The Big Island

Hawaii 2022

Traveling to Hawaii has been a trip I have been wanting to make for quite a while now. I was fortunate enough to be able to tag along with my mother in law while she visited for a work trip. We traveled to the big island and stayed in Kona for a few days before she had to get to work in Hilo where we spent the following three nights.

We began the trip with a quick drive down to Sacramento where we got a hotel room at Courtyard Marriot Natomas for our early departure of 0600! I was able to meet up with one of my long standing girlfriends for dinner at Revolution Wine Bar. We spent the evening catching up and enjoying a great meal.

Day 1

With an early wake up we made it to the airport in time to grab a coffee and bagel and wait for our flight to board. We flew Southwest and I was lucky enough to find the flights roundtrip for $210! I couldn’t believe it! We had one layover in LAX where we stretched our legs and grabbed a snack for the long leg of the flight to land in Kona. The good news was we landed almost an hour early and were able to get our bags and rental car by the time of our original landing. We rented a car through Costco which allowed two drivers so we could both take turns on the trip.

Next stop, check in to our hotel and start vacation! We had spent some time looking at hotels prior to the trip and ended up booking at Royal Kona Resort. It was perfectly located downtown really close to shops, beaches, and restaurants. Plus, the hotel had a perfect view over the ocean whether in your room, at the pool, or sitting at the outdoor restaurant and bar. We enjoyed a happy hour cocktail and appetizer dish of poke while we soaked in the view.

Once we finished there we took a walk down the street and explored the shops while we looked for the perfect view of the sunset.

We ended up on a small beach and then walked into Kai for a great hand crafted cocktail while we finished watching the sunset with surfers in the distance. We decided to keep exploring and ended up hearing some live music where we walked upstairs and had a quick dinner at the bar at Humpy's while enjoying the musician. We walked back to our room with the sound of the waves crashing behind us.

Day 2

Today we slept in which for us was about 7 o’clock… next, I headed for the hotel gym to get moving while Becky did some work.

After that, we met and walked down the road for breakfast at Papa Konas. I had the Unicorn toast which was great with a latte and a mimosa because why not?!? What I love about all the restaurants here is that the buildings are all open and allow perfect views of the ocean along with fresh air coming in.

After breakfast we grabbed the Jeep and headed for a beach. We found one just a couple miles south called magic sands. We enjoyed the beach and played some volleyball.

After a while we wanted to explore another beach and hit the road further south a couple miles. The next beach was closed which was when we decided to call a company about renting SUP’s and kayaks. Unfortunately, the tide was too high and they were not renting for the day. After this we decided to head back to our hotel pool which was located right next to the ocean and enjoy the next few hours there in the sun. We grabbed some food and a cocktail and enjoyed some R&R. I did find another rental place walking distance from the hotel called Kona Boys that would have been perfect if we had known about them!

After a while, we changed and walked back in town to catch the sunset and grab some dinner. We stopped at the volleyball courts and watched people play. I really wanted to get out there but the teams were already made and all had even numbers. After a while we took in the sunset and then headed for dinner.

I had asked for recommendations from a girl who worked at our hotel and she mentioned Shiono for sushi. She reported that its a locals favorite and very fresh.

We made our way there and were lucky to get a spot at the bar since it was very busy. I knew this was a good sign! Unfortunately, Becky had a mishap with a loose seat cushion causing her finger to get hurt. The staff were very apologetic and removed the chair. We stayed and I enjoyed an amazing sushi roll. We were sitting next to an older Japanese couple who seemed to know everything on the menu! After we ate they even reported we found a local favorite and one of the best restaurants. I could have kept ordering and ordering, the sushi was amazing! Due to the mishap, the server told us that the owner, who was the sushi chef, comped our meal and even gave us a gift card because he felt very sorry for what had happened. We headed for some bandaids and then back to the room for our nights sleep.

Day 3

I woke up to the sound of the waves crashing and the beautiful ocean. I was up early and decided to try to hit the gym again while Becky finished up some work. When I got down there it didn’t open until 8 am so I decided to take a walk further down into town. I walked along the shoreline and wrapped around to a pier where I saw boats coming in and people swimming. I found another beach where Kona Boys was located. At least next time we will know its just right here! I saw some people rushing out to the end of the dock so I followed. They kept pointing and finally I got close enough to see all the dolphins swimming and jumping in the water!

It was such a great way to start the morning. After watching them a while I started my walk back to the hotel. I saw a sign for a local cafe and they also advertised donkey balls, I had to stop.

I walked up and there were two ladies running the shop. They had donkey balls which are chocolate covered macadamia nuts locally grown on the island. I had to buy some and try it out!

Once we got loaded up, we grabbed a quick breakfast at the hotel restaurant and got on our way.

This is a common breakfast menu item. It was fried rice, topped with a burger patty and egg! It was amazing.

Our plan was to stop at two different beaches on our way north to Waikaloa golf course. I had researched these beaches and Becky was up for the adventure. First, we stopped at Makalawena Beach.

This was a long drive down a dirt road but was worth the drive! We got out and walked the beach. We came up across monk seals and got to watch them swim and bathe on the rocks. I could have enjoyed this beach all day!

