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Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Review

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Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

Address: Box 52, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, HI | Map It
Phone: 808/985-6000
www.nps.gov/havo

Category: Parks
Location: Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

Write a review | Avg. member rating: 4.4/5

Fodor's Review:

It's nothing short of miraculous. Kilauea Volcano is adding new land to the Big Island. Not hundreds of thousands of years ago—today. Molten lava meets the ocean, cools, and solidifies into a brand-new stretch of coastline. It's fire and water, creation at its most elemental. What makes it even more amazing? You can watch it happen right in front of you. If you do nothing else on the Big Island, do the volcano.

Kilauea, youngest and most rambunctious of the Hawaiian volcanoes, erupted at its summit from the 19th century through the 1950s. Since then, the top of the volcano has been more or less quiet, frequently shrouded in mists. Its eastern side, on the other hand, has been percolating, sending lava spilling into the ocean. The current eruption has been ongoing since January 3, 1983, primarily from Pu'u 'O'o Vent. The lava flows are generally steady and slow, appearing and disappearing from view. And the volcano doesn't only create, it destroys. In 1990, a lava flow engulfed and demolished the coastal town of Kalapana.

Exploring the surface of the world's most active volcano—from the moonscape craters at the summit to the red lava flows on the coast—is the ultimate eco-tour.

The Kilauea Summit is a massive grey pit (2 mi long and 2 mi wide) encircled by plumes of sulfuric smoke. The size of this main caldera, not to mention its un-canny resemblance to those old Apollo moon photos, makes for an eerie, awe-inspiring spot. Within and around the caldera are several smaller craters.

Cost: $10 per car for 7 days, $5 for pedestrians and bicyclists
Open: Daily, 24 hours. Kilauea Visitor Center 7:45 AM-5 PM

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Member Reviews and Ratings

Reviewed by Rockgirl from Jacksonville, FL on 7/19/07
Wow. That's what you will say over and over agin during your visit. My husband and I could have stayed an entire week easily just in this park. The landscape is so rugged and eerie, just unforgettable. We didn't see flowing lava while we were there but there was so many amazing things to see, we were not disapointed in the least. Some of the hikes were tough but well worth it especially to see the petroglyphs!

Member Rating: 5.0
Ratings details: Experience: 5.0 Ease: 5.0 Value: 5.0 Don't Miss: 5.0

Reviewed by Golnarsarge from Orange County, CA on 5/8/07
If you're interested in endless craters with nothing in them, or have an interest in geology, this place is for you. If you're there to see an actual volcano eruption and active lava flow, you're not going to see it here.
So don't waste the limited precious time you have, and take a helicopter tour (I recommend Blue Hawaiian) where they will take you to the mouth of the volcano enabling you to see the actual eruption, lava flow and see it hitting the water forming a black sand beach right before your eyes (the helicopter actually becomes hot, but no need to worry, they have an excellent safety record).
The big saving grace of this park is the reasonable price--$10 for the whole week. I know my review will be sacreligious for a lot of people because this place is a popular destination, but we had people on the helicopter tour who felt the same way (like they wasted their time at the park when they could only see the activity from the helicopter anyway)