MARCH S SIZZLIN NEWS FROM HAWAI I, THE BIG ISLAND

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Big Island Visitors Bureau Media Contact: Beverly Clemente, McNeil Wilson Communications (808) 539-3420, Beverly.Clemente@AnthologyGroup.

1 Big Island Visitors Bureau Media Contact: Beverly Clemente, McNeil Wilson Communications (808) , MARCH S SIZZLIN NEWS FROM HAWAI I, THE BIG ISLAND Hawai i Island (March 1, 2012) Looking for the gold at the end of the rainbow? Hawai i, the Big Island continues to boast pots full of new activities and specials. Read on and see why you re in luck this month! ADVENTURES, ACTIVITIES & EVENTS A brand new tour has started at the Hawaii Ocean Science and Technology Park at the Natural Energy Lab of Hawaii (NELHA) on the Kona coast. The tour begins with a short presentation of how warm surface seawater and cold, deep ocean water are used to do everything from making electricity and growing wine grapes to cultivating the tender ezo abalone. The tour continues to a working Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Plant, then to the Kampachi Farms where guests will see Kampachi (Amber Jack) and other fish including gigantic grouper with mouths larger than a watermelon! The tour culminates at the Big Island Abalone farm where farmers show how four million cold water abalone are hatched, cultivated, graded and shipped. A tasting of both smoked Kampachi and grilled abalone are served during the farm tours. This tour is offered for a limited time beginning March 9 at 10:00 a.m. and each Friday thereafter. For more information or to make a reservation, call (808) or guy@energyfuturehawaii.org. Alaska Airlines is expanding its schedule to daily, nonstop service from Oakland and San Jose, California, to Kona on Hawai i Island, starting March 12, The airline has previously served the markets with three flights a week between Oakland and Kona and four flights a week from San Jose to Kona. Alaska Airlines also operates a daily flight from Seattle, Washington, and seasonal service from Portland, Oregon, into Kona. For more information on Alaska Airlines, visit Visit Dolphin Quest Hawaii and wish Hua a Happy Birthday on March 23! Hua was born on Easter in 2008 and his name means egg in Hawaiian. While visiting Hua sign up to meet his dolphin friends in one of the encounter programs. Dolphin Quest offers kama äina and military rates with ID, so reserve your spot today. Dolphin Quest Hawaii is located at the Hilton Waikoloa Village. Visit or call (808) ext for more information.

2 Imiloa Astronomy Center has translated its signature planetarium show, Maunakea, Between Earth and Sky into Chinese, and will be offering it to Chinese tour groups for special presentations. To arrange this plus a translator/guide for your tour group please contact Jeff Harman, Sales and Marketing Manager at jharman@imiloahawaii.org. For additional information about Maunakea, Between Earth and Sky, visit ACCOMMODATIONS Mauna Lani Point offers the only oceanfront villa vacation rentals within the worldfamous Mauna Lani Resort. Now you can choose the exact villa that fits your vacation style. Visit to view candid photos, make side-by-side comparisons of the various interior furnishings and views, and reserve your favorite. These spacious villas deliver four times more space than hotel rooms and are perfect for renewal and play with family and friends. Book four nights and enjoy your fifth night free! Enjoy a relaxing vacation with Hawaii Vacation Rentals this summer! Come and stay at one of its properties in May or June and receive one night free for a seven-night visit! For more information on this special, call (808) or visit Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa has partnered with Kona Country Club, Makalei Golf Club and Big Island Country Club to offer golfers the opportunity to experience three of the island s most unique courses. The new Kona Golf Trail Package begins at just $259 per night for two golfers in a partial ocean view room. The package requires a minimum three-night stay so that each of the three courses can be experienced. The Kona Golf Trail package is a golfer s value-added dream vacation. For more information, visit and or request the rate plan KNAGLF when calling (866) Tee off with Royal Kona Resort s Royal Tee Kona Golf Trail package valid for travel between March 1 and December 21, 2012, inclusive. This five-night minimum stay package includes beautiful oceanfront room accommodations, full American buffet breakfast for two daily at Don the Beachcomber Restaurant, and six rounds of golf per stay that include two rounds each at the Makalei Golf Club, Kona Country Club, and Big Island Country Club. Five-night packages start at $1,065 per stay for two people. Blackout dates and restrictions may apply. Call (800) 22-ALOHA ( ) or visit

