Sharks

As someone who suffers from galeophobia (the fear of sharks), I can understand a concern about sharks in such a water-centric environment.

There are 40 different species of shark that frequent the waters of Hawaii. Four of them -- the white-tip reef shark, sandbar shark, tiger shark, and Galapagos shark -- are quite common. Great white sharks have been spotted in Hawaiian waters but are very rare. The most dangerous shark is the tiger while the most aggressive is the Galapagos. However, Galapagos sharks aren't usually big enough to cause much damage.

Three to four Hawaiian swimmers are bitten by sharks per year, but let's put that into perspective -- nearly 10 million people visit Hawaii every year. That's a 0.0000004% of being bitten as a tourist, and fatal shark bites are extremely rare.