Today we check in with comedian/entrepeanuer Lanai Tabura who shares with us his early days living and growing up on the small island of Lanai and how his career has evolved. Over the last few years he’s produced his own wine label called Look me in the Eye and created a fun iPhone app called Pidgin 101. If that’s not enough, he’s also is part owner of a music publishing company, appears regularly on television, radio, and performs his comedy act nationwide. He is full of Aloha which is translated into everything he does.
He’s also passionate about travel. He began hosting trips during his radio days as a disc jockey taking people to Vegas; people loved the trips so much he started doing them on a regular basis. He now travels all over the world with groups several times a year to destinations like the Philippines and Thailand. Today we have the opportunity to discuss Lana’s Travel Club where he puts package deals and special itineraries . Coming up in Feb. he is hosting a wine tour to California and in February a trip to the Philippines.
Since 2006 Bruce has been writing and producing Hawaii Vacation Connection Podcast and the Hawaii Vacation Blog and the which create daily content about Hawaii Travel and Tourism. His postings reflect the Hawaiian Islands, their culture and their lifestyle as accurately and thoroughly as possible. The tone is anecdotal, breezy, and devoid of any commercialism.
Christmas is right around the corner so we brought in Katherine Finch who blogs about shopping for us to talk about unique holiday gifts from Hawaii. Katherine is passionate about all things made in Hawaii and she shares with us some unique inexpensive gifts that you can get here while you’re on vacation to send back to loved ones on the mainland for Christmas or any other special occasion.
Hawaii has so many wonderful special gifts that can only be found here in the islands. For example Katherine shares with us some of her favorite confections like Hawaiian white cane sugar from Maui, delicious Coconut Taffy Hawaiian cookies and yummy pineapple jam. Most of these items can be purchased for less than five dollars and are available readily in many of the local stores here in the islands.
Katherine also told us about a great experience that she had at Maui divers. This is a company that manufactures and sells pearls here in Hawaii. She shared with us a beautiful pearl necklace she got there which will make a perfect Holiday gift.
Since 2006 Bruce has been writing and producing Hawaii Vacation Connection Podcast and the Hawaii Vacation Blog and the which create daily content about Hawaii Travel and Tourism. His postings reflect the Hawaiian Islands, their culture and their lifestyle as accurately and thoroughly as possible. The tone is anecdotal, breezy, and devoid of any commercialism.
Holiday season begins
The holiday season always begins with the Thanksgiving holiday. This year we spent it with friends at a place called Willows on Oahu. This off the beaten path and if you would like a great buffet lunch or dinner this is a perfect spot to meet and eat with Hawaii locals. It’s also great for special such as weddings occasions and weddings. Today we talk about but the great food we have and share some pictures of our favorite dishes.
Hawaii hotel prices rising
Martin, one of our twitter friends, asked about the rising cost of hotels in Hawaii. Hotel prices in Hawaii been rising over the last year with the average stay at about 200 per night. For years the hotels have been trying to raise their price points and 2012 may be the year we see this come to fruition. Prices this year are 16% higher than the same week last year. One way to still get great deals is to work with a company like ours who contracts with the hotels. Those were here in Hawaii, we can also get upgrades and special amenities for our customers.
Celebrities in Hawaii
Many folks ask us if we see a lot of celebrities because very often they see them on vacation in Hawaii. Today we talk about where celebrities stay at how accessible they are while visiting the islands. Demi Moore and Jennifer Lopez have been spotted here the last few days after their very public breakups.
Purikura Come to Hawaii
There’s a new craze sweeping Hawaii called Purikura. It’s a high-tech photo booth that allows you to take a picture behind a green screen and create your own fun photos. The booths have their origin in Japan where people have been using booths like this for years. You can get pretty creative with some of the graphics and have a lot of fun with this high-tech version of the old-fashioned phone booth.
Since 2006 Bruce has been writing and producing Hawaii Vacation Connection Podcast and the Hawaii Vacation Blog and the which create daily content about Hawaii Travel and Tourism. His postings reflect the Hawaiian Islands, their culture and their lifestyle as accurately and thoroughly as possible. The tone is anecdotal, breezy, and devoid of any commercialism.
Hawaiian Air to Fly to Big Apple
Hawaiian airlines announced this week that they’ll be beginning nonstop service from Honolulu to JFK Airport beginning in June. This is truly a game changer because there are no direct flights currently from New York. The airline first had plans to start this route several years ago but because of 911 those plans were canceled. When the route was announced on Wednesday they offered a special $245 one-way fare which sold out in a matter of a few hours. Be looking for more specials from Hawaiian next year on this new route to the Big Apple.
Woody!
Today we had a special visit from Woody from Toy story. Well not really, however, we did have some fun showing you this interactive toy. It’s a great gift for people who are lovers of all things Hawaii and it has over 40 different sayings and a few fun Hawaiian songs. Looking for something to give a person who has everything this just might be the perfect gift.
