Hawaii
Tropical Splendor: Exploring the Hawaiian Islands
Program No. 11513RJ
Learn the stories of Hawaii on this adventure of a lifetime as you experience four islands: the Big Island, Maui, Kauai and Oahu.
Enroll with Confidence
We want your Road Scholar learning adventure to be something to look forward to—not worry about. Learn more
Protecting the Environment
We offset a portion of the emissions created by your travel. Learn more
11 days
10 nights
27 meals
10B 8L 9D
1
Check-in, Registration, Welcome Dinner
Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii
2
Orientation, Class, Iolani Palace, Hula Lesson
Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii
3
Bishop Museum, Punchbowl, Free Time
Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii
4
Lecture, Pearl Harbor, Board Ship
Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii
5
Arrive Maui, Iao Valley, Overnight Maui
Kahului, Maui, Hawaii
6
Haleakala National Park
Kahului, Maui, Hawaii
7
Arrive Hilo, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Hilo, Big Island of Hawaii
8
Arrival Kona, Ethnobotanical Garden, Puuhonua o Honaunau NHP
Kona, Big Island of Hawaii
9
Arrive Nawiliwili, Free Time, Overnight in Kauai
Lihue, Kauai
10
Waimea Canyon, Kokee State Park
Lihue, Kauai
11
Arrive Honolulu, Disembark, Program Concludes
Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii
At a Glance
The Big Island was home to Kamehameha the Great, Maui is iconic for its lush island landscapes, Kauai is home to the awe-inspiring Waimea Canyon and Oahu is the place for history buffs. Learn the stories of Hawaii on this adventure of a lifetime aboard the Pride of America as you sail to each island, exploring its fascinating history and geology, while delving into its age and personality with local experts at your side.
Activity Level
On Your Feet
Walking up to 2 miles daily on varied terrain. Some stairs. Getting on and off bus. Elevation up to 10,000 feet.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Explore Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and learn about the island’s geothermal core with a local expert.
- Visit the only royal palace in the U.S. and former residence of the Hawaiian monarchy.
- See the cliffs of Waimea Canyon, the geologically spectacular "Grand Canyon of the Pacific."
General Notes
This voyage combines Road Scholar’s trademark education and camaraderie with access to Norwegian Cruise Line’s wide variety of activities and dining and entertainment options. While you’ll spend most of your time with the Road Scholar group, please consider that you’ll be on a large ocean liner with passengers of all ages when deciding if this program is right for you. The maximum group size will be 42 participants. Roommate matching is available in some lodging categories. Limited ADA rooms available.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Frank Lau
From serving in community development on the border of Mexico to developing an English curriculum for the Olympics at a 5-star hotel in Beijing, Frank’s life has fed his passion for the cross-cultural. Traveling has drawn him to fascinating locales across the globe, but his Hawaiian roots are perhaps strongest of all. His interest in Hawaiian culture and his desire to show his students an “insider’s” view of the Islands have made him a perfect match for Road Scholar’s Hawaii programs.
Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
Frank Lau
View biography
From serving in community development on the border of Mexico to developing an English curriculum for the Olympics at a 5-star hotel in Beijing, Frank’s life has fed his passion for the cross-cultural. Traveling has drawn him to fascinating locales across the globe, but his Hawaiian roots are perhaps strongest of all. His interest in Hawaiian culture and his desire to show his students an “insider’s” view of the Islands have made him a perfect match for Road Scholar’s Hawaii programs.
Suggested Reading List
(34 books)
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Tropical Splendor: Exploring the Hawaiian Islands
Program Number: 11513
At Dawn We Slept, The Untold Story of Pearl Harbor
A massive account of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, long but readable.
Mark Twain's Letters from Hawaii
These observant and often wildly hilarious letters from an 1866 trip display Twain's famous wit.
Paradise Remade, The Politics of Culture and History in Hawaii
By focusing on the experience of the indigenous people of Hawaii rather than on that of their colonizers, Buck considers the transformation of Hawaiian culture over the past 200 years.
Hawaii
A romantic, fictional overview of the islands' history, people and culture from prehistoric times to statehood in 1959.
Lost Kingdom
Royalty and rogues, sugar barons, politicians and missionaries all figure in Siler's riveting tale of Liliuokalani, the last queen of Hawaii.
Oahu Revealed
Candid, comprehensive and well illustrated, this up-to-date local guide covers the nature and culture of the island as well as adventures and activities.
Unfamiliar Fishes
Tracking the Americanization of Hawaii from the arrival of the first missionaries in 1820 to the annexation in 1898 (Queen Liliuokalani was in Washington lobbying to save her nation during the McKinley inauguration), Vowell shows the complex interplay of god, business and tradition with her usual acerbic wit (and research).
The Island Edge of America, A Political History of Hawaii
Journalist Tom Coffman brings Hawaii's story into the twentieth century through this reinterpretation of major events leading up to and following statehood in 1959.
