Honolulu and Oahu

Traveling to Hawaii is as close as an American can get to visiting another country while staying within the United States. O'ahu—where Honolulu and Waikiki are—is the third largest Hawaiian island and has 75% of the state's population. Honolulu is the perfect place to experience the state's indigenous culture, the hundred years of immigration that resulted in today's blended society and the tradition of aloha. The museums and historic and cultural sites will ground you, at least a bit, in Hawaii history. The widest range of restaurants as well as the best nightlife scene in the Islands is here, too.

But Oahu is not just Honolulu and Waikiki. It is looping mountain trails on the western Waianae and eastern Koolau ranges. It is monster waves breaking on the golden beaches of the North Shore. It is country stores and beaches where turtles are your swimming companions. Oahu, with its knife-edged mountain ranges, verdant green valleys, territorial-era architecture, and ring of white-sand beaches, is just the Hawaii you came to see.

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