Hawaii is a prime vacation destination with terrific weather year round - sunny skies, temperatures in the 80s, cooling trade winds "and when it" does rain here in the islands, showers typically pass by fairly quickly. Still, even in Hawaii, there are days the sun simply refuses to shine, drizzly, gray, chilly days when hitting the beach just isn't an option. Instead of staying inside cooped up in your hotel room waiting for the rain to stop with a bunch of restless kids, why not try out a few of these family-friendly, rainy day activities:

Check out the Waikiki Aquarium, a popular daytime attraction that's ideal for those rare occasions when the weather outside is lousy. Conveniently located within walking distance of most Waikiki hotels, the Waikiki Aquarium is home to more than 3,000 marine animals with some 500 species on display! There are interactive exhibits and informative videos to watch, and the price of admission includes a free audio tour. Admission is $9 for adults and $2 for children ages 4 and up.

Go shopping in Waikiki at the Royal Hawaiian Center with over a hundred shops and restaurants, or browse among the various carts and stands at the International Marketplace for a souvenir of your trip or gifts for the folks back home. And while Dad might be a little bored at this point, there's always Ala Moana Shopping Center, the world's largest open-air shopping mall with more than 250 stores and restaurants, located just outside Waikiki.

Take the family to Bishop Museum and spend the day exploring the largest museum in the state of Hawaii, full of exhibits featuring native Hawaiian artifacts and collections of photography and artwork chronicling the history of these islands. If that seems like a tough sell for the kiddies, the museum's Animation! Exhibition (currently on display until May 25th) features popular characters from the Cartoon Network and provides a fun and educational look inside the process of animating your kids' favorite cartoons, from character design and storyboarding to voice-over work and visual effects. Bishop Museum is located in Kalihi about 20 minutes outside of Waikiki so to get there you'll need to either catch a bus or drive.

There are other options available as well: you can always check out what's playing in the local movie theaters (the Ward Stadium 16 Theaters are your best bet if you're staying in Waikiki) or (get this) book a tour with Atlantis Submarines and dive below the water's surface to avoid getting wet!

Whatever you decide to do, rainfall tends to be fairly localized in Hawaii, so while it may be raining in one area of the island, there's always a good chance it's sunny and fair elsewhere. The next time it rains, just hop in your rental car and drive; before long you'll be saying, "Aloha!" to gray skies and, well, "Aloha!" to sunny weather instead!