Day trip to Volcano National Park - Questions

[julesthecircusfreak]

Hello everyone. We are going to Aulani at the end of May/beginning of June and staying for 2 weeks. Under normal circumstances, I never would have imagined going to Hawaii (this will be my first trip) and staying at Aulani for maybe more than 2 nights even though we are DVC members. It's just not how I ever envisioned seeing Hawaii (we definitely always planned more on seeing multiple islands). But with COVID, it seemed the most responsible and safest thing to do would be to stay in the one place and not travel from place to place. This may be the last time we can do a trip like this in awhile due to work life (I'm a medical student and have my last real vacation time for awhile after I take a big exam in May), which is why we're doing it now. All of this being said, we are incredibly excited for our Aulani stay and will explore everything Oahu has to offer (we've rented a car for the 2 weeks).

One of the things that we still would really like to do is visit Volcano National Park on the big island. We have looked into doing day tours, but between being on a tour bus with potentially many other people and the lack of flexibility of doing things on our own once we actually get to the Volcanos (for instance, there are many hikes we'd want to try but it seems the day tours are very specific in what you can do once you get there) and also the other stops along the way (I'm allergic to nuts and DO NOT want to go to a macadamia nut factory), it seems the best way we can do this is to do it on our own.

I know that this likely means getting up super early and heading to the airport for a flight and then renting a vehicle on the big island for the day. As of right now it also seems we'd have to get another COVID test within 72 hrs of the day trip. Has anyone attempted to do this under normal/COVID conditions? Can you tell us your experience/what you did? Any advice? TIA!

 

[JC1984]

If it were me I would do 2 days at VNP so much to see and explore. A day trip from Oahu would feel incredibly rushed and would not seem fun to me. I would fly in early one day and leave late the following day. You definitely want to be at VNP during darkness to see the caldera at night.

 

[abdgeek]

If you decide to do this, I second the OPs recommendation of leaving early from Oahu and spending the night so that you have two days to explore VNP. Make sure you fly into Hilo and not KOA so that you are closer to VNP without having to drive 2 hours to get there. Also make sure that you reserve your rental car ahead of time. You may also want to visit the black sand beach and Akaka Falls while you are there. If you decide to spend the night, Hilo accommodations are very basic. Good luck with your decision.

 

[monsterkitty]

Like the others say I would not do this as a day trip as there is too much to see. I would cut my Oahu trip short at least by two days, possibly three.

Fly into Hilo and rent a car. Stay at a bed and breakfast outside the park so that it's easy to drive up after dinner to see the caldera at night. We stayed at the Kilauea Lodge and Restaurant and it was gorgeous! 5 minutes from the park so it was easy to run from the B&B to the park and around part of the crater. The run was beautiful with the glow but horrible with the smell haha.

VNP is not a park you can truly see within the confines of a tour. The tour will just get you sucked in and you'll be booking a trip to the Big Island as soon as you get home.

 

[ChanaC]

I haven’t been yet, but there seems to be a ton to do on the Big Island. Besides VNP there is the black sand beach, waterfalls, coffee farms, cultural and historic sites, etc. maybe consider spending a few days before or after Oahu? I know I’m someone who gets stressed easily and if I tried flying in and out in one day all I would be thinking about is the traffic and the return flight and I know I wouldn’t be able to really enjoy the day.

 

[Great3]

The thing you need to consider about a day trip or 2 days overnight stay, as you previously mentioned, you may need to get COVID tested twice at Oahu and Big Island. For me, I wouldn't do a day trip, I will just start at Oahu or Big Island, and than go over to the other island and fly home from there without the return back and forth between Oahu and Big Island. I know you don't think you can do another big trip later, many medical personnel needs and gets vacation too!!! I think you will be back to Hawaii sooner than you think That's what happened to me, I thought Hawaii would be a one time and done kind of trip, but ended going every year since my first time there, other than 2020 due to COVID.

But I get the want to try and fit everything in at once. Definitely, do not do the tour, it won't fit your needs. Good Luck on whatever you end up deciding to do.

