4 Day Trips You Can Take While Staying At Volcano Inn
Not sure what to do while you’re staying at Volcano Inn? Here are a few day trips you can take while staying at Volcano Inn!
Also some more good general recommendations: Top 33 things to do on the Big Island, Big Island 5 Day Itinerary, Big Island Travel Itinerary & Tips.
Day Trip: Volcanoes National Park
Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park is the most famous attraction here. You can easily spend 2 days touring around the park to see what it has to offer. If you want to learn about what to see and do and where to hike, we invite you to read: What to do in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. If you download the National Park Service app, it is a useful guide filled with suggestions, hikes and about how long everything will take.
Day Trip: Green Sand Beach & Black Sand Beach
When you come to the Big Island, it’s a must to visit a black sand beach, and if time allows, 1 of the 4 green sand beaches in the world. From Volcano Inn, on your way to the Green Sand Beach (stop #2), you could first stop by the Big Island south point: Kalae (stop #1). It is the southernmost point of the Big Island of Hawaii and of the 50 United States. When you arrive to the Green Sand Beach parking lot there are a few ways to reach the beach. We invite you to check out All you need to learn about the Green Sand Beach on the Big Island. If you take your time and swim at the green sand beach, it’s no surprise that you could spend a day there. Be mindful that it can get pretty windy!
Stop #1: Kalae South Point
Stop #2: Green Sand Beach
On your way to the famous Punalu’u Black Sand Beach (stop #4), you could stop by Punaluu Bakery Shop (stop #3) to grab a quick delicious bite. At your last stop, walk on the black sand with your bare feet. Admire the palm trees formation by the beach. If you’re lucky, you might be able to spot a sea turtle at the beach ;). Check out All you need to know about Punaluu Black Sand Beach.
Stop #3: Punaluu Bakery Shop
Stop #4: Punaluu Black Sand Beach
Day Trip: Akaka Falls, Waipio Valley, Hapuna Beach, Mauna Kea
A local once said, “You have not seen the Big Island if you haven’t seen Akaka Falls and Waipio Valley.” This is a big day trip but you will get to see the beauty that the Big Island has to offer. From Volcano Inn head to Akaka Falls (Stop #1) to see the most famous waterfall on the Big Island. From there you continue to head north to the Waipio Valley (Stop #2). You can see an amazing view at the Waipio Valley Lookout Point. If you have time, you can hike down the frightening trail, which is the steepest trail in Hawaii.
Stop #1: Akaka Falls
Stop #2: Waipio Valley
The next stop after Waipio Valley is Hapuna Beach Park (Stop #3). The road between all these attractions are stunning. You will be driving along the coastline as well as between the volcano mountains. For the last stop, make sure you get to the Mauna Kea summit well before sunset so you can watch the most magnificent sunset. It’s a whole different world up there. You will be standing above the cloud watching the cloud changes color as the sun goes down. Check out more about the sunset here.
Stop #4: Mauna Kea
Stop #3: Hapuna Beach Park
Day Trip: Rainbow Falls, Boiling Pots, Kaumana Lava Tube, Carlsmith Park, Richardson Park
For this day trip, most of the attractions are concentrated in the Hilo area, a 30-40 minute drive from Volcano Inn. The attractions you can visit are in the order of Rainbow Falls, Boiling Pots, Kaumana Cave Park (with lava tube), Carlsmith Beach Park and Richardson Beach Park. Although Carlsmith and Richardson Beach Park are only 2 minutes (by car) apart, they are very different from each other. Richardson Beach Park is a small black sand beach with lava rocks along the coast. Carlsmith Beach Park on the other hand has fine sand with blue water. The water is also very calm with little to no waves.
Stop #2: Boiling Pots
Stop #1: Rainbow Falls
Stop #3: Kaumana Caves Park
Stop #4: Carlsmith Beach Park
Stop #5: Richardson Beach Park
If you want to learn more about what to do while you stay at Volcano Inn, don’t hesitate to stop by the Volcano Inn office to ask our staff for any advice. Mahalo.
