Lava Tube, a major attraction on the drive around Crater Rim Drive at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. But that was just a peek into a cavelike shell. I had never seen much of caves or could explain the difference between stalactites and stalagmites. Somehow, the idea of exploring a pitch-black volcanic cavern still appealed to me. That's just the kind of tourist Kula Kai Cavern founder Ric Elhard wants to educate. "I started crawling around in caves when I was 12 years old," said Elhard, a California native who bought property on the Big Island because he knew there were caves underneath it. He and other cavers have since mapped out miles of lava tubes that crisscross the area. "We're not doing big numbers, but we saw huge potential," Elhard said. "We want to be more of an educational tour. We want people to learn and understand about the archaeological aspects of caves." Treks Of Your Choice He and other guides lead small groups, even children as young as 5, through parts of the caves on tours that last from easy half-hour strolls to more challenging half-day explorations. When my husband and I were there, it was just the two of us, following Richardson into a braided maze she knew by heart and getting a taste of massive chambers and small spaces formed by volcanic gases rising through cooling magma 1,000 years ago. A National Park tour, it is not. It's a fledgling operation that's loosely organized, and sometimes the battery-powered lights on the well-used equipment go out. But it's definitely an adventure tour. We broke a sweat, despite the cool 68-degree temperature inside the cave, and had to watch our footing navigating craggy rocks that seemed to grow out from above and below. One of the most interesting parts was when we turned off our head lamps and sat in the dark, listening closely to dripping water and the sound of ourselves breathing. I'll admit I liked climbing and scrambling over loose rocks much better than belly-crawling through the tight spots. The crawling part made me think about being swallowed by hot lava as I tried to untangle myself from its pointy fingers. Underground Point Of View But squirming around on my hands and knees gave me a feeling not just for overcoming claustrophobia, but also for looking at a volcanic island from a different perspective. I thought about the cave dwellers who must have used the spaces for shelter. I wondered how long the kukui nuts, which contained oil that Hawaiians used to light like candles, had been left on the rock shelves that we passed. I pictured the lava flowing through the walls I could now touch. The tour captured my imagination. Yes, I could have spent the day relaxing on the beach. What I did instead made me feel like an explorer. And to me, discovering a world I had never seen before made the vacation feel complete. FOR LOVE OF LAVA KULA KAI CAVERNS AND LAVA TUBES: www.kulakai caverns.com or (808) 929-7539. Located off Highway 11 in Ocean View, Hawaii. Tours by appointment ranging from $15 half-hour walking tours to $95 half-day tours. The two-hour spelunking tour is $65. Discounts for Hawaii residents and groups. Wear a T-shirt, long pants and sturdy shoes. WHERE TO STAY: For the full Kilauea experience, stay in a B&B in Volcano Village or in a cabin at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. •Carson's Volcano Cottages: www.carsonscottage.com or 1-800-845-5282 or (808) 967-7683. B&B accommodations, from one-room spaces to family cottages with kitchens and storybook cottages nestled in the tropical rain forest. Breakfast is served in a dining room beside the fire. Rates range from $115 to $170 a night. •Volcano House: (808) 967-7321. This historical hotel sits on the edge of a crater, and the rooms are heated by volcanic steam. Rooms range from $95 to $225. Its cabins are among the few available in the park, but the rooms are a bit worn. Cabins are $50. •Kilauea Military Camp: www.kmc-volcano.com or (808) 967-8333. A joint services recreation center in Volcanoes National Park, open to military members and Department of Defense workers and retirees. Rates are based on rank, and accommodations range from dorms to cottages. WHERE TO EAT: After a spelunking tour, drive to the Kona side of the island for food. •The Coffee Shack: A casual coffeehouse with a sweeping view of the ocean. The staff is friendly, and the portions are big. •Cafe Pesto in Hilo: Whether you're in Kawaihae near the harbor on the scenic South Kohala coast or in historic Hilo on the Big Island's east side, find this restaurant. It has gourmet pizzas, an assortment of pasta and seafood. Most items are about $10. •Ken's House of Pancakes: Ken's is like a local Denny's. It's open 24 hours a day, and most items are less than $7. Write a letter to the editor | Subscribe to the Tribune | Place an Ad Online TBO.com AdLinks Site Tools Advertise with us Web site feedback Make TBO.com my homepage RSS Feeds: Feed for this channel All feeds/RSS FAQ Most Popular: This feature requires the Macromedia Flash Plugin. Please visit http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer to download this plugin. 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Hawaiian Barbecue Map Y

San Francisco Restaurant reviews by local people. Restaurant reviews by people like you sf Survey Todays Winner cheeselover Home on Union Bay - Breakers Gay Pride Bridge X 2 Blue Angels Open Studio HOME | | RESTAURANTS | PRIZES | REVIEWS | SUGGEST | LINKS | FORUM | HELP name neighborhood phone cuisine map Ratings Hukilau Inner Richmond (415) 921-6242 Hawaiian Map Y G (3) (5) (2) Write a review Moki's Sushi & Pacific Grill Bernal Heights (415) 970-9336 Fusion, Hawaiian, Japanese Map Y G (4) (3) Write a review Ono Hawaiian BBQ Outer Sunset (415) 681-6388 Hawaiian Barbecue Map Y G (3) (2) Write a review Padovani's Restaurant & Wine Bar SoMa (415) 543-7600 Hawaiian Map Y G Write a review Rick's Restaurant and Bar Outer Sunset (415) 731-8900 Hawaiian, Eclectic Map Y G (9) (1) Write a review Roy's SoMa (415) 777-0277 Hawaiian Seafood Map Y G (14) (4) Write a review Tita's hale 'aina Castro (415) 626-2477 Hawaiian Map Y G (7) (3) (1) Write a review Daily searched phrase (39) Downtown (27) Mission (25) Shop, (22) Embarcadero (20) Haight-Ashbury/Cole Valley (20) mexican (19) sushi (18) chinese (17) Vietnamese (17) Japanese Records 1 to 7 of 7 You can search the following columns in the restaurant database. Restaurant name, street address, Cross street, Restaurant description, cuisine, zip code, phone number, neighborhood Home | Sign in | Sign Up | Tell a Friend | Links | Advertising | about | Help Reviews | Suggest | Restaurants | Neighborhoods | Cuisine Bay - Breakers Gay Pride Bridge X 2 Blue Angels Open Studio sfSurvey Inc. © 2004-2005