Please review my itinerary for Big Island trip

Hi All! My husband and I (mid-30%26#39;s) will be making our first trip to the Big Island in June. Below is our proposed itinerary. Can you please review it and give my your feedback? FYI...we don%26#39;t do any water sports like snorkeling or scuba - hence why you%26#39;ll see an absence of this from our itinerary.

• Day 1: Arrive in Hilo 2:45 pm; pick-up rental car; drive to B%26amp;B in Volcano Village; dinner at Kilauea Lodge

• Day 2: Volcano National Park - Crater Rim Drive including major stops such as Jagger Museum; multiple overlooks; Thurston Lava Tube, etc. Chain of Craters Road in late afternoon and hike out to Lava for evening viewing. Dinner at Thai Thai either before or after hike to Lava (any recommendations here)?

• Day 3: Take south route from Volcano Village and make stops at South Point, Punalu’u Black Sand Beach, Kealakekua Bay (view Captain Cook Monument across the way) Coffee Farm (Greenwell Farms), and Place of Refuge. We don’t snorkel, scuba, or snuba so won’t be doing any of those water activities at any of our “water” spots – just stopping to view the scenery and “take it in.” Continue drive up to Hapuna Beach Prince resort %26amp; check-in (we’ll be staying at Hapuna for the remainder of our stay). Dinner at Coast Grille at the resort.

• Day 4: Morning/afternoon lounge around resort/beach. Late afternoon/evening Hawaii Forest %26amp; Trail Mauna Kea Star Gazing Tour. Dinner included in tour.

• Day 5: Morning/early afternoon lounge around resort/beach. Afternoon check out Kohala Coast resorts (Hilton Waikoloa, Mauni Lani, Fairmont, Four Seasons). Dinner at Roy’s.

• Day 6: Morning/early afternoon lounge around resort. Lunch at Café Pesto in Kawaihae. Drive to Waimea in late afternoon and look around. Dinner at Daniel Thiebaut’s.

• Day 7: Pololu Valley Lookout (not hiking down); ice-cream at Tropical Dreams in Hawi %26amp; Gallery @ Bamboo in Bamboo Restaurant. Take Kohala Mtn Road to Hiway 19 past Waimea to Hiway 240 for Waipi’o Valley (likely not going down into the Valley). Hiway 240 to Old Mamalahoa Hiway to Waimea at Hiway 219. Shopping in Waimea. Dinner at Merriman’s.

• Day 8: Explore Kona and Alii Drive – do some shopping. If we didn’t get to all our stops on Day 3 go south and finish up what we wanted to see. Dinner at Pahu l’a at Four Seasons resort.

• Day 9: Hiway 19 to Hilo and Mauna Loa Visitor Center. Go back North through Hilo and take 4-mile scenic rout (Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens). Stop also at Akaka Falls and possibly Rainbow Falls. Clam Bake dinner at Mauna Kea Resort.

• Day 10: Lounge around resort/beach; play day by ear for stuff we want to see again or whatever else may arise. Dinner at Brown’s Beach House at Fairmont Orchid.

• Day 11: Check out of resort and head to Kona airport for flight home.

Thanks for your feedback! If there are things we%26#39;ve completely missed or that we should skip please don%26#39;t hesitate to let me know!

Cheers,

Tracey

Please review my itinerary for Big Island trip

WOW! i am always impressed with folks making an intenerary this exact!

Looks great to me!

one word of advice: Order dessert with the ordering of your meal at Roys for their fameous volcano cake!

You will not be dissappointed.

Also, make sure to catch the hula dancer in the Prince Lobby at least one evening. Have a cocktail and enjoy your loved ones company as the ocean breeze makes its way through the hotel.

Safe travels

Please review my itinerary for Big Island trip

Tracey,

Day 3 – Be sure to stop at the Punalu’u Bake shop in Naalehu for some sweet bread. They have ice cream too…yummy.

Reminder: South Point road is unpaved the last section and taking a standard rental car down there will void your rental contract, which you do NOT want to do. Much different then here in Oregon. Plan on hiking at least 3 miles (6 RT) or having a true 4*4 that can go actually off road (Harpers rents Jeeps for this I think). With the price of gas, keeping a 4*4 for the whole time would be very expensive IMHO.

Day 4 – Sunscreen! Sunscreen! And a hat maybe. With the amount of rain we have had this spring your skin will not be prepared for the Hapuna beach sun.

