Thanks Starrs for the restaurant recommendation!

Gloria
Thanks for being so helpful. Actually I have already checked into all three, One does not have tv, which is a big no no for my husband, he has to have the news on at night. The middle one we wanted to rent but the owner never answered my questions, so we told her we would look elsewhere, the other one is a possibility.

If you do end up the the last one, there is a wonderful outdoor market on Sundays near there on the Highway - - Maku'u Market. Very local - great food & music and even some cultural demonstrations in the mornings. Have a great time.

Aloha cd,

Are you flying into Kona or Hilo?

Another recommendation for Kilauea Lodge. We just stayed there (our second time) for 3 nights in April and it was perfect as ever. A GREAT base for exploring the Volcano. We kept busy doing the ranger talks/guided tours and our own hike up to the crater which has Pu'u smoking crater in view. We did the drive down the chain of craters to the end and also drove out to Kalapana at dusk to see the lava flow into the ocean. It was an action packed 3 days, but so worth it!

With only 3 days, do you want to have some down time at the pool/beach or be on the go?

Kohala Coast is great for relaxing, sunning and snorkeling. Excellent dining options too. We Pricelined a room (we bid at a very low ball price of $150 and got it) and was awarded the Marriott Waikoloa and it was hands down one of our top fave stays. Excellent location, accommodations and the pool area w/ large lava infinity pool was to die for! all right on the beautiful sandy A-bay.

We like to keep busy and do it all on our trips. Based on your interest with only 3 days, I'd do 2 nights in Hilo and daytrip to Waimea, 1 night in Volcano (to explore the VNP for 2 full days). But, if you're flying into Kona, I think you'd be remiss to skip Kohala.

If you do change gears and stay in Kohala, take a drive to Polulu Lookout through charming old Hawaiian towns.

Have fun!

Gloria, We LOVE markets except we won't be coming in until Mon morning.

adventureseeker, We will be flying into Hilo. We will be coming from 5wks in Oahu on the ocean so in Hawaii we will have already snorkeled and done the beach thing. We just want to see Volcano National Park and explore the east coast of the Big Island, black sand, tide pools, gardens. We do want to be on the go. Kilauea Lodge looks wonderful but we want to stay around $100 per night. After 5wks in Oahu, we might be talking sleeping under a bridge somewhere.

cd,

Here's a place I bookmarked, but never stayed at):

Volcano Artist Cottage ($129-just over your price range) http://www.volcanoartistcottage.com/index.htm

Have a great trip. Aloha!

Wow, those places to stay all look great.

There is a little shake shack north of the Hawaii Tropical gardens called "What's Shakin'." It's pretty wonderful!

I'd vote with those who are suggesting Hilo. You would be in a better location to drive up the beautiful Hamakua coast http://www.hawaiiweb.com/Hawaii/html...kua_coast.html or http://www.stayhawaii.com/todo/inhama.html, and see the small towns of Laupahoehoe, http://www.thetrainmuseum.com/index.html (link is to tiny train museum), Honoka'a, and the lovely Waipio overlook.

Also, you can go into Waimea (Kamuela) for the day, which is yet another side of the Big Island experience with its paniolo (cowboy) culture.

As the time gets closer, check local calendar of events to see if there are any free concerts or festivals. Those can be the most fun of all.

Hi Adventureseeker
I was already on that website but I am really impressed that you found the rate! I could not bring it up at all, try as I might. Everything looks so clean and bright. I believe I have found one though. Actually, I found two that I really like and have emailed both for more info. Thanks

Kailani
Thank you for all the links! We do plan to drive to Waimea and the rentals I spoke about above are around 13 miles south of Hilo.

Thanks again everyone.

We have made a decision and will be sending the deposit this morning. You know that ole saying, 'if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is'? well, this vrbo sounds to good to be true but we're taking a chance. PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT THIS AND AT THE PRICE!
http://www.vrbo.com/9925
What do you think?

It sounds too good to be true, at $95/nt. I think that has to do with the area it's located in ... I would stay in Volcano Village (or Hilo, second to that) if I were not venturing to the Kohala Coast to stay.

ttt

Actually Elsie this is the area I think we want to be in. It's a 30 min drive to Volcano National Park. Which we will be at for one day, and it's close to the tide pools and lava flowing site, It's 20 min to the Hilo airport and downtown Hilo and about 29min to Hawaii Botanical Garden and maybe 40 min to Akaka Falls.

