Where to Stay in Hawaii: The Fairmont Orchid

Hawaii at Dark: The Fairmont Orchid Under the Stars

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I usually don’t blog about a destination when I’m actually still in the place, both for security reasons and also because it takes me awhile to process everything—photos, videos, experiences—once I return from a trip. But I’m having such a great time in , I’d thought I’d go ahead and share a few snapshots from our trip so far. (Hello, creepy Internet stalkers! Come find me on the Big Island!)

All these pictures are courtesy of SVV, who has been toying around with long exposures and doing a pretty darn good job of it, despite the fact that we brought along a cheap, rickety tripod. (Yes, blame any discrepancies on the $30 tripod, won’t you?)

I love how exposing a shot for 30 seconds gives such detail to the clouds and stars, even when there seems to be not a trace of light out. And the fact that zero post-processing needs to be done to enhance the colors.

Our first few nights were spent at the glorious Fairmont Orchid on the Kohala Coast of the Big Island, and holy cow if that place isn’t photogenic during the day, but particularly at night once all lit up.

I love a resort with 540 rooms that can still make you feel like you’re the only people there. Case in point: The resort was at 103 percent occupancy over the weekend, and most of our pictures are still devoid of other guests! Love that.

Well, other than the private party we snuck into briefly—for photographic purposes, of course.

My biggest regret is that we were run a bit ragged—an occupational hazard of having a career where travel is your job—and didn’t have time to fully soak up the property and all it has to offer. (More to come next week on what we actually did during daylight hours at the resort.)

And while I know I say this about a lot of places, I can say with 1,000 percent certainty that the Fairmont Orchid is someplace to which we will return—the sooner, the better.

COMMENTS
  • April 15, 2011

    the one with the cloud detail and the one of the party set up are my two favorites.
    I very much agree about writing after one has been in a place rather than while on the spot, for all the reasons you mention. thanks for saying so.

  • April 15, 2011

    You can tell SVV that the long exposure looks great! Especially photo #3 of the night sky over the hillside and palm trees.

  • April 15, 2011

    Gorgeous and envy-inducing, as normal. I also love SVV’s long exposures!

  • April 15, 2011

    After reading about all the insane places you’ve visited that I’ve never even heard of, it’s a little odd to read about some places as cliche as Hawaii. But I love that the photos you chose show not the same sunny, sandy beaches everyone else has already beaten to death, but a darker side of Hawaii. (In that first picture, it looks like a Death Eater is about ready to descend out of the sky.)

    I hope you enjoy the rest of your trip! Try to find a little time to relax, crazy woman!

    • April 15, 2011
      Kristin

      Hawaii is one of my top three favorite places on the planet, I’d have to say. The thing is that I may often travel to places you’ve never heard of, but it’s the ones everybody loves–like Hawaii or the Bahamas or Australia or New Zealand–that truly capture my interest and everlasting love, places which I think are not a bit overrated no matter if every Tom, Dick or Harry travels here for vacation.

      And maybe there was a Death Eater on the property…I’ll never tell!

  • April 15, 2011

    SVV has done a great job of the night captures.

    Do you have problems with stalkers?

    • April 15, 2011
      Kristin

      Not that I know of…yet! I was more joking, though SVV is actually wary of putting *too* much information out there on the Internet about where we are at any one time (which is why I usually retro-blog or retro-Tweet things after I’ve left that place).

  • April 15, 2011

    Lovely photos! I have been trying to improve my night shot for a while and finally realize that I do need a tripod because of all the coffee I drink my hand will never be steady enough. 🙂

    • April 15, 2011
      Kristin

      And you need a GOOD tripod at that. The difference $50 can make is huge. We actually have a pretty nice, heavy tripod at home, we just never seem to have room for it in our suitcase at the end of our packing attempts! Which means it’s sort of pointless to own, ha =)

  • April 15, 2011

    i love this – the photos make me happy (and want to experiment with longer exposures, too)… lovely trip!

  • April 15, 2011

    These are beautiful. I have tackled long exposures – yet – but these dramatic shots have me itching to give it a try. And I’ll be in Hawaii next week!

    • April 15, 2011
      Kristin

      Oh yay! Bring your tripod. Which island will you be visiting? I sometimes wonder just why I don’t live here…that would be dreamy.

  • April 15, 2011

    I’ve never tried long exposures before, mostly because my photo subjects are in constant motion. You’ve inspired me to find a motionless subject and give it a try.

    • April 15, 2011
      Kristin

      You really need a heavy tripod. The tripod we brought is super light for packing/checked luggage purposes and was still blowing in the wind (hence the subtle blur) but with a solid tripod you can get some amazing night shots.

  • April 15, 2011

    These pictures are really very good. I am not that adventurous of a photographer but I am thinking I should probably learn more about it so I could take better pictures. Love the Big Island! It is such a diverse and different tropical island.

  • April 15, 2011

    I’ve looked into the Fairmont Orchid – always wanted to go, and now I have a solid recommendation. Thanks for the pics!

  • April 15, 2011

    I’m coming to Hawaii to stalk you right now!

    Glad you’re having a fun and non-touristy-overload time!

  • April 16, 2011

    Ooohh, I really love these pictures. The1st and 3rd are my favourites.

    On a different note, a friend stuck an old school article in my face recently and this line caught my attention for obvious reasons – “One thing they do not know is that I, high up in the sky, am watching them all the time.” All that to say, ” I am a fluffy, white cloud and I am stalking you all the time! ” 😉

  • April 16, 2011
    joan

    Love the star photos Scott

  • April 16, 2011

    Holy sh*t! Amazing photos!!!

