Big Island of Hawaii

[fishingnut]

I was wondering with all the travels AO members do, has anyone been to the Big Island of Hawaii? Been to Kauai and love it, but the wife and I are thinking we may want to try a new Island and were thinking of heading to the big Island. Any advice, comments, likes, dislikes are greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[heybert]

Big Island's great. Celebrated my 40th there a few years ago. If you want to hunt, check out the Parker Ranch. The island offers quite a diverse landscape that it seems like you're going from one ecosystem to t he next. Check the lava flow at night, but make sure to bring good binocs or a spotting scope. If you want to do a helicopter tour to get close, check the weather and recheck it again. Lots of farmers markets around, so check the coffee prices. Some will try and gauge you. Most are pretty good though. If you like to kayak and snorkel, head to Kealakekua Bay Park. The road to it is Napoopoo Road in Captain Cook. The road is long and windy heading down to the park. Once there, there's people that rent out sit on top kayaks. Head out to the bay and snorkel around. You will find hundreds of dolphins in this bay. Apparently, Mother dolphins take their babies here because it's sheltered and has lots of food. When we were there, there were pods swimming around us and some even played with us.

[pdog15]

Went to Maui a while back over x-mas. Very picturesque and laid back. Renting a car is a must. Lots of golfing and water sports - particularly at Lahaina (sp). Cruises available on a number of different types of boats from fishing/sailing to snorkeling. Lots of beach rentals of small sail boats and lots of fish to see (snorkel) along the beaches. Group of 10 on a 35' sail boat for New Year's Eve was particularly memorable. So much depends on what it is that you want to do for enjoyment. I remember going to a lounge one evening, thinking I would hear some nice, traditional Hawaiian music. Not so.... it was country western. There was some traditional Hawaiian dancing at the malls (small by our standards) but it was like 15-20 minutes and that was all. Another memorable event was a traditional Luau (pit roasted pig)

[Esox]

Big island is fantastic. The west side gets virtually no rain whereas the east side (Hilo) gets lots of rain. Awesome family friendly beaches everywhere. Snorkelling literally everywhere to. Fishing is great. I'm looking at buying down there.

[Ceilidh69]

Big Island is a wonderful spot. The West side has great beaches, lava, desert. The south has the volcano and Hilo has the tropical rainforest. We have been twice and loved all aspects of the place. Check VRBO for places to stay. Enjoy.

[densa44]

We were on a cruise that took us to all the islands, but it was the one we wanted to see more of. The people were very nice but not all Hawaiians, Aussies are the ones we met.

[cgs01]

Never been out of Canada (except Niagra Falls when 5). Would love to go somewhere warm sometime. Lack of funds preventing.

Enjoy your trip.

cgs

[bsmitty27]

My Brother lived there for 8 years. I got there a few times. Was there a month last winter. I love the Hilo side. Rains lots but it's georgious. Check out kapoho, more sun. And great tide pools snorkeling. Pohoa has great food and markets. Locals are great. We got to know many. They say there's no aloha like ther is on big island.

[Sundancefisher]

Originally Posted by Esox

Big island is fantastic. The west side gets virtually no rain whereas the east side (Hilo) gets lots of rain. Awesome family friendly beaches everywhere. Snorkelling literally everywhere to. Fishing is great. I'm looking at buying down there.

Any place to fly fish do it yourself from shore?

[bsmitty27]

Did lots of surf fishing. Got a couple but it's tough fishing. Locals use bread balls. I couldn't get them to stay on. Went spearfishing some reef and prawning in some streams north of Hilo. Went deep sea fishing one of the first times there. Out of Pohiki which is a surf spot and sketch launch. Got a tuna and a dolphin fish. We went when the lava was flowing in to the ocean. Amazing trip. In kapoho there are tide pools and some are a nature reserve. But just outside that. (it's well marked right on the rocks). I thaught would be a blast for flyfishing for small reef fish.
We spent our time in kapoho, Kalapana, Pohiki and got most things in pohoa, in to Hilo a few times. But it does rain a lot in Hilo. Kalapana has a market on Wednsday nights that's awsome. Mainly local. Bands play all night. Very good vibes. I went with wife and girls 1 and 3 wouldn't go anywhere else.

[fishingnut]

Thanks everyone for you responses! This has been a great help.

Thank you Everyone!