Things To Do

Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park

A few things you can see while visiting Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park Kiluea Iki trail Petroglyph Trail Chain of Craters Road and Lava Fields Sea Arch Devastation Trail Steam Vents Sulfur walk

Punaluʻu Black Sand Beach

Ka Lae (South Point)

Ka Lae, also known as South Point, is the southernmost point of the Big Island of Hawaii and of the 50 United States. The Ka Lae area is registered as a National Historic Landmark District under the name South Point Complex. The area is also known for its strong ocean currents and winds and is the home of a wind farm. If you live for adventure take a jump off of South Point cliff height is anything between 40 and 60 feet.

Papakōlea Beach (Green Sand Beach)

Papakōlea Beach is a green sand beach located near South Point, in the Kaʻū district of the island of Hawaiʻi. It is one of only four green sand beaches in the world. Green Sand Beach gets its name from the green glassy crystals (Olivine) that make up most of the sand on this beach. The secret of Green Sand Beach is the unique combination of a 49.000-year-old cinder cone that spewed olivine-rich lava and a bay that keeps the olivine crystals that are washed out of the rocks trapped. Access: 4 Wheel Drive vehicle or 3 mile hike (bring water it's hot) or Hop a ride with locals cost $10- $20 per person one way

Pu'uhonua O Hōnaunau National Historical Park

Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau is an important Hawaiian ceremonial site bounded on its southern and eastern sides by a massive L-shaped wall, known as the Pā Puʻuhonua (Great Wall), and on its northern and western sides by the ocean. In addition to the Great Wall, within the Puʻuhonua are several other important ceremonial structures including the Hale o Keawe, ʻĀleʻaleʻa Heiau, and the Ancient Heiau. In ancient Hawai'i a system of laws known as kānāwai enforced the social order. Certain people, places, things, and times were sacred -- they were kapu, or forbidden. Kapu (sacred law) regulated fishing, planting, and the harvesting of other resources. Any breaking of kapu disturbed the stability of society, and the punishment was often death. Any fugitive who had broken kapu could seek refuge and forgiveness within the walls of the Puʻuhonua.

Manta Ray Night Snorkeling

Manta ray Night Snorkel (Bring something warm to wear when you get out) Companies listed below ~Hawaii Island and Ocean tours 5-10 minute boat ride, and full body wetsuits. *Military Discount must call ~Hang Loose charters *Military Discount ~Sunlightonwater.com. They left out of Kailua-Kona Harbor. Trip out was 30~ minutes. They provide mask/snorkel and 3/4 wetsuit ~My Kona Adventure, boat ride 5 mins, *Military Discount must call ~Sea Quest Hawaii, boat ride 5 mins, half wetsuit

Kanaloa Octopus Farm

Admission helps fund research, tours are given by biologist.

Hāpuna Beach State Park

The largest of the island's white sand beaches, Hapuna Beach has consistently been rated on international Top Ten lists of the islands' best beaches.

Flumin' Kohala

Kayak The Famed Kohala Ditch On The Big Island Of Hawaii

Waipio Valley Lookout

Waipiʻo Valley is a valley located in the Hamakua District of the Big Island of Hawaiʻi. "Waipiʻo" means "curved water" in the Hawaiian language. The valley was the capital and permanent residence of many early Hawaiian Aliʻi up until the time of King ʻUmi. The valley floor at sea level is almost 2,000 ft (610 m) below the surrounding terrain. A steep road leads down into the valley from a lookout point located on the top of the southern wall of the valley. The road rises 800 feet (240 m) in 0.6 miles (1.0 km) at a 25% average grade, with steeper grades in sections. This is a paved public road but it is open only to 4 wheel drive vehicles. It is the steepest road of its length in the United States. The shore line in the valley is a black sand beach, popular with surfers. A few taro farms are located in the valley. Several large waterfalls fall into the valley to feed the river which flows from the foot of the largest falls at the back of the valley out to the ocean.

Laupāhoehoe Point

Laupahoehoe Point Beach Park is where Liza grew up swimming in the ocean. Meaning “leaf of lava,”Laupahoehoe, refers to the angular lava tip or peninsula formed by ancient pāhoehoe (smooth lava) flowing to create the mantle on which this village of Laupahoehoe was built. This Beach Park has breathtaking ocean panoramas, crashing surf and craggy lava rocks surrounded by lush vegetation. Laupahoehoe once thrived as a quiet Hawaiian fishing village untouched by missionaries and plantation life, and the valley and the sea provided the village community with a bounty of harvest. In the late 1800s one of the islands many sugar plantations was built here. After an earthquake in Alaska’s Aelutian Islands on 1 April 1946, a tsunami of three towering tidal waves hit the Laupaheohoe Point the hardest killing 21 schoolchildren and three teachers

Akaka Falls State Park

Within ‘Akaka Falls State Park, there are actually two stunning waterfalls you can experience. Free-falling ‘Akaka Falls is likely the most popular waterfall on the Big Island, and is known to mystify its audience with a 422-foot plunge straight down into a deep, steam-eroded gorge. You can catch views of the falls at several points as you make your way uphill along the western shoulder of the gorge on a 0.4-mile paved footpath to the falls. This trail loops through lush tropical rainforest past lesser-known Kahūnā Falls then on to iconic ‘Akaka Falls. The cascading waterfall of Kahūnā Falls is harder to spot as the dense vegetation can sometimes block your view. Keep your eyes peeled, after a good rain especially, for these hidden waterfalls that can be seen from an overlook about 800 feet beyond the viewpoint for ‘Akaka Falls. $5 cash parking, free with valid state of Hawaii photo ID card

Rainbow Falls

Known in the Hawaiian language as Waiānuenue (literally "rainbow water"), the falls flows over a natural lava cave, the mythological home to Hina, an ancient Hawaiian goddess. Rainbow Falls derives its name from the fact that, on sunny mornings around 10 am, rainbows can be seen in the mist thrown up by the waterfall. Rainbow Falls is a waterfall located in Hilo, is 80 ft tall and almost 100 ft in diameter.

Maunakea Observatories Support Services

The Onizuka Center for International Astronomy Visitor Information Station is located on the Maunakea Access Road at 19°45'33"N Latitude and 155°27′22″W. Maunakea is one of the only places in the world where you can drive from sea level to 14,000 feet in about 2 hours, so altitude sickness is a high possibility.

Waimanu Valley

The largest of a string of remote valleys along a dozen miles of rugged, windswept Hamakua coastline between more accessible and well-known Big Island valleys Waipio and Pololu, Waimanu is not an easy place to visit. There is only one way in—by foot on the Muliwai Trail, a nine-mile backpacking trek ascending the north face of Waipio via a series of steep switchbacks and winding through miles of plateau gulches and forests before descending on Waimanu’s south face to the valley floor. The journey can take experienced hikers up to seven hours to complete even in the most favorable weather conditions. Once at Waimanu, an overnight stay is required unless retracing your steps in pitch darkness appeals to you. The valley has no cellular phone service, no electricity or piped-in freshwater. Still, on an island abounding with places where you can simply disappear into nature forever if you wish, Waimanu is both one of the most far-flung and breathtakingly beautiful havens.