  • April 17, 2011

    Awesome photos SVV!!!

  • April 17, 2011

    Big Island is beautiful. Had some of our best snorkeling experiences there. Hope you’re having a great time!

  • April 17, 2011

    Aloha! Gorgeous photos!! I promise I’m not a stalker! I live “next door” in Puako Beach and remember when I fell in love with the Orchid, too! It was back in 1997, before we moved to the BI, when it was a Sheraton…now it’s even lovelier! was just there for sushi on Friday night, which was world-class! Enjoy your vacation/work!!

    • April 17, 2011
      Kristin

      We’re actually on Oahu now…I’d only ever been to the Big Island before and am blown away by how dramatic and yet drastically different each island is! Can’t wait to see even more…(not this trip, alas, but the next!).

  • April 17, 2011

    Like the last photo! Anyway, totally understand your way, I do the same, post after I change the place 😉

  • April 17, 2011

    We’ve found long exposure shots to be so tricky (they never turn out right, dangit), but you did a great job capturing these!

    And such an interesting point about not announcing where you’re currently traveling to for security reasons… I’ve never thought of that before! Oiy. o.O

    • April 17, 2011
      Kristin

      It’s probably a moot point, as I’m not exactly silent on Twitter (though I do tend to Tweet things after I’ve done them/left a place). Not that I worry about anyone following me (ha! that would be quite narcissistic of me), but you can never be too safe.

      As far as long exposures, it’s tricky unless you have an expensive tripod. We have a nice, mid-range one at home that we never bring because it weighs down our luggage and instead brought the cheap one on this trip–and it shows. We spent an hour outside on Oahu today taking long exposure shots (25 to 40 seconds) at sunset, and nearly every one came out blurry as it’s windy here and the cheaper the tripod, the more it shakes. Oh well! One day we’ll wise up and leave some clothes at home and replace the space in our bag with the nice one!

  • April 18, 2011

    Lovely pictures (as always I guess). I love long exposure shots, especially when the stars, clouds and colours come out so nice!! And I am dying to go to Hawaii at some point, must be a wonderful place. Looking forward to see more!!
    Have a lovely week!! xox

  • April 18, 2011

    Travel isn’t my job, and I run myself and Brando ragged any way. Poor guy! It’s so worth all the experiences, though, at least for me. These photos are gorgeous. Love the night time perspective.

    • April 22, 2011
      Kristin

      Ditto! My motto is always: I can sleep when I get home. Ha. Coincidentally, I always arrive back in San Francisco needing a vacation from my vacation! I read on your site that Oahu is one of your favorite places–we actually went there next! I’m smitten.

  • April 19, 2011

    I MISS Hawaii so much. Miss miss miss MISS it.

  • April 19, 2011

    Oh my. That top shot is enough to make me book a flight right now. Gorgeous.

  • April 19, 2011

    Beautiful Pictures! I can never take a decent picture at night (I only have a nikon point & shoot camera and a cheap tripod). I was impressed by the stars pic #3! Have u ever been to Maui or Kauai? I’ve only been to Oahu and I’m trying to decide which Island I should visit for my honeymoon. My bf insists he needs to see Honolulu for a couple of days and then we can go anywhere I want. The problem is: I wan to go to all of the islands! it is hard to decide!

    PS: I love SF. I would love to live there. My sister lives in San Jose and I try to visit as often as I can just to go to SF for a while!

    • April 22, 2011
      Kristin

      Catalina, that’s a really good question. I asked Scott what he thought since he’s been to the Big Island a few times, Maui, Oahu and Kauai. I think it boils down to what you want to do, but he actually says of the four of them, Oahu is the most diverse. You could spend a few days on the rugged North Shore (amazing beaches…we have several posts and a lot of photos to come!) and then go to Honolulu for a few days for some city life. I actually loved Honolulu–I was surprised as I pictured it to be just any old big city.

      Then, depending on your time frame, you could fly to any other island from there. I’m partial to the Big Island, just because I think it’s so different from the greenery on all the other isles. So much of it is black volcanic rock, and it just gives a very different picture of Hawaii than Oahu does. We booked our tickets to Oahu from Kona DAY OF on Hawaiian Airlines, and it was $65 each way. Not bad. I’m sure you can get even cheaper in advance. Also, if you fly to Honolulu round trip from the mainland, it’s generally a lot cheaper than going to one of the smaller islands.

      Hope that helps! Feel free to email me with any questions. I’ve only been to the Big Island or Oahu, but could find resources for you or direct you to Scott who knows a bit more about the state.

  • April 20, 2011

    These photos are gorgeous.

  • April 28, 2011

    First thanks for changing it up and giving us a little taster of your trip while you are still there. Glad to hear that you are having such a great time on you trip. Look forward to the stories after you get back.

  • May 10, 2011
    Rosi Wilkins

    i am not exactly sure how I stumbled onto this blog, but so happy that I did! I am returning for the 10th year in a row to the Big Island and Kauai. I loved all your pictures of so many of my favorite places. It is like seeing them through someone else’s eyes and experiencing the joy all over again. If your travels have not taken you to the Island of Kauai, i highly recommend it. The scenery is magnificent and the people are the BEST. Thanks again for the looksee through your photos.

    P.S. No camels in Kauai…just chickens.

    Mahalo!

    • May 12, 2011
      Kristin

      Ha! No chickens on the Big Island either…just wild goats and donkeys and domestic cows =)

      I haven’t been to Kauai, but my husband spent a month there and is obsessed. What dedicated to go every year for a full decade–I’m impressed!

      (And thanks for stopping by…welcome!)

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