Availability for XMAS
It’s Christmas so many folks were still reaching out to us to book trips to Hawaii at the last minute. Unfortunately Christmas time is one of the most busiest times of the season here in Hawaii. Chances are it won’t be anything affordable and we can find will be very expensive. I encourage you to think about booking way in advance for Christmas because hotels sell out months in advance.
Special special specials
if you haven’t already signed up for our newsletter you really should. We offer many specials and deals that we find with huge savings that we can pass on to you. You can subscribe by going to our website at www.hawaii-aloha.com. This month we featured specials from Starwood hotels which is offering an amazing deal on the Big Island for the Sheraton Keauhou resort and spa starting at $377 per person.
Since 2006 Bruce has been writing and producing Hawaii Vacation Connection Podcast and the Hawaii Vacation Blog and the which create daily content about Hawaii Travel and Tourism. His postings reflect the Hawaiian Islands, their culture and their lifestyle as accurately and thoroughly as possible. The tone is anecdotal, breezy, and devoid of any commercialism.
Bounty Hunter open Retail store
Dog the bounty Hunter’s new retail store opens this weekend so we show you the location and talk about what might be going on in his new establishment. The dog and his family live in Hawaii Kai so naturally a perfect location for the store is Koko Marina. Starting Saturday he’ll be open for business and you can purchase all of your favorite bounty hunter memorabilia. Koko Marina is conveniently located on the east side of all who close to Hanauma Bay.
Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach Review
Over the weekend we had the opportunity to stay at the Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach. We wanted to see it just one more time before major renovations take place. We stayed in a oceanfront room and while it was beautiful and clean there is no question that a upgrade is needed. The furniture was old and dated. The beds were pretty uncomfortable because of the old-age and the bathroom, while squeaky clean, really needed to be freshened up. They have some great rates I wouldn’t avoid this property but you should know what to expect if you decide to book this property. We love the staff, everyone was friendly and nice with lots of Aloha.
Floating Tsunami Debris
Today we answer a question from Shawn who want to know what was happening about the debris which is floating towards Hawaii as a result of the Tsunami in Japan in February of this year. We talk about the possibilities of debris coming up on the shores of Hawaii and what’s being done about this serious problem. The debris is moving faster than expected and will most likely move north of the Hawaiian Islands on its way to mainland U.S.. However it’s pretty clear that it will be caught back up to currents that will bring debris back to Hawaii over several years. No one really knows for sure what’s going to happen but we will keep a close eye on it and let you know anything we hear about this issue.
Since 2006 Bruce has been writing and producing Hawaii Vacation Connection Podcast and the Hawaii Vacation Blog and the which create daily content about Hawaii Travel and Tourism. His postings reflect the Hawaiian Islands, their culture and their lifestyle as accurately and thoroughly as possible. The tone is anecdotal, breezy, and devoid of any commercialism.
Halloween In Hawaii
It’s that time of year again; the holidays are right around the corner. Halloween is happening this weekend so we talk about a big festival that’s on Oahu. It’s called Hallowbaloo and it’s a four day music and arts Festival with events all over the island. Each year it gets better and better in this year it promises to be the best ever.
Hawaii Airfare pricing
On today’s show we discuss how airfare is priced to Hawaii. You can purchase published or bulk air and today we discuss the difference between the two. In general bulk air is pre-purchase airfare that we get from the airlines in advance. The advantage of booking in bulk air is that you never have to put all the money down at once and very often it can be cheaper than published airfare. Published airfare refer to the actual published rate that airlines offer and they are found everywhere. They come with restrictions and pretty much the price will be the same anywhere you look and you have to pay at the time of booking in full.
New budget Hotel in Waikiki
This week we found a newly renovated budget property in Waikiki called Stay Hotel. This was formally a student housing building which has been converted into 73 hotel rooms. The property is priced just right at $79 a night and we think it’s a great value. We show some pictures and talk about our impressions of this hotel.
Questions Answered
Today we answer a couple of really good questions from our social media friends. Had he wanted to know if hotels provide transportation from the airport here in the islands. Unfortunately except for a select few mostly five-star properties you have to get your own transportation to the hotels here in Hawaii. Darcy wanted to know if we suggest that people take a tour or drive themselves toeakala on Maui. I always recommend that people get the tour however he certainly can drive it yourself. The disadvantage and doing it yourself is that whoever is the driver doesn’t get to see as much as the people who are passengers. It’s really nice on a long drive like this leave the driving somebody else.
Since 2006 Bruce has been writing and producing Hawaii Vacation Connection Podcast and the Hawaii Vacation Blog and the which create daily content about Hawaii Travel and Tourism. His postings reflect the Hawaiian Islands, their culture and their lifestyle as accurately and thoroughly as possible. The tone is anecdotal, breezy, and devoid of any commercialism.
Written by Bruce Fisher
Christmas is right around the corner so we brought in Katherine Finch who blogs about shopping for us to talk about unique holiday gifts from Hawaii. Katherine is passionate about all things made in Hawaii and she shares with us some unique inexpensive gifts that you can get here while you’re on vacation to send back to loved ones on the mainland for Christmas or any other special occasion.
Holiday season begins
Woody!
Halloween In Hawaii
