UNIQUE ECOTOURISM EXPERIENCE ON KAUAI

101 Things To Do and Stroll Kauai's prized Botanical Gardens

HONOLULU (May 6, 2010) – Looking for a valuable resource to visit prior to your trip to Kauai and the Hawaiian Islands? 101 Things To Do is a collection of online magazines about Hawaii activities, attractions and travel-planning.

101 Things To Do features in-depth guides in each Hawaiian island. Kauai, the fourth largest and oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands, is best known for its stunning natural environment. There are no high-rise buildings, no four-lane highways, no sprawling urban centers, no enormous shopping malls, there are not bright lights – nothing to detract from its lush, untamed landscapes.

The island's 63,000 full-time residents live in 18 small communities that are divided by greenbelts that extend for miles along the coastal highway that nearly circles the island. Its rugged interior and the spectacular cliffs of the Na Pali Coast remain wild and uninhabited.

Kauai's mountaintop bogs and rain forests, deep canyons, tangled valleys, coral reefs and golden-sand beaches have been in the making since the island emerged five million years ago from a volcanic "hot spot" in the depths of the ocean.

One unique ecotourism experience on Kauai is to stroll its prized Botanical Gardens. That any living thing; seed, insect, plant, animal or human—found its way to Kauai and survived is a mystery known only to the gods of nature. Five million years ago when it emerged from the ocean, the island was little more than a pile of lifeless lava rock separated from any other landmass by more than 2,000 miles.
 
Many of its native Hawaiian species are now endangered. The National Tropical Botanical Garden operates three botanical gardens on Kauai, all dedicated to the conservation of tropical plant diversity, particularly rare and endangered species. Here are details from 101 Things To Do:
 
• NTBG's new Botanical Research Center in Lawai is Kauai's first "green" building. It includes "green" features like a roof designed to capture rainwater for on-site use, mechanical and electrical systems that will provide multiple back-ups for short- and long-term operation during any emergency, and a reinforced concrete design built to withstand Category 5 hurricane winds. 

• Limahuli Garden is laid out in a north shore valley and protected on three sides by craggy, mossy-green mountains. It overlooks the ocean. It is on Kuhio Highway just before Ke'e Beach. Here rare native species are being nurtured in a 17-acre, national award-winning garden. Self-guided tours are available Tuesday through Saturday. The ¾-mile loop walk will take about 1-1/2 hours to complete.
Admission is $15 for adults, children 12 and under free. Hours are 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

•  McBryde and Allerton Gardens, on the south shore, offer tours departing from the NTBG Visitors Center on Lawai Beach Road across from Spouting Horn. A tour of Allerton Garden takes visitors to a once-private estate in a beautiful valley by the ocean. Guided tours are available Monday-Saturday. Admission for adults is $40. Children are $20. Children under 10 are not admitted. Only self-guided tours are available at McBryde Garden. The charge is $20 for adults, children are $10 and under five years are free.

In addition, here are ten other things to do on Kauai that will be hard to resist.
Watch the sun sink into the ocean and the stars come out at Hanalei Pier
Perch on the rim of Waimea Canyon at sunrise
Sway in a hammock under an ironwood tree at  the Aston Waimea Plantation cottages
Bask under a full moon in the glow of the Princeville Hotel at Hideaways Beach
Take a fast boat tour along the dramatic Na Pali coast
Share fine wine while enjoying the stunning view from The Beach House in Po'ipu
Paddle a kayak up the Wailua River
Hike to Hanakapiai Falls
Zipline in the moonlight over a Norfolk pine forest
Ride a horse through the back country from Silver Falls Ranch
For more information about island shopping, motorcycle rentals, timeshares and much more in Kauai, please visit www.101thingstodo.com.

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About 101 Things To Do
 
Featuring 101 things to do on each island, the success of 101 Things To Do is credited to the combination of an appealing title and the value of the editorial content. 101 Things To Do is unique, and whether visitors are first time or repeat visitors, 101 Things To Do serves as a valuable resource in navigating the islands and planning a memorable visit. The broad scope of the magazine caters to the post-arrival visitor and offers an effective medium for businesses who want to reach this targeted audience through active distribution.
 
Magazine circulation - 1.54 million magazines are printed annually and distributed to more than 750 locations across Oahu, Kauai, Maui and the Big Island of Hawaii. They are available at every island airport and hundreds of locations on each island including, car rental locations, hotels, retail stores, restaurants, military bases and heliports.