Thinking about exploring the big island next year. Planning on Kona as the home base. Need to Kauai and Oahu and this would be our first trip to the big island.

Besides asking why we would want to spent money in a liberal shithole, are there any good recommendations to do, see or where to eat?

Thanks

I have never been to Hawaii but I think going to Pearl Harbor and seeing the USS Arizona and the the USS Missouri would be top of the list.

I understand there is a volcano...

People on the big island are friendly and helpful. Oahu sucks. Things are very expensive and locals take advantage of tourists.
Volcanoes National Park is impressive even when there are no eruptions.
People throw their used appliances down a cliff as if the ocean will take care of the problem. That was disappointing. Touring the Orchid nurseries is interesting as well.

If any of the volcanos are erupting, pay the money for a helicopter tour. You'll never see anything like it and the helicopters get in a lot closer than the trails. If they aren't, don't bother unless you really want to fly in a helicopter.

I lived in Alaska and Canada a combined total of 7 years and it's no coincidence I visited Hawaii 7 times during that time period.

I have a couple more extensive posts on the topic and have barely anything new to add:

General and island by island comparison

Discussion on how helpful, better, and different the Hawaii Revealed books/apps are compared to normal travel guides. They have a new website since the post.

A little safety info on the Atlantis submarine that I took in Big Island . A very enjoyable experience and the shipwreck we visited was one of the few in the world caused by a woman (i.e. 99% were caused by men).

Kona Brewing Company is the best beer on the island, and their brewery and pub is 2 blocks from where the submarine departs.. Their Big Wave (ie. Golden Ale) is very refreshing after a round of golf, and their Wailua Wheat is a good wheat beer. Don't ask me about their IPAs because I don't like the genre.

My helicopter tour got cancelled due to weather, but it would've been cool way to see Volcanoes National Park (i.e. frequently the lava flow is in an inaccessible area to cars) and some of the island's remote areas.

quote:

People on the big island are friendly and helpful. Oahu sucks. Things are very expensive and locals take advantage of tourists.
Volcanoes National Park is impressive even when there are no eruptions.

^^^^^ THIS!

IMO, Kona coffee is vastly over-hyped and waaay overpriced. Unless specifically noted (very rare), the coffee you get in restaurants is a Kona Blend (usually 10% Kona and 90% XXXXX).

Go see the volcano. Walking along the crater you can see (and smell) some small vents. If it's possible, try to visit one of the observatories. A helicopter tour of the volcano would be great, but expensive.

Don't plan on much beach time, Big Island doesn't have much in that way. If it were ME I'd make a point of taking a day or 2 in Hilo, it's as historic as it gets on the islands. I'll second the coffee thing, Kauai has much better coffee, but I admit my tremendous bias.

make sure you go check out the cheap land in Oceanview, see if you can work out why it's so cheap.

Kilauea eruption, October 2025. Filmed by my son.




Kilauea Webcams

quote:

Originally posted by hberttmank:
I think going to Pearl Harbor and seeing the USS Arizona and the the USS Missouri would be top of the list.

Been there, done that.
I think every American should do that.

Something I never got around to doing is kayaking to the Captain Cook Monument in Kealakekua Bay (I have kayaked on other islands). Good snorkeling, too, I hear.

Aside from maybe Hilo, prepare to be underwhelmed.

When I started working with Kaiser Permanente in Hawaii, I went to Hawaii every week: one week to Kona, the other to Hilo. They are so different. Hilo feels like old Hawaii. I went to the farmer's market to buy fruit like apple bananas and more exotic fruit when I went. Kona has sunshine and lava. Lots. of. lava. South of Kailua-Kona it gets interesting; there is the historic Place of Refuge under the kingdom; coffee plantations; old churches.

The most interesting place for us on the BI was the Waimea area, up north. That's where the Parker Ranch is, and they have a museum that's very interesting. Also Mauna Kea has a road leading up from the Saddle Road to the Onizuka observatory at I think 9,000 feet. I think 4WD jeeps can go all the way to the top where the Keck Observatory is located.

On that road beyond Waimea, there is an old sugar plantation (IIRC) town of Honoka'a. There's not much there, but everything is green and old style Hawaii.

Whereever you sleep at night, at least on the Hilo side, you will be beset with the calls of Coqui Frogs. BI is beautiful in its own way, but you have (1) lava (2) damp (3) Coqui frogs and (4) vog (this may have changed with the changes in vents from Kilauea.

Of course you will go to Volcano and tour the Volcano National Park. Absolutely worth seeing. Be sure to have rain gear, as it rains almost interminably there.

If you're a pilot or student pilot, Tropicbird Flight Services in Kona offers sightseeing flights and flight instruction, flying Diamond Air planes, which are very cool. I was going to learn there when I thought we were going to the BI instead of Maui. As it turned out, Maui was much much better for me.

