The Spread:

Find the best rate at the: Four Seasons Hualalai here.

On the north Kona-Kohala coast, the upscale Four Seasons Resort Hualalai mixes Hawaiian and Oriental touches to create one seriously welcoming property. All of the 243 rooms, including 31 suites, are located in two-story buildings set in four crescents facing the sea. With five swimming pools, including a 25-meter lap pool and a sand-bottomed children’s pool, you won’t feel crowded. The resort features a golf course as well as the Hualalai Sports Club & Spa, where you can scale the 24-foot-high climbing wall before relaxing with a massage in an open-air hut.

Why Families Love It:
The Ka’upulehu Cultural Center sets this resort apart from Hawaii’s other upscale properties. Located in an impressive room dominated by paintings from native artist Herb Kawainui Kane, the center organizes mostly complimentary Hawaiian cultural activities. Learn to play the ukulele, dance a traditional hula, understand Hawaiian place names and words, and see the stars as the ancient Hawaiian navigators did.

On the property, you can snorkel in King’s Pond, a pool carved out of natural lava rock stocked with over 3,500 tropical fish. Kids new to the sport will appreciate learning in a controlled area free of currents. At the complimentary Kids For All Seasons program, ages five to 12 swim, sand sculpt, snorkel, go on treasure hunts and canoe rides, explore tidepools, and make kites and Hawaiian crafts. The year-round program meets daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in a well-equipped, air-conditioned children’s center that has a shaded outdoor playground with swings and climbing equipment. Teens hang out at the Hale Kula center (open 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily), complete with a giant TV, computer games, and foosball.

Kids six months to eight years old receive a special welcome—milk and cookies, a plush toy, and their name spelled out in alphabet sponges in their room’s tub. Ask for the kid-sized terry robes.

Special Events & Activities:
The resort offers such quintessentially Hawaiian activities as two-man canoe paddling, surf lessons, and an Ironman ocean swim.