Day – 6/7 reconnoiter Waimea and make a list of shops you want to come back to the next day. There are many small shops and it is possible to miss some gems. Planning ahead makes the most of your time. Also if you like wood work, Dan DeLuz has one of his stores in Waimea.

Day 9 – Rainbow falls only takes a couple minutes, might as well. On your way out to and back from Mauna Loa you might want to stop at Panaewa Rainforest zoo?

Definitely stop at Akaka falls on the way back and I would suggest Tex’s drive in for some malasadas.

Sounds like a well thought out and planned trip. Couple things to consider:

1. Aerial tour – expensive but so much of the island can only be seen from the air.

2. I know you don’t like water sports, but I suggest on one of your lounge around the beach days, you consider taking a quick lesson on snorkeling. It really is amazing.

3. You have food covered very well; just make sure you budget accordingly. The only ones I would say you should NOT replace with something else if something local sounds good: Merriman’s and Thiebaut’s

4. In Hilo there is a small tsunami museum. It is worth the short stop to check it out.

Good luck and happy travels!

I second the Air tour...80% of the island will be missed by even the best land tour and hikes....

Speaking of which the Hike to the lava is close now. you cant get closer than a mile or so.

I would do Canoe house over Browns

Thanks everybody for all your feedback - I truly appreciate it.

Question regarding ';South Point';. We are renting just a standard vehicle and have no plans to go on any roads not covered by the rental agreement. I read the section on South Point in ';Big Island Revealed'; and I got the impression that you could drive easily to South Point, but that if you wanted to go to Green Sand beach you%26#39;d need to either hike or have a 4x4. We don%26#39;t plan to go to Green Sand beach, however now I don%26#39;t know whether we can even get to South Point. Can any of you please expand further regarding South Point? Does the well-paved road to South point run out at some point whereby you need a 4x4? At the point the road runs out, is there anything there (can you see South Point in the distance)? Basically, I don%26#39;t want to drive down to South Point if we won%26#39;t even be able to see it w/o having a 4x4 or hiking (we don%26#39;t want to hike more than a 1/2 mile to see it). Thanks for helping clarify this for me!

Dan, thanks for the tip about Canoe vs Brown%26#39;s Beach House. I%26#39;ve heard mixed reviews on both and have found more positives for Brown%26#39;s, however I think that%26#39;s just because I couldn%26#39;t find many reviews on the net regarding Canoe House. Is both the food and atmosphere better at Canoe House - we%26#39;re looking for the best of both worlds.

Thanks for all the other great tips as well - I%26#39;m writing them all down!

Cheers,

Tracey

I%26#39;ve driven all the way out to south point in a plain old rental car ... I can%26#39;t remember the road becoming unpaved, but if it did, it certainly was good enough for driving.

It%26#39;s neat to see ... there%26#39;s a windfarm on your way out and the trees all grow sideways because of the wind.

I was at South Point yesterday, the road is paved all the way to the end. Canoe House is a MUCH better restaurant than Brown%26#39;s Beach House.

Thanks for the additional responses! I%26#39;m glad to hear South Point is paved the entire way - I wasn%26#39;t about to take a non-4x4 rental car on unpaved terrain.

Thanks also for the additional comment about Canoe House vs. Brown%26#39;s Beach House! I need to find the current menus for those two resorts and see which food appeals to us more.

Thanks again everybody!

Cheers,

Tracey

Canoe house last time I was there has a seafood salad with lobster, scallops Shrimp all in an orange vinagrette.........I enjouse it as an a main.

Tracey,

Sorry my bad. I automatically assumed you would be going to the Green sand beach near S. Point. It has been a few years since I have been to SP and it sounds like the road must have been paved all the way. Used to be it wasn%26#39;t - but then again, I am getting old. Sounds like you will have an excellent trip.

Thanks again everybody! All of your input is invaluable!

I think we%26#39;ll do dinner at Canoe House and instead, on another day, maybe do lunch at Brown%26#39;s. I%26#39;ve heard Brown%26#39;s is open for lunch and dinner so by doing lunch we%26#39;ll still get to experience both Brown%26#39;s and Canoe House.

No problem on the paved rd. vs. not to South Point. If we%26#39;re running short on time we may skip South Pt. and spend more time at Black Sand beach and Place of Refuge since those are two ';musts'; for us during our drive around the south side.

Any more tips or feedback? Don%26#39;t hesitate to share them!

Mahalo!

Tracey