Exploring BIG ISLAND, HAWAII in 3 DAYS! A NEW Travel Itinerary Challenge Series
In the fourth and final video part of our Hawaii Travel Itinerary Challenge series, we explore Hawaii, the Big Island, in 3 days and try our best to eat, see, and do as many things as possible based on a prepared itinerary list! Open this up to learn more and see our itinerary ↓
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If this is your first time viewing our videos, welcome and thank you! For some background about this series: in our years traveling together, we found our travel style involves cramming as many things into an itinerary as our body can handle. We plan a rough itinerary or list of things we want to do, see, and eat at our destination.
Below is the original itinerary we set out to complete. In our Itinerary Challenge Series, we will see how close we get to checking off each item on our list.
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SIX GREAT SPOTS ON HAWAII'S BIG ISLAND
L.A. Times travel writer Chris Reynolds crisscrosses the Big Island, covering beaches, waterfalls, volcanoes and luaus.
TOP 10. Most Beautiful Small Towns in Hawaii
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TOP 10. Most Beautiful Small Towns in Hawaii: Haleiwa Oahu, Naalehu Hawaii County, Naalehu Hawaii County, Hawi Big Island, Hanalei Kauai, Lahaina Maui, Paia Maui, Honokaa Hawaii. Lanai City Lanai, Kaunakakai Molokai
Beautiful drive on the Big Island - Day 1 in Hawaii
We explored the beautiful Hamakua Coast and Akaka Falls State Park!
-= Day 1 Itinerary (starting from Hilo) =-
- Breakfast in Hilo at Ken's House of Pancakes
** Onomea Scenic Drive **
** Akaka Falls State Park **
- Sample malasadas in Honokaa at Tex Drive In
- Waipi'o Valley overlook and beach hike
Our first day in the Big Island started out nice and rainy. You can see in the video that I was a bit bummed, but we soldiered on in spite of the weather and were well rewarded. By the time we reached the falls, we were literally dancing in the rain :-)
After a big Hawaiian breakfast in Hilo we headed north up Highway 19 towards our first destination, the scenic drive along Onomea Bay. Look for a sign labeled Scenic Drive between mile markers 7 and 8, and then make a right hand turn and follow Old Mamaloha Hwy for 4 miles. The road twists in and out of the lush rainforest while hugging the coast, traversing multiple one lane bridges along the way. The Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens are a popular stop over in the middle -- we didn't linger too long because of the rain though. If you are lucky and have great weather, check out this site for ideas to make the most of this amazing drive: You can also stop for a fruit smoothie along the way:
Our next stop was at beautiful Akaka Falls State Park, which is a 10 minute side trip off the main highway. Pay the $5 dollar parking fee and then follow the paved trail counter-clockwise. You'll be treated with an up close view of the rain forest and scenic overlooks over Kahuna Falls (100 ft) and Akaka Falls (442 ft). You may need to hang out for awhile if the falls are shrouded by mist and wait for the view to clear. One benefit of arriving in the rain -- we mostly had the trail to ourselves!
Our route up the Hamakua Coast:
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MUSIC
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Shot with GoPro, iPhone 6, and Sony NEX 6
Lanai City, Hawaii
Lanai City, Hawaii, is the only town on Lanai, a former pineapple plantation that has been transformed into a resort island with a small-town charm in Lanai City. We have two other movies about the resort hotels, The Lodge at Koele and the Manele Bay Hotel.
Hawaii Foodtrip: Yummy Malasadas and Kalua Pork on the Big Island
Malasadas are fluffy, delicious Hawaiian donuts, and Tex Drive In is one of the best places to enjoy them on the Big Island!!!
Tex Drive In is located in Honokaa, towards the northern tip of the Big Island and a perfect stopover on the way up to the Waipi'o Valley overlook.
Since we were there at lunch time, we took the opportunity to chow down on some succulent Kalua Pork first. This dish is traditionally made in an underground oven, called an imu, which imparts a rich smoky flavor to the meat. I'm fairly certain Tex's version is made in a good old, ordinary kitchen -- nevertheless, it was quite delicious and the flavor brought back memories of North Carolina barbeque, though this pork was sweet instead of having that vinegar induced sour of its east coast cousin.
