Beyond the beach

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It occurs to me this is a really big island. But we had to get in a car and drive to see the rugged sea cliffs, hectares of ranch lands and the 4,000-metre volcanoes that make this island so much more than a beach destination. Granted, Hawaii is an island paradise, perfect for a family vacation or romantic getaway, where surf and sand play starring roles. But the island has mountains for hiking, erupting volcanoes and culture galore. It's also affordable, easy to get to and, often, decidedly non-touristy.

If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm talking specifically about Hawaii's Big Island. Not Oahu -- Honolulu's home isle is much smaller. Not Maui, either -- that island Eden receives more visitors, with higher accommodation prices to match. I'm talking about the island called Hawaii, the youngest in the chain and, at 10,432 square kilometres, by far the largest.

"I think we made a mistake by calling ourselves (Hawaii)," says George Applegate, executive director of the Big Island Visitors Bureau. He says when people think of Hawaii, Waikiki Beach or Maui usually come to mind -- not the biggest island with the state's name attached to it. When King Kamehameha I unified the Hawaiian islands under his rule, he named the archipelago Hawaii because he hailed from the Big Island of Hawaii. "The biggest challenge is letting people know who we really are."

For the record, the Big Island (or Hawaii Island, as Applegate calls his home) is the one that boasts both Kilauea, an active volcano that's been erupting continuously since 1983, and Mauna Kea, a dormant, snow-capped volcano that rises 4,205 metres above sea level, making it possible for hard-core residents (or visitors) to snowboard and surf in the same day.

After spending two weeks on this South Pacific expanse with my husband and two children, not only was my biological clock reset to island time, but I felt I'd barely scratched the surface of all the destination has to offer.

And that was after sea kayaking to the spot where Captain James Cook met his demise, snorkelling with a moray eel, watching green sea turtles feed, witnessing a lunar eclipse from the top of Mauna Kea, and chowing down on authentic Mexican food in the heart of the island's ranching country.

Yes, the Big Island really does seem to offer an experience for just about everyone. That, in large part, is what's positioning it as one of the 50th state's must-see stops -- especially for Canadians.

"Last year, we had 65,338 Canadians just to the Big Island alone," a 30-per-cent increase in Canadian visitors since 2005, says Applegate, who has been involved in the state's tourism industry for 40 years.

He says we Canucks have always loved the island of Hawaii, but that we're loving it even more because of the strength of our dollar.

"(Canadians are) adventuresome, they like nature, they love the variety (the island offers), they like to take their time and really explore.

"They don't just sit on the beach and drink beer," he says.

"They like value for their money." True, a few cold ones were consumed on the wraparound lanai of our rental house (complete with ocean view) while the kids napped, but when they weren't sleeping we were on the go exploring, but not -- surprisingly -- opening our wallets much.

All our beach excursions were free, including parking.

Even the road trip up to Waimea and its surrounding ranch lands, then through the Kohala Mountains to Hawi on the north coast -- once a centre of the island's sugar industry; now making a comeback through tourism thanks to its galleries and restaurants -- was surprisingly inexpensive.

The price of a weekly car rental is reasonable and the cost of gas, even in Hawaii, is less than we pay at the pumps in most of Canada.

We averaged $160 per night between a one-week, two-bedroom condo rental and a one-week, three-bedroom vacation home rental. Food does cost more in Hawaii than on mainland U.S.A., but it's still on par with what we pay in Canada, even though Hawaii imports most of its foodstuffs.

The last part of the travel equation -- airfare -- was also a pleasant surprise. WestJet began offering direct air service from Vancouver to Kona last January, and we managed to score three seat-sale tickets for about $800 each, including taxes (our five-month-old baby flew for free).

Fares should remain somewhat competitive this winter as both WestJet and Air Canada will continue direct service from Vancouver, and Alaska Airlines is launching a direct Seattle to Kona route this month.

To accommodate these larger planes carrying more passengers, the Kona International Airport began a $2.8-million makeover earlier this year, slated for completion in December. Arriving passengers will be greeted with covered walkways, improved lighting and better access for disabled flyers, without the small airport losing its open-air aloha feel.

Exceptional aloha spirit is in great evidence all over the island of Hawaii, and perhaps that's another reason this young island is finally coming of age.

One afternoon, my daughter and I were walking around our condominium complex admiring the beautiful hibiscus and plumeria blooms. The woman working in the front office noticed our interest in the flowers and told us the plumeria blossoms are commonly used for making leis (the traditional garlands of flowers that many visitors are presented with when they arrive in Hawaii) because of their heady fragrance.

The next day, she flagged us down and presented Avery with a beautiful lei she'd made with flowers from her own yard.

It was a memorable moment, and further proof the Big Island is, perhaps, like the Hawaii of our collective imagination: eternally warm, welcoming and capable of wowing travellers both small and big.

-- Canwest News Service

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 29, 2008 E3