Hanalei Bay, Hawaii

Image Credit: Parrish Kauai

Long before Hollywood put it on the tourist map (first with "South Pacific" in 1958, then "The Descendants" half a century later), Kauai's Hanalei Bay attracted locals for its near-mystical beauty. Its beaches — Wai'oli, Hanalei Pavilion, and Black Pot — are framed by jade-colored mountains rising 4,000 feet high. The area is popular with surfers in the winter when the waves pick up size and speed.