Hawaii Travel Guide
Hawaii is go, go, go. With just the right amount of slow.
Sparkling city-beach views, world-class shopping, legendary surf spots and soul-cleansing adventures, all infused with Hawaii's wholesome, heartwarming way of life.
Oahu
Oahu, the third largest island, is where most Australians touch down, and it sets the tempo for the whole holiday. Honolulu is Hawaii’s only real city — glossy high-rises hugging the sand at Waikiki Beach, world-class shopping along Kalakaua Avenue, and a dining and nightlife scene that runs late. Yet, exactly how we Australians like our beaches, the surf is right out front. Learn to ride a longboard where the sport was born, then hike Le’ahi (Diamond Head) for the postcard view over the city. Beyond Waikiki, the island opens up — the living history of Pearl Harbor, snorkelling among the fish at Hanauma Bay, and the legendary winter breaks of the North Shore at Sunset Beach and Waimea Bay. Fast-paced, familiar and endlessly busy, Oahu is the ‘city-meets-surf’ island Aussies keep coming back to.
Maui
Maui is the polished all-rounder — resort glamour on one coast, raw adventure on the other. Base yourself along the golden sands of Ka’anapali Beach or the upscale strip at Wailea, where the shopping, sunsets and oceanfront dining rival anything back home. Then chase the island’s wilder side: watch the sunrise from the summit of Haleakala, snorkel the reefs off Kapalua and Napili Bay, or wind along the waterfalls and rainforest of the Road to Hana. Winter brings humpback whales to the channel and big waves to the north coast. With its blend of easy luxury and big-ticket experiences, Maui is the island that stays with you long after you fly home.
Hawaii Island (Big Island)
The Island of Hawaii — the Big Island — is adventure on an epic scale, larger than all the other Hawaiian Islands combined. This is where you stand before the living volcanoes of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, snorkel the turquoise bays of the Kona Coast, and tour the coffee farms that made the region famous. It’s also home to the IRONMAN World Championship, with the 2026 race returning to Kailua-Kona as a single-day event on 10 October — the kind of bucket-list sporting event that can anchor a whole trip. From the black-sand beaches and green valleys of the Hilo side to the sunny Kohala resort coast, the island’s sheer size and range of climates set it apart. For travellers who want to do more than lie on the sand, nowhere delivers like the Big Island.
Kauai
Kauai is the greenest and most dramatic of the islands — a place that trades high-rises for sheer natural spectacle. The emerald cliffs of the Napali Coast rise straight from the sea, best seen from a boat tour or a helicopter flight, while inland the layered red walls of Waimea Canyon earn its nickname, ‘the Grand Canyon of the Pacific’. Days here are spent hiking coastal trails, kayaking the Wailua River, and swimming or snorkelling at Hanalei Bay and Poipu. It’s the island for travellers chasing waterfalls, big scenery and that end-of-the-earth sense of escape. Quieter and more laid-back than Oahu, the ‘Garden Isle’ balances the energy of a Hawaii holiday with plenty of room to breathe.
Lanai
Lanai is Hawaii’s luxury hideaway — a small, uncrowded island reached by a short flight or ferry from Maui. Once a pineapple plantation, it is now home to some of the most exclusive resorts in the Pacific, set above the golden crescent of Hulopo’e Bay with its snorkelling, spinner dolphins and the iconic sea stack of Pu’u Pehe (Sweetheart Rock). Beyond the resorts the island turns adventurous: four-wheel-drive the red-dirt roads to the surreal rock formations of Keahiakawelo (Garden of the Gods), or find a deserted beach entirely to yourself. Lanai is where a Hawaii holiday slows right down — polished, private and a world away from the Waikiki crowds, yet only a short hop from the action.
Molokai
Molokai is the island that time forgot — and proudly so. With no traffic lights and no high-rises, it is the most authentically Hawaiian of them all, where the culture and pace of old Hawaii still hold. This is a place for travellers who want something adventurous and real. Hike into the lush, waterfall-fed Halawa Valley with a local guide, look down over the world’s highest sea cliffs from the lookout at Pālāʻau State Park, and walk the vast golden sands of Pāpōhaku Beach, often without another soul in sight. Fishing, kayaking and quiet cultural encounters replace resorts and nightlife here. Molokai won’t suit everyone, and that’s the point — it is the counterweight to cosmopolitan Oahu, and a reminder of what the islands were before the crowds arrived.
Hawaii Travel FAQs
From getting there and island-hopping to the best time to visit and the events worth planning around, our Hawaii Travel FAQs answer the questions Australian travellers ask most when planning a Hawaii holiday.