all aboard the pride of hawaii

after taking my first cruise down the mexican riviera earlier this year, i learned a few things that other cruising newbies may not be aware of like . . .

• someone else tidies up your room not once, but twice a day!

• the ability to take a nap (or two) while traveling to your next destination

• never worrying about where to go for dinner. or breakfast. or lunch. or snacks (lots and lots of snacking opportunities abound on a cruise ship)

that being said, if you have always thought a cruise around the hawaiian islands would be fun then hele on over to norwegian cruise lines. it's not every day that you have the opportunity to travel on a brand spanking new ship, and, if you do your home work, you might be able to score a cruise on the pride of hawai'i (going on her maiden voyage this summer) for as little as $799 per person.

although your time ashore can be limited, with a little planning and research you can definitely travel off the beaten path and avoid the somewhat touristy & overpriced shore excursions.

zip zip & away

if you're a fan of the amazing race, the photo above needs no explanation except to say that you don't need to leave hawaii to enjoy the thrill of ziplining! in the past year, we have friends who have gone on the original canopy tour in costa rica & puerto vallarta and each couple had rave reviews of their adventures flying through the trees.

even though heights are not my friend, i must admit that it looks pretty exhilarating on tv and now that i know people who have lived to tell their tale (and have the photos to prove it) perhaps a zipline tour by kauai backcountry adventures will be in order next time we're on the garden isle. in addition to the zipline, kauai backcountry also offers a tubing tour similar to flumin' da ditch just in case you prefer your adventures closer to the ground.

bio-beetle to the rescue

the folks on maui always seem to be one step ahead when it comes to earth friendly technology. case in point: maui-based bio-beetle which has a small fleet of rental cars that run solely on bio diesel, a.k.a. 100% recycled vegetable oil. bio diesel is a renewable source of energy that is cleaner burning compared to petroleum, and since hawaii is home to one of the most abundant eco-systems on the planet this is a very good thing for the islands. plus they're super cute!

for some reason, even though the rental car market on oahu is huge, bio-beetles are not yet available there (although the company has recently expanded to los angeles). let's hope there will be lots of demand for green rental cars in hawaii and bio-beetle will offer their eco-friendly alternative to the rest of the neighbor islands soon.

shangri la

shangri la courtyard + playhouse

since i have a curious fascination in seeing how the other half lives, i am ever the sucker for historic home tours like hearst castle. imagine my delight when the doris duke estate, a.k.a. shangri la (isn't that one of the most evocative names?), was opened to the public a few years ago.

the estate is just not something you would expect to find in hawaii which makes it all the more fabulous. the morrocan vibe is something that really should be experienced in person and anyone with an interest in art, architecture & design would enjoy exploring the diamond head estate on the guided tour offered by the honolulu academy of arts.

flumin' da ditch

if you find yourself on the big island and are looking for something different to do you might enjoy flumin' da ditch. it's pretty relaxing as adventures go with plenty of time to enjoy the scenery while you leisurely navigate down the old irrigation canals in north kohala. and, since there's not that much paddling involved it's perfect for younger kids or grown-ups who don't feel like doing too much work.

if you go, try to schedule your reservation on any day but monday. flumin' da ditch is located in small yet funky hawi which is also home to one of the best restaurants on the island. at least that's what i've heard since the bamboo restaurant was closed the day we went flumin' da ditch on our honeymoon.

learn from my mistake and make your reservation on tues-sun so you can dine at the restaurant. if you want to check out the food before you go, keep an eye out for the big island episode of rachael ray's $40 a day on the food network.

{update | feb 21st, 2007: due to the october earthquake, flumin' da ditch tours have been stopped for safety reasons, but if your heart is set on this mellow adventure take a peek at flumin' kauai style}