Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Kilauea volcano lies at the center of activity in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. The unassuming bump on Mauna Loa's southeast flank would be easily…
Must-see attractions in Hawaiʻi the Big Island
Maunakea
At 13,796ft in the air, you are above 40% of the atmosphere and 90% of its water vapor – apparently perfect conditions for growing the giant mushroom-like…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
The original Halemaʻumaʻu Overlook off Crater Rim Dr was closed in 2008 due to volcanic activity and the very real threat of death. For the next decade,…
Punaluʻu Black Sand Beach Park
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
Beyond the nearly omnipresent green sea turtles basking in the sun, or the rare hawksbill turtles that lay their eggs here (be careful where you walk),…
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
This legendary beach on Mahana Bay isn't really that green, but it is a rare and beautiful sight. Its color comes from crystals of olivine, the mineral…
Kona Coast
If what you're after is an almost deserted, postcard-perfect scoop of soft, white-sand beach cupping brilliant blue-green waters, head to 'Maks.' Although…
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
Ka Lae, the southernmost point of the Big Island, feels palpably unwelcoming, yet hauntingly peaceful. It is mostly an empty grassland fringed by restless…
Maunakea
On an island with a conspicuous dearth of surface water, tiny Lake Waiʻau's existence on a porous lava mountain is something of an enigma. Hawaiian…
Kona Coast
The water is usually too cloudy for snorkeling at this beautiful hook-shaped beach with a mix of black lava, white coral and wave-tossed shells, but just…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
The gentle, 1.3-mile round-trip to Puʻu Loa (roughly, 'hill of long life') leads to one of Hawaiʻi's largest concentrations of ancient petroglyphs, some…
Kailua-Kona
About 4 miles south of central Kailua-Kona, this small beach (also called White Sands and, officially, Laʻaloa Beach) has turquoise water, great sunsets,…
Kona Coast
This sublime crescent-shaped white-sand beach is fronted by sparkling waters in alternating bands of pale cyan, deeper turquoise, and rich blue. Kua Bay…
Hilo
Arguably Hilo's most beautiful spot, these sprawling Japanese gardens are perfect for picnicking. Named for Hawaii's last queen (r 1891–93), the 30-acre…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
Even among Hawaii's many wonders, this national park stands out. Its two active volcanoes testify to the ongoing birth of the islands: quiet Mauna Loa (13…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
When 'Little Kilauea' burst open in a fiery inferno in November 1959, it filled the crater with a roiling lake of molten rock fed by a 1900ft fountain…
Hilo
Near the end of Kalanianaʻole Ave, this little pocket of black sand is a favorite all-round beach. When calm, the protected waters are popular for…
Hilo
You cannot understand Hilo without knowing its history as a two-time tsunami survivor (1946 and 1960). This museum encompasses only a few rooms, but they…
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
Be sure to get your bearings at the Hwy 11 viewpoint perched on a 1907 lava flow. Commanding views take in Paliʻokulani, the ragged cliff edge jutting out…
Kilauea Visitor Center & Museum
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Stop here first on your visit to Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Extraordinarily helpful (and remarkably patient) rangers and volunteers can advise you…
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
Kahuku Unit's six hiking trails that lead through green pastures to volcanic cinder cones, lava tree molds, rainforests and lava flows come alive during…
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
This down-to-earth, someday-to-be hydro-powered coffee farm roasts its own award-winning beans – the wonderful aroma floors you – which some connoisseurs…
Hilo
Ideal for kids, this spacious beach has a broad, shallow, sandy-bottomed pool, protected by a boulder breakwater. The water is only 1ft to 2ft deep in…
Hilo
For boardsports, this is it: Hilo's only surfing and bodyboarding spot. Locals flock here for the consistent wave action, never mind the rocky beach. Don…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
The world's largest subaerial (above water) volcano, Mauna Loa (Long Mountain) is so massive that you feel its presence more than see it. Even when it…
Kailua-Kona
This palace is a fascinating study in the rapid shift the Hawaiian royal family made from Polynesian god-kings to Westernized monarchs. Here’s the skinny:…
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
Repeatedly a flash-point for coastal-access and land-rights issues, Kawa Bay is now a quiet, pebbly cove. It's bounded by a creek and cliff-top heiau …
Kona Coast
Whether young or old, triathlete or couch potato, everyone appreciates the island's most easy-to-access (and admittedly busy) snorkeling spot. Protected…
Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park
Kona Coast
Just north of Honokohau Harbor, on the ocean side of Hwy 19, this 1160-acre national park may be the Kona Coast's most underappreciated ancient Hawaiian…
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
This high-clearance 4WD road crosses enough ʻaʻa (rough, jagged type of lava) to shake your fillings loose. However, once only for adventurers, these…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
On Kilauea's eastern side, Crater Rim Dr passes through a rainforest thick with tree ferns and ohia trees to the overflowing parking lot for ever-popular…
Maunakea
Mirrors larger than 26.2ft are so heavy that gravity distorts them as they move. Keck's breakthrough design overcame that limitation in 1993 by using a…
Kona Coast
Kekaha Kai (Kona Coast) State Park's largest beach has salt-and-pepper sand, rocky tide pools, shaded picnic tables and pit toilets. Swimming usually isn…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
A wooden boardwalk weaves between misty, rocky vents stained chartreuse, yellow, orange and other psychedelic colors by tons of sulfur-infused steam…
Hawaiʻi the Big Island
Its official name, which translates to 'Immutable Island of Melodious Sound,' perfectly captures the valley's wind and birdsong. Just outside Pahala, you…
Kona Coast
The gorgeous beaches of Kekaha Kai are all the more memorable for being tucked on the far side of a vast desert of unforgiving black lava. This 1600-acre…
Kona Coast
Though obviously artificial (a thin layer of sand laid over concrete is hard on the feet), the beach at Kikaua Point Park is also effortlessly beautiful…
Kailua-Kona
After uniting the Hawaiian Islands in 1810, Kamehameha the Great established the kingdom's royal court in Lahaina on Maui, but he continued to return to…
Kona Coast
Ever popular for weddings, the much-photographed 'Little Blue Church' practically sits in Kahuluʻu Bay. Made of clapboard in the 1880s, with a corrugated…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
A short, 0.8-mile walk down the Mauna Iki trail from the Kaʻu Desert trailhead on Hwy 11 brings you to a field of scattered footprints preserved in…
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
In 1969, eruptions from Kilauea's East Rift Zone began building a new lava shield, Mauna Ulu (Growing Mountain). By the time the flow stopped in 1974, it…
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