Hi there,

Does anyone know if there is a Big Island Audio Tape available... similar to the one that is available for the Road to Hana on Maui??

We want to tour around the BI (circle trip) and listen to an interesting tape as we go... one that would be educational for the kids (13 & 9) since it will be their first time there. We could take a group tour instead, but the Kilauea Volcano tour with Hawaii Forest & Trail (which covers quite a bit of the island from Kona to VNP) is around $500 for a family of 4, even with the 10% family discount. If we took that we'd have to cut out some other activities (like the manta ray night snorkel which we really want to go on).

If we could get a tape for touring by ourselves that would be great!!

Thanks for any information.

I didn't hear of any such tape. It would have to be a set of them, because the Big Island is a LONG drive around! (We did it in 3 days, although you could easily do it in 2.) Hilo and Kona are about 4 hours apart, depending on traffic and how many stops you make.

There's really no need to take an expensive guided tour. The roads are all well-marked and all of the sights that have turn-offs are also well-marked. We just got good guidebooks and used those as our navigation. We used both the Fodor's and the Moon guidebooks. It was great because each book emphasized different things!

VNP gives excellent maps when you pay the admission. We did several short hikes, and drove both Chain of Craters and Crater Rim Roads. It was great!

I'm a little suprised to read the above poster's comment that it takes 3 days to drive around the BI. I guess it depends on how much you want to stop and look around. We did it all in one day and didn't find it stressful at all; we were able to spend a couple of hours in the Volcano area. We left early in the morning and arrived back in Kona fairly late in the evening, but it was an easy day's drive.

Thanks ChristieP and Meesthare!!

Meesthare, can you tell me what main points you were able to hit in one day please? We're staying in Kona for 3 nights and at the Kilauea Lodge for 1 night. Maybe we could hit everything in the one day thatwe drive to the East side (rather than the round trip tour on a separate day)?? I'd like to take the family to Akaka and Rainbow Falls, see the Puna area (particularly snorkel in the Kapoho tidepool area), see VNP including watching the lava flow at night. Since we're staying near VNP we won't have the 3 hour drive back to Kona on that day.

Hi, cawhite - I'm trying to remember exactly what we saw when - we were there twice and I want to be accurate. We were staying in South Kona the second time and went to the Volcano area via South Point, where we stopped for a while. We saw Akaka Falls and Rainbow Falls, but we didn't do any snorkeling. We also didn't get to see the lava flow at night, so it's great that you'll get to see that. We spent a bit of time in Hilo and did the scenic drive that leads to it (sorry, I can't remember the name of it now) - it's only a couple of miles but it was gorgeous.
It's perhaps worthwhile mentioning that we did do a tour with Hawaii Forest & Trail, up to the Mauna Kea summit. We found them knowledgeable and we really enjoyed the tour, but I can see that it would be expensive for 4 people.
Have a look at www.konaweb.com - the folks there can answer lots of questions with greater authority than I can! Have a fantastic trip.

I really like the Kapoho area, though we didn't snorkel. We just waded around and looked at the fish. Since you're in the area, stop at the nearby Ahalanui pool (I'm just guessing on the spelling, but it's the volcanically heated pool right at the coast). Pure heaven. Even the roads in that area are gogeous!
Akaka falls is wonderful also. I enjoyed the walk more than the falls.
We used the Big Island Revealed book to get around/get info. That's all you need.

Yes, you can do the Big Island in a day. The bus tours do it all the time.

We took 3 days to go around and we stopped and did a LOT of looking, shopping, and exploring. We took our time, didn't rush, and really got to know the island. We started at Kona, stopped the first night at Volcano, the second night in Hilo, and then back to Kona.

The traffic heading south from Kona was pretty bad. It was bumper-to-bumper for about 40 miles on a single-lane road. We also managed to get stuck behind a large truck going from near Honolulu to Waimea. Both of those things slowed our drive time considerably, but since we were on vacation, we didn't mind!

If you are interested in seeing Akaka Falls and Rainbow Falls you will need to drive the northern route from Kona to VNP (approx 2 1/2 hours with no stops). Also along that route are the Botanical Gardens and the Wiapio Valley Overlook. Tex's or What's Shaken' Smoothie place on the 4 mile sceanic drive just outside of Hilo are good food stops with kids. You can also find good food in Honomu, on the way up to Akaka Falls. On the southern route to VNP (also approx. 2 1/2 hours with no stops), the Place of Refuge and the black sand beach at Punalu'u are good stopping points, with a stop at the bakery at Nahalehu for eats. An alternative to an interesting tape would be the "Big Island Revealed" guide book. Many times I read it along the way as my husband drive. I would suggest that you drive to the park one way and back to Kona the other way. The snorkling at Kapoho is great, that is where I learned to snorkle the first time. You could leave the park, snorkle at Kapoho in the AM and take the northern route back to Kona, with stops at Akaka Falls, Rainbow Falls and the Wiapio Valley Overlook. Would make for a really full day. Have a wonderful time. I love the Big Island!

