Big Island, Big Adventure in Hawaii

Hawaii is comprised of eight main islands, six of which tourists can easily visit and stay on. One that should make your bucket list is Hawai'i island, the Big Island. 

   Pu'uhouna o Honaunau National Historic Park

 Hawai'i offers a huge range of once in a life time experiences. On our snorkel trip to the Captain Cook monument, we saw whales up close (and a tail and fin breach), spinner dolphins put on a show chasing our raft and a pod of approx. one hundred dolphins slept nearby where we were snorkelling. At the stunning Mauna Kea Beach, we swam with 18 turtles over the course of two hours - remember, look but don't touch, and don't chase them or harass them (and it's well worth doing the beautiful walk from the pretty Hapuna Beach over to Mauna Kea).

    Lava tubes

The Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park offers one to two days of walks and drives, up close to the craters and with stunning scenery of lava and it's path of destruction. Stay into the night and see the red glow.

       Steam vents





Snorkelling with Manta Rays is a bucket list experience, and rated one of the top underwater adventures in the world, by divers. Children as young as 8 can participate, and the tours are well managed and great value. I can not put into words how amazing this was. The rays somersault in front of you, sometimes centimetres from your body. While they vary in size, one ray, known as Big Bertha, has the wing span of a small plane! The experience is astounding and awe-inspiring.

Stargazing at Mauna Kea will offer you astounding views and access to the stars, the added bonus of snow is seasonal. Yes, it snows on the Big Island!

Snow on the mountains

Big island is, as the name suggests, big. So move around. We were based in Kahaluu-Keauhou for the snorkelling adventures, then moved to Pahoa to visit the rainforest side and volcanoes, then back to the resort town of Waikoloa for some beach visits. Before booking, look at the activities you want to do, and work out the distances in the car - you may want to move closer for a few days.

The island's scenery varies greatly in an hour. We went from beaches to rural fields, past the snow capped mountains and then through stunning gulches and rainforest falls, all on our way to
Hilo.

Lava heated pools near Pahoa

The Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park is beyond extraordinary for topography. Explore the crater top, the lava tubes, the trail of devastation and the long history of lava spilling over Chain o Crater road. Each is massively different to the other, awe inspiring and remarkable.

If heading to Hawaii, don't just stick to Waikiki - the real adventure begins a forty minute flight away.

Further Reading:
10 Reasons to visit Hawaii http://www.weekendnotes.com/reasons-to-visit-hawaii/
Jungle Farmhouse, Pahoa http://www.weekendnotes.com/jungle-farmhouse-pahoa/

Practicalities:

Hawaiian Airlines fly daily from as little as US$107. http://www.hawaiianairlines.com.au/

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