Great3

 

[floribr1]

In terms of avoiding a second Covid test, the easiest would be to fly directly to the Big Island (from the mainland), and then finish the trip in Oahu. There is no requirement for a test when travelling inter-island to Oahu from any of the other Hawaiian islands.

 

[CarolynFH]

I can’t comment on the COVID-19 testing, but I would also endorse a two-day trip to the volcano if you can swing it. There are places to stay in the town of Volcano as well as Hilo. For the best nighttime views of the caldera, though, try to stay at Volcano House inside the national park, in a caldera-view room!

 

[JC1984]

There are some nice AirBnB rentals right outside VNP that are reasonable.

 

[blabadie]

In terms of avoiding a second Covid test, the easiest would be to fly directly to the Big Island (from the mainland), and then finish the trip in Oahu. There is no requirement for a test when travelling inter-island to Oahu from any of the other Hawaiian islands.

I would second this recommendation. This limits your testing to just the initial trans-Pacific testing requirement that you would have to do regardless of island hopping.

 

[monsterkitty]

I can’t comment on the COVID-19 testing, but I would also endorse a two-day trip to the volcano if you can swing it. There are places to stay in the town of Volcano as well as Hilo. For the best nighttime views of the caldera, though, try to stay at Volcano House inside the national park, in a caldera-view room!

I second Volcano House. We stayed there about 7 years ago and loved it. Unfortunately last time we went it was closed because the volcano was too active. If you do make a reservation at Volcano House have a back up plan in case they have to close it.

 

[JC1984]

I second Volcano House. We stayed there about 7 years ago and loved it. Unfortunately last time we went it was closed because the volcano was too active. If you do make a reservation at Volcano House have a back up plan in case they have to close it.

That’s why we got an AirBnB. We were super close to the park and were able to go back at night to see the caldera glow.

 

[morrik5]

Also be aware, that if you fly over to the Big Island, there is a possibility of plane break-down and a delay in returning back to Oahu. That happened to our daughter when they booked that tour and the confusion in the way things were handled with the return delay, ruined a portion of their honeymoon and another event they had planned for the next day.

 

[pjacobi]

There is always a certain amount of unknown when visiting VNP. If there is no volcanic activity, you may be disappointed. If there is too much volcanic activity, the park will close for safety reasons. Even the airport could close leaving you stranded on the Big Island. Volcanic dust is *extremely* harmful to jet engines.

I visited during the last eruption, but my reservation a Volcano House were cancelled. I did get a spectacular helicopter tour and boat tour of lava entering the ocean.

It is best to be flexible in your plans.


-Paul

 

[JC1984]

The Big Island is my favorite Island in Hawaii. I could spend an entire vacation there. So much to do and see. Green Sand Beach is another must see.

 

[nkereina]

In terms of avoiding a second Covid test, the easiest would be to fly directly to the Big Island (from the mainland), and then finish the trip in Oahu. There is no requirement for a test when travelling inter-island to Oahu from any of the other Hawaiian islands.

This would also be my suggestion. We fly from the east coast and to fly anywhere other than Honolulu often means we'd have to have two layovers, but I think that's easiest to deal with on the way there. You're excited to get to Hawaii and tend to have more patience with the travel. On the way home, I'm depressed and exhausted and just want to get home. I also like taking care of the business stuff (travel, hotel check ins, rental car pick up) near the start of the trip and not have to deal with those things again until I leave. So, these would just be other advantages for me in addition to only having to get the one covid test right now.

 

[wassily]

Traveling around Big Island is different from Oahu because.. well the island is much bigger.
If you are limited in time and priority is the Volcano National Park, then you are looking at limited housing near VNP.... or go further out to Hilo.
Staying at Kona won't help as it will take many hours to drive to VNP from there. We did a 1 full day trip to VNP from Kona and while fun... it was exhausting and we were even young adults at the time.
If you are traveling with kids, I would recommend not doing that.

If you are very limited on time, take a helicopter tour.