3 Enjoy the volcano setting up close with a stay at Kilauea Military Camp! Located right in Hawai i Volcanoes National Park, Kilauea Military Camp (KMC) features 90 guest units, dining, tours, recreation and more for the military, their family, and sponsored guests. For new bookings, ask about the Aloha Special and receive 25% off rooms for stays through May 31, 2012, subject to availability. Please call (808) or visit for eligibility and details. Courtyard King Kamehameha s Kona Beach Hotel offers visitors wonderful ocean views during the day and cozy outdoor fire pits in the evening while dining at the brand new Honu s on the Beach Restaurant. Special online offers include receiving a $50 resort credit for a minimum three-night stay. Visitors can experience all the newly completed hotel renovations, stroll through an exclusive Herb Kane art exhibit, and spend a special evening at Honu s on the Beach Restaurant. Visit and select your hotel dates to view available offers during your visit. TASTY TIDBITS Hualälai Resort and Four Seasons Resort Hualälai will be home to LudoBites Hawai i Nine-0. The wildly popular touring restaurant ventures across the Pacific, being held for the first time outside of Los Angeles as an extended venue. LudoBites will pop-up in the Hualälai Grille from March 6-17, 2012, with Chef Ludo Lefebvre and his wife Krissy presenting an eclectic menu of creative small plates and specialty cocktails, full of inventive surprises and an abundance of culinary artistry. For more information and room reservations, please call toll-free (888) or visit For dinner only reservations, please call (808) In March, Mauna Kea Beach Hotel will be featuring two special wine dinners as part of its series throughout the year. Executive Chef George Gomes, Jr. prepares dishes to be paired with wines selected from the hotel s sommelier and winery. On March 16, a special dinner features the Jordan Vineyard & Winery located in the hills of Alexander Valley in Sonoma County one of the world s finest winegrowing regions. On March 30, the dinner will be with Miner Family Vineyards, a family owned winery located in the eastern hills of the Oakville appellation, squarely in the heart of Napa Valley. For reservations and more information, contact the resort at (808) or visit Executive Sous Chef Jayson Kanekoa engages culinary enthusiasts on an exclusive Chef Shuttle excursion at Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort & Spa. On the first Saturday of every month, guests will be escorted to the Waimea farmers market to meet local agriculturists and shop for fresh produce, meat or seafood, which will be prepared in a farm-to-table dinner later that evening. Starting at $349 per room night,

4 the Chef Shuttle Package includes the weekend (Friday to Sunday) two-night stay, Chef Shuttle and dinner for two. Based on availability, restrictions may apply. Visit or call (808) with code D60. KUDOS/ACCOLADES Alton Brown of the Food Network s Good Eats recently visited Bob and Pam Cooper of the Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory (OHCF) to see how chocolate is grown and made in the United States. Footage filmed during Brown s Keauhou-Kona visit appeared in an hour-long chocolate special that aired February Titled Turn on the Dark, the show chronicled how cacao grows, the labor-intensive milling of the crop and OHCF s precise, small-batch creation of dark, milk and rare criollo chocolate. Experience OHCF live during exclusive, hour-long tours every Wednesday and Friday mornings. Original Hawaiian Chocolate is sold online at and at over 60 statewide retailers. Call (808) or toll-free (888) for more information. MEETINGS & CONVENTION NEWS Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort & Spa entices groups to Get Closer to Paradise where meeting planners can receive up to 500,000 Marriott Rewards points plus free roundtrip airline tickets. The offer is valid for new requests for new meetings booked by May 1, 2012 and actualized by December 20, Two roundtrip airline tickets and 500,000 Marriott Rewards points for booking 1,000+ room nights Two roundtrip airline tickets and 250,000 Marriott Rewards points for booking 701-1,000 room nights Two roundtrip airline tickets and 150,000 Marriott Rewards points for booking room nights One roundtrip airline ticket and 100,000 Marriott Rewards points for booking room nights Terms and conditions apply. Call (808) or visit for more information. TRAVEL AGENT NEWS Travel agents booking the oceanfront Keauhou Beach Resort in Kona can now earn a $25 Booking Bonus with each fourth consecutive night booking. Valid for new bookings made now through December 21, 2012, the Keauhou Beach Resort s booking

5 bonus is the hotel s way of saying mahalo for the great work travel agents do on behalf of their clients. Once a private retreat for Hawaiian royalty, today the Keauhou Beach Resort is a place of relaxation, reflection and renewal. In addition to a good dose of island hospitality, all guests enjoy free amenities that include a daily buffet breakfast, cultural activities and Internet access! Travel agents who want more information on the resort s booking bonus program can contact their preferred wholesaler, call (866) or log on to ### Special note to media: The Big Island Visitors Bureau (BIVB) recognizes the use of the okina [ ] or glottal stop, one of the eight consonants of the modern Hawaiian language; and the kahakō [ā] or macron (e.g., in place names of Hawai i such as Kīlauea). However, BIVB respects the individual use of these markings for names of organizations and businesses. For more information on Hawai i Island, please visit

advantage of these new activities and great offers for an autumn to remember.

advantage of these new activities and great offers for an autumn to remember. Big Island Visitors Bureau Media Contact: Kelley Cho, McNeil Wilson Communications (808) 539-3474, Kelley.Cho@AnthologyGroup.com SEPTEMBER S SIZZLIN NEWS FROM HAWAI I, THE BIG ISLAND Hawai i Island (September