Hi, I'm looking for some advice on how to allocate my time (9 nights total) on the Big Island.

I'm flying into Kona...Plan to spend 3 nights at Volcano. The question is how to divide the remaining 6 nights. Does it make sense to base in Kona area and make day trips as far as Kohala? Or split my hotel stay between those two areas, or more? Any advice appreciated.

Thanks,
Kyle

My strategy has always been to stay in Kona and do everything as a day trip. Everywhere you go, there's something lovely to explore. Having said that, it takes a while to get anywhere (longer than you might think, because of the twisty roads) so if you object to spending lots of time in the car, you might want to arrange for more than one home base.

I'm with Cindy. We stayed in Kona and day tripped everyting. We allocated 5 nights for that island and it was too many for what there was to see there. Did you ever think of splitting your time between the Big Island and another? We did 5 on the BI, 5 on Maui, 5 on Kauai and 8 on Oahu. The 5 on the BI was too many and the 8 on Oahu DEFINITELY was too many...wish I would have put some of those days towards Kauai or Maui. Have a great time...

FYI- The Kohala area is less than an hour from Kona so it's not much of a day drive. While the Kona area is nice, the best resorts/hotels and beaches are in the Kohala area (Hapuna beach in particular). Also, by staying in the Kohala area, you can easily drive over to the otherside for a day trip to Waipea (sp?) valley or Akaka (sp?) Falls areas. Three nights might be a little long for the volcano area but that is strictly my humble opinion. Enjoy!

CF - Are you saying you were in the Hawaiian Islands for a total of 23 nights? Wow! Can we change lives?! Lucky you!

We spent 14 nights on the BI and felt as if we could have used another week or more! We thought there was tons to see; we really didn't spend as much time in the Hilo area as we would have liked.

I've just returned from 7 days on the BI and
split my time as follows: 2 nights in Kona and the rest in Hilo. It was a very good balance and worked extremely well.

Lenore...Yep, we bit the bullet and did it all at once. It wasn't something that we were planning on doing again. We live in Ohio and Hawaii isn't the length of trip we wanted to make frequently!

Would never go to the big island without staying on hilo side. The best veiw of the lava flow is at night. I like to do this atleast two nights. Also you don't want to forget a look at Waipio Valley. I think the Hilo side is much more beautiful. Perhaps I am not exploring Kona enough. Been to Kohala coast and city of refuge. Just think the area is a lot dryer than near the volcano. Also what about the Hamakua coast?

Doing the volcano just during the day is really not doing it justice.

too funny Lenore, dito

Gee you guys, I'd better not tell you what I'm doing now....(I might consider adoption BTW...)