Lonely Planet India – August 2019

SEE

FollowRoute 550 as it climbsup

alongtherimof WaimeaCanyon,

a 16-km-longgougethrough

Kaua‘i’slandscape.Thereare

severalviewpointsto stopat

(www.hawaiistateparks.org;

entryfree). Continueon theroad

to reachtheKalalauLookout,

fora rareglimpseof theNa ̄Pali

Coastfromthelandwardside,

withouttheneedto hike.

SLEEP

AtWaimeaPlantationCottages

(picturedright), 61relocated

dwellingsfromtheearlyto mid-20th

centuryaredecoratedin a relaxed,

tropicalstyle.Thebeachis not

suitableforswimming,butthe

oceanfrontgardensettingis superb

(www.coasthotels.com;from

`14 ,875). In southshorePo‘ipu,

theKo‘aKeaHotel& Resort

is a refinedchoice– theU-shaped

buildingopensontothebeach,

andrunswithbolderdesignideas

thantheaverage(www.koakea.

com;from`2 7,12 3 ).

HAWAII FROM ABOVE

When you view Kaua‘i from

a helicopter, human alterations to the

island that seem big on the ground

appear as surprisingly insignificant

specks on the edge of the landscape.

If you dare – and it’s really not too

scary – opt for a doors-off tour to

get the full effect (www.helicopters-

kauai.com; from 20,000 / person

for an hour-long AStar Tour).

The Big Island

SEE

Get a first-hand view of how these

islands were formed at Hawai‘i

Volcanoes National Park (www.nps.

gov/havo; seven-day vehicle pass:

`1, 750 ). Check first to see which

areas of the park might be closed

because of volcanic activity.

SLEEP

In the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel,

Asian antiques grace the public

areas, open to the trade winds.

Running since 1965, the hotel has

an elegantly understated look,

and is set on one of the Big Island’s

finest beaches (pictured right) –

a white-sand one on a coast more

known for its volcanic black sand

(www.maunakeabeachhotel.com;

from ` 41,150 ). Down the west coast

beyond Keauhou Bay, Ka‘awa Loa

Plantation is a guesthouse with

a wraparound porch lanai (porch)

romantically set in macadamia and

coffee orchards (www.kaawaloa

plantation.com; from `10,500).

Kaua‘i

Home to both a rainforests and stark lava-fields, Hawai‘i (not to be

confused with the wider state of Hawaii) is bigger than all the other islands

put together – and continues to grow today

The last eruptions on Kaua‘i took place more than a million years ago,

and much of the impressively weathered landscape of the ‘Garden Isle’

now looks like a setting from Jurassic Park

PHOTOGRAPHS: TEC PETAJA, MAUNA KEA BEACH HOTEL/ ZACH STOVALL, COURTESY OF COAST HOTELS

August 2019 65