There's a lot going on this summer on Oahu. The Island of Oahu, known as the Heart of Hawaii, sets the rhythm of the islands and leads by example with new improvements, changes and additions on an ongoing basis. I'm heading to Oahu this fall. You should too. There are great deals to be had!

See what's new on Oahu this summer:

• What's New With Oahu's Hotels and Resorts
  
  
• What's New With Oahu's Restaurants, Cuisine and Nightlife
  
  
• What's New With Oahu's Activities, Attractions and Festivals
  
  
• What's New With Oahu Shopping

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I am reading a lot about a company which has been selling vacation packages to tourists in Waikiki for the past year or so. The name of the company is Destination Paradise. In short, I am told that they bring visitors to a storefront on Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki and give them an hour and a half or so presentation on their services. These services are much like a timeshare but with no direct affiliation to any known timeshare company. They charge between $7000-$10,000 for their services, financed over a period of time plus annual fees.

Destination Paradise has been the subject of an extensive discussion in our Hawaii Forum, but I have closed the discussion for reasons which I explained in the last post, but I welcome you to read the experience of people who have attended one of their presentations.

If you wish to share your opinion about this company, good or bad, please email me directly at gohawaii.guide@about.com. Be as specific as you can in outlining your experience with Destination Paradise.

As for those of you who have not heard of this company, my personal opinion is that you should read as much as possible about them online before making any decision. I also understand that they may be soon be operating on Maui.

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Deciding where to stay is the biggest decision you need to make when planning a Hawaii vacation. A lot depends on your budget and how much you want to pay per day. Do you want to go to a plush hotel resort, moderately priced hotel or a condominium resort where you can prepare some of your own meals.

Many travelers are most comfortable with hotel brands whose names and reputations they know. If that's you, many of the national and international hospitality companies have hotels in Hawaii.

Here's a look at the biggest, and in many cases, best operators of resorts and hotels in Hawaii - including condominium hotels and resorts.

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Yesterday the Kapalua LPGA Classic which was scheduled for Hawaii was canceled because of a lack of a title sponsor. The announcement was made by Kapalua Land Co. a division of Maui Land & Pineapple.

The event began last year and was won by Kapalua Tour Pro Morgan Pressel. This year's event was sure to draw a huge local crowd with the appearance of Hawaii's own Michelle Wie.

This is the third Hawaii LPGA event in the past two years that has seen an end. Next year, in all likelihood, there will be no LPGA events in Hawaii.

Read all of the details on Brent Kelley's Golf site here at About.com and then join me in Brent's forum to share your thoughts. Are we seeing the death of the LPGA?

As ecotourism or green tourism becomes a more sought out way to spend vacations, ziplining has become one of the fastest growing eco-friendly activities throughout the world.

Ziplining gained popularity in Costa Rica in the early 1990's when several companies began to offer "canopy tours" through the Costa Rican rainforest.

On Maui there are three companies that offer zip line adventures. The first Maui zip line or Maui zipline company was Skyline Eco-Adventures. This was followed several years later by Kapalua Adventures. The most recent entry in the Maui zip line business is the Piiholo Ranch Zipline.

Find our more about these three Maui zipline companies.

BayFest 2009, Oahu's premier summer family festival, celebrates 20 years of music and magic, August 14-16, 2009 at Marine Corps Base Hawaii located on the Mokapu Peninsula on Kaneohe Bay, Windward Oahu.

This year's festival includes the popular Island Lifestyle Expo here you can sample new products, play games for prizes, collect interesting giveaways and learn about the hottest new things on the market. Then you'll find military static equipment displays, nightly Grucci fireworks, EK Fernandez carnival rides, Coconut Island boat rides, sports, contests, family entertainment and lots of food.

The big event of the festival is the headline concert featuring The Black Eyed Peas.

Find our more about BayFest 2009 Hawaii.

My good friend Sandi Yara sent along this great tip.

There are many hotel summer special available this year. Here’s information received from two Hawaii hotel companies with multiple locations in Waikiki.

Aqua Hotels & Resorts offering "99 Days of Summer" in Waikiki for $99 or less per night and Outrigger’s Condominium Collection is Offering Lower Rates and More Fun.

Read all the details on Sandi's blog entry.

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When you think of train travel, you don't often think about Hawaii. Yet, if all things go as planned, within a few years there will be a elevated commuter rail line running from points west of Honolulu into Honolulu and ultimately perhaps to Waikiki.

Trains were once quite prevalent in Hawaii during the height of the sugar industry. It was the principal means of getting the cane to the processing plant and to the port for shipping overseas. Today, however, there are only two trains operating in Hawaii, one on Kauai and the Sugar Cane Train on Maui.

Elsewhere in the world, train travel remains a principal means of transportation. “great railway bazaar,” this collective effort by

Let About.com's Travel Guides conduct you to distant stations where the journey is as revealing as the destination with "Tracks:" A Train Travel Blog Carnival, hosted by our Guide to Honeymoons and Romantic Travel, Susan Breslow Sardone.

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Kahului has the odd distinction of being a Maui town that few visitors every mention when asked to name a town on Maui. Yet almost every visitor to the island spends some part of their vacation in Kahului.

Kahului is where the island's main airport is located, where visitors rent their cars, where they shop at one of the big box stores such as Cosco, Kmart or Walmart and through which they drive on the way to Hana, Haleakala or Upcountry Maui.

Kahului is all of that, but a whole lot more as well. Let's take a closer look at Kahului - how it came to be and what you'll find there.

_{Aerial photo of Kahului, Maui by John Fischer, licensed to About.com}

Despite a rough economy and downturn in tourism, one Waikiki resort is aggressively pushing forward to provide a top visitor experience for its guests.

Within the last six months, the Hilton Hawaiian Village® Beach Resort & Spa has opened its Grand Waikikian Resort which evokes the ambiance of a grand hotel, while offering the amenities and comforts of a world-class resort condominium.

They have also launched a new luau, the Waikiki Starlight Luau, on the resort's Rooftop Garden, offering dinner shows five nights a week.

In April a new Aloha Friday show premiered, "Rockin’ Hawaiian Rainbow Revue," which ends with a longer and more spectacular fireworks display.



Now within the last month, the resort has opened a new restaurant, Tropics Bar & Grill, featuring a spacious new dining room, outdoor patio and expanded bar area.

Located right on Waikiki Beach, the new 15,700 square-foot eatery was designed by Group 70 International with interiors by the Hatch Design Group. Ryoko Nasu, who headed up the team from Hatch Design, said that the vision was to create an environment that is "Tropical Modern" with a contemporary touch. Read more...