Guide to the Big Island of Hawaii
The Big Island of Hawaii is the most underrated Hawaiian Island. Use this guide to find beautiful beaches, volcanic craters, and rocky coastlines without crowds. Paradise is waiting.
Sightseeing on the Big Island of Hawaii
Split your time between sightseeing and relaxing on the beach. The best part about Hawaii is that there is a lot more to do beyond just beaches.
Hilo
Hilo is an easy day trip when staying in the Kona area. It's about an hour and a half drive. I recommend taking two day trips to this area so that you have enough time to see everything.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
There's a $30 per vehicle entrance fee for a week long pass to get into the national park. Another option is the America the Beautiful Annual Pass which covers entrance to all national parks for $80/year.
Stop at the visitor's center first where there is an interesting video about the different eruptions at the park. Next door, there's a nice art gallery and across the street at the lodge, there's a nice crater view from the balcony.
The Kīlauea Iki Crater hike is the best thing to do at the park. The hike is 4 miles and took us about 2 hours. It's a relatively easy hike, with a moderate finish climbing up the crater rim. The hike is a loop and I'd recommend going counterclockwise. This allows you to get a view from above the crater for the first part of the hike.
The middle of the hike was across the bottom of the crater. This was my favorite part. It feels like you're on another planet.
After the hike, you can follow the road to where it ends along the coast. The drive down is very pretty. Unfortunately, the path to the sea arch is now closed and the lava covering the road has been turned to gravel. If you don't have enough time, I would skip this stop.
Lava Trees State Monument
This is about a 45 minute drive from Volcano and definitely worth the trip. It's a very small park that will take no more than 30 minutes to explore. There's a short loop through the park to see the lava trees. The lava trees are formed in the shape of trees, but the lava killed the trees, so only the lava shell remains.
Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens
This is not a typical botanical garden. Usually, I wouldn't get overly excited about a botanical garden, but this one is special. The admission fee is $25 and it is well worth the price.
Walking inside is like being transported into a peaceful paradise. It feels like a rainforest that happens to have a walking path through it.
There are many plants and flowers, but nothing feels manicured. They give visitors a pamphlet to help identify the plants.
There are a couple of small waterfalls and plenty of benches to relax and enjoy the surroundings.
The path leads down to a beautiful view along the coast with the waves crashing in on a beach.
Akaka Falls
This is a quick and easy stop very close to the botanical garden. The parking lot is tiny here, but cars park everywhere along the street to get in. It costs $5 per car to park in the lot or $1 per person to walk in.
There's a short loop around the park that's about half a mile long. The trail goes through some bamboo at first before an awkward view of a falls. It then loops around to a stunning view of Akaka Falls, which is the main viewpoint on the trail.
Waipi'o Valley
There are a couple of ways to explore the valley. It's possible to drive down, but a car with four wheel drive is necessary. The road to get down is incredibly steep. It's also possible to take a tour on a mule drawn wagon. The last option is to walk down. You can take a mule drawn wagon down. The tour was interesting and seeing the primitive valley was worth doing.
You can also opt to just to enjoy the viewpoint from the overlook and not go down into the valley. It's a gorgeous view. It can be very crowded making it a challenge to find parking.
Kona
Most of these activities aren't in Kona, but they are closer to the Kona side of the island.
Papakōlea Beach
The sand here is green, so I think this is a must see. It is an hour and a half drive south of Kona, so putting it in the Kona section isn't really accurate (it's really between Hilo and Kona).
It's a two mile walk (one way) out to this beach. With four wheel drive, it is possible to drive instead. It's incredibly windy here. I think it was windier than normal the day we were there and we hiked through 30 mile per hour winds.
The hike was really pretty along the coast and it was completely worth it to walk up to jaw dropping views of the beach.
The green sand is a bit controversial. It's not a bright green but more of a muted, faint green color. From far away it looks a little more gold, but I thought the green hue was there.
It's right next to the southern most point on the island. I needed to stop at the southernmost point, but it ended up being disappointing. There really wasn't anything to see.
Pololū Valley
This is one of my favorite things to do on the big island. It's about 45 minutes north of where we stayed. It's about a half a mile hike to get down to the valley. The hike is steep though. There are picturesque views of the coast and cliffs for most of the hike down.
There is a black sand beach that's very pretty. Unfortunately, it seems to have washed away over the last six years and there isn't much beach left anymore.
In addition to the beach, the valley is gorgeous. There's plenty of shade and rope swings to enjoy the views of the valley.
Beach 69
This is my favorite beach to relax at on the big island. It was not at all crowded which gives it bonus points for me. It's a rockier beach, making swimming a bit harder. The nice thing about the rocks is that it makes for good snorkeling. I got to see a sea turtle and a large variety of fish while snorkeling here.
Two Step
This is a very popular snorkeling spot about half an hour south of Kona. The fish are plentiful here. Compared to Beach 69, there were way more fish here, but I thought Beach 69 had a larger variety of fish.
Hapuna Beach
There are really great waves here for boogie boarding here. I did find it a little crowded compared to Beach 69 though, but if you're looking for a good sandy beach, this is your spot.
Where to eat on the Big Island of Hawaii
Ken's House of Pancakes
This is in downtown Hilo, so it's a good stop after spending the day at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Obviously you have to get pancakes, but the star of the show is the lilikoi syrup to put on top. The Bananas Foster French Toast is also a must try.
Gill's Lanai
This is the perfect stop for lunch after visiting the Pololū Valley. It's a hole in the wall with only outdoor seating. Get the Kalua Pork Quesadilla (add goat cheese) or the poke tacos.
Loko Wraps
There are two locations—one in downtown Kona and one in Captain Cook. The Captain Cook location is a great stop after snorkeling at Two Step. We loved the Loko Wrap with Jackfruit BBQ.
Hot Malasadas
These donuts originate from Portugal (but are common in Hawaii). I'm not 100% sure what the name of this truck is since it has three names on it. I tried to clarify with the person working, but I didn't get a clear answer. Whatever the name is, these donuts are heavenly. Choose the sugar and filling. My personal favorite was lilikoi.
Original Big Island Shave Ice
Shave ice is a must try while in Hawaii. This truck was the most unique that we stopped at. The Ube Den was my favorite thing. Check out their website to figure out where they are on specific days (Google Maps is misleading).
One Aloha Shave Ice
This was my second favorite shave ice. The lychee ice cream and strawberry whip puree won me over.
Gypsea Gelato
This gelato shop has a lot of unique flavors and is conveniently located in downtown Kona. My favorite flavor was lilikoi serrano.
Getting to and around the Big Island of Hawaii
You can fly into either Hilo or Kona. Since they're close together and you'll likely want to do things on both sides of the island, I'd recommend flying into whichever has cheaper flights.
To see both sides of the island, a car is easiest to get around. It would be possible to stay in Hilo or Kona and avoid having a car, but it would be limiting in what activities were possible to do.
Where to stay on the Big Island of Hawaii
I recommend staying in the Waikoloa Beach Resort area somewhere. It's about half an hour north of Kona in one of the quietest and sunniest areas of the island. It's easy to drive to both Kona and Hilo for day trips from here. The weather in Hilo is much rainier, so I wouldn't stay on that side.
Best time to visit the Big Island of Hawaii
The weather in Hawaii is beautiful year round, so there really isn't a bad time to visit. Because temperatures are warm in the winter, I think that's the best time to visit.