My family of 4 landed and went to Costco and grocery shopping! No grocery stores near this house so stock up. There was a gas station and produce stand 10 minutes away from the house for limited emergency items. The rest of our party arrived later that evening.
Day 2
The next day we drove to rainbow falls where we had a picnic lunch! We then we ate at Kula shaved ice and walked around the town of Hilo which I recommend! There is a nice farmers market and souvenir shops here. We then drove to Waipio Valley viewpoint which was breathtaking and worth it. At night we had to go pick up my cousin from the airport so we ate at Kona Brewery, again food was decent but good beers!
Day 3
We drove to Volcano National Park and checked out the view from the volcano house across the street from the visitor center. We then did a short hike called destruction path which you drive to. A lot of things are closed from the eruption last year. After we drove to Punaluu black sand beach, not a real swimmable place but we were able to see sea turtles. Before driving back home we stopped at Punaluu bakery for yummy treats. I highly recommend packing lunches and snacks during the day as food options are limited everywhere.
Day 4
We relaxed at the house for the day and in the evening drove up to Mauna Kea for the sunset. For those who have a 4 wheel drive vehicle you can drive to the top. For those who don’t you can do a precooked tour or do what we did. We hiked sunset hill, short easy trek which took about 20 minutes to watch the sunset! It gets very cold so come prepared. My grandfather did not hike or drive to the top, both of my kids (ages 4 and 2) managed the hike with some carrying. This was my favorite activity!
Day 5
We hit up Hapuna beach which was only 15 minutes from our rental and $5 entrance fee. Family friendly beautiful beach, we took food and drinks but they did have a little place which had some foods/drinks available for purchase. A few people went to green sand beach for the day which was basically at the southernmost point of the island. Best if you have a 4 wheel drive car but there are locals who will drive you down for a few. Our group had a Jeep which allowed them to go down to the beach themselves. I’d probably avoid it with elderly folks and young babies.
Day 6
We just relaxed on our last day in our rental. We hit up the Kona Boardwalk before going to the airport to catch our red eye flights. It was a fun cute place which I’d recommend but parking was limited. There was a street market set up and make sure to hit up One Aloha Shave Ice! We did grab a bite at paradise brewery, food was okay but good beers and water view.
Kommander K's Travels 