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Tags: New Routes / Allegiant Air / Hawaii Travel / LCCs / → All Tags
Smaller West Coast Towns To Get Lei'd in Hawaii, Thanks to Allegiant Air
What did we just say about the news that Continental was expanding their service from the US mainland to Hawaii? Well, it went like this: "How are the skies above Hawaii not mega-crowded with new flights coming in from all over?" And we wonder the same thing again after hearing that budget airline Allegiant, which normally sticks to vacation destinations in the continental US, like Las Vegas or Orlando, will begin flying to Hawaii on 757s bought from a European carrier.
And why is this big news? Well, Allegiant's plans for non-stops to Hawaii don't include your usual big airports like LAX; they'll instead be flying to the islands from smaller cities like Bellingham, Washington, Eugene, Oregon and Stockton and Monterey in California. These will bring a whole new traveler to Hawaii; the ones who maybe previously vacationed on the west coast, closer to home. But now with such convenient flights, Hawaii is totally an option. Will 2011 be the year that Hawaii reclaims the title of hottest vacation destination? Maybe, if Allegiant gets their bigger birds in the air by then.
Related Stories:
· Hawaii will be new destination for budget carrier Allegiant [HonoluluAdvertiser]
· United Gets Going to Ghana and More New Airline Routes [Jaunted]
· New Routes [Jaunted]
[Photo: Wavy1]
Tags: New Routes / United / Continental / Africa Travel / Hawaii Travel / Ariana Afghan Airlines / Afghanistan Travel / → All Tags
United Gets Going To Ghana, and More New Airline Routes
Let's talk new airline routes! Because we all love some variety...
· United begins direct Ghana flights
The rush to Accra, Ghana is on as both Virgin Atlantic and British Airways announced recently that they'd begin direct service to the African capital from London. Taking the lead in American is United, who will launch direct a direct Accra flight from Washington-Dulles airport on June 21, pending government approval. Next up, United would like to add Lagos, Nigeria to their route map, but we'll see how Accra goes first.
More new routes, after the jump!
Tags: Weather / Hawaii Travel / Tsunamis / Travel Advertising / Travel Marketing / → All Tags
How the Hawaii Tsunami Watch Will See Only a Wave of Tourists
On Saturday, after the catastrophic earthquake in Chile, places that might be in the path of a resulting tsunami battened down the hatches and awaited the waves. One of these places was Hawaii, which instead of having everyone run inside and pray that the wave would leave then high and dry, sent reporters to the beaches and trained livecams on the surf so that the world could watch for the tsunami, too.
Although a massive wave never arrived in favor of some tidal ebbing and flowing, what Hawaii did get were millions of eyes trained on its gorgeous beaches and water. People were excited; their heartrates went up as they eagerly watched the water rapidly rush out of Hilo Bay, like seen in the livecam capture above, and we couldn't help but think what priceless tourism marketing this is for Hawaii. And we weren't alone:
Tags: Movie Set Travel / Surf Travel / Celeb Travel / Hawaii Travel / → All Tags
The North Shore of Hawaii Taken Over for Teen Surfer Movie
You might remember the story of Bethany Hamilton, the teen who lost her arm in a shark attack off the shores of Tunnels Beach, Kauai in 2003 and was back in the water just 3 weeks later. Now, Bethany's inspiring story is being made into a movie starring AnnaSophia Robb, Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt.
The cast and crew began filming two weeks ago and have been spending most of the shoot on Oahu's North Shore. On Wednesday, the cast was spotted filming scenes at Sunset Beach, off of Route 83. There are four other popular beaches along the North Shore, Ehukai (The Banzai Pipeline) Beach Park, KeWa`ena Beach, Waimea Bay Beach Park, and Ali`i Beach Park. Winter is the best time for surfers along the North Shore because the waves are at their highest, reaching 15- 20 feet on average. All of the beaches are free and open to the public, but on a good surfing day, you may have trouble finding a parking spot!
