Da Aloha Kine Place

I've never been to Hawaii. It has always seemed like a waste of a vacation to me. There are so many other places in the world that I really would love to see, and in many cases they can be seen for less money. In a previous life I used to spend most of my time planning my next vacation. While shopping for airfare, no matter what kind of a deal I could find to Hawaii, I could find an equal or lower fare to Mexico, or Costa Rica, or Belize, etc. And for a few bucks more, I could travel to Amsterdam, or Spain, or France. And since Hawaii is "just another state", why should I go there when I could go somewhere REALLY cool for the same price? The main reason I like travel in the first place is to get away from ugly Americans, why in the hell would I want to go somewhere that there is a bunch of people who look just like me?

Everyone who goes to Hawaii tells me how great it is. But for the most part, these are people who don't have enough of an adventurous spirit (read; balls) to travel out of their comfort zone. So a State that has white beaches and brown people is as close to an exotic local as they are ever going to see. But as Alan's Pigin Pride post points out, there can be as much danger for a Haole in Honolulu as there is for a Gringo in Guadalajara, so maybe they aren't total wimps after all.

Now with my fondness for all things ukulele I've taken an interest in Da Islands. (Though I'm still not sure I would spend the money to go there). So here is my question: Is it really a cool place to visit? What if I could get some kick-ass deal on that Koaloha Tenor that I want so bad from going to the factory? Would that justify the expense to travel there? Or should I save my money, continue to get my ukes on ebay, and save my money for more ice cold Coronas at home, and meet-ups with my UCB buddies here on the mainland?