I also have never heard of a tape for the BI. The drive around can take a while, last time we did it it took about twelve hours, so plan accordingly if your kids need car entertainment. I lived in Kona for a years and recommend driving north along the upper road away from the resorts so you see more of the landscape and you get a great view of the ocean to your left, you also see more whales if the season is right. Though if you are already at a Kona resort it is easier to go on the low road. With no audio tape to follow it is best to do your homework on all the places you can stop along the way. For instance: Parker Ranch and some shopping in Waimea, if Paniolo Pizza is still open they are pretty good, Waipio Valley lookout is beautiful, Tex drive in for some malasadas (I think they still have the best in all Hawaii), Akaka Falls is a great short walk, Hilo is a nice local place with parks along the bay that can be a great stop to have a picnic, (Bento 100 has a good variety of local food and bento boxes), finally VNP is the biggest stop and I believe only $10. per car so not a bad deal, the lookout out the back of the main building is neat as is the tubes and short walks around the park. One last stop I think is worth it is Punaluu with it's black sand beach is a relaxing great stop on such a great drive, as well as a great stop for turtles. After passing Naalehu and South Point, I love the drive through the trees, to come full circle in Kona. Even though it is the main road it still feels secluded and secret and I think is the best approach to Kailua-Kona.

Also, If you want to make the trip a little shorter you can stay in Hilo for a night which has some smaller family run hotels. Or, cut out the northern side of the island and go from Kona to Hilo in 2 hours on Saddle Road. It is beautiful, stark and a little lonely, has zero ammenities and takes a careful driver, but you drive in between Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea and see some extremely diverse landscape, also as a tourist you are only allowed on the road in a 4x4, no regular rentals. So, depending on your family tastes may or may not be good.

I hope this helps, have a great trip!

One person can only advise another as to how long it takes to DRIVE a route. As someone said above, bus tours "see" the Big Island in one day all the time, but how much do you really "see", explore, truly enjoy.......... in one day? The Big Island is huge, with so many wonders. I've been there for six days, twice, and neither was long enough, believe me! I still don't feel that I've seen enough..... Everyone's different, of course, in their sightseeing styles, but I wouldn't want anyone to think one or two days is adequate if you really want to experience the Big Island. Have a wonderful time, cawhite!

Around the island in one day can be done, but it would be a long day. With the volcano active, you may want to spend more time at the national park. Last trip out, we packed an overnight bag (didn't check out of our hotel room) and stayed in a small cottage near the Volcano Park. Would that be an option for your family? You'd get more out of the drive and have time to stop for a hike, look at waterfalls, etc. By the way, one of the BEST Thai dinners I have ever had was at the restaurant in the tiny town by the park. They run the Hardware store by the day and the Thai restaurant at night and they fly home to Thailand to bring back the spices they cook with. Fabulous food!

Thanks everyone! I'll keep reading my Big Island blue book for more ideas.

So if I only drive to the East side of the island once (the night that we stay at Kilauea Lodge), which route has more interesting points...the North route and its beauty, or the South route so we can see the Black Sand Beach and turtles? We won't be driving back to Kona during that trip since we're flying out of Hilo the following day... so I need to figure out the best route (N. or S.) in case we only go over to that side of the island one time.

Even though we are renting a 4W drive, and it's a shorter route, I think we'll skip Saddle Road in lieu of one of the other 2 choices.

Thanks everyone!

Go the northern route, please! Even many of the travel guides question driving the southern route if you're at all pressed for time. The mind-boggling beauty is in the North (not that the South isn't interesting....) And please don't skip it by going the Saddle Road. You'd miss so much, IMO!

North route it is!! Thanks for helping us see as much of the best that we can in the 4 short days we have on the BI!

Go to bigislandaudiotour.com. I have this on CD. I think I got it on Amazon.com.

Jammie,

This is EXACTLY what I am looking for!! It will be perfect for the various trips around the island. I'm buying this right away!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!

great! I bought this CD on Amazon. We have not listened to it yet - will wait till we get to Hawaii. But the map is great and the CD arrived very promptly

This thread has started me thinking about our trip over to VNP from Kona.

We are planning to start off going the southern route, and returning north. However, I am concerned about our stop at black sand beach at Punalu'u.

We will have all of our luggage from the airport in our van. Is the beach close to the parking area, or is this one of those 'park and hike' to the beach spots? I'd prefer to skip this stop if it means having a break-in on our first day!

The Big Island Audio Tour was great when we used it last August. It had a lot of different tracks for different "from" and "to" drives. We enjoyed it.

Wasn't funny like the Road to Hana one... but very informational.

Thanks again to Jammie for telling me about it!!

cawhite,

Hi,

Try www.mele.com Not sure you will find audio tapes but you can certainly find films that bring you a little closer to understanding culture and history of where you are. Just went to Pacifika film festival in NYC saw a film on Maunakea, "Mauna Kea: Temple Under Siege" talks about the spiritual significance of Maunkea to native Hawaiians. Not sure if this is a film small kids would understand but you and your wife would appreciate it.

Well if you see this stuff out, let us know what you come up with. I am back in Hawaii July 4 for one month WHAAAAAWHOOOO!!! When are you off?