The malasadas were as good as advertised, though significantly bigger than expected. These Hawaiian desserts were HUGE and jammed with filling. We randomly selected an assortment of flavors -- Bavarian cream, Guava, Raspberry and Mango. They also had chocolate and one or to others that I've forgotten :| Check out the video to see our reaction and the mess I made trying to eat these monsters. Grab a few extra napkins!!!
And don't forget to check out other videos from our exciting trip to Hawaii!
Big Island Itinerary - Day 1: Exploring the Hamakua Coast (starting from Hilo)
1.) Breakfast at Ken's House of Pancakes
2.) Onomea Scenic Drive & Akaka Falls:
3.) ** Sample malasadas at Tex Drive In in Honokaa **
4.) Waipi'o Valley overlook and beach hike
5.) Dinner at Café 100 in Hilo (video coming soon)
Our route up the Hamakua Coast:
Tex Drive In is located just off the main highway in Honokaa:
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Hiking the Green Sand Beach! One of only four in the world - Day 3 - Big Island, Hawaii
We went to the Southernmost point in the US (within 50 states) and hiked along the coast to the beautiful Papakolea or Green sand beach!
The Big Island's Green Sand Beach is a fascinating geological oddity and a worthy hiking destination!!!
Distance Round Trip: approximately 5 miles
Relatively flat with no shade
Papakolea Beach sits at the back of a small bay hugging the sides of an old cinder cone from an eruption that happened more than 50,000 years ago. It is the Big Island's only green sand beach, one of only four in the world.
The hike to the beach is looooong and exposed, but also breathtakingly beautiful. You'll follow a maze of dirt tracks along the shoreline for what feels like forever, flanked by green Hawaiian grasslands on one side and the Pacific ocean on the other. On a clear day, you can see the Mauna Loa volcano and other mountains off in the distance. There are many criss-crossing paths that can be followed to reach the beach, and after awhile you may become convinced you've missed it. Rest assured though, so long as you stay close to the shoreline you can't miss the small bay and obvious cinder cone. On the day we were there, a handful of 4x4's were parked at the top of the cliff -- mostly locals offering up rides to tourists (more on this in a bit).
The beach itself is quite small, but true to its name contains sand that has been tinted green by the rare volcanic mineral, Olivine. If you climb the small cinder cone, you'll be treated to an amazing panoramic view and a shot straight down to the beach. The water in the bay is cool but tolerable, and after the long hike we regretted not bringing our swim suits. Don't make the same mistake!
To reach the Green Sand Beach, take Hwy 11 down to the southern tip of the Big Island and turn off onto South Point Rd between mile markers 69 and 70. Follow it straight ahead for awhile and look for an obvious parking area just off to the left of a crude sign indicating the beach. From here you have two options -- if you choose to hike, simply follow the road down towards the ocean and go left onto the rough dirt track you'll see paralleling the ocean. You can also hitch a ride from the locals -- a small child approached us upon parking and offered up rides for $15 round trip per person. We opted to hike to the beach, but decided to pay $10 each for the quick, bumpy and somewhat nauseating ride back.
Directions to Green Sand Beach:
Don't forget to check out other videos from our exciting trip to the Big Island of Hawaii!
Day 1: Exploring the Hamakua Coast (starting from Hilo)
1.) Breakfast at Ken's House of Pancakes
2.) Onomea Scenic Drive & Akaka Falls:
3.) Sample malasadas at Tex Drive In in Honokaa
4.) Waipi'o Valley overlook and beach hike
5.) Dinner at Café 100 in Hilo
Day 2: Hawaii Volcanoes National Park -- Kilauea'iki Trail
References:
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Big Island, Hawaii, Things To Do
Big Island, Hawaii, Things to Do
DRive around Big Island, visit the Kohala Coast where the best beaches are, continue to Hawi and turn around and go back to Waimea, keep driving East and get to Honokaa then Hilo.
This film was shot in Kapaau, near Hawi, discover a secret side street of lush beauty.
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Kohala, Hawaii. North Side of Big Island.
The Kohala District is located on the north side of the Big Island, where many resorts, white sand beaches, valleys, rain forests and the town of Hawi is located
Kona Coast in Hawaii located on the Big Island
This is the Kona Coast from the North to the South. Located on the Island of Hawaii.