Andrew Doughty has written a series of highly controversial guidebooks to each major island under the title “Hawaii Revealed: The Ultimate Guidebook. The series is a #1 Best Seller on Amazon. His most recent update to the series was 2013.
The Books
Hawaii The Big Island Revealed: The Ultimate Guidebookdetails sites around Hawaii island (aka The Big Island), including the major cities of Kona and Hilo, Mauna Kea and Volcano National Park. He includes many off-the-beaten path sites that are highly controversial with local people.
The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook: Kauai Revealed
details sites around Kauai island, including the cities of Lihue and Hanalei, Waimea Canyon State Park and the Na Pali Coast Trail. He includes many off-the-beaten path sites that are highly controversial with local people.
Maui Revealed: The Ultimate Guidebook
details sites around Maui island, including the cities of Kihei, Ka’anapali and Hana and Haleakala National Park. He includes many off-the-beaten path sites that are highly controversial with local people.
Oahu Revealed: The Ultimate Guide to Honolulu, Waikiki & Beyond (Oahu Revisited)
details sites around O’ahu island, including the cities of Honolulu, Kailua and Haleiwa and the Pearl Harbor Memorial and Punchbowl Cemetery. He covers O’ahu’s many hiking trails and vibrant culinary scene, and his app has the most up-to-date restaurant information.
The Controversy
What makes these guidebooks controversial is Doughty’s revelation to outsiders of places cherished by locals. Many of these places, such as Blue Pool on Maui, are highly fragile ecosystems not maintained by the state or the county, and thus, locals are not equipped to deal with the environmental damage that crowds of visitors unwittingly bring. Many of the places named in Doughty’s original set of guidebooks have been formally closed or fenced off because of severe harm to native plants and animals caused by trampling from visitor’s shoes and contamination from body products.
At least one community near Hana on Maui has become so outraged by the visitor traffic that they banned him from ever again visiting the area.