SPAS ALONG THE KOHALA COAST--as part of the second
annual Big Island Festival--will open their doors for a grand tour
on Thursday. Participants will receive spa treatments from Hawaiian
Rainforest Salon and Spa, Kohala Sports Club and Spa, Mauna Lani
Spa, Paul Brown Salon and Spa at Hapuna and the Salon at Mauna Kea.
The spa tour begins with a yoga/stretch class at the Festival
Pavilion, conducted by the Fairmont Orchid's Spa Without Walls. Two
itineraries are available, with a picnic lunch between spa visits.
The cost of spa tour is $75, or it may be selected as one of the
event choices included in the Platinum Pass. Bus transportation is
included. (808) 934-9044; (866) 424-FEST; www.BigIslandFestival.com
VISITOR ARRIVALS to Hawaii rose 1.6% in
September, besting the previous-year level, though the number of
days visitors spent in the Islands dropped 4.5%, according to a
report from the state Dept. of Business, Economic Development and
Tourism. Domestic arrivals remained strong, with a gain of 3.4%,
and international arrivals numbers were 2.6% below last year's
levels. Meetings and conventions in Hawaii helped boost the number
of meetings, conventions and incentives visitors by 23.4%. Repeat
visitors were 62.4% of the total visitors to the state.
ATA AIRLINES will begin nonstop daily service
between Seattle and Honolulu Feb. 20. The carrier will start daily
one-stop service to Honolulu from New York [La Guardia] via San
Francisco Nov. 20, increasing to two its daily nonstop flights from
San Francisco to Honolulu. Beginning June 1, ATA's weekly nonstop
service from Los Angeles to Honolulu will jump from seven to 12
flights.
OUTRIGGER HOTELS AND RESORTS is taking its
sports-friendly reputation a step further by making the Ohana Reef
Lanai in Waikiki the first smoke-free hotel in Hawaii. Hotels in
Hawaii typically designate about 50% of rooms for smokers.
HILTON GRAND VACATIONS soon will have two
vacation ownership resorts at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach
Resort and Spa in Waikiki. The timeshare project, dubbed Hilton
Grand Vacations Club, is scheduled to open in December. An
extensive renovation of six floors in the recently reopened Kalia
tower will transform 138 hotel rooms into 72 studio suites and
one-bedroom condominium-style units. The development supplements an
existing vacation ownership in Hilton's Lagoon Tower. (808)
949-4321; www.hilton.com
ALOHA AIRLINES will begin operating two flights
a week between Hawaii and Pago Pago, American Samoa, Dec. 16. The
carrier also will offer direct connections from the U.S. mainland
and Canada to Pago Pago, continuing on to Roratonga in the Cook
Islands. The following special fares are available for purchase by
Nov. 11 for travel completed by March 16: $299 one way, plus taxes
and fees, between Honolulu and Pago Pago, and $449 one way from
Aloha's gateways in Burbank, Oakland, Orange County, and
Sacramento, Calif., Las Vegas, Reno and Phoenix. The introductory
fares are based on round-trip purchase. Pago Pago is 2,600 miles
southwest of Honolulu; Roratonga is 859 miles southeast of Pago
Pago. Flights will depart Honolulu on Tuesdays and Fridays at 2:50
p.m. and arrive in Pago Pago at 7:40 p.m. (800) 367-5250; www.alohaairlines.com
CLASSIC CUSTOM VACATIONS has four new
properties in Hawaii, including Castle Diamond Resort on Maui and
Outrigger Fairway Villas in Waikoloa on the Big Island. Classic
highlights these, 66 others and five new destinations in its 2004
properties brochure. www.ccvinfo.com
APPLE VACATIONS is selling special Hawaii
packages Nov. 9 to 22. Couples can save up to $560 per trip.
Packages must be booked by Nov. 22. (800) 800-0202 from the West
Coast and (800) 365-2775 from the Midwest and East Coast; www.applevacations.com
CORRECTION: Centex Homes purchased 34 acres and
the rights to develop single-family homes and multifamily town
homes in the Ko Olina Resort near the JW Marriott Ihilani Resort
& Spa. The names of the resorts were erroneously reported in
the Oct. 27 e-letter.