Hawaiian Islands - little time, many questions
Feb 24th, 2007, 05:14 PM
#25
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1. Agree- Hapuna Beach..
TO DO IN HILO : Akaka Falls, drive down the senic drive of Hwy 19, stop at the Botanical Gardens, lunch at "What's Shakin'", Tsunami Museum of the Pacific((of course, Boiling Pots, and Rainbow Falls))
4. COFFEE- Kona/south toward City of Refuge. It you go to the Painted Church, Bayview Farms is just down the road. You can sample the coffee, and take a tour.
Hawaii...it's all good!
TO DO IN HILO : Akaka Falls, drive down the senic drive of Hwy 19, stop at the Botanical Gardens, lunch at "What's Shakin'", Tsunami Museum of the Pacific((of course, Boiling Pots, and Rainbow Falls))
4. COFFEE- Kona/south toward City of Refuge. It you go to the Painted Church, Bayview Farms is just down the road. You can sample the coffee, and take a tour.
Hawaii...it's all good!
Feb 24th, 2007, 06:01 PM
#26
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Thanks for chiming in Circa2. I have started a new thread called "Hilo, Hawaii - which garden?" Look for the coloured headline and if you have any comments on it, please let me know. I think you will tell us to rent a car.
A friend said fresh pineapple was hard to find. They bought theirs in Costco! Tell me it isn't so. Will we have a better chance of getting fresh pineapple in Maui?
MelissaHI,
Ha, me too, especially in England.
A friend said fresh pineapple was hard to find. They bought theirs in Costco! Tell me it isn't so. Will we have a better chance of getting fresh pineapple in Maui?
MelissaHI,
Ha, me too, especially in England.
Feb 24th, 2007, 06:58 PM
#27
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Fresh pineapple--cut or uncut? You will get pineapple on many fruit platters throughout Hawaii and probably on your cruise. You can also get whole pinapple in most grocery stores, including costco. yummy!
Feb 24th, 2007, 07:37 PM
#28
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Not sure if you are in Hilo on a Saturday -- but we enjoyed the tent market -- nice souvenirs (coconut shelled purses), fresh flowers and some fresh produce as well. Your guide book should provide more info. We really enjoyed our 3 nights in Hilo; yes it will rain but it's responsible for that lush sweet fragrance you smell when you step out of the airport. Another thought if you are renting a car and drive up to Akaka Falls, is to have lunch at the Hawaiian Vanilla Company. It's a family run operation and we loved our relaxing lunch and homespun products. The lip balm was excellent. They serve lunch only a couple of days a week and reservations are required. We lucked out and were able to incorporate it in our trip on our way to Hapuna. You can stop at the Hawaiian Botanical Gardens on the way back to work off your lunch and enjoy the beauty and exoticness of the plantings.
I also agree with the visit to Place of Refuge ... especially if you enjoy historical - cultural items . . in regards to finding the coffee farms ... we were driving around up along the hills looking for an ukalele store ... couldn't find the store but I smelled the coffee roasting and followed the road down and stopped at the Blue Sky Coffee Farm. It's very small but they do the roasting right there. You can make a nice little trip visiting the various coffee farms and visiting Place of Refuge.
http://www.hawaiianvanilla.com/
I also agree with the visit to Place of Refuge ... especially if you enjoy historical - cultural items . . in regards to finding the coffee farms ... we were driving around up along the hills looking for an ukalele store ... couldn't find the store but I smelled the coffee roasting and followed the road down and stopped at the Blue Sky Coffee Farm. It's very small but they do the roasting right there. You can make a nice little trip visiting the various coffee farms and visiting Place of Refuge.
http://www.hawaiianvanilla.com/
Feb 24th, 2007, 11:52 PM
#29
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Miss Maple, I think we will be in Hilo on a Sunday. I had no idea vanilla was grown there. With the help of Fodorites like you I am finally getting a sense of this island.
MelissaHI, cut pineapple. (Believe it or not, my favourite food on cruise ships is the cut watermelon.) Back in the "olden days" when my husband sailed over to Lanai, he said a WWII jeep drove out of the pineapple field and a man piled pineapples onto a table and hacked them into big slices. Best pineapple my husband ever had.
MelissaHI, cut pineapple. (Believe it or not, my favourite food on cruise ships is the cut watermelon.) Back in the "olden days" when my husband sailed over to Lanai, he said a WWII jeep drove out of the pineapple field and a man piled pineapples onto a table and hacked them into big slices. Best pineapple my husband ever had.
Feb 25th, 2007, 06:51 AM
#30
Fresh pineapple hard to find, where? Did you mean only the Big Island?? It was certainly easy to find around Waikiki and Lahaina both. It's kind of a hassle to cut up yourself unless you have a kitchen, good knife, etc. - we bought ours in slices (at the grocery store) or all the way cut up (ABC Stores) or whole at fruit stands.
Actually in Lahaina (I didn't use this but the service looked great) there was a shop specifically about shipping tropical fruits and flowers back home.
Actually in Lahaina (I didn't use this but the service looked great) there was a shop specifically about shipping tropical fruits and flowers back home.
Feb 25th, 2007, 11:04 AM
#31
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Suze,
Yes, I meant the big island. At least that's what one person told us. Glad to hear we'll have no trouble finding it elsewhere.
I don't know if we can ship fruit back to Canada.
Yes, I meant the big island. At least that's what one person told us. Glad to hear we'll have no trouble finding it elsewhere.
I don't know if we can ship fruit back to Canada.
Apr 23rd, 2007, 09:33 AM
#33
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Coffee? I like the coffee at Greenwell Farms in Kealakekua (sp?) They've got a web site you can order from too. If you go there, they have a tour of their facility where they explain how the coffee gets from the tree to your cup.
Apr 25th, 2007, 06:38 AM
#34
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April, as for your comment that you don't know if you can ship fruit back to Canada, we always bring a box or two of pineapples back with us. Advertisers in the various tourist brochures, will deliver it right to the airport for you to check in at Departures, when you are leaving, and there are also places at the airports that will sell you boxed fruit. Just run it through as checked luggage, we've never had a problem. We usually have one piece of checked luggage each, which allows us 2 more, going home.
