One the best things about working for a travel company is being able to hear everyone’s stories of where they have been. I personally have never been to Hawaii, but I am fascinated by and wanted to get some tips of things to do when I do get to go. Here’s what I found:

Oahu

• Climb to the top of Diamond Head, the view is definitely worth the hike.
• Take a surfing lesson. Can you think of a better place to get a surfing lesson than on Waikiki Beach?!
• Pearl Harbor is a must.
• Visit the Dole Plantation–they have train rides, mazes, crafts, koi fish feeding and of course delicious pineapple…fun for the whole family.
• Check out the Waimea Falls in the beautiful tropical garden in Oahu.
• Honolulu Zoo has a “Snooze in the Zoo” allowing guests to stay overnight and enjoy storytelling, campfire songs and walking tours.   You can either set up tents or sleep under the stars.  If you don’t want to spend the night, take the “Twilight Tour” which offers a behind-the-scenes look at the lives of animals after the sun goes down.
• See the famous Shangri La built in the 1930s on the Pacific Ocean over looking Diamond Head.  This home has a very extensive collection of Islamic Art and is considered one of Hawaii’s most architecturally significant homes.

Maui

• Everyone should do the “Road to Hana” in Maui.  And if you decide to do it, rent or buy the tour guide CD because it tells you the cool spots to stop (waterfalls, pools, bamboo forests, black sand beaches, etc.) and it gives great history and information on the island.
• If you’re going to watch the sunrise atop Mt. Haleakala on Maui remember it will get cold so bring a hat and jacket.  Also, you’ll need to get up very early, so go at the beginning of your vacation when you’re still adjusting to the time change.
• You are in Hawaii so a luau is a must. Lahaina on Maui has some great ones.
• Honolulu has a great Academy of Arts with over 50,000 pieces of art to enjoy.

Kauai

• Take a helicopter tour of Kauai.  It’s an amazing way to see the island and feel like you are in Jurassic Park…minus the T-rex of course!
• Cruise along the Na Pali Coast and drive the Waimea Canyon.
• Go to the Kilauea Lighthouse and look for whales.
• Visit Poipu Beach and see the monk seals sleeping.
• Go to Puka Dog for the best hot dog you’ll ever eat.
• Plan day trips and wear your bathing suit–all beaches are open to the public so it’s nice to end an adventure with a few beach stops on the way home. (You usually can’t drive more than 10 miles without hitting a “large” beach with parking and bathroom facilities).
• Rent snorkel gear for the week. If you snorkel 3 days it will usually pay for itself.  Avoid getting it at your hotel and rent it from surf shops at the beach ($30/week compared to $21/week).

Big Island

• Take a day trip up a volcano at the Volcanoes National Park.  You can witness lava flowing from the active volcanoes.

What are some of your must-do’s in Hawaii?

As many people know, Delta Vacations has opened and is opening a lot of new destinations this year, in addition to expanding product in current destinations! In order to launch the many new and exciting destinations, the Delta Vacations product department has been experiencing an extra busy travel schedule. Site inspections have been taking team members to such places as Latin America, the Bahamas, the US Virgin Islands, and countless other destinations where Delta Air Lines have service. With all the business travel going on in the product department, and in the company in general, it’s important to try to make the same conservation efforts on the road as we would at home. Any traveler should always remember that just because they’re out of town, the need to decrease our impact on the environment does not go away.

Here are a few helpful tips to keep in mind while traveling. As you pack for your next trip, close the door to your next hotel room, and hail that next taxi, hopefully these ideas will come to mind…

Bring a re-usable water bottle in your carry on and fill it after security.

Many airports don’t have recycling bins available at every turn, so tons of plastic, metal and glass end up in the trash.

When packing toiletries, always use and refill small bottles.

Even if you purchase a smaller version of your favorite brand of shampoo, remember to refill it from your home supply rather than buying another one when it runs out.

Use your towels for the duration of your hotel stay

If you don’t change your towels on a daily basis at home, there’s no need to do so while traveling. Hotels worldwide go through tons of gallons of water every day washing linens. If you use the same towels for the duration of your stay, you help cut back on water use.

Turn the lights off in the hotel room

Just as re-using towels conserves water, remembering to turn the lights off when leaving the room saves energy as well.

Use public transportation when possible…better yet, ride a bike

When in a new city, one of the best ways to get around is to do as the locals do. Take the bus or take the train. For the added bonus of burning a few calories as you get around, find somewhere to rent a bike and start peddling.

