Big Island -best location on the island to stay?
 

Okay, we were originally going to do 14 days on Kauai, but have now decided to spend at least 4 days on the Big Island. Which part of the island is best for seeing the great sites (active volcano, etc.) I am planning on getting The Big Island revealed tonight, and I already have the Ultimate Guidebook to Kauai. Thanks you!!!!!!

i liked the Kona side better than the Hilo side because I liked the beaches and the village-y atmosphere. Hilo is a city and it's rainy. But the BI Revealed guidebook will help you decide according to your likes and dislikes.

The weather is better on the Kona (leeward) side. We stay there and make day trips over to Hilo.

If you have time, I highly recommend staying up at the volcano for one night. Great for night viewing and especially great to be able to see sights around volcano in the morning before tour buses and other cars arrive. My personal favorite is Kilaluae Lodge. I also recommend the Kona side especially if you spend night at volcano.

I believe most people stay either in Kona or the Kohala coast. Kona has many hotels/condo's/resorts but not alot of sandy beach, more lava rock beach. We stayed at Kona Reef condo's there for about 150/nite and enjoyed except for lack of a usable sandy beach.<BR> The Kohala coast is more private, and has protected sandy beaches and some pricey resorts, our best deal was at Outrigger Waikoloa Beach Marriot ~200/nite Ocean front. Next door Hilton Waikoloa (Hawaii's disneyworld) also worth a visit, for dinner for example. Hilo is the city closest to the Volcano, but I did not find it as appealing as Kona or the Kohala coast.<BR>PS-what is an &quot;oceanlover&quot; doing in Minnesota?

Thanks everyone!! <BR><BR>JohnD, hahahaha...what can I say, I love the ocean more than lakes! :D I got certified last year for scuba, unfortunatly my home is here, otherwise I would live right by the ocean. Can only dream and go on trips though, I guess. :D Thanks for replying!

Another vote for Kona - one of my favorite places in the Islands, although it's grown quite a bit over the past few years. If you're going to do some diving, I highly recommend checking out Jack's Diving Locker in Kona. There are many good condos to choose from as well - we like Kona Bali Kai and Kona Reef - both have nice ocean front units - perfect for an ocean lover. Aloha!

Thanks Mel!!!!!

I think that Kona is a great place to stay. There's alot of activity in the area, restaurants, shops, etc. When I was in Hawaii I stayed at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel and Bungalows on the Kohala Coast. Very Picturesque area and excellent beaches however, being that it was a resort it was too isolated and quiet for my tastes. The resorts on the Kohala Coast are very upscale though. Luckily I had a car so that I could go down to Kona for some nightlife.

It's tough because the nicest part of the island to stay on (for most) is the Kona or Kohala coast. But the volcano is located at completely the other side of the island near Hilo. Personally, I'd stay on the Kona side and take a day or overnight trip to see the volcano. To really have time to do the volcano justice, it's best to spend the night over there, which of course is an additional complication and expense. But you can do it as a day trip, albeit a long and exhausting one.

Stay on the Kohala Coast, where virually all of the very ice hotels are. Using that as your base, take daytrips by car...to the North Kohala Mountains for incredible scenery(route 50?) to Hawi, .....and, on another day to Wai'pio Valley (the horseback rides in the Valley are recommended too)then south along the lush Hamakua Coast (my favorite part of the Big Island)and then south to Volcanoes National Park (which i actually found underwhelming).