Information on the a visit to the Big island

[ffindis]

Hello All,
On our next trip to Hawaii we are exploring going to the Big Island. For people who have spent time there:
Do you need a car?
Are there private tour companies with whom you've had good experiences ?
Has anyone stayed at the Fairmont Orchard? What was your experience there?
Any information would be really helpful.
Thanks

 

[pks_domer]

Tons of fun stuff to do on the Big Island. I can't fathom doing it without a car, but then, I've never tried to do it via a tour company. We tend to prefer the flexibility to go where/when we want for something like that, and frankly, some of the things we like to see, I wouldn't want to go with a big group (I mean, there will be people everywhere anyway, but I can't imagine hiking with a group of 30 people to the green sand beach or the path to go snorkel at Kealakekua, for example). It's also big enough that we have at times stayed at multiple hotels per trip, so as to have more time in certain parts of the island (Volcanoes NP, as an example).

 

[ffindis]

I wasn't actually thinking of a big tour company. We got a small private tour while staying in Oahu that was really amazing. A local came and picked us up at the hotel and took us took some of the big tourist places and then some other lesser known beaches and hikes.

 

[pks_domer]

I wasn't actually thinking of a big tour company. We got a small private tour while staying in Oahu that was really amazing. A local came and picked us up at the hotel and took us took some of the big tourist places and then some other lesser known beaches and hikes.

Ah yeah, that makes sense. It's been a while since we've been, so hopefully somebody with more recent experience weighs in. The "revealed" books used to be pretty great, but then the word has continued to get out about them and the lesser known stuff became, well, more known. The only time I've worked with a local was for a sunrise tour of the lava flows into the ocean. We also booked time with a dive shop to do a manta ray night dive (we didn't see any, but still had awesome dives). The rock carvings at Kaloko were cool. The Hilo side and Kona side are so different-- almost feel like different islands. I think it'd be fun to do the smaller local guide as you suggested. You can still have a great time without it, but having somebody who knows it well would be fun.

 

[FrannyFrogs]

We had a private tour of the national park with Big Island VIP tours in July. I can recommend them! Our only issue... I had the impression from the website that it was a husband and wife operation and both had a science background. All week on the big island my science loving husband and kids were asking questions and I was like, save that question for our tour with a naturalist!

So the morning of the tour (4:30am?) The guide pulls up right on time and he's a twenty year old surfer dude "heyyyyyyy". He did not know any of the answers to the volcano chemistry questions etc that we had. But he was great bringing us to all the best spots and he took lots of good photos! Partway through we intersected with another tour his boss was leading, and I could tell from the 5 minutes we heard him talking, he was the naturalist guide I'd been hoping for. Ah well.

All that to say, I recommend that company, and if you have a specific type of guide in mind, put in a request!

 

[loves to dive]

We spent a week diving there about 10 years ago. Didn't see much of island since we were doing 3 dives a day. We had planned on taking our last day off and going to the volcano (which we couldn't do while we were diving because of the altitude) but I got sick. The volcano is actively erupting right now so there are probably places you can't go. We did rent a truck since the dive operation we used was not near our hotel. We did do the night manta dive, which was actually the only reason we went to Hawaii since the diving there is not the best but we had been to Palau and I didn't get to see any mantas there and I wanted to. The night dive was full of mantas, there were 3 or 4 other boats there, all anchored a little distance away. Hubby got some decent video, I didn't get any still shots because I kept getting bumped. We had one follow us back to our boat, we are guessing because of the lights on hubby's camera. The side of the island we were on was very dessert like.

 

[SteveH]

We stayed at the Royal Kona, really enjoyed the location and the hotel. Left the door open at night and enjoyed the surf crashing against the lava rock wall. Some great food options right in the area around the Royal Kona - if/when we go back we'd stay there again as I'm not a big fan of super fancy hotels - the Royal had some wonderful personality to it.

We drove up north to have lunch at Lava Lave Beach Club and explore the area, another day we drove down to the City of Refuge (high recommend) and another day we drove overland to Hilo, then to the Volcanoes National Park, then around to the Kona side - was wonderful seeing so much of the Island and the change in the plant life. The rain hit on the way back and we were laughing for miles seeing it flood down the side of the mountain - was happy we had a Jeep that day and got our top back on.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

You need a car.

 

[jimmymc]

I definitely recommend a car. The major sites around the island are all easy to drive to and park at.

 

[pjacobi]

After a recent large eruption at Mauna Loa, there are no longer any volcanic eruptions happening on the Big Island. When eruptions are happening, the site of flowing lava is really amazing. It is also possible that an eruption could force the closure of the airports.

There is always unpredictability with a visit to the Big Island.


-Paul

 

[Lumpy1106]

Nice thing about the Big Island is there is A LOT to see. I get a little island fever on Oahu - too many people, not enough space. That's not the case on the Big Island. I've always preferred the Kailua-Kona side (as opposed to Hilo) but yes, you will need a car, and yes, see both sides if time allows. Not sure what is open right now in Volcano N.P. due to the recent activity. Currently it is quiet as others have said, but there has certainly not been enough time to rebuild anything. Check before heading there - you might be pretty disappointed otherwise, and it is a long drive to get there.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

If you want to do the BI right, treat Kona-side and Hilo-side like two islands. Stay near Hilo or Volcano to explore VNP and that side (the botanic gardens in Hilo are fantastic, do a chocolate farm tour, waterfalls). Stay in the Kona area for the stuff on that side, like snorkeling at Captain Cook or Two Step, doing the night time manta rays, etc.

 

[Hubie]

A car is a must! We put 3,000 miles on a rental car there in 2009 in just 8 days and similar mileage in 2011 in 7 days. The drive from Kona to Hawi, Waimea, and then onto Hilo with stops and then back to Kona is an all-day affair. The same for heading up to the Volcano National Park from Kona and back with some stops.

 

[RamblingMad]

I visited the Big Island for the eruption. It's huge. You need a vehicle to get around. It's not an island I would go back too. It's pretty desolate. And it's a little hard to breathe in parts of Volcano National Park. We stayed at the Volcano House for a night to check it out. Way too much driving if we didn't.

Hilo is pretty dumpy in places. It was really windy where we stayed on the west side of the Island too. Snorkeling is good in places.

I honestly wouldn't recommend it. I had fun, but it's a one and done for me.

 

[RamblingMad]

If you want to do the BI right, treat Kona-side and Hilo-side like two islands. Stay near Hilo or Volcano to explore VNP and that side (the botanic gardens in Hilo are fantastic, do a chocolate farm tour, waterfalls). Stay in the Kona area for the stuff on that side, like snorkeling at Captain Cook or Two Step, doing the night time manta rays, etc.

Captain Cook was pretty underwhelming. The Manta Rays were cool at night.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Captain Cook was pretty underwhelming. The Manta Rays were cool at night.

Might have been time of year. Captain Cook and Two Step are generally quite good.

 

[pelequeen]

Love the big island! So much to do and you def need a car. If you want to do off the beaten path stuff, get a 4 wheel drive. Def split stay btw Kona and east side/volcano National park.

Best experience was doing a “poke a stick” tour where you hiked over dried lava to find active lava flow.

Also green and black sand beaches and driving to the top of Mauna Kea.