In Hawaii’s world of endless summer, there are hundreds of entertaining wonders to be enjoyed throughout its six beautiful islands – Kauai, Molokai, Oahu, Lanai, Maui, and Hawaii’s Big Island.

Whether by land, air or sea, Hawaii is one exhilarating activity after another with the opportunities for fun and excitement discovered island by island.

How about world-class golf, biking, hiking and horseback riding through balmy tropical landscapes? Soaring high above on a zipline adventure tour through a forested canopy over rivers and waterfalls, or even higher on [tag]helicopter tours[/tag] over lush valleys, hidden [tag]waterfalls[/tag], and spectacular shorelines? Or taking to Hawaii’s warm Pacific waters to surf, snorkel, scuba, kayak, or para sail? For a more leisurely enjoyment, one can explore the depths of Hawaii’s marine life through undersea [tag]submarine tours[/tag], or sun and frolic aboard a [tag]cruise excursion[/tag].
And only in Hawaii can one explore an [tag]active volcano[/tag] and watch the flow of lava up-close (but not too close!) and bear witness to earth’s creation of land.

For educational enrichment, Hawaii offers more than 80 museums showcasing its culture, history, and the arts. History buffs will be fascinated by the “bookend battleships” of World War II now located bow-to-bow in Pearl Harbor: the revered USS Arizona Memorial and the gigantic “Mighty Mo” (Battleship Missouri Memorial).

Those wanting to be pampered and indulged can enjoy state-of the-art spas, the highly touted Hawaii Regional Cuisine, and everything-under-the-sun shopping.

And rarely does a weekend pass by without a celebration of Hawaii’s multi-cultural heritage, [tag]Hawaiian music[/tag], or island-inspired sports event taking place.

In addition to activities that visitors can do on their own or book through a qualified member of the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau (HVCB), there are hundreds of fun and interesting things to see and do on HVCB’s Calendar of Events – with the list growing all the time. Check it out online at GoHawaii.com.

How best to describe the [tag]Hawaii vacation[/tag] experience? Jay Talwar, HVCB’s vice president of marketing, sums it up perfectly: “There is plenty of time to do absolutely nothing … on your plane ride home!”

[tag]Aloha shirts[/tag] exported to the mainland United States and elsewhere are called [tag]Hawaiian shirts[/tag] and often brilliantly colored with floral patterns or generic Polynesian motifs and are worn as casual, informal wear, and generally only by men.

The modern Aloha shirt was devised in the early 1930s by Chinese merchant Ellery Chun of King-Smith Clothiers and Dry Goods, a store in WaikÄ©kÄ­. Chun began sewing brightly colored shirts for tourists out of old kimono fabrics he had leftover in stock. The Honolulu Advertiser newspaper was quick to coin the term Aloha shirt to describe Chun’s fashionable creation. Chun trademarked the name. The first advertisement in the Honolulu Advertiser for Chun’s Aloha shirt was published on June 28, 1935. Local residents, especially [tag]surfers[/tag], and [tag]tourists[/tag] descended on Chun’s store and bought every shirt he had. Within years, major designer labels sprung up all over Hawai’i and began manufacturing and selling Aloha shirts en masse.

The popularity of the Aloha shirt boomed in the United States after World War II as major celebrities sported the Hawaiian wear.

Full article here.

While other brides and grooms are looking at hotel ballrooms and country clubs – with their credit cards and checkbooks shaking in fear over the huge pricetags – as the settings for their wedding celebrations, you can get amazing advantages by skipping the cavernous blank slates of these wedding ‘usuals’ in favor of the bed and breakfast setting. Perhaps as the site for your entire wedding celebration, perhaps as the site for pre- and post-wedding parties, and certainly as the perfect place for you and your guests to stay in charming style. Here, we’ve collected the top ten benefits of bringing a jewel of a bed and breakfast into your dream wedding plans:

The cost. Some wedding sites, like hotels and arboretums, country clubs and museums, charge hefty fees. Some charge for use of their site (one national arboretum charges $10,000!), and their wedding packages can cost upwards of $200 per person. At a bed and breakfast, you’ll likely find no site fees, and their wedding packages – including catering and décor – can be far less expensive, depending on the choices you make. Since a B&B is not primarily a wedding ‘factory,’ you’re very likely to find lower per-person prices for any celebration. With guests staying in the rooms, they absorb the fees for use of the establishment.

