Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
black-sand beach; and the historic
plantation town of
Honokaa.
Hilo
When the sun shines in Hilo, it's
one of the most beautiful tropical
cities in the Pacific. Being here is an
entirely different kind of island
experience: Hawaii's largest metrop-
olis after Honolulu is a quaint,
misty, flower-filled city of Victorian
houses overlooking a half-moon
bay, with a restored historic down-
town and a clear view of Mauna
Loa's often snowcapped peak. Hilo
catches everyone's eye until it
rains—it rains a lot in Hilo—and
when it rains, it pours.
Hilo is America's wettest town,
with 128 inches of rain annually. It's
ideal for growing ferns, orchids, and
anthuriums, but not for catching a
few rays. But there's lots to see and
do in Hilo, so grab your umbrella.
The rain is warm (the temperature
seldom dips below 70°F/21°C), and
there's usually a rainbow afterward.
Hilo is also the gateway to
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park; it's
just an hour's drive away up-slope.
Hawaii Volcanoes National
Park
This is the location of America's
most exciting national park, where
a live volcano called Kilauea erupts
daily. (If you're lucky, it will be a
spectacular sight. At other times, you
may not be able to see the molten
lava at all, but there's still a lot to see
and learn.) Ideally, you should plan
to spend 3 days at the park exploring
the trails, watching the volcano, vis-
iting the rainforest, and just enjoying
this most unusual, spectacular place.
But even if you have only a day, get
here—it's worth the trip. Bring
your sweats or jacket (honest!); it's
cool up here, especially at night.
If you plan to dally in the park—
and you should—you can find a
great place to stay in the sleepy ham-
let of Volcano Village (located in a
rainforest just outside the National
Park entrance, at 4,000 ft.). Several
terrifically cozy B&Bs, some with
fireplaces, hide under tree ferns in
this cool mountain hideaway.
Ka Lae: South Point
This is the Plymouth Rock of
Hawaii, where the first Polynesians
arrived in seagoing canoes, proba-
bly from the Marquesas Islands or
Tahiti, around
A
.
D
. 500. You'll feel
like you're at the end of the world
on this lonely, windswept place, the
southernmost point of the United
States (a geographic claim that
belonged to Key West, Florida, until
1959, when Hawaii became the
50th state). Hawaii ends in a sharp,
black-lava point. Bold 500-foot cliffs
stand against the blue sea to the west
and shelter the old fishing village of
Waiahukini, which was born in
A
.
D
.
750 and lasted until the 1860s.
2 Getting Around
BY CAR
You'll need a rental car on the Big Island; not having one will really limit what
you'll be able to see and do. All the major car rental firms have agencies at the
airports and at the Kohala coast resorts; for a complete list, as well as tips on
insurance and driving rules, see “Getting Around” in chapter 2.
There are more than 480 miles of paved road on the Big Island. The highway
that circles the island is called the
Hawaii Belt Road.
On the Kona side of the
island, you have two choices: the scenic “upper” road,
Mamalahoa Highway
(Hwy. 190), or the speedier “lower” road,
Queen Kaahumanu Highway
(Hwy.
19). The road that links east to west is called the
Saddle Road
(Hwy. 200),
because it crosses the “saddle” between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. Saddle