I agree it looks wonderful. There is a $95 cleaning fee, so that raises the price a bit. I'm glad you are showing people the Big Island (and Hawaii in general) can be affordable.

When you go to Waimea (also called Kamuela) you will be about 10-12 miles from the Kohala Coast resorts. There isn't so much to do in Waimea, so if you have extra time, you can drive out to the Mauna Lani Resort and see the beautiful ancient fish ponds and petroglyph/historical trail, as well as the beaches (you'll be near Hapuna as well).

Also, at the coast near the road from Waimea is the Pu'ukohola Heiau, which is quite impressive and interesting historically. http://www.nps.gov/puhe/

I like Waimea for the Saturday farmer's market, and they often have festivals. Next weekend is 100 year celebration of Paniolo (cowboy) history, I think.

The east side of Hawaii is lush and beautiful. The west side is much drier, so you can see how the weather is and plan around that.

Kailani
My husband wants to see the statue of Kamehameha, are you familiar with this area? Is it close to the ancient fish ponds?

There are 2 statues of King Kamehameha on the Big Island. The one in Kapa'au has a very interesting history, but there is also one in Hilo at the main park (I think). There is also a statue in Honolulu.

Kapa'au is where King Kamehameha was born and raised, and when the statue was being made (in Paris and Florence) there was controversy where the statue should go. Some people thought it should be at his birthplace, some in Honolulu.

Honolulu won out, but a strange thing happened, which is there was a shipwreck in the Falkland Islands, and the statue was lost. The insurance paid for a new statue to be made at the foundry in Paris, and that was shipped to Honolulu.

Amazingly, the original statue was recovered, and placed outside a shop (in the Falklands, I guess). Someone saw it, purchased it, and it was returned to Kapa'au where it stands in front of the old courthouse.

So, the people of North Kohala (the district where Kamehameha lived) got the original statue after all.

I know this area very well, but it is far from where you will be. It is very special and beautiful, and the drive to Waimea is spectacular, with the view of Mauna Kea. There are galleries and restaurants, and a hike to a black sand beach at Pololu at the end of the road.
http://www.alternative-hawaii.com/special/bink.htm

This area is the northernmost part of the Big Island, so it is a bit remote. The fish ponds at the Mauna Lani are about 35 minutes away.

Here's a website with photos of the statue. http://www.kamehamehadaycelebration.org/index.html

Thanks Kailana and Martym
Kailana, we are thinking of staying one night in that northen area, somewhere around Honokaa and then driving back to Keaau or Mountain view for the next two nights. So, are the fish ponds north of Honokaa? And would Honokaa be a central place for the night? What would you recommend? Thanks

If you don't already have a map of the Big Island, I suggest you get one. For me it's always easier to understand the relationship between locations if I can see them on a map. Here are a couple of maps that might be helpful.
http://www.wizardpub.com/bigisland/bigresort.html Will show you the location of different lodgings on the BI. Just click on a name to get more information about each one.
http://www.bigisland.org/maps-regions
To answer your questions--the fish ponds are not north of Honoka'a--they are at the Mani Lani resort on the Kohala Coast. As you can see, Honoka'a is not central to what you have said you want to do. It looks close to the Pololu Valley and Kapa'au (where the statue is) but there is no road between the two. You would need to go to Waimea and then take highway 250 t Hawi--which is a lovely drive. To get to the Mani Lani from Honoka'a you would go to Waimea-on highway 19 to Kawaihae then take 19 south to the Mani Lani.

The Kohala Village Inn in Hawi is an affordable possibility. http://www.kohalavillageinn.com/home

The Bamboo Restaurant in Hawi has wonderful Hawaiian music on Friday and Saturday nights. http://www.bamboorestaurant.info/restaurant.htm There is a free movie at the Gym on Friday, and Luke's Place (at the inn) has music most every night.

All of Hawaii's heritage towns are so charming, though. You will get a feel driving through and stopping when you see something interesting.

Thanks Martym for the links. Actually we wanted to stay somewhere around Honomu for just a night in order to visit Akaka Falls & Botanical Gardens and then drive to Waipio and I think we found a place. Thanks for the info on the ponds, wish we could go but they will be too far.

Kailani, The Inn looks lovely and just what we were hoping to find. But, not that far north.