Kauai
If you're looking for lush scenery, Kauai is a great choice. Kauai's central volcanic peak, Mt Waialeale, is allegedly the wettest place on earth, and the island is so richly green that it's nicknamed 'The Garden Island'. When the script calls for paradise, Hollywood comes to Kauai. Movie makers looking for lush scenery bordering on the fantastic came to Kauai to film parts of South Pacific, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park, King Kong and Six Days and Seven Nights.
The island is just 33 miles (53km) east to west, 25 miles (40km) north to south and shaped like a slightly compressed ball. Most of the island's interior is mountainous forest reserve, which offers great hiking; the southern and western coasts are dry, sunny and fringed with beautiful beaches.
Accommodations and restaurants can be found in the small towns of Lihue, Kapaa, Princeville and Poipu.
Places of interest include the 22-mile (35km) stretch of sharply fluted coastal cliffs along Na Pali Coast. This is the locale of Hawaii's most spectacular hiking trail, with sheer, green cliffs dropping into brilliant turquoise waters.
Waimea Canyon - predictably dubbed the 'Grand Canyon of the Pacific' - is smaller and a mere 200 million years younger than its Arizona cousin, but otherwise not at all dissimilar. The canyon's colorful river-cut gorge is 2785 ft (835m) deep and it seems incredible that such an immense canyon could be tucked away in such a small island.