From the moment you enter, this 32-acre 540-room property is a compound of serenity. Palm trees sway, birds chirp, waves lap at the sand, and green sea turtles appear every afternoon. Once a Ritz-Carlton (you'll see it in the formal architecture), Fairmont took over in 2002 and overhauled the property from top to bottom. The renovation included warming up the guest-room decor with tropical touches, redesigning the popular Norio's Japanese Restaurant & Sushi Bar, and adding a Fairmont Gold floor (we recommend the upgrade—the money you'll save by feasting on three daily buffets offsets the extra expense). Views from the guest rooms vary quite a bit—ask for at least a partial ocean view. Dramatic ocean views are also to be had on the green fairways bordering black lava fields of the resort's adjacent 36-hole Francis H. I'i Brown Golf Courses (North and South), and the outdoor Spa Without Walls is one of the most unique facilities on the island. (Get a rubdown in a thatched hut with a stream of water running beneath.) In 2006, Fairmont added a hip outdoor dinner luau called "The Gathering of the Kings," during which performers in nontraditional costumes entertain with modern dance to a foot-tapping contemporary soundtrack.

Until upscale hotels are built in Hilo (a picturesque locals' town that's just 30 minutes by car from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park), the Shipman House B&B and this lushly landscaped private rental home are the area's best bets. Compared to double-room rates on the other side of the island (one night at the Fairmont Orchid can top $800), this three-bedroom house on a small strip of Reed's Island in the Wailuku River Valley is a steal, especially considering the waterfall views and sexy indoor hot tub. It's best to focus on the lush scenery, as the interiors are generically functional. Even though the Falls feels as if it's on a distant private island, downtown Hilo's restaurants and shops are just about a mile away. Since tropical gardens are often rainy and buggy, come prepared.

If you think all Four Seasons resorts fit the same mold, Hualalai—the first property up Queen Kaahumanu Highway from the Kona airport—may surprise you. There's no cement tower here. Instead, the bungalow-style guest quarters are housed in two-story buildings spread out on what seems like acres and acres. The 243 rooms have Hawaii-inspired decor, walk-in closets, slate bathrooms, and furnished lanais. A $40 million renovation (completed in summer 2009) added 20 one- and two-bedroom suites with 180-degree ocean views—perfect for the growing number of return guests who honeymooned here and now have kids. While the beach isn't stellar, there are plenty of aquatic options, including a family pool, a small adults-only pool, a quiet pool, a lap pool, and, for snorkeling, a natural lava pond stocked with photogenic fish. The trio of restaurants includes the Hualalai Grille (no longer under the direction of Alan Wong, but the market-based Pacific Rim cuisine is still excellent), seafood-centric Pahu i'a, and the revamped Beach Tree, where diners tuck into Italian-influenced California cuisine. The 18-hole Nicklaus golf course was augmented by an even better one in 2005, which we won't describe here because it's reserved for Residence owners. Aside from a lunchtime grace period, if you leave your lounger, you lose it. If that happens, retreat to the lush gardens of the expanded Hualalai Spa to select local ingredients (perhaps volcanic ash or macadamia nuts) for your customized treatment.

Those seeking a barefoot vacation and a taste of the South Pacific circa 1960 love this low-tech but upscale resort. There's AC only in the spa treatment rooms, no TVs, and no landlines (cell phones work but are only allowed in the privacy of your cottage). But you'll hardly be roughing it—the 125 spacious "hale" inspired by traditional houses from Samoa, Tahiti, New Zealand, New Hebrides, the Marquesas, Fiji, and Hawaii, indulge the fantasy but have modern plumbing and electricity (and if you have a craving for Starbucks or a movie, Kailua-Kona town is just a 20-minute drive away). Best of all, meals and soft drinks are included, but not tropical cocktails from watering holes such as the Shipwreck Bar—an irresistible poolside beached wooden boat that once belonged to the founder of Kona Village.

This northernmost resort on the Kohala Coast put Hawaii's Big Island on the tourist map when Laurance S. Rockefeller opened it in 1965 and welcomed such illustrious guests as Jackie Kennedy and Jeanne Moreau. Forty years later, it was still the coolest resort on the island, with the best beach around—a white-sand crescent fronting Kaunaoa Bay—and a championship golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. The hotel sustained damage during an October 2006 earthquake, but after a $150 million renovation the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel is open again, and better than ever.

The oceanfront hammocks strung between coconut trees on the grounds of the Mauna Lani fulfill an image of Hawaii that's no longer easy to find. This tranquil, independent resort—nothing cookie-cutter about it—stands on a historic site of Hawaiian petroglyphs and ancient fishponds. One pond teems with sharks; look for a dorsal fin stalking the surface. A 2005 renovation gave the 343 small but well-laid-out rooms a contemporary edge with clean-lined koa wood and wicker furnishings; there are also five heavenly freestanding bungalows with private pools that are popular with visiting celebrities. The spa is the most beautiful on the island with a natural open-air lava-rock sauna in a landscaped "La'au" healing garden, and an outdoor lava-tube water-therapy pool (for something different, try the Watsu water massage). The Canoe House restaurant specializes in Hawaii regional cuisine: Well-seasoned and perfectly presented fresh local fish, salads, steaks, and homemade Kona coffee ice cream are served in a relaxed, open-air pavilion that's lit by tiki torches at night.

Proprietress Mary Shipman entertained Liliuokalani (the last queen of Hawaii) and writer Jack London in this historic Victorian mansion built in 1899. Now her great-granddaughter Barbara extends a taste of old Hawaii and family-style hospitality to guests. Filled with heirlooms from the early 1900s, this is the most elegant accommodation you'll find in Hilo, and it maintains some Victorian standards: no smoking, no pets, children under the age of 10 are discouraged, and no gentlemen callers (OK, that last one is a lie). The five rooms are unique, with some named after aunties (don't say spinsters). Book Auntie Clara's Shell Room for the claw-foot tub and splendid view of Hilo Bay.

Closed December 20 through January 2.