Hawaii Vacation Deals & News: March 23, 2011

* Maui’s Fairmont Kea Lani has spiffed up their guestrooms with new furniture, luxury linens, and HD televisions. Their family-friendly villas have also been upgraded with a new gourmet kitchen designs. There’s a fifth night free promotion at this resort that’s valid through June.

* Waikiki’s Aqua Surf & Spa is offering a great deal with a free double upgrade deluxe room for $75 per night. The deal includes free daily continental breakfast for two.

* In October, American Safari Cruises will offer an unstructured inter-island yacht cruise of Maui, Lanai, Molokai and Hawaii’s Big Island. See this link for more details.

* Seven Hawaii hotels have been recognized for being “green” with their energy and water conservation, recycling programs, and pollution prevention per Pacific Business Journal. Congratulations to Hyatt Regency Waikiki, JW Marriott Ihilani at Ko Olina (see my JW Marriott Ihilani review), Kahala Hotel & Resort, Kilauea Lakeside Estate, Ritz-Carlton Kapalua, Turtle Bay Resort (see my Turtle Bay Resort review) and Wyndham at Waikiki Beach Walk for their Hawaii Green Business Awards.

* In June, Continental Airlines will offer two new direct flights to the Big Island’s Hilo (ITO) airport from Los Angeles and San Francisco. For an ideal Big Island vacation, I recommend flying into Hilo, staying in the Volcano area for two or three nights, then moving on to the Kohala Coast for several days and returning home from the Kona airport. You can read more about my Big Island vacation advice from my article Hawaii’s Big Island – Where to Stay

* In some sad news, Kona Village Resort has closed indefinitely due to the March 11th tsunami damage. The nearby Four Seasons Hualalai is due to reopen April 30th, which is a bit later than originally expected. See Post-Tsunami Information from Hawaii’s Big Island.