US News names best adventure destinations

When US News and World Report issued their “Best Adventure Vacations,”  Hawaii claimed three of the 16 top spots.

 “The U.S. News and World Report’s Best Adventure Vacations ranking naming Kauai, Maui, and Hawaii Island in the top ten is a great recognition for our state,” said Mike McCartney, president and CEO of the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

The ranking cites Kauai’s “acres of misty rainforests, plummeting waterfalls and jagged cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean;” Maui’s “plethora of heart-pounding options from sea kayaking to mule riding;” and Hawaii Island’s “black volcanic deserts, tumbling waterfalls, lush rainforests and five volcanoes.”

“The natural beauty of our islands shape the many activities our visitors participate in, from soft adventure to the more extreme,” said John Monahan, president and CEO of the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau.

Here are the 2011-2012 award winners for “Best Adventure Vacations” in the US:

1.Yellowstone
2. Yosemite
3. Kauai
4. Maui
5. Puerto Rico
6. Grand Canyon
7. Hawaii, the Big Island
8. Outer Banks
9. Portland, OR
10. U.S. Virgin Islands
11. Key West
12. San Francisco
13. San Diego
14. Seattle
15. South Padre Island
16. Miami Beach

By David Wilkening