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FINDING THE HOTEL
Finding your hotel in Kona is easy unless of course, you don't pay attention like me. There's one main road: Highway 19. Most of the resorts are just off it, alongside the water. Getting to the Marriott required just two turns from the airport: a left onto Highway 19 and a left onto Waikoloa Beach Drive. Without traffic, it's a 20-minute drive (a taxi will run you about $45) but there aren't any hotel signs; it's against the law to post them. I cruised right by the street the first time while yapping on my cell phone. FYI: Cell service is not that great as my T-Mobile phone kept cutting out.

WAIKOLOA BEACH DRIVE
When I worked in the admissions office at Marymount College Palos Verdes, I used to stay at this location at least once a year. It cost about $125 a night but then again, that was eight years ago when it was an Outrigger Hotel. Changes have been rapid. First of all, Waikoloa Beach Drive now has another shopping center, the Queens' Marketplace. There's also been some serious real estate development and the Outrigger Hotel is now a Marriott ... and it's no longer an inexpensive option. After an extensive renovation, it's now a swanky, five-star resort. The good news is that everything is so clean and there's no more musty smell. The lobby is still open-air with beautiful vistas of the pool and ocean. The bad news is that everything is so clean, there's no more musty smell and the price tripled.

WAIKOLOA BEACH MARRIOTT
The Waikoloa Beach Marriott has 555 luxurious rooms. The rooms all have a contemporary Polynesian- and Asian-inspired decor, with modern touches like 27-inch flat screen TVs. And like all Marriotts, the rooms feature the crazy comfortable Revive bed. It has a cozy duvet, fluffy pillows and 300 thread count linens, all of which make it incredibly difficult to drag yourself out of it in the morning. Lucky me, I got upgraded to the Kohala Suite ... one of the perks of being a keynote speaker! My room was insane. It had an enormous living room with a bar, two bathrooms and a big ol' tub, right there in the bedroom. My only beef is that the hotel doesn't have wireless Internet, only broadband ($10.36 for 24 hours). And, for some reason, this seems to be the norm in Hawaii. What are hoteliers thinking? When you've got a cozy bed and/or a killer view, the last place you want to sit and check email is at a desk facing a wall. Are you with me on this one?

MARRIOTT FOOD
I'm starving so let's talk food. The Marriott has two restaurants. I didn't try the Royal Luau but I did eat breakfast, lunch and dinner at their Hawaii Calls Restaurant & Lounge. They serve fresh Big Island produce in American- and Pacific Rim-style cuisine. Before going out to explore the Marriott's 15 oceanfront acres that have ancient Hawaiian fishponds and a partial sandy beach (Anaeho'omalu Bay), I pulled up a seat at the Hawaii Calls bar and had a tasty Thai beef salad ($14). The bartender was an extremely cool, laidback Hawaiian who showed me photos of the snow atop the volcano. It looked cool (pun intended) and anyone can visit the Mauna Kea Observatory. Here's a link if you're interested.



HAWAII CALLS
Later that evening, I dined outside under the stars and had a lava flow (here’s how to make them), Waimea vine-ripened tomato salad ($7), Huli-Huli chicken ($25) and of course a slice of Hula pie ($8) ... no dinner in Hawaii would be complete without it. If I'd been there for more than one night, I would have walked a few blocks to the Kings' Shops and dined at Roy's Waikoloa Bar & Grill (1-808-886-4321), Big Island Steakhouse (1-808-886-8805), and/or Merriman's Market Cafe (1-808-886-1700). There are many more choices but they require at least a five-mile drive.

MANDARA SPA
The folks who arranged my trip asked me what I wanted to do for my first afternoon: Kickback at the beach/pool, shop, play golf (the course has 36 holes) or get a massage. Well, by the paragraph heading, you know what I chose. I moseyed on down to the Marriott's tranquil 5,750-square-foot Mandara Spa. They arranged a Hawaiian body polish treatment for me, followed by a massage. At first, I wasn't too keen on having a dude work my naked, out-of-shape body but the moment I met him, I could tell he was a solid, manly, cool guy. I'm not homophobic but I just don't find it relaxing when a guy gives me a massage. Is that okay to say or is it not PC? I'm just saying: why do something you don't like? I'm not going to bore you with a description of how great my rub-down was but you should know they offer 50 unique treatments incorporating indigenous Hawaiian ingredients like chocolate, coconut, macadamia, papaya, island coffee and pikake flowers. Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort & Spa, 69-275 Waikoloa Beach Drive, Waikoloa – Hawaii, Tel: 808-886-6789.

KEYNOTE PRESENTATION
The next day was a watershed for me. Although I have spoken at many conferences, trade shows, and seminars, and done countless radio and TV interviews, this was my first time being a keynote speaker. Just the word "keynote" makes it sound so important. It was weird sitting at the head table at The Big Island Visitors Bureau annual luncheon, being treated like a rock star. Speaking of rock stars, Keoki Kahumoku, three-time Grammy Award-winning Hawaiian musician and singer, provided the entertainment to the 300 members in attendance. The audience was a broad cross-section of the Hawaii visitor industry, from resort general managers to small B&B owners, and from activity providers to government representatives, media partners, airline representatives and more. My job was to discuss the evolution of online media, how to tell if travel websites and media are legitimate and how to work with media to better promote their businesses. I had no idea how my presentation would be received but it turned out to be a huge hit. So, if you think your company could benefit from the same information, I'm available. You buy, I fly. You pay, I say.

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