Challenge yourself to try even a couple of these easy tricks, and pat yourself on the back for making the effort to take your everyday green habits on the road!

Do you have tips to share on what have you done on vacation to lessen your impact on the local environment? Tweet them @deltablog or post your comments here.

Lauren C., Delta Vacations

I love getting away and taking a vacation and I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one, but sometimes I can’t afford a week long trip somewhere, so I try to take little weekend getaways here and there.  Living in Minnesota it’s a MUST to get out of the winter and try to go somewhere warm!  Below are some of my favorite weekend getaway spots.

New Orleans

I have a spot in my heart for New Orleans because I spent a full week down there after Hurricane Katrina to help gut and rebuild the communities.  I met some amazing people and the hospitality of the people was great.  Ever since then I try to get to New Orleans as much as I can to help support the city and try to bring it back to it’s glory days.  I recently went down there and left Friday night and came back Sunday night.  It was so much fun!  We stayed right in the French Quarter at the Omni Royal Orleans where we could walk to everything.  If you’ve never been to the French Quarter it is amazing, so much to do and so much history!  Bourbon street is the famous area but there is so much more to see than just Bourbon street.  Most of the restaurants have live jazz or blues music playing at night, it’s fun just to walk and listen to the music and get engulfed in the New Orleans energy.  My wife and I were very surprised at the quality of shopping and spent a whole day walking and shopping.  We also hit up the Harrah’s casino and went on a Haunted Ghost Tour at night.  New Orleans is supposedly one of the most haunted cities and it turns out Nicholas Cages’s home in New Orleans is supposedly haunted!  The food down there is to die for (no pun intended after talking about the ghost tour) the spot you have to stop at is Café DuMonde to get some famous beignets.  But don’t inhale because you’ll choke from all the powdered sugar.  The architecture is beautiful and to hear the history on the buildings and how old they are is very interesting.  Jackson square has great buildings and if you walk around there you’ll see lots of street performers and at night you will see all the Tarot card readers and psychics.  This might be my favorite weekend getaway!

Las Vegas

Vegas is another fun place to go for the weekend.  Obviously the gambling is a big draw but there is so much to do there besides gamble.  There are world-class shows to see, award-winning restaurants from world-renowned chefs, and of course people watching.  Might be one of the best places just to sit back and watch hustle and bustle.  There are a lot of free shows you can watch like the fountains at the Bellagio or the pirate show at Treasure Island.   Right now you can get great deals on a 3-night getaway.  There is just so much to do in Vegas that even though a weekend is a short period of time you are awake until 3am each night so it seems like you are there for days!  I can’t wait to get back and check out more shows now that I know the places to go.  If you have never been and you are going for a weekend, I would recommend finding someone that help give you tips on where to go, eat and what to see.    My one tip is to wear comfortable shoes and I mean very comfortable.  You will do a lot of walking and the Strip is bigger than you think!  Even if a building looks close it doesn’t mean it is…my wife thought she wore comfy shoes but ended up with what we call “Vegas Feet”, sore, blistery and black from walking barefoot! You can follow me on Twitter or find me on Facebook or comment on this post if you have questions on Vegas.

New York

Even though New York isn’t always warm, I love to go there in the summer.  Just like Vegas there is a lot to do at all hours of the day.  I’ve been to New York a couple times and I’m heading back this May to go play golf at Bethpage Black and try to get to the new Yankee Stadium.  Can’t wait to do both!   What I love about NYC is that there are two different New Yorks.  You can go and do the touristy activities, which I highly recommend doing, like going to the MET, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Times Square, Central Park, etc… Then there is the local side of New York.  I have a cousin and some friends who live in New York so it is fun to go visit them and go to the local spots for pizza or bagels, they are usually the best spots.  Plus, you have a good chance and bumping into a celebrity at one of these local spots!  You can’t go to New York and not walk around 5^th Ave and all the shopping…yes, I’m a guy and I’ve mentioned shopping twice now in this blog…must be good shopping areas!

Those are just a few of my favorite weekend getaways and some others that are on my list for this year are Boston (got to go to Fenway and the Cheers bar), Seattle, and Austin (I hear it has a great music scene).

Where are your favorite weekend getaways? Post here or tweet us. We’ll share in a future blog post.

Sean C., Delta Vacations