Each of the Hawaiian islands offers a unique experience to its visitors. On the Big Island, it’s all about adventure and volcanoes. The Big Island is the youngest of the Hawaiian Islands and twice the size of all the other islands combined. It is home to five volcanoes, three of them active. On the other islands, you can spend most of your time in one location and still see everything, but this isn’t as easy on the Big Island.

Planning a trip to the Big Island? Pin this post to save it!

On our two-week island hopping trip to Hawaii, we spent only 3 days on the Big Island and all in one location, which meant a lot of driving and missing some unique experiences. Since we were island hopping, we knew we would have to compromise. Knowing what I do now, I put together this 7-day itinerary that would allow you to experience all that the Big Island has to offer in one epic road trip!

7 Days on the Big Island

KONA (1 day/night)

We only spent a few hours in Kona, during which we spent driving/walking, and eating around Ali’i Drive. Next time, I would like to spend at least a full day here, especially to do the Manta Ray Night Dive/Snorkel, one of the most unique experiences to have not only in Hawaii, but in the world. Spend your day relaxing one of the many beaches in the area, perhaps Kahaluu Beach Park, and end your day with the Manta Ray Night Dive! The Manta Rays have a wingspan of 12 feet. At night, plankton are attracted to the light thats which bring the manta rays there for feeding. Diving or snorkeling at night already sounds cool, but doing it with a bunch of manta rays?! Now that’s epic!

WAIMEA (2 days/nights)

Head over to Waimea Region. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the chance to get over to this side of the island at all, but I’ll definitely be heading here next time! Stay at a bed and breakfast or a resort in Waimea. Head over to the Pololu Valley, and do the short 0.5 mile hike to the black sand beach. I’ve heard that swimming can be dangerous here, so maybe save swimming for the next stop. When back in Waimea, spend some time at Hapuna Beach, which has been voted one of the best beaches in the world, or head to a farmers market.

On your second day in this region, head up to the summit of Mauna Kea for sunset and stargazing! This is an absolute must! Seeing the sunset from above the clouds is a truly surreal experience. You will see the world’s largest telescopes/observatories. Then you’ll head down to mid-mountain to stargaze with large portable telescopes. The only other place I’d seen this many stars was Death Valley. But we didn’t get to see the red glow of a volcano erupting in the distance in Death Valley.

Doing this excursion on your own depends on the conditions of the road, and also how your body reacts to being at a high altitude. We didn’t want to risk it, so we booked a tour with Mauna Kea Summit Adventures for this excursion and in my opinion, it was well worth the money!

HILO (1 day/night)

Other than the Manta Ray Night Dive, the other thing I felt I missed out on was Waipio Valley. Most articles or guides I read about the Big Island say that seeing this valley is a must. From Waimea, start your day by heading to Waipio Valley. The hike down to the valley is a 6.5 mile round trip hike, but is rated as difficult and not for the faint of heart. Of course that means I’m dying to try it! From here, take the Hamakua Coast Scenic Drive to Hilo, stopping at Akaka Falls State Park and Rainbow Falls.

We were able to stop at Rainbow Falls when we were in Hilo, but we didn’t get to Akaka Falls. However, this is our own fault. We had a few hours to kill before our Mauna Kea excursion and we decided to rest instead of stopping at the park on the way there. We had a long night ahead of us, so even though I think we made the right decision, I’m still wishing we had seen Akaka Falls.

VOLCANO VILLAGE (2 days/nights)

*Note: As of 5/11/2018, the park and some surrounding areas are closed until further notice due to seismic activity from Kilauea Volcano. Check conditions before you head over to this area of the island.*

We rented an Airbnb in Volcano Village, which is in the middle of a lush rain forest, so this was a really cool experience. And, it ‘s super closet o the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park which is really convenient!

Spend at least a full day exploring Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Drive Chain of Craters Road and Crater Rim Drive, and make sure to stop at some of the most iconic hikes in the park, such as the Thurston Lava Tube (a 15 min hike), Devastation Trail (short, .5 mile), and Kilauea Iki Trail (4 miles through the crater). All of these hikes were well worth the short amount of time they took. Kilauea Iki Trail was moderately difficult, but only at either end of the hike and walking through the crater was a surreal experience.

Spend another day searching for the lava flow! Be prepared to bike, hike, sail, fly, etc. We ended up biking 4 miles and hiking 4 miles to see the lava, half of which was in the dark. It was way more strenuous than I ever anticipated, but it was still worth it! The lava flow is constantly changing so check on conditions to determine the best way to see it!

SOUTH COAST COLORFUL BEACHES (1 day)

Finish the loop around the big island with the scenic drive from Volcano back to Kona. Stop at Punalu’u Black Sand Beach on the way and swim with sea turtles! This was my favorite beach out of the 4 islands we visited in Hawaii, so I highly recommend this stop! Not only is it popular because of the black sand that’s actually fragments of lava, but it’s known as a popular location for turtles to feed and bask in the sun!

Note that Hawaiian Sea Turtles are endangered and protected by State and Federal law. It’s illegal to even touch them, so make sure you keep a safe distance and give the turtles their space! It is recommended to stay at least 15 feet away. When we were there, a turtle was tangled in some fishing line. As sad as it was to see this, it was amazing that law enforcement was contacted and Hawaii Wildlife Fund came immediately to help the turtle. It was really awesome to see the effort put towards protecting these amazing creatures!

If you’re feeling adventurous, leave yourself enough time to hit Papakolea Green Sand Beach. It’s a 5-mile round trip hike to get there, but apparently well worth the trek!