Big Island, OH Road Trips

The youngest and largest island in the Hawaiian chain, the Big Island contains five volcanoes, including Kilauea, one of the world's most active. It is an island with a long coastline of black, volcanic sand beaches where you may see leatherback turtles and a host of other marine life, and a large, sparsely-populated mountainous interior. Hawaii has a relaxed, rural and small-town atmosphere, and even the biggest city, Hilo, is neither very big nor heavily built-up. There are no freeways on the island, speed limits are low and drivers tend to drive under the speed limit. The Kona (west) side of the island, famous for its coffee, is the more touristy and drier side; the lush Hilo/Hamakua Coast (east) side gets about 180 inches of rain annually, the wettest in the 50 states, and is much less touristy, but the rain is often steady rather than torrential and may not last all day. In the interior, there is some great hiking, including the Kilauea Iki Trail in the unique Volcanoes National Park, where you can also safely peer into the caldera of Mt. Kilauea at night and see the lava glowing bright red and starting to solidify into rock as it's exposed to the air; also awaiting you in the interior is the unparalleled experience of viewing the Milky Way and the rest of the night sky from Mauna Kea, one of the clearest and least light-polluted locations in the world, though not without controversy, as many Native Hawaiians consider the Observatory on top of this dormant volcano to be a desecration of a place holy to Pele, the Volcano Goddess.

The Big Island has the usual array of sub-tropical island activities. While the Kona side has a number of white sand beaches, the coastline on the Hilo side tends to be rocky. This is due to the relative age of the coastline. Due to its altitude, latitude, and the lack of interference from city lights, Mauna Kea provides among the best sites on earth for telescopes. You may notice the strange orange and pink hues put out by street lights on the Big Island. They are sodium lights used to ensure that the views from Mauna Kea are unpolluted. Stop at the Visitor Information Station of the Onizuka Center for International Astronomy. They set up several telescopes nightly for the public to enjoy. Volunteers provide programs daily at 6PM, and will answer any questions you have as you look at the unbelievable number of visible stars. Bring a thick jacket and sweater, as the elevation is over 9,200 feet at the Visitor Center and the temperatures can go down to the 20s and 30s with a strong wind chill. The beaches of the Big Island, especially on the Kona side, have been consistently voted amongst the best beaches in the world. Some (like Mauna Kea Beach) front hotel resorts, while others (like Makalawena) remained unencumbered by modern tourism. Hapuna Beach is reputed to be one of the best, consistent with the picture many outsiders have in their head of what a Hawaiian beach should be. The island has one of the few green sand beaches in the world (see above), and several black sand beaches. The Big Island has some fantastic snorkeling.

The Big Island is the only county in Hawaii that has no restrictions on the operation of vacation rentals. Before making reservations, it's best to review a map of the island and plan ahead, thinking about the activities and sightseeing you'll want to do. For those that don't have the budget for large hotels and resorts, there are many less expensive options that are still enjoyable, such as local bed and breakfasts, small hotels, and hostels where you can stay for as little as $35 a night. Camping is also readily available all over the island.

There are two major airports if you are flying into the Big Island, Kona International Airport (KOA IATA) and Hilo International Airport (ITO IATA). There are a few nonstop flights to Kona from the mainland, mostly from California, Denver Airport, Phoenix and Seattle, but it is more common to arrive via Honolulu or Kahului. You should try to get a nonstop flight from the mainland to save time waiting (and walking) around the Honolulu Airport. If you can't find a nonstop flight, consider that Kona's airport is by far busier and requires a lot of time to pass all checkpoints. Hilo's airport has fewer flights, is smaller, so the time between rental drop-off and boarding is much shorter. As of 2023, Hilo no longer has flights from the mainland, and is only served by inter-island flights from Honolulu or Kahului. Southwest Airlines will begin offering direct flights to Hilo from Las Vegas starting on Aug 6, 2026. Inter-island "hoppers" arrive from all the other islands several times a day. Local flights are available through Hawaiian Airlines and Southwest Airlines to the two major airports. These airlines provide frequent service between the islands, largely connecting through Honolulu, although there are some nonstop flights from Kona and Hilo to Kahului, Maui. Mokulele Airlines also operates between Waimea-Kohala Airport (MUE IATA) and Kahului in nine-seat prop planes.

On Big Island, you need a car in order to get to most of the interesting beaches, parks or other attractions, or to travel from the Kona coast to the Hilo coast. Places like the green or black sand beaches, or the Mauna Kea summit and astronomical observatories are only accessible by four-wheel drive. Car rentals tend to book months in advance, depending on the season. If the major rental companies in Kona or Hilo are fully booked, you can still hope to find a used car to rent via Craigslist. These are older cars, most with dings or other cosmetic blemishes, but they don't make you look like a tourist. If you only plan to stay around one town, you can also rent a moped or bike. See Hawaii for moped/scooter regulations. Getting around by local bus, bikes, or on foot works well if you're staying in one area. Many budget travelers are unpleasantly surprised by the extremely limited public transport on the Big Island. The county's Hele-On bus is free until 2025 (Per Hawaii News Now) though the usual is a $2 fare), but the schedules are mainly intended for commuting. There are some bus companies offering excursions from Hilo to destinations like Volcano, but they require reservations. Hitchhiking is extremely easy and convenient on the Big Island. As most places are near the Mamalahoa Highway, you're never too far from a good hitching spot, and even the backstreets will have people willing to pick up a hitchhiker.

Even solidified lava flows can still be very dangerous, as there are hidden flows of molten lava with only an overlying thin crust of rock in many places between Pu'u O'o and the shoreline. And of course there's the threat of methane explosions and lava bench collapses, so do not walk to the edge of the lava bench unless the rangers say it is safe to do so. The usual disclaimers about the more active things to do apply. If you have a tour guide, they often have insurance premiums to be beholden to and as such make them more aware of safety issues. But otherwise the island is mostly remote and help can be far away. Know your physical limits. Prepare for the area you are visiting. The Big Island has 8 of the Earth's 13 climate zones within its boundary, so you will visit many different areas. For instance, you may wear flip flops and bikinis in Kona, however you would want a full coat, boots, long pants and a hat while visiting Mauna Kea. Hawai'i is an ever changing, adapting island chain. It is constantly eroding, creating and changing. Beware of drop offs, sharp edges, water safety and the land and ocean around you in general. As much as you need to keep yourself safe, you need to keep Hawai'i safe as well. Please practice the Leave No Trace principles to make sure everyone can enjoy the islands. It's not only illegal to do things like feed or hassle wildlife, take rocks, sand or plants, but it's also immoral and detrimental to the Hawaiian Islands.