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The sweet smells of jasmin and hibiscus... the charm of the bronzed hula dancers whose absolute grace brings to life the chantsof the very first Hawaiians, a strange and moving sound of the wind instruments that ring out as the sun goes down over Honolulu...
Aloha ! The enormous waves of the North Shiore crash onto the pristine sands of Waikiki; every day, the bronze statue of the "Duke" - the king of surf- is adorned with "pikaki" and "plumeria" necklaces by the surfing lovers who flock here.

KO’OLINA GOLF CLUB hole n°18

Hawaii is the "Paradise Island" of surfers, the Promised Land of sun worshippers. But it is also a golfer's paradise, with a climate to die for : sunshine 365 days a year, super-low humidity, an ideal year-round temperature that the "trade winds" maintain at a cool 22 to 28°C under crystal-clear skies.

Just a few minutes outside of Honolulu (a major metropolis of one million), where a variety of luxury hotels and shops, theaters, restaurants and other attractions abound, are some of Hawaii's most beautiful golf courses, including Ko'olina Golf Club, Waialae Country Club and the Sheraton Makaha Resort and Country Club. Some clubs -like the Waialae Country Club- are private, and you must be staying at the Mandarin, ex- Kahala Hilton or Sheraton Waikiki to play there. Inquiries should be made with the concierge. The other selected clubs are open to the public, but it is advisable to reserve well in advance. The purity, diversity and beauty of the landscape make the courses magnificently enchanting. Luxurious tropical
vistas set against the backdrop of breathtaking mountains towering over deep blue expanses of sea, palm trees encircling pristine putting greens often set directly into volcanic caves, which are the final destination of the famous monster waves of the mighty Pacific. Every perfect detail is maintained to impeccable standards, with a friendly, competent and quality service standing by at all times.

KO'OLINA GOLF CLUB *****
Opened in January 1990. Designed by Ted Robinson, this is both a Championship Course and a model of creative architectural landscaping, with its exceptional water obstacles along the course : spectacular waterfalls, interconnecting lakes... Every year, Ko'olina hosts the Ladies Hawaiian Open for the LPGA tournament.

HOLE n° 2
This 360-m Par-4 probably has the most difficult tee-off shot. It as a narrow fairway, with a drive drop-off protected by rough the right and a large sand-trap to the left. The high green is barriered by palm trees.

HOLE n° 18
This 390-meter Par-4 is by far the course's most difficult hole. On the right, seven ponds flow into each other, there's a lake on the left, and a stretch of rough on the far right ? A slightly raised green is protected from in front by a lake and three sand traps in back.

HOLE n° 6
This Par-3 is architect Robinson's masterpiece, with an enormous waterfall to the left, a narrow green protected on the far side by three sand-traps, and a slanted foregreen that sends your short shots straight into the water. And since you have to shoot over a lake, with no other landing spot available, getting straight onto the green is an absolute necessity. Ko'olina, which means "full of joy" in Hawaiian, certainly merits its name : it is a course of pure pleasure.

WAIALAE COUNTRY CLUB*****
Waialae is Hawai's best-known course. Designed in 1926 by New York architect Seth Raynor, it is famed, among other things, for certain of its fairways being exact replicas of some of Europe's most famous courses. For example, Hole Number 8 is a copy of North Berwick's "Redan Hole" (Scotland). Saint Andrew's Hole Number 17 -the famous "Road Hole"- was used as a model for the design of Hole Number 10... Located next to the Mandarin Hotel, every year the famed PGA SONY Tournament is played here. "Golf Digest Magazine" has ranked the course as one of the five most beautiful in Hawaii. Corey Pavin and Lanny Wadkins -both of whom have championships here- have deemed it their favorite course of the Tournament. Waialae Country Club is a very private club indeed, with some of the most illustrious inhabitants of the islands and the USA among its members : Gérald Ford, Bob Hope, Robert Wagner, Shirley Mc Laine, etc. Hollywood even came all the way to Waialae to film the 1950s cinema classic "Of mice and men". The course's most difficult holes : numbers 5, 4, 9 and 16. Each of these is about a 500 meter course, very long due to the trade winds constantly blowing over the fairways. Another of the major obstacles at Waialae is the very thick rough (Bermuda grass). If you are lucky enough to have a chance to play this fantastic course, go for it !

SHERATON MAKAHA RESORT
AND COUNTRY CLUB****
Merging with the ocean, this 18-hole course is located 30 minutes by car from Honolulu, and just a few hundred meters from the famous Makaha Beach, worldrenown for its surfing championships. With its abundance of coconut and palm trees, the Sheraton Makaha golf course offers the splendors of the Makaha Valley : a spectacular course that winds its way with the ocean beyond and the mountains above. Makaha is a long, 6,400-meter, Par 72 course, possibly the most difficult of all the islands' courses, according to the USGA ranking. All of the holes offer a particularity difficult challenge. Hole Number 14 a Par 5 has a constant wind factor ; the Par 3 Hole Number 9 is protected by five sand traps; and especially hole Number 5, with its wavy green, dogleg-right blind drive over a creek. Always played against the wind, each shot requires exceptional technique and precision to stay at par.