I took my first trip to Hawaii July 2009. It was a 14 day escorted tour with Globus Tours. However it is not like a normal escorted tour with the group where you are always on the go. There were many days at leisure on each of the four islands we visited so there was time to explore on your own. There was plenty of beach, sand, and sunshine ! One of the main differences I noticed on this tour in Hawaii versus the European tours I have taken is that every day we have a different motorcoach. I guess it makes total sense that the motorcoach is not going to travel to each island with the group. However because of this we are required to tip the bus driver every day whereas other tours would tip at the very end of the trip. Hawaii is everything I dreamed it would be. Beautiful and laid back atmosphere. The first island we went to is Oahu and stayed at the Sheraton hotel in Honolulu. Honolulu is my city ! It was bustling and busy compared to the other islands. The tour group took us to some of the touristy sites but I enjoyed relaxing on the beach even more. All of our hotels were at the Sheraton and very nice. I had the ocean view rooms and was blown away at the breath-taking view! After Honolulu we headed over to Kona. I stayed there for a couple of nights and it turned out there was a hurricane headed my way! Luckily it shifted so all we got was the rain. However all of the helicopter rides were canceled. I enjoyed going to Kona however I do not think I would need to revisit that particular island. Next was Kauai which I found to be very beautiful and green ! Yes it does rain a lot here and that is why there is beautiful vegetation and water falls. Here I took a helicopter ride over the entire island. It was fantastic ! Due to all of the extra rainfall from the missed hurricane, there were even more splendid waterfalls. Our last destination was Maui. I had opted for the extension so I also had couple of extra nights. I took advantage of the deep sea fishing, beaches, hiking, Road to Hana, you name it I tried it. I had a wonderful tour director who was funny and informative at the same time. He took great care of his tour group and attended efficiently to any needs. I would recommend this tour for everyone!

Kim

http://www.GoForLessTours.com