Tags: Television Travel / Celeb Travel / LOST / TV Travel / Hawaii Travel / → All Tags
The Loss of LOST Might Mean the Rise of Hawaii
Dear fans of LOST, don't pout because you're only several more episodes away from the end of the final season of your show, because the cast members sure aren't worrying. In fact, they're already on the look out for the next gig, and Daniel Dae Kim is the first to find post-LOST success as he's already signed on to play Detective Chin Ho Kelly in the upcoming remake of the late 1960s detective drama series Hawaii Five-O.
So what does this mean for travel? Well for one, it means that couch potatoes are going see the beautiful beaches and vistas of Hawaii when the series airs eventually, and that's some serious subliminal messaging. This will trickle down to hopefully help the tourism end of Hawaii's economy which struggled majorly during the recession and still needs a boast in the bottom.
So if you enjoyed Daniel Dae Kim romping through the exotic wilds of Hawaii in LOST, stay tuned for Daniel Dae Kim romping through the beaches, hotels and wilds of Hawaii in Hawaii Five-O.
Related Stories:
· Staying In Hawaii [Perez Hilton]
· Daniel Dae Kim Joins ‘Hawaii Five-O’ Reboot [JustJared]
· Where Fans of LOST Want to Hang Out [Jaunted]
· Celeb Travel [Jaunted]
[Photo: Guardian UK]
Tags: Whale Watching / Hawaii Travel / Festivals / Animal Travel / Events / → All Tags
Count the Humpbacks During Maui's Whale Festival
Plenty of marine mammals call the islands of Hawaii their home, but humpback whales usually only swing by during the winter. After all, wouldn’t you winter in Hawaii if you could afford it? To celebrate their arrival, the Pacific Whale Foundation has created the Maui Whale Festival; however, it’s not just a one-day thing—it’s more of a whale month.
There’s many options to both enjoy and support the whales throughout February and into March. February 20 welcomes the Parade of Whales where floats filled with all things whale will be on display along Alanui Keali’i Drive. Awards will be handed out in several categories, so expect a lot of creativity and a few off-the-wall entries.
Tags: Movie Set Travel / Jaunted On Location / Hawaii Travel / Clint Eastwood / → All Tags
Clint Eastwood's Creating A Tsunami in Maui
While millions are dealing with a real disaster in Haiti, Clint Eastwood is staging a disaster in Hawaii for his new movie, "Hereafter." The director is in Maui this week filming scenes for the movie, which follows three characters: a blue-collar American, a French journalist and a London school boy, who are all trying to discover what may happen in the afterlife after being touched by death. The movie stars Matt Damon but, unfortunately for him, he isn't in any of the Hawaii shots.
The Maui scenes, filmed on Lahaina's Front St, will open the film and follow actress Cecile De France as she heads out to do some shopping when a tsunami hits. But, instead of flooding the streets of Maui to complete the scenes, the wall of water will be added later through CGI and the underwater scenes have already been completed in London. Yesterday, hundreds lined Front St while more than 60 extras ran from the "tsunami." It's not surprising that there were more on-lookers than actors on hand, considering this was the biggest production to hit Maui in nearly 20 years.
Tags: Volcano Travel / Volcanoes / Science Travel / Active Travel / Hawaii Travel / → All Tags
Hawaii Introduces Volcano Awareness Month Since Erupting Is So Hot Right Now
Thanks to a proclamation from the Hawaii County mayor, January is officially Volcano Awareness Month. Throughout the month the US Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park—among other local organizations—are teaming up to share their knowledge and understanding about all things lava.
In addition to the usual offerings within the Big Island’s national park, there are going to be loads more programs, talks, and hikes focused on better understanding what the heck is happening both above and below the earth. Volcanologists will be on hand every Tuesday to answer questions about Kilauea and probably anything else you want to throw at them. On Saturdays, groups can meet up with a park ranger to head on a hike into the Kilauea caldera—it’s just shy of three miles round-trip. For those that are a little more into entertainment, January 16 is the day to learn all about a special hula that tells the story of Pele—the goddess of fire, not the famous soccer player.
