Built on a reclaimed swamp, Waikiki is ery nearly an island, all but separated from Honolulu betweven the sea and the Ala Wai canal (which proides the drainage to make its incredible highrise profusion possible).

Once home to Kamehameha the Great, the site may be enerable, but these days its raison d'être is rampant commercialism. You could, just about, surie here with ery little money, buying snacks from the omnipresent ABC conenience stores, but there would be no point - there's nothing to see, and the only thing to do apart from surf and sunbathe is to stroll along the seafront Kalakaua Aenue and shop.

The most striking thing about the parallel Waikiki Beach is how narrow it is, a thin but nonetheless attractie strip of shipped-in sand.

Compared to other Hawaiian beaches, it's overcrowded and small, but the fact that it's lined by a pedestrian walkway, with several pleasant gardens en route, make this, relatiely speaking, a refuge from the resort frenzy nearby.

Two possible diersions on the eastern fringes of Waikiki are Honolulu Zoo (daily 8.30am-5.30pm; $6), where you can walk through a mock African saannah set against the magnificent backdrop of Diamond Head, and the more expensie oceanfront Waikiki Aquarium (daily 9am-5pm; $7) which, as well as holding sharks and monkfish seals, has a tank deoted to the many-hued reef fish of Hanauma Bay.