A charming setting. Most B&Bs are so well-appointed, with dramatic fireplaces and Victorian furniture, vast wraparound porches, elegant window treatments, blooming gardens with cast iron benches and tables, and beautiful staircases, that their existing beauty only needs a few floral touches. The place itself is so gorgeous, there’s not much you’ll have to bring in. Compare that to a blank-slate hotel ballroom that needs extensive décor to make a visual impact, and the benefit is clear: the B&B is fabulous on it own!

Everyone stays together. Your out-of-town guests can share this home away from home, leaving their doors open, mixing and mingling, socializing by the fireplace or out on the porch with a glass of wine or a warm brandy. Especially if guests haven’t yet stayed at a B&B, this will be a wonderful new experience for them to share with relatives and friends they haven’t seen in a while. We’re a global society, and sometimes our friends live far away. If everyone stays in this ‘house,’ it gives them far more space and a more intimate environment to catch up with one another.

Themed rooms. Some B&Bs have a ‘blue room’ or a ‘terrace room,’ even rooms named for flowers or artists, historical figures, colors…something unique in every room. Four-post beds, fireplaces, even Jacuzzi tubs grace some rooms, giving guests more of a vacation feel than if they stayed in a plain, standard hotel room.

Breakfast is included. Fresh-baked muffins, eggs benedict, chocolate chip pancakes, fresh juice, fresh fruit, a home filled with the scents of fresh-baked bread. Not a bad way for your guests to start each day of your wedding weekend, served by friendly hosts and shared with their loved ones.

The owners know people. Many B&B proprietors offer special deals with nearby restaurants, florists, spas, even limousine companies and horse and carriage outfits. The owners of the B&B can hook you up with phenomenal perks for your guests…and for you, if you’re staying as well.

Limited space. While this doesn’t sound like a benefit for those who plan big, formal weddings for 300 guests, it is for brides and grooms who wish to have a smaller, more intimate wedding. As a matter of budget (and sanity), some couples choose a smaller location that only fits 50-60 people, which automatically limits their guest lists to immediate family and friends. Parents who fall in love with a great B&B location are almost always more obliging about keeping their guest lists shorter.

A great location. The perfect B&B for your wedding is located in a great town, such as a quaint little tourist town with museums and street festivals, antiquing, horseback riding, orchards, beaches and wineries nearby. Some provide bicycles, and some provide maps of walking tours with great restaurants and fudge shops marked. Since wedding weekend events are all the rage, the perfect location can give your guests lots to do on their own, in groups, or as part of a tour or outing planned by you.

Spa treatments. Some B&Bs offer in-room massages and spa treatments, or gift cards to nearby spas and day spas. So your guests will get all the pampering they could ever want.

The perfect setting for wedding photos. Imagine the shots you could get by the fireplace, in a rose garden, by rose trellises, or on that beautiful porch. The perfect B&B provides unique and gorgeous scenery for wedding photos, both indoors and outside.

One important thing to keep in mind is that your different groups of guests might enjoy staying in their own bed and breakfast. Older guests might love the peace and quiet of one B&B with charming, Victorian-style rooms, and all of your single, partying guests might love being at another B&B where they don’t have to be quiet after 9pm and can enjoy drinks by the fireplace, or hot tubbing out in the yard, until 3am. So don’t limit yourselves to just one site.

And lastly, a great, unique location like a bed and breakfast makes your wedding seem like you spent more money. Guests love the something-different appeal of a B&B wedding or stay, and it makes their travels for your wedding an adventure, or a romantic getaway for them as well.

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 30 wedding books,
including 1000 Best Wedding Bargains, 1000 Best Secrets For Your Perfect Wedding, Your Special Wedding Vows, Renewing Your Wedding Vows, Mother of the Groom, The Mother of the Bride Book, The Complete Outdoor Wedding Planner, and others as listed at www.sharonnaylor.net.