HONOLULU, HAWAII

Honolulu is the capital and largest city of Hawaii, on the southeast coast of the island of Oahu. The city is legally coextensive with the county of Honolulu, which includes the entire island of Oahu and most of the Northwest Hawaiian Islands, from Nihoa to Kure Atoll, except Midway. The population of Oahu makes up 73% of the state's total population. It is situated in the central Pacific Ocean 2,397 mi west-southwest of San Francisco. Honolulu's name derives from the native words hono, meaning “a bay,” and lulu, meaning “sheltered.”

More Asian than American, Honolulu is a delightful blend of ethnicities, a cacophonous mixture of language, custom and cuisine served with generous helpings of Hawaiian hospitality. Among its many museums and cultural offerings, it has the only royal palace in the USA, and has become a foodie heaven of cheap noodle joints and fancy Pacific Rim cuisine. Then, when city life is all too much, you can saunter over to gorgeous Waikiki to lounge on the sand, play in the water and listen to splendid Hawaiian music in the evening.