Historic Ahu' ena Heiau Temple in Kamakahou Bay Kona, Hawaii 330044978 roof, beach, tropical, architecture, sacred, temple, dwelling, polynesian, culture, landmark, bay, house, lava, thatched, port, hawaii, structure, traditional, building, hut, ocean, harbor, historic, kona, kamakahou, cruise, trees, ship, palm, ahuena, heiau

©Steve Bower/Shutterstock

Ahuʻena Heiau

Kailua-Kona

LoginSave

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 the Big Island. After a couple of years, he restored this sacred site as his personal retreat and temple (which now sits adjacent to a hotel). Notice the towering carved kiʻi (deity) image with a golden plover atop its helmet: these long-distance flying birds may have helped guide the first Polynesians to Hawaii.

When Kamehameha I died at Ahuʻena Heiau on May 8, 1819, his body was prepared for burial here. In keeping with ancient Hawaiian tradition, the king's bones were secreted elsewhere, hidden so securely no one has ever found them (though some theorists point to a cave near Kaloko Fishpond).

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Makalawena Beach on Big Island Hawaii, USA, a beautiful remote white sand beach and turquoise water.; Shutterstock ID 1583199166; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI 1583199166

    Makalawena Beach

    10.79 MILES

    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…

  • The ruins of the major Hawaiian temple at the Pu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site, Big Island, Hawaii 350300948 abandoned, ancient, beautiful, big, blue, brown, building, cloud, destination, destroyed, exterior, famous, fort, grass, hawaii, heiau, historic, history, island, landmark, landscape, lava, national, nature, oceania, old, outdoors, park, place, polynesian, protection, pu'ukohola, puukohola, religion, remote, rock, rough, rugged, ruin, scenic, shrine, simplicity, site, sky, spirituality, stone, structure, temple, texture, tourism, travel, vibrant, wall, weathered

    Puʻukohola Heiau National Historic Site

    29.11 MILES

    By 1790 Kamehameha the Great had conquered Maui, Lanaʻi and Molokaʻi. But power over his home island of Hawaiʻi was a challenge. When told by a prophet…

  • A thatched canoe house in Kaloko-Honokokau National Historical Park. 1196591794 beaches, big island, canoe house, clean, clear, halau wa'a, hawaii, hawaiian islands, honokohau beach, island of hawai'i, kaloko-honokokau national historical park, kona district, landscape, lush, outdoor, pacific ocean, pristine, scenic, sea, water, waterfall

    Honokohau Beach

    2.91 MILES

    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…

  • CAPTAIN COOK, HI, USA - DEC, 2020 Hookena Beach Park. aerial view from drone . High quality photo 1746913263 african american, beautiful, big island, black, caucasian, coast, grey sand, group, happy, holiday, landscape, mixed race, natural, ocean, ordinary people, outdoor, rugged, shore, tourists, tropical, u.s.a., vacation, wave, white, wild, hawaii, aerial

    Hoʻokena Beach Park

    18.98 MILES

    This modest, charcoal-colored beach is backed by a steep green hillside. When calm, the bay's waters are good for swimming, kayaking and snorkeling …

  • United States, Hawaii, Big Island,

    Magic Sands Beach

    3.55 MILES

    About 4 miles south of central Kailua-Kona, this small beach (also called White Sands and, officially, Laʻaloa Beach) has turquoise water, great sunsets,…

  • Maniniowali Beach - Kua Bay, Big Island, Hawaii; Shutterstock ID 1467691745; purchase_order: 65050; job: ; client: ; other: 1467691745

    Kua Bay

    11.79 MILES

    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…

  • Coffee berries, close-up 1150294125 coffee, coffee bean, coffee plantation, cultivation, green, hawaii

    Kona Coffee Living History Farm

    11.6 MILES

    Many coffee-farm tours are perfunctory 15-minute affairs. This tour, run by the Kona Historical Society, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institute, is…

  • Hapuna Beach State Park, Big Island, Hawaii 111258845 beach, beautiful, beauty, big, blue, calm, clean, cliff, cloud, coast, hapuna, hawaii, hawaiian, holiday, horizon, island, kona, landscape, nature, ocean, paradise, park, picturesque, recreation, relaxation, resort, rock, sand, sandy, scenery, scenic, sea, seascape, shore, sky, stone, summer, sunny, sunshine, tourism, tourist, tranquil, transparent, travel, tropic, tropical, turquoise, vacation, water, white

    Hapuna Beach State Recreation Area

    26.73 MILES

    Hapuna Beach is world famous for its magnificent half-mile sweep of white powder sand and fabulously clear waters. In summer, waves are calm and allow…

View more attractions

Nearby Kailua-Kona attractions

1. Kailua Pier

0.03 MILES

Kailua Bay was once a major cattle-shipping area, where animals were stampeded into the water and forced to swim to steamers waiting to transport them to…

2. Kamakahonu Beach

0.05 MILES

Kailua-Kona's only swimmable in-town beach is this teeny-tiny strand between Kailua Pier and Ahuʻena Heiau, where ocean waters are calm and usually safe…

3. Herb Kane Paintings

0.1 MILES

Step inside King Kamehameha's Kona Beach Hotel, just next to to Ahuʻena Heiau, to view historical paintings and a mural by legendary artist and Hawaiian…

4. Huliheʻe Palace

0.19 MILES

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:…

5. Mokuʻaikaua Church

0.22 MILES

Completed in 1836, this church is a handsome building with walls of lava rock held together by sand and coral-lime mortar. The posts and beams, hewn with…

6. Hale Halawai Park

0.34 MILES

This county park serves as a very minor green lung breathing a little bit of oxygen into an adjacent three-way intersection on Ali'i Drive. Beyond a nice…

7. Old Kona Airport State Recreation Area

0.99 MILES

Visitors often overlook this quiet park, located a mile from downtown. It's a grand spot for picnicking, jogging and fishing. The beach area is studded…

8. Honl's Beach

1.07 MILES

If you're an avid bodyboarder, Honl's, also known as Waiʻaha ('Gathering Water'), may feel like a historical pilgrimage. It was here, in 1971, that Tom…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting: 
    {
  "url": "usa/hawaii/kailua-kona/attractions/ahu-ena-heiau/a/poi-sig/454229/1337517",
  "destination": "Kailua-Kona",
  "continent": "North-America",
  "country": "USA",
  "region": "Hawaii",
  "city": "Kailua-Kona",
  "position": "superzone"
}