Waikiki is admired as one of the best beaches in the world. Its name, meaning spouting water, is derived from the streams that once flowed from the mountains to feed the swampland it once was. Over seventy-five hotels border the two-mile long Waikiki Beach - created in the 1920s from sand shipped in from Southern California's Manhattan Beach. The palm trees, strategically planted, sway in the gentle trade winds and greatly enhance visitors' vacation fantasies.