Every Hawaiian Island has unique landscapes and adventures to be had, and the Big Island of Hawaii is no exception. We like to refer to the Big Island of Hawaii as “The Bucket List Island”. There are SO many once in a lifetime experiences here it is hard to believe that this place is real! From it’s unique landscapes like a Green Sand Beach, to it’s active Volcanoes to swimming with Manta Rays, this island is so special.
We often have heard that people skip the Big Island to spend their entire vacation in Oahu, Maui or Kauai. And don’t get us wrong, we LOVE all of those Islands. We absolutely believe that if you have time in your Itinerary, you should squeeze in a few days on the Big Island for some unforgettable adventures.
In this blog post we are going to show you why we fell in love with this Island. We are going to share with you our favorite places to stay, best restaurants and the best things to do!
Let’s get started!
Best Time to Visit the Big Island:
Dry Season
March to September are the months where the Islands of Hawaii see the least rain fall and the warmest temperatures. These months also tend to have little swell, meaning the ocean is more calm and beaches are more accessible.
Wet Season
October to February are the months where there tends to be more consistent rainfall and temperatures can be cooler. These months have a larger swell which means some beaches will not be safe to access and some boat adventures may be cancelled due to large waves.
We visited in December and January and we has a few days of rain, and some snow on the mountains on Big Island. But we also had some great, warm sunny weather!
How to Get to the Big Island
There are a few ways to get to the Big Island of Hawaii depending on your Hawaii trip itinerary. Keep in mind that there are two main airports on the Big Island. There is the Kailua -Kona airport which is on the east side of the island in Kona. There is also the Hilo Airport located on the west side of the Island in Hilo.
Our best advice is to fly into the airport closest to your hotel. The driving distance between Kona and Hilo is about 2 Hours one way. This is the BIG island so keep that in mind when planning your itinerary here.
Direct Flight from Mainland USA
LAX offers direct flights to the Big Island of Hawaii to both Kailua-Kona and Hilo Airports. However, the Kailua-Kona Airport offers a larger variety of Airlines that offer direct flights, meaning the prices are usually cheaper here.
Inter-island Flight
If you are starting your Hawaii adventure on another Hawaiian Island, then you can book a short inter-island flight via Hawaiian Airlines. Flights from Hawaiian Island to Hawaiian Island tend to be on the cheap side ($30-$90 one way) and they are 40 minutes or less. These flights can be booked via Hawaiian Airlines.
Best Way To Get Around the Big Island
The absolute best way to get around the Island is by a rental car. The Big Island was properly named, and it requires quite a bit of driving if you want to explore all of the best things this Island has to offer. Although there are tour companies you can use to get around to specific locations, we highly recommend renting a care to be able to make your own itinerary.
We rented a car through Expedia and were shuttled to the Rental Lot from the Airport Arrivals door. From there we started our adventure!
If you are looking to drive up to the summit of Mauna Kea (more on that later) you will need a 4WD Vehicle and Rental Car Companies do not provide insurance if you plan on going up there. There is one Rental Car company on the Island that provides cars for this purpose, visit their site here!
Places To Stay on the Big Island
There are a few different “hotel” areas on the Island. Where you stay will depend on the activities you are looking to experience and the places you want to see. We recommend staying either in the Kona area or Hilo area as those are the most central to a lot of activities and tourist sites.
Budget
SCP Hotel – Hilo
This hotel is recently renovated and is very budget friendly. They are a health and wellness focused facility. On arrival you get a glass of Kombucha on Tap complimentary as you check in. They have an outdoor pool with sun loungers. The hotel has a Peloton Bike in their fitness center, and have a very cute lounge area in the lobby with complimentary coffee all day long! The hotel is located right near downtown Hilo, meaning it is a quick walk or drive over to restaurants and shops.
Mid-Range to Luxury
Outrigger Kona Resort
This is one of the most iconic Resorts on the Island. The white hotel towers stand tall on the cliffs in Kona where the waves crash against the Volcanic rock below. This Resort is expansive, has an adult only pool and family pool equipped with a water slide. Part of the family friendly pool has a sand bottom and beach perfect for kids! There are a few restaurants on site, some of which were under renovations during our visit so stay tuned for when those open because they are going to be incredible!
Outrigger Kona offers a Feast and Fire Luau a few nights a week. We highly recommend adding this Luau to your itinerary during your visit on the Big Island! This show was SO good. The dancers and fire dancers were incredible. We also loved every dish they served during dinner, and every ticket includes an open bar!
Four Seasons Resort Hualalai
A Four Seasons property is iconic no matter which part of the world you are visiting. Located directly on a white sand beach, this property is so beautiful. From their stunning rooms, to 5 gourmet restaurants, to their grounds which includes a very dreamy pool, this Resort is worth the splurge!
Things to Do on the Big Island
As we said earlier, the Big Island is truly an island of once in a lifetime and bucket-list experiences! Here are things we think you can’t miss if you visit the Big Island.
A Night Swim With Manta Rays
WOW. This was a once in a lifetime experience. Truly. This is one of the only places in the entire world where you can swim with Manta Rays in the wild and they do “barrel rolls” beneath you during their feedings. This tour requires comfort in deep ocean water but does not require you to swim much at all. The tour guides provide you with a pool noodle to place under your hips or ankles, and you hold onto a floating board. And that is it! You float and watching the magical show beneath you.