Tags: Travel Deals / 2010 Olympics / Vancouver Travel / Hawaii Travel / Mexico Travel / New York Times / Winter Travel / Budget Travel / → All Tags
Smart Travelers Don't Hibernate During Winter, Says NYT
There are deals to be found even in Vancouver right now
If you're smart, and not a hibernating mammal, then you're probably actively looking into travel deals for the month of January. While most people are recovering from holiday shopping trauma, others are taking advantage of less-crowded flights and predictably lower prices.
As The New York Times recently reported, "January may be the best time of year to take a vacation, as passenger traffic drops and resorts, airlines and cruise companies all roll out deals." Single travelers and childless couples, especially, may want to consider a trip in the dead of winter. As "families return to school schedules," there likely aren't too many teens, tweens, and toddlers with whom you'll be sharing airline time.
Tags: Wedding Travel / Maui Travel / Hawaii Travel / New Year's Travel / Destination Weddings / → All Tags
Where To Elope For January 01, 2010: Aloha, Maui
If one of your resolutions is to elope on New Year's Day, but you're looking for something a little more romantic than getting hitched at a Vegas drive-through window, take a flight now to Maui.
Flying there is the hardest step to tying the knot. All you have to do is head to a marriage license agent with your soon-to-be spouse, show proof of age and plunk down $60. There isn't a waiting period and no blood tests are needed. You can save time by downloading a marriage license application here and having it filled out when you visit the agent. Just be sure to call the local agent to make an appointment so that you can get hitched on January 1 without any issue.
Tags: Obama-Around-The-World / Presidential Travel / Barack Obama / Hawaii Travel / Northwest Flight 253 / → All Tags
Obama Says 'Mele Kalikimaka' From His Holidays In Hawaii
You know what we love most about Christmastime? The fact that most of the country gets to enjoy a long weekend, including the president and his family. On Christmas Even, President Obama, Michelle, and his two daughters hopped Air Force One to Hawaii for their traditional holiday family vacation.
Since they come to Hawaii every year, they don't go about doing the touristy sightseeing anymore, but instead hole up in a rented vacation home in Kailua on Oahu, conveniently neighboring an Air Force base. He plays golf, he plays basketball, and he swims at one of Hawaii's highest rated beaches.
But he is not to be completely envied, since he is the President of the United States after all, and duty calls even when he's on a much-needed island vacation. The news of the attempted terrorist incident onboard Northwest Flight 253 kept Obama chained to his desk for most of Christmas day as he upped the security threat level to orange and issued reviews of security procedure and of the terrorist watch list. We hope, for everyone's sake, that the rest of his vacation will be uneventful.
Related Stories:
· Obamas in Hawaii: First Family Arrives In Oahu for Vacation [HuffPost]
· News interrupts Obama's Hawaii vacation [CBS News]
· Presidential Travel [Jaunted]
[Photo: Huffington Post]
Tags: Movie Set Travel / Hawaii Travel / Hotels / Avatar / → All Tags
Find Out Where 'Avatar' Filmed The Non-CGI Scenes
As those of you who rushed to see Avatar this weekend know, the movie is hard to summarize in a few sentences. According to IMDb, James Cameron's epic tale is about Jake, a paraplegic war veteran of the future, who is brought to another planet, Pandora, which is inhabited by the Na'vi, a humanoid race with their own language and culture; then those from Earth find themselves at odds with each other and the local culture. What the summary doesn't tell you is that the 3D movie looks really cool thanks to new CGI techniques developed just for Avatar.
But even though the movie is a technological showpiece, there was still some old school location filming that took place in New Zealand and Hawaii. First, Cameron, who has always been an unconventional filmmaker, brought the movie's stars, Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana, to Hawaii where he dressed them up like aborigines and had them running around half-naked while acting out their scenes before actually filming in front of a green screen in the studio. The technique was suppose to give them all a taste of how the scenes would feel if they were being shot in a real rain forest.
