My wife and I are making a stopover in Honolulu on the way to see our new granddaughter in Sydney. Do you know where the famous surfing area is and how easy it is to go there to watch the action? David Lansbury, Bristol

Sunday Times travel expert Richard Green responds: Oahu's mammoth breakers crash to shore at the opposite end of the island to Honolulu, on the North Shore. It's usually an easy 45-minute drive along the Kamehameha Highway, but you'll need to allow longer in surf season, from November to February, when traffic is much greater.

It's an interesting drive though, and passes Pearl Harbour, and then crosses the Leilehua Plateau before reaching the Ocean at Haleiwa.

A few miles along the coast is Waimea Bay, where big wave riding started, at the breaks called Waimea, Off the Wall, Banzai Pipeline, and Sunset Beach.

None of them are too far out, but a pair of travel binoculars would come in handy.

Surfing lay dormant in the Hawaiian psyche for many years, until the local surfer, Olympic swimmer, and all round good guy Duke Kahanamoku, went to the 1912 Stockholm Olympics. He won gold medal in the 100m freestyle and passed through southern California on his way, where he gave surfing demos to incredulous crowds.

You'll find his statue on the beach in Waikiki, usually draped in fresh garlands, between Hyatt Regency and King's Village Hotels.

Hire car competition is fierce in the Hawaiian Islands, and Hertz (08708 44 88 44) for example, has cars from Honolulu airport (and five other locations along the city's coastal strip) from just £15 a day. Or try Thrifty (0808 234 7642), or Alamo (0870 400 4562).

For more information, visit www.gohawaii.com or www.visit-oahu.com

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