Dismembering Lahui, A History of the Hawaiian Nation to 1887
Osorio charts the effects of Western law on the national identity of Native Hawaiians in this political history of the Kingdom of Hawaii from the onset of constitutional government in 1840 to the Bayonet Constitution of 1887.
Travelers' Tales Hawai'i True Stories
This terrific anthology includes contributions on the history, culture and nature of Hawaii by an impressive group of writers, including Paul Theroux, John McPhee and Maxine Hong Kingston.
Hawaiian Islands Map
A map of all the individual Hawaiian Islands, including maps of O'ahu, Kaua'i, Maui, Moloka'i and Lana'i at 1:150,000 and of Hawai'i at 1:330,000. Includes an inset map of Waikiki.
Feathered Gods and Fishhooks, An Introduction to Hawaiian Archaeology and Prehistory
In this definitive, well-illustrated introduction to Hawaiian archaeology, Kirch provides an island-by-island overview of major sites, settlement patterns, agriculture, and cultural customs.
Hotel Honolulu
This hilarious sendup of ex-pats and their ilk, drawing on Theroux's time in the islands, where he has a home, features a full cast of eccentrics who reside in and visit a fleabag hotel on the coast of Oahu.
Pearl Harbor Ghosts, The Legacy of December 7, 1941
A well-researched and evocative look at the bombing of Pearl Harbor by a veteran travel writer. Clarke compares and contrasts the social life and culture of Hawaii on the day of the bombing and sixty years later, enumerating the changes wrought by WWII.
The Descendants
The bittersweet tale of a storied Hawaiian family in crisis, adapted for the Alexander Payne movie starring George Clooney.
Hawaii, Travellers' Wildlife Guides
This all-around field guide features color illustrations of commonly encountered birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish with notes on Hawaii's geology and popular parks and reserves.
Beyond Paradise: Encounters in Hawaii Where the Tour Bus Never Runs
A clear-sighted account of rambles and adventures in Hawaii.
Born in Paradise
The autobiographical tale of childhood on a Maui ranch in the early part of this century. A classic account of old Hawaii, warm-spirited and evocative.
Aloha Betrayed
Silva draws on newspapers, books, letters and contemporary accounts in Hawaiian for this eye-opening account of popular resistance to the annexation of Hawaii by the United States.
Plague And Fire, Battling Black Death And the 1900 Burning of Honolulu's Chinatown
Mohr relates the gripping tale of the bubonic plague that reached Hawaii's shores just as the islands were about to become a U.S. territory through the eyes of the people caught up in the vast conflagration that engulfed Honolulu's Chinatown.
Captive Paradise, A History of Hawaii
A fascinating history of America’s youngest (and, arguably, most unique) state. Historian and biographer James Haley charts Hawaii’s epic journey from kingdom to statehood with authority.
Hawaii's Fishes, A Guide for Snorkelers, Divers, and Aquarists
A colorful and thorough introduction to the fishes living off Hawaii's shores. Color photographs of over 250 local species, with common names in English and Hawaiian.
A Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific
This landmark field guide with chapters on the islands and habitats features superb color plates by Pratt and a checklist of birds.
Hawaiian Mythology
A classic study of Hawaiian ethnography and folklore.
Eyewitness Guide Hawaii
An on-the-ground guide to the Hawaiian Islands -- handsome, comprehensive and superb.
Shoal of Time: A History of the Hawaiian Islands
A vivid, scholarly history of Hawaii, from Cook's first visit to the islands in 1778 through statehood. A classic, well-told history, first published in 1968.
Volcanoes, Fire From the Earth
By the great French volcanologist (who died on the job on Mount Unzen in Japan in 1992), this pocket guide features hundreds of full-color paintings and traces the study of volcanoes from early myth and legend to modern science.
Pearl Harbor and Military Environs
A detailed map of the US bases bombed at Pearl Harbor. The reverse features period postcard images depicting 1940s Pearl Harbor.
From a Native Daughter, Colonialism and Sovereignty in Hawaii
Trask, a descendant of the Pi'ilani line of Maui and the Kahakumakaliua line of Kauai, explores issues of racism and imperialism in Hawaii, documenting the work of native Hawaiian student organizations and the native Hawaiian self-governing organization Ka Lahuni Hawaii.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
This handy map, with trails and visitor information, includes the entire park area.
Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen
A poignant plea for sovereignty. Queen Liliuokalani, deposed by the United States in 1893, tells the story of her islands.
Hawaii Wildlife
A fold-up, laminated card featuring color drawings and short descriptions of commonly encountered birds, mammals and other critters of Hawaii.
Nation Within, The History of the American Occupation of Hawai'i
Coffman follows the rising tensions between the U.S. and the once-independent Hawaii through the late 19th century, documenting how the native population resisted annexation.
Hawaii, Islands Under the Influence
A history of economic development in the islands from sandalwood and whaling to sugar, tourism and Japanese investment in the 1980s.