Thing to know:
Windward-side (NorthEast) = rain, wet & tropical, very green, jagged coastline
Leeward-side (SouthWest) = dry, lots of sun, not much plant life, gentle coastline

Big Island has a bunch of National Park locations, you can visit each of those around the island and that'll take-up a bunch of time on your itinerary. I'd recommend spending 2-nights at Volcano National Park, you can stay at the hotel there, if you're a veteran I believe there is military accommodations that many vacationing vets seek out as the overall costs are a steal when compared to non-military rates. There are cabins available to rent also which my g/f and I stayed in one...it was like summer camp you check-in and you get pillows, sheets & blankets in a laundry bag, she wasn't thrilled. There's also home shares (AirBnB, VRBO, etc) that are available aroudn the town of Volcano, because elevation is 3700' the weather is quite a bit different than what you experience upon landing at sea-level...bring pants and warm jackets.

Most of the hotels and vacationers are either in Kona or, Kohala-areas. Kona is built up and is the work-a-day town with all the commercial businesses on the Leeward side. The old town area was where the first hotels were built, at least when I was there last it was pretty depressed and run-down, I'm sure there's better places now. The Kohala-area is where all the resorts are, various hotels clustered together by varying budget types along with wide gentle beaches. Nearby Waikoloa village has a lot of services as Kona is a ways off. Waimea is another work-a-day town, the area is home to Hawaiian cowboys called Paniolos, area also has some really good restaurants away from the tourist-traps...it also sits above 2500' elevation so the weather is different.

Military facility is Kilauea Military Camp (KMC).

My son and daughter in law were there again for Thanksgiving

Snorkeling and/or diving Kealakekua Bay is a must do for me. There are large and small boat tours there, and one could rent a kayak. A drive up to overlook Waipio Valley is a great sight. The rock formations and beach parks on the northeast side of the island are worth visiting. The drive around the island can take about 8 hours. It's worth doing

For eats, there are a lot of great places. I like Roy's Waikoloa Village, Pricey, but good.

Get this book,

https://www.revealedtravelguides.com/

Not your typical travel guide, written by locals. All kinds of practical information like where to find the cheapest gas, snorkel equipment rentals, etc.

Whatever time you plan on spending in Volcanoes, double it. Really a cool place, get out and hike some of the trails. The Kilauea Iki crater trail is really cool. Basically a volcanic crater blown out of the side of the mountain in the rainforest. Hike out onto the lava field at the end of Chain of Craters Road.

Get on a charter boat and do some deep sea fishing out of Kona.

Kona Brewing Company is a great place for beer, food and just to hang and relax.

Drive the Saddle Road. A lot of rental car companies have policies against it so check first. The road is paved with some big pot holes. I drove a Chrysler Sebring convertible over it so it’s not a big deal. There is a dirt road that goes up to the observatories on the summit, that I drove a rented Jeep Wrangler up.

I’ve been to the big island 3 times now and every time see something new. Love to get down there now with the big eruption going on.

We stayed at the Sheraton (now known as the Outrigger Kona Resort) while we were there in 2019

Loved the night Manta Ray snorkel right near the hotel at Keauhou Bay. The Manta rays gathered right in front of the hotel.
https://www.themantasnorkelco....SILswahoCcwUQAvD_BwE


Also did a snorkel boat trip from Keauhou to Capt. James Cook monument

Punaluu Black Sand Beach and the sea turtles

Of course the Volcanoes National Park

Wife really enjoyed the botanical gardens north of Hilo
https://htbg.com/plan-your-visit/#hours-and-rates


And of course, Kona Costco

This message has been edited. Last edited by: 911Boss,

First trip to Hawaii was to the Big Island. Like others have said, I was struck by the differences in landscape you get between the east and west sides of the island. The east (and more NE) were definitely the more lush green that I had envisioned Hawaii to be like. As far as beaches, we did find a decent public beach, Hapuna beach which is near the city of Kawaihae on the west side of the island.

I echo what others have said about experiencing the volcanoes and Hilo. Honestly the vibe I got from the architecture in Hilo was that it would be a great backdrop to a movie set in the 50's or 60's. I wish we could have spent more time than we did there during our trip.

We did a snorkel trip by Fair Winds cruises out of a marina in Kona that took us by the Captain Cook monument. It was well run and overall an enjoyable experience.

For food my recommendations are:

Some fresh malasadas from the Tex Drive-In in Honokaa. I also enjoyed walking around the "downtown" or main street there too FYI.

Umekes Fish Bar and Grill in Kona. Tried poke there for the first time, it was very fresh and flavorful. The rest of my party was not as adventurous but all enjoyed their meals as well.

Big Island Brewhaus in Waimea. We stopped there after dark on the way back from our time in Hilo. It was packed with the locals (not necessarily native) but had a great selection of appetizers and good beer.

Enjoy your trip.