Just got back from 9 days on the Big Island. Flew into Honolulu to see my sister and her family who live in Kailua for one night. Then flew to Kona for 5 nights at a conference for my husband up at the Prince Hapuna Beach. It wouldn't have been my choice of resort (if I'm going to spend big bucks I prefer the Kona Village Resort which has an intimate Hawaiian feel to it), but it was big and beautiful and serene, with a lovely beach. Since DH was in meetings until 12:30 each day, then back at it at 5, we spent most afternoons at the resort beach - it's a fair drive to most anyplace. The day he didn't need to return for evening meetings we visited Waipio Valley, and were glad to stretch our legs with some decent hiking. It was a bit foggy, so the views weren't so great and we were rather underwhelmed. We had dinner in Waimea at a great BBQ place, Huli Sue's on the way back. I visited Kiholo Bay by myself one morning, and thought it worth the trip. We would have liked to have revisited Place of Refuge, but it was almost a two-hour drive each way.

Friday afternoon we headed through Waimea again on our way to Hilo and beyond. Stopped and had lunch at Merriman's, it was good. Ended up that afternoon in a place we wouldn't have even thought to stay, except someone on this board tipped us off - the Puna area. South of Hilo, we stayed at the Kapoho tide pools, about as far east as you can get in Hawaii. This area is a little rough around the edges, a little more crime than elsewhere, but I loved the tide pools. I like warm water (didn't really even swim on the Kona side) and these ponds were like heaven to me. Our house was Lagoon II,very clean and well-provisioned, but very much out-of-the-way - closest town is about 20 minutes away. Sat. we visited Volcanoes National Park and redid the Kilauea Iki trail, one of the most interesting hikes I've ever done. To go from lush rainforest to stark lava as you cross a crater, then back up to rainforest (with a detour through a lava tube) - it doesn't get much better than that. We also took in a few ranger talks/walks and learned a lot about the geography, history, and flora and fauna of the islands. The rangers were all excited, the day before there had been 3 small earthquakes (I hadn't felt a thing) so they were hopeful the lava had stepped up a notch. And what a sight it was to behold that evening when we went down Route 137 from our place to view it as it entered the ocean. Even before dark we could easily see lava shooting up in a fountain from time to time, very different from the experience last time down Chain of Craters Rd. when it was more ribbons of orange on a far hillside. We saw a lava-viewing boat tour, and did they get close! Maybe too close. The next morning we took a helicopter tour out of Hilo, which was fascinating. We didn't see much orange lava, but it was still the highlight of the trip for me. Our last day we stopped at the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens north of Hilo. Gorgeous place, worth the $15 per person to me (but then, I'm a gardener).

Bottom line: A fascinating island, I would love to get back for a third time (though next time we go we hope to revisit Kauai). Even during the rainy season, we didn't see much rain in Hilo (two nights there were showers, and a trace one day), and we didn't much notice the vog.

Fodors forums move fast and I didn't want yours to disappear too soon. We also spent a few days at a simple little cottage on a lagoon in Kapoho. It wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea, but I was enchanted. We heard a lot of stories about crime and unfriendliness in the area beforehand, so we hedged our bets by reserving a room at the Prince for a few days. It was a totally different experience. I would love to return to Kapoho.

we were there last may.stayed in a gated area. we had a themo pool to ourselves.very nice.the house was a little dated ,but lots of outside room and we could snorkle at nite if we wanted to ,since it had lights around the pond.very relaxing.

Loved your report--we're leaving three weeks from today for our annual trip to the BI--and now I'm even more anxious to go (if that's possible). We'll do our usual "stay in south Kona/stay in Puna" split with a few days at our favorite B&B in Honoka'a to start the trip.

We also love the Puna area--and have 6 days at Lagoon House this time. Hope the lava flow continues til then so we can go see it.

I'll do a report when we return.

Martm - Which B&B do you stay at? My son is looking at options for a honeymoon, and a B&B might be nice. Or any other suggestions for a young couple? (reasonably priced, clean, near a nice beach)

The b and b we always go to near Honokaa is the Waipio Wayside B & B-http://www.waipiowayside.com/ . I'm not sure what you consider reasonably priced but a couple more luxurious options in Hamakua are Waianuhea http://www.waianuhea.com/ and Palm Cliffs House http://www.palmscliffhouse.com/
There are no beaches in Hamakua to speak of-though it is very beautiful-lots of cliffs and waterfalls. You are about 1 hour from the Kohala beaches--e.g., Hapuna, Mauna Kea.

Some B & B possibilities in south Kona include http://www.hawaii4two.com/

http://www.konabayviewinn.com/bayview.htm

http://www.luanainn.com/index.html

http://www.southkonahideaway.com/

http://www.horizonguesthouse.com/

None of these are on a beach--though beaches and good snorkeling are with 10-15 minutes.

Hope this helps.