After a while we headed back for the car and drove to Kiholo Bay. Here we also had a little drive down to parking lot but the road was much more maintained. On our walk down the beach we found sea turtles swimming and enjoyed their company awhile. We continued walking and saw where the water turned turqoise. It was beautiful and another place I wish I had a chair and a towel to sit and enjoy all day. We decided either of the beaches would be perfect for a packed lunch and a chair to spend the whole day enjoying it.

We then hit the road continuing north to get to our tee time. We arrived in Waikoloa where we checked in and grabbed a quick snack at the restaurant. We warmed up our swings with the rental clubs and then hit the Beach nine course. I can’t say that this was a great golf game of mine, but I did enjoy it and the views were amazing!

After we finished our nine holes we returned the gear and headed back on the road to Hilo on the other side of the mountain. We got to view cattle and goats and volcanic rock all in the same drive. We made it to Hilo and checked in to Naniloa Beach Resort where we showered up and headed for our dinner reservation. We made reservations at Jackie Reyes which was a busy place on a Monday night. The food and drinks were amazing! I highly recommend this if you ever find yourself in Hilo! After dinner we fell right asleep after our long day of adventures!

Day 4

We had an early morning since Becky had to get to the school for her big day of work. I dropped her off and then headed for a quick breakfast. I found a drive thru called Just Cruisin where I got a great americano and a breakfast sandwich. They had quick service despite the long lines and lots of food options to choose from. After this I drove to Rainbow Falls which was just a couple miles out of town and enjoyed my breakfast overlooking the waterfall. It was easy to access, free, and about 100 ft walk from the parking lot so definitely an easy stop to make.

After that I drove about 10 miles north to Akaka Falls State Park. On my way there was a scenic route that takes 4 miles. I figured why not and took a right off the road and followed it. This brought me to a beautiful look out beach Onomea Bay which I hiked down to.

Also, along the route were multiple small waterfalls coming from the sides with beautiful foliage. I stopped multiple times along the way to see it up close and enjoy the views.

The scenic route brought me back to the highway and I made it to the state park. I parked and paid for admission which cost about $15. This is about a 1/2 mile loop that takes you to four different waterfalls.

Akaka Falls is the one that makes this trip worth it! It is over 440ft and absolutely breathtaking. During my loop I stopped here for a while and just took in the view.

After I got done with the loop I headed back to the Jeep and drove back towards town. At this point it was still early in the day so I had time for more exploring. I saw some people surfing earlier that morning so I looked for that area and found Honoli'i Beach Park. I figured out how to get there and pulled in to park. Once I parked I saw a lot of people talking to each other about the surf and exchanging conversations as locals would. The vibe here was awesome and I wandered down to the beach. I found a spot to sit and enjoy my toes in the sand and view the surfers riding the waves.

After hanging out here for a while I was a bit hungry for lunch. I headed a mile or two down the road to the center of town where I parked and walked around. I found a farmers market and got a coconut and some fruit.

I went into a few shops and then found myself at Cafe Pesto for lunch. I enjoyed a great ahi sandwich made with all locally grown ingredients and fresh caught fish.

After lunch I found a shaved ice stand and couldn’t resist. It was filled with vanilla ice cream and was the perfect treat.

I got back to the hotel and had about an hour before picking Becky up from work. I opened our balcony and layed down enjoying the fresh breeze. After I picked Becky up we had reservations for a Luau. She had booked this as an early birthday present for me. Originally, it was going to be on Sunday while we were on the West side of the island since that is where its located. However, they had cancelled that night and rebooked us for Tuesday. When I picked her up we had to head straight there in order to arrive on time due to it being an hour and a half drive. We made it just a few minutes late but didn’t miss out on any action. The resort it was located at was absolutely beautiful and had an amazing white sand beach.

We enjoyed another beautiful sunset and an amazing luau. The food was great and I enjoyed my first mai tai of the trip. We enjoyed the luau and then made the trek back to Hilo.

Day 5

This was her last day of work and our last day on the island before traveling home. I got her to work on time and then started my adventure day. I knew this was my last day and wanted to see the most of the island that I could. I made my way north along the coastline about an hour and half to a city called Waimea. I drove through it on my way to Pololu Valley Lookout. On the way I passed by another small town called Hawi. I continued on traveling by ranches and small homesteads. At the end of the road I made it to the lookout. I parked and started the hike.

The hike was about 20 minutes. I followed the path down with amazing views of the coastline in one direction and the tropical rainforest in the other direction. I stopped along the way and enjoyed the views.

Once I got to the bottom I explored and was able to hang out on the beach for a while. After a bit I was getting hungry and decided to make the hike back up to the Jeep. It was getting hot and I had looked up the town of Hawi and knew there would be somewhere to grab food there.

As I pulled up the small town has one main street with a few shops and a couple food options. I ended up walking up to Kohala Coffee Mill. They had coffee drinks, smoothies, acai bowls, sandwiches, wraps and salads. I ended up ordering a protein smoothies and coffee but I devoured it so fast I don't have a photo to prove it!

After my quick stop I headed back for Hilo. After picking up Becky we got back to the resort and enjoyed a cocktail on the beach. We met for dinner with her work friends and enjoyed an amazing dinner with wonderful company at Sea Side Hilo. After dinner we got home packed our suitcases and headed to bed for early morning drive back to Kona to fly home.

I had such an amazing first time experience traveling to Hawaii and honestly can not wait to go back and check out another island! If you have any recommendations on other islands please send them my way!