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The Big Island is the youngest and largest of the Hawaiian islands and one of the most varied. On the east side where the island's capital city of Hilo is located, are exotic orchid farms and plunging waterfalls. On the drier, west side of the island of the Kona-Kohala coast, visitors will find sunny, deserted beaches, barren lava fields and big-game fishing. Although the Big Island does not draw the large number of visitors that visit Maui, few Big Island visitors who take an interest in the island's rich history and volcanic beginnings are likely to leave disappointed.
Getting to the Big Island
There are three airlines with direct flights to the Big Island from the U.S. mainland: United Airlines, Trans-World Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines. Hawaiian Air flies from Los Angeles to Kona International Airport, on the Big Island's west side, via Maui. United and TWA have flights from several U.S. cities.
Kona International Airport and Hilo International Airport, on the island's east side, both handle interisland flights, and one option is to fly to Honolulu on O'ahu and then connect to the Big Island. There are more flights to O'ahu than to the Big Island. American carriers with frequent flights to the Islands include American, Continental, Delta, and Northwest and Airlines.
Big Island's two other airports, Upolo Airport and Waimea-Kohala Airport, don't normally handle commercial flights, but charters might be available.
Getting to and from the airport
For Kona Airport, the only public transportation available is a bus that runs once a day and leaves the airport around 7 a.m. It serves most parts of the island. The SpeediShuttle runs more frequently and takes passengers to Kona and other places on the west coast. The SpeediShuttle serves the Kona Airport only.
From Hilo Airport, there is no public transportation or shuttle service available.
Rental cars are available at both airports. Traffic is usually not a problem on the Big Island, and the main highway — Highway 11 — connects both airports with the most popular spots. There is plenty of free parking everywhere.
At both airports, taxi cabs usually wait on the curb right outside of the baggage claim area. Paradise Taxi, 329-1234, and D&E Taxi, 329-4279, are a couple of the major companies serving the Kona Airport. The fare to Kona is about $25 and to Waikola about $45. For the Hilo Airport, A1 Bob's, 959-4800, and Percy's Taxi, 969-7060, are among the biggest taxi companies. The fare to Hilo is about $10.
The following car rental companies are open seven days a week and have counters at the Hilo airport.
Alamo: 961-3343, 1-800-327-9633. Open 6 a.m.-8 p.m.
Avis: 935-1290, 1-800-331-1212. Open 6 a.m.-8:30 p.m.
Budget: 935-6878, 1-800-527-0700. Open 6 a.m.-8 p.m.
Dollar: 961-6059, 1-800-800-4000. Open 6 a.m.-9 p.m.
Hertz: 935-2896, 1-800-654-3131. Open 6 a.m.-8:30 p.m.
National: 935-0891, 1-800-227-7368. Open 6 a.m.-8 p.m.
There are budget bargains both on the Kona Coast and on the Hilo side as well as a few up in cattle country near Waimea.
In addition, the state's premier mega-resorts are on the Kohala Coast, north of the village of Kailua-Kona
Bargain
The following offer reasonebly priced lodging, and are listed by location going counter-clockwise around the island, starting at Kailua-Kona in west.
Kailua-Kona:
The Kona Bay Hotel
The Kona White Sands
The Kona Islander Inn
The Kona Billfisher
Kalanikai
Captain Cook village:
Manago, 323-3451
Naalehu:
The Shirakawa Hotel, email: shiraka@hialoha.net
Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park:
The old Volcano House, 967-8429
The Country Goose
My Island B&B Inn
Hilo:
The Dolphin Bay Hotel
The Hilo Bay Hotel
Honokaa:
Hotel Honokaa, 775-0678
The Waipio Ridge Vacation Rental
Waimea:
The Kamuela Inn
Holualoa:
The Kona Hotel, 324-1155, offers the same 11 frill-less rooms it has had since 1926. All bathrooms are down the hall. Rates were still $20 single, and $26-$30 double at last report.
Premium
The following mega-resorts on the Kohala Coast offer some of Hawai'i's top lodging.
The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel
The Mauna Lani Bay
The Orchid Hotel
The Hilton Waikoloa Village, where guests take a boat or a train from the lobby to their rooms. It’s also known for its resident pod of dolphins.
The Four Seasons Resort
The Kona Village Resort, where guests stay in one of a series of grass-roofed Polynesian-inspired huts, equipped with almost every luxury except telephones and televisions.
Seeing the Big Island
Among the most popular attractions is the Mauna Kea volcano — the world's tallest volcano and the world's biggest active volcano — which last erupted in 1984. The volcano is part of the Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, to which several tour companies take visitors. Other popular attractions include sugarcane and coffee plantations, a macadamia nut factory, Waipio Valley, and the waterfall-rich Waimanu Valley. Also, the Big Island actually offers skiing and snowboarding, along with waterskiing and surfing.
One of the most popular tour companies is Roberts Hawaii. Other companies also offer specialized tours, such as helicopter tours and scenic tours.
On the Big Island, no grown-up should think of going to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park without taking the youngsters along. There’s plenty to see and do, and if they’re over six or so, they just may remember it for the rest of their lives.
The following is a list of top tourist targets.
Hulihe'e Palace at Kailua-Kona
Moku'aikaua Church
Kailua Wharf
Ahu'ena Heiau and Kamakahonu
Kealakekua Bay and the Hikiau Heiau
Pu'uhonua O Honaunau (City of Refuge)
St. Benedicts, the Painted Church
Punalu'u Black Sand Beach
Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park
Lava Tree State Park
The Banyan Drive (City of Hilo)
Suisan Fish Market
Wailoa State Park and Visitor Center
Lyman Mission House and Museum
Rainbow Falls
The Hawai'i Tropical Botanical Garden
'Akaka Falls State Park
Waipi'o Valley
Villages of Kamuela and Waimea
The Parker Ranch Visitor Center
The Kamuela Museum
Kamehameha Statue at Kapa'au
Pu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site
Spencer Beach Park
Hapuna Beach
Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway
'Anaeho’omalu Bay
