question from a reader (pt. 6): hawaii 4-1-1
Dear Heather,My boyfriend and I have decided on Hawaii’s Big Island for our September vacation. While I enjoy doing nothing, he likes activities, so we’re doing a bit of both. Other than the major (and expensive!) stuff (Mauna Kea observatory, Kilauea volcano), what local activities would be cool to check out?
XOXOXOXO!! Ahem, I mean, sincerely,
Rachel
You lucky dogs! I went to Hawaii once, but I was 11 and remember splitting my time between being painfully sunburned and being irritated at my siblings. Let’s see if we can’t send you off to a better time.
Readers, feel free to chime in while I get going on a little research. Check back tomorrow, Rach!
there’s a fantastic luau-type show called The Gathering of the Kings with an amazing spread of food at the Fairmont Orchid past Waikaloa on on the big island. Children’s Beach is great for spotting turtles and “the end of the world” is popular spot for cliff diving (both in and around Kona.) Folks in Hilo tend to come to Kona for entertainment, even though it’s pretty sleepy too. Hapuna Beach (state park) also near Kona is great for lazing around while it also has decent bits of water without too many scary rocks and one of the longer stretches of sandy beach. (Not too many of those stretches on the Big Island - lots of lava rock beaches.)
Go to Maui
I loved the big Island. If you can, stay in Kona, there is lots more easy stuff to do. If you like to hike, you should take a day and go to the green sand beach. Yes, green sand. In the sunlight the water sparkles from the mica chips. Absolutly beautiful. It is however a 2 hour hike to the cliff, where you have an easy climb down to the sand. Its on the sothern most tip of the island. Fromers guide to Hawaii has more info on it.
I was on Maui and the Big Island in March, and I have to say the Big Island was my favorite - more diversity. The best guidebook available is written by a local guy and is called “The Big Island Revealed”- it’s pretty easy to find on Amazon. Kona was nicer than Hilo for beaches and sun, and easy snorkelling. My favorite spot was Hounaunau, or the Place of Refuge - it was some sort of state park. Really fantastic snorkelling and a beach that you shared with locals only.
I also had good luck searching for non-hotel accommodation - we wound up staying somewhere near the National Park in a guest house, with kitchen, on someone’s property. It was much nicer than a condo/hotel, more private, for half the price.
Ahhh. I love, love, LOVE the Big Island.
Check out the Place of Refuge. http://www.nps.gov/puho/ It’s a great place if you like history and like to be able to wander. Lots of sea life live in the lava.
Also, the Waipio Valley is amazing but do not take a rental car down to see it. Take a vehicle only if you have access to 4 wheel drive and an experienced driver. Otherwise, it’s a good hike down the hill but definitely worth it.
Kona has a few nearby beaches that are good for boogie boarding and they’re open to the public.
All of these options are free. Have fun!
I love the Big Island. It is HAWAII. We’re a bit older, so less active. But if I were young I would have: taken that trip up the volcano to the observatory (must bring a parka though), it’s very high and you have to stop 1/2 way and acclimatize to the height. I love the waterfalls on the Hilo side… lovely places to see and take photos. There is an amazing white sand beach that has terrific sunsets… like a movie set - Hapuna (I think). The black sand (really volcanic tiny pebbles, need water shoes) was great and we went snorkling there and saw fantastic fish. The fish came right up to us. AND lastly do a luau at a big hotel because some of them are very cheesey. But don’t do the luau if you don’t want to eat lots of food especially roast pig.
Oh, I forgot to add. There is a terrific place B&B in Captain Cook on the Kona side towards the volcano national park. Definitely go there and see it. Plus there is a bird refuge across from the volcano park that was fantastic. If you want a romantic place to stay and money isn’t a problem, stay near the volcanos at Chateau Kilahua Collection. They have a boutique hotel plus several individual cabins. We had a romantic cabin and it was fantastic with a lava wall shower with a glass wall overlooking a wooded ferned grotto.
If you can, rent a Jeep or likewise 4wd and drive around on some of the tours offered in the pretty handy guidebook Hawaii: The Big Island Revealed by Andrew Doughty. I find that the Kona side has more tourist-y activities but many of the good off-the-beaten-path scenery stuff is on the Hilo side. The tidepools at Vacationland (aka Wai’opae Ponds) are good for snorkeling especially if you’ve never snorkeled before. And try to get a snorkeling tour that goes to or around Cook’s monument — very cool.
My favorite snorkel trip out to Kealakekua Bay (where the Cook monument stands) is through Captain Kris and Sea Hawaii Rafting, but you have to be OK with fast boats. If you will have a car, go up to Teshima’s for sukiyaki. The Farmer’s Markets (I can’t recall which happens on which day, but there are at least three different big ones - two on Ali’i Drive, which is the main road through Kailua-Kona) are always fun and wonderful, especially if you have a kitchenette or somewhere to store fruit. Get some rambutan (fruit) if you’ve never had it before - they’re delicious.