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The eight main islands are Oahu, Maui, Hawaii, Kauai, Molokai, Lanai, Niihau, and Kahoolawe. The first six are tourist destinations, each with its own personality and appeal. (Niihau is a privately owned island that can be visited from Kauai. Kahoolawe is a former U.S. military bombing target, now slowly recovering in the loving hands of the Hawaiian people.)
The Gathering Place: Oahu
Oahu is the most developed of the Hawaiian Islands and its greatest population center — about 875,000 people live here. About three-quarters of Oahuans reside in Honolulu, the only real big city in the state. Hawaii's most famous district is the area of Honolulu called Waikiki, an urban beach resort that stretches along the south coast to the landmark crater, Diamond Head. A compact city of concrete and high-rises, Waikiki is the most densely built of Hawaii's beach resorts, but it's fabulous, which is why travelers from everywhere converge here.
Oahu is home to some of Hawaii's best sightseeing, including Pearl Harbor, the Polynesian Cultural Center, and much more, and it boasts the state's finest restaurants and shopping. However, this is still Hawaii's most touristy destination, and a hint of seediness remains in a few pockets.
Leave Oahu off your itinerary if you want to get away from it all. But if you're up for endless diversion and don't mind a few crowds — if you're the type who revels in the glitz and energy of it all — justifiably world-famous Waikiki is the place for you.
 | Many newcomers who visit only Waikiki leave with the wrong idea about Hawaii — that it's crowded, overbuilt, and urbanized. Be sure to dedicate a day to explore the island beyond Honolulu. Oahu's Windward Coast and its North Shore (the epicenter of Hawaii's surf culture) offer some of the most gorgeous territory in the state — so gorgeous that you may even consider staying in one of these areas. |
The Valley Isle: Maui
When people think Hawaiian paradise, they usually think Maui. Almost everyone who comes here falls in love with this island: It offers the ideal mix of unspoiled natural beauty and tropical sophistication, action-packed fun and laid-back island style.
The Valley Isle is more like the mainland than any other place in Hawaii (even Honolulu). The highways and L.A.-style traffic jams and minimalls will look familiar, or annoying. A quicker pace of living prevails, which can make Maui feel more like Southern California than Hawaii.
Still, Maui is a tropical paradise, with golden beaches, misty tropical cliffs, and countless waterfalls. Offshore are two of Hawaii's finest snorkel and dive spots. Onshore, at the summit of one of the island's great mountains, is Haleakala National Park, a wild, otherworldly place that's hugely popular with hikers and bicyclers.
The Big Island: Hawaii
Salt-and-pepper beaches, primal rain forests, stark lava fields as far as the eye can see — this otherworldly island may not be your idea of a tropical paradise, but travelers with a passion for adventure, an eye for the unusual, or a taste for luxury will think that they've found heaven on earth.
The island is twice the size of all the others combined — and a study in contradictions: Don't be surprised if you spot snow atop the peaks while you're deep-sea fishing off the legendary Kona Coast — some of the warmest waters in the Pacific.
The left (Kona-Kohala) side is hot, dry, with ultradeluxe beach resorts and fine watersports. The right (Hilo-Volcano) side is lush, wet, green, and fragrant with tropical flowers. Hilo is the prettiest city in the Pacific, and Volcano Village puts you right in the heart of a tropical rain forest. In between are two of the tallest mountain peaks in the Pacific, offering fine stargazing. At the heart of the island is Kilauea volcano, the world's largest active volcano.
The Garden Isle: Kauai
Of all the Hawaiian Islands, Kauai embodies the Hawaiian ideal — it's the ultimate in tropical romance and beauty. Kauai has had starring roles as Paradise in movies from Blue Hawaii and South Pacific to Jurassic Park. The island landscape doesn't get any more spectacular than here.
Although it's beginning to sprout a few traffic jams, garden-like Kauai is quieter and less developed than its sister islands. You can count the number of full-fledged resorts on one hand. Don't come expecting Cancún-style nightlife or St. Thomas-worthy shopping. Discover instead an unspoiled setting of wind-carved cliffs, fertile valleys rich with taro, powder-fine white-sand beaches, and gorgeous vistas in every direction.
 | It takes a lot of rain to keep Kauai so lush, fertile, and flower-fragrant; consequently, the weather here is a little less reliable than on the other islands. Kauai is the one island where a week of rain can quash your fun-in-the-sun plans. |
The most Hawaiian isle: Molokai
Sleepy Molokai is largely untouched by modern development. It's often called the most Hawaiian island because it's the birthplace of the hula, and it has a larger native Hawaiian population than any other in the chain. Molokai is worth seeing for its unsullied beauty and true Hawaiian spirit, but you should fully explore the other islands before you devote time to Molokai.
The private island: Lanai
This tiny island (pop. 3,500) is where you go to really get away from it all. Formerly dedicated to pineapple production, Lanai is not particularly beautiful, nor is there much to do here, which is the entire idea of this getaway island. Just about everything that is here is completely handled through the two megaexpensive resorts that have taken over this humble place: Lodge at Koele and the Manele Bay Hotel.
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