The tour takes place at dusk and is located right off the shoreline of Outrigger Kona Resort. We did this while staying at the Outrigger and it was less than 2 minutes to walk to the dock to meet our tour guide. Our tour was scheduled for 8pm. We got extremely lucky as our tour happened to be in between other tour groups. Once we entered the water, they lit a floating board and we had 5 Manta Rays, ranging from 12-15 feet wide swimming beneath us.
We can hands down say this is one of our favorite experiences we have EVER had on any trip we have taken. We cannot recommend this enough!
Volcanoes National Park
This is a bucket list National Park for many, including us! Big Island is home to the largest Volcano in the world which also measures taller than Mount Everest from the ocean floor!
You can walk along lava fields from previous eruptions, adventure through Lava Tubes and marvel at the size of these Volcanoes! We were very fortunate to have an active eruption during our visit to the Big Island. We visited at sunset which we HIGHLY recommend. The glow of the freshly erupted Lava with the sun setting was so beautiful.
Make sure you get to the park early if you are visiting at sunset as this is a very popular time to hike the Devastation Trail (taking you to see the Eruption) and parking fills up quickly.
Visit A Black Sand Beach
There are only approximately 20 Black Sand beaches in the entire world. A few of them are on the Big Island, so why not check that off your bucket-list during your visit! We visited Punaluʻu beach, which is one of the most famous black sand beaches in Hawaii. It is absolutely stunning and is a great place to spend some time soaking up the sun! It does get quite busy so arrive early to get a spot!
Watch The sunrise at the summit of Mauna kea
Mauna Kea is the highest point in the state of Hawaii and second-highest peak of an island on Earth! If you measured from the ocean floor, Mauna Kea is actually taller than Mount Everest! The road to the summit is open 24/7 and is a great spot to watch the sunrise! There is also some amazing star gazing from the summit if you are looking to visit later at night.
Mauna Kea summit is only reachable via 4WD vehicle in the winter months so keep that in mind if you are visiting during the winter!
Hike to the green sand beach
The Green Sand Beach aka Papakōlea Beach is one of four known green sand beaches in the world (the other three are in Guam, Norway, and the Galapagos). It is quite the adventure to reach this beach but we can confirm that it is worth it!
You can either pay locals cash to drive you down to this beach in their trucks OR you can hike from the parking lot to the Green Sand Beach. It is a 5.6 Mile out and back trail. If you are going to hike this trail, make sure you bring plenty of water, some food and a hat. We recommend hiking this trail in the morning as it gets very hot late in the afternoon and there are no trees for shade.
Visit Akaka Falls state Park
This is hands down one of the easiest hikes to a water fall we have ever done and it is very picturesque! From the parking lot, it is a 0.4 mile loop paved trail that is relatively flat with just a few stairs. Get here early to avoid crowds, as its gets very busy given how accessible it is.
See Rainbow Falls
This is another very beautiful waterfall that is very accessible. It is a short walk from the parking lot to the lookout of Rainbow Falls. It is a quick stop and you should definitely make time on your Hilo itinerary to stop here!
Explore Kaumana Caves
Kaumana Caves is a hidden gem on the Big Island that we stumbled on by luck. These caves are actually Lava Tubes from the 1881 eruption of Moana Loa. We recommend bringing a headlamp or flashlight if you plan on walking into the caves at all as they are very dark!
Places to Eat on the Big Island
The Fish Hopper
The Fish Hopper is located in downtown Kona and came highly recommended and had great reviews. We had a great lunch here. They have award winning Chowder and Jake loved it! This restaurant has great ocean views and is very casual. We definitely recommend a stop here.
Da Poke Shack
This small grab and go Poke Shack in Kona is the perfect place for a quick bite to eat. We loved the variety of Poke here and it was reasonably priced. This place gets packed, can have long lines at peak times and can run out by late afternoon. Make sure to plan your visit here on a weekday and be prepared to wait!
Pineapples
This open air restaurant is located in downtown Hilo and was on the best portions we got on any Hawaiian Island. They have large menu with a variety of dishes to appeal to every palate. We had the Poke Tower Starter and it was SO good!
Jackie Reys
This was our favorite restaurant on the Big Island hands down. They have two locations, one in Kona and one in Hilo. We ate at the location in Hilo. The food here was incredible, the service was excellent and the atmosphere is so modern and cool. They have live music in the evenings certain nights of the week. We had the Pupu Platter to start and we loved every single thing on there. Jake raves about the Ribs to this day. Jake had the Pork Chop and I had the Risotto. Both dishes were to DIE for and we think you 100% need to eat here.
Moon and turtle
This restaurant has been voted the best restaurant on the Big island. It is a Asian Fusion restaurant. We did not get to eat here but wanted to share it with you because it is so highly reviewed and came recommended by SO many. Make sure you get a reservation for this restaurant as they do not take walk ins at the time we are writing this. This was our mistake, we don’t want you to make it too!
Things To Pack For The Big Island of Hawaii
My Tiare Hawaii outfits are my absolute favorite thing to wear! They are island inspired outfits that are super cute and very comfortable. You can shop some of my favorite pieces below!
Final Thoughts
The Big Island of Hawaii is truly special. There are so many amazing once in a lifetime and bucket list experiences to have here, that we feel you cannot miss visiting this Island.
We hope that you found this blog post helpful and we would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Pin This Blog Post For Later
Before you leave, make sure you Pin this blog post for future trip planning!
