Hawaii Webcams Are a Great Marketing Tool for Travel

Hawaii webcams present travel buffs with you-are-there thrills before they’ve even left home. Overlooking sunny beaches, palm-fringed resorts and smoking volcanoes, these strategically-placed cameras have evolved and multiplied since they came onto the scene in the 1990s. Now more than ever, they’re used as a handy marketing device, especially by hotels.

“Seeing is believing,” said Robyn Basso, senior director of travel industry partnerships for Hawaii Tourism United States. “Webcams are a free, easy and effective tool that is available to practically anyone.”

Better yet, Basso adds, they sometimes motivate viewers to book a Hawaii vacation.

Here are four of the many island webcams worth a look.

Haleakala Summit, Maui
For Maui visitors, driving to the 10,023-foot-high summit of Haleakala crater usually tops the itinerary, particularly at sunrise or sunset. Folks around the world can check out this webcam to see what they’re missing. The camera, operated by the National Park Service, provides viewers with a sense of the scope and majesty of the largest dormant crater on earth.

Haleakala’s lunar-like environment — which is ever-changing depending on the hour of the day and angle of the sun — features volcanic cones, ash falls and tuffs in sandscapes of red, brown, green and black. At times, clouds settle into valleys or snuggle up to ridges. It’s a mesmerizing show, and this livestream offers a front-row seat.

www.nps.gov

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii Island
Steaming vents and spewing lava keep clients riveted to these webcams in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, which are the responsibility of the U.S. Geological Survey. While its number of views varies over time based on the volcanic activity, there are plenty of cameras — both visible light and infrared — currently standing ready for public consumption. 

Most of the webcams have been placed in areas that are closed or inaccessible to visitors, but they still serve up virtual adventures for armchair travelers. Watching live feeds from an island in evolution might be just what it takes for clients to head to Hawaii Island. There, they can book a permitted tour by boat or helicopter for real-life views of Kilauea volcano.

hvo.wr.usgs.gov

Kailua-Kona Waterfront, Hawaii Island
Perched atop Fish Hopper restaurant, this webcam offers an appealing peek at what’s happening along Alii Drive, which borders Kailua-Kona’s oceanfront. In the distance stands the Kona Inn, a 1928 landmark with a distinctive red roof. Beyond that is Royal Kona Resort, resembling a cruise ship sailing into the sea.

A great time to tune into this webcam is during Kokua Kailua, the monthly, Sunday afternoon event when Alii Drive turns into a pedestrian-only marketplace. For fun on both sides of the camera, visitors can position themselves smack-dab in the picture and wave to friends at the appointed hour.

www.konaweb.com

Waikiki Beach from Moana Surfrider, Oahu
Marriott International Hawaii’s webcam network exceeds 12 cameras, which are mounted judiciously at its resorts around the islands. Michael Troy, Marriott Hawaii’s director of account management BMD, says its cluster site gets more than 1.2 million unique visitors each year. 

“When there’s word of big surf or other weather-related subjects, or when it’s cold on the mainland, the cameras will see a bump in traffic from an audience that may be looking for a nice visual escape,” Troy said.

The Waikiki beach-cam from Moana Surfrider presents a compelling view of people enjoying Oahu’s famous stretch of sea and sand, from surfers and boogie boarders to sunbathers and strollers. Like a portal to paradise, it opens a window to Hawaii’s charms.

www.seehawaiilive.com