Gorgeous black sand beach with very few people located in a really nice neighborhood. If you want a…read morequiet beach wirh great views, this is thr spot!

Came by here since we were in the area and at first, we thought we were in the wrong spot. not…read morerealizing this beach was private but public access!!! Meaning, when you see the gated area, you can still go in when they give you one of the tags to hang on your dashboard. You drive through a very nice neighborhood and follow the sign to the public beach parking lot. It's very small so that's probably why they only let in a certain amount of cars at a time. It was super hot so definitely avoid walking barefoot on the dark "black" (more like pepper) sand because it won't feel cooling to the touch. It was pretty pleasant and nice because of the small vicinity of the beach but it was feeling a bit crowded to where you can only swim in a small section because of other people in the waters. I did like how smooth the sand was along the coast, and there's several thicker and larger rocks that haven't turned to fine sand yet like the others. Pro Tip: If you want to take pics or videos of the sand and emphasize the "black sand" portion of the beach, just adjust your exposure and lower it so it appears darker.

At the top you have the lookout which offers beautiful views. Now for the fun. Down THE steepest…read moreroad in North America (officially), there is an entire valley. At one point in time over 10,000 people lived down there. Now something like only 50 or 100 do, and doing things like taro farming. I think a tsunami hit decades ago and convinced most people to leave. Some stayed though which makes it interesting. Of course the main attraction is the black sand beach here, which is a good mile or 2 long. To get down there, you must go down that road and then take a right on a dirt road at the bottom. You can't go down there without a four wheel drive. The road is a bit torn up in places so even if you have 4WD, I don't recommend doing it unless you know what you are doing. You can then either hike down it or pay a local to drive you down and up. The beach itself is great. There are nice waves here but the currents are decent, so don't go in unless you are a decently strong swimmer. Some good waves for body surfing which I loved. Water isn't too cold but still on the cool side. The sand itself is very fine grain, unlike the black sand beach along Road to Hana on Maui. I enjoy this a lot more. There is a river that flows between the sections and you have to cross it on foot to get to the rest of the beach and also the hiking paths that go up the other side of the valley. There are some interesting foot paths with tropical trees level with the beach too. Anyway, do NOT try and cross this river where the mouth is and a bunch of rocks. You will fall and get hurt probably. Instead, go up some 50 or 100 feet (if memory serves me) and cross. The bottom is mostly sand and gets about waist deep for a person who is about 5'10". There are some rocks so be careful but this is much, much better than trying to cross at the mouth. Now getting back up is the uhh fun part. You could try and find a local to pay for this or do it on foot. I mentioned this is THE steepest road in North America. That's not a joke. It legitimately is. It averages 25% grade and is as high as 40% in some areas. Pictures won't do it justice. If you attempt this in foot like we did, have plenty of water and make sure you stretch before. It will take awhile and your legs will burn. Don't even try this if you don't have plenty of water and you aren't in decent physical shape at the time.

Free view of one of the most sacred valleys in Hawaii. Free! Not to be missed! Park and look…read more That's it.

A beautiful hike to such a peaceful reward at the end!…read more As an avid hiker, this hike was doable. It took us only about half an hour going down and up. When you arrive, parking for hikers is recommended not at the valley parking lot but on the side road leading to the parking lot as the valley parking lot is for those who are just visiting the lookout and not hiking. Once you walk towards the trail entrance, there are a couple of people waiting to assist hikers. They discuss the safety protocol and warnings when visiting. There is no time limit to how long you can be down there but because no swimming is allowed, i have found people stay only about half an hour before heading back up. We recommend wearing hiking shoes because the ascend is not easy and have seen people struggling.

Great short hike with excellent views as you descend. We tried this ~ 30 years ago and the trail…read morewas narrow and not well developed plus very muddy the day we originally tried it, so had to turn around. Now, the trail is nicely improved with some strategic rock "steps" though it is still slippery, even on a dry day. We saw a number of people doing it ( Very cautiously) in inappropriate shoes and that is not at all recommended. It is steep. The pond and beach at the bottom is nice for contemplation and wave watching.

We went on an almost 100% full (flower) moon. It was special to see the terminator line on the…read moreCelestron telescope - it had such great definition! The color of Mauna Kea with the moon shining on it was so magical all around us. There were some clouds that cleared pretty well by the end of our star gazing. We were the last ones up there so it got dark enough to see more than you'd expect with the moon. Jeff, our awesome tour guide, used a laser pointer to help us see the constellations we usually can't back at home. The images on the digital telescope like nebulas, the moon & star clusters were an amazing addition to have as keepsakes. My husband and I felt he made the tour a great balance of learning and fun. He had the group feeling like family before we even left from the pickup lot. Things to consider: I do recommend following the moons cycles booking this tour/your trip if this is especially important for you to see as many stars as possible. The sunset and views of the observatory's make it awesome anyways :) I struggled with altitude sickness around 12,000 ft. Jeff had made sure to let us know beforehand if we experienced any issues to speak up. I was hesitant as I know it would mean turning the whole tour around, but some tingling turned to dizziness and then a brief fainting. He immediately stopped the bus and helped ground me and make sure I was completely okay & coherent before letting me know our options for the tour. We made it up to the top with 2 more (included in tour) stops and I felt better with each one having more time to acclimate :) Thank you Jeff!! You handled this so professionally and I appreciate your check-ins for the rest of the trip. It's cold even with parka and gloves. It's so worth packing warm shoes and layers. The bus had ac and heat so that was great! Do it if you can! Awe-inspiring! Such an unreal environment that makes you wonder about so many things. Just take the precautions seriously, move slow and breathe deep.

Mauna Kea summit trip was amazing. Definitely worth it. Our guide, Aaron was very humbly…read moreknowledgeable and you can tell he really enjoyed the star gazing. He made our group time together feel like ohana. The equipment was top notch.

Are you wanting a relaxing day with minimal crowds? Go to Molokai then...just kidding. This beach…read morehas a basic bathroom and limited parking. Shade is plentiful at Beach 69 with all the trees. Bring a hammock and enjoy the day. Fishing is okay on the shoreline but there is competition with swimmers. Snorkeling is okay, you see fish small to medium size. Bottom is mostly rock so not great for walking and wading in the ocean. Depth is about 2-6' for about 40' then gets deeper.

This is one of my favorite beaches in Hawaii, but I was sad when we showed up and the parking meter…read morewas broken, so instead of paying a little hourly rate they were making everyone buy the day pass for $30. We paid it none the less, and we enjoyed our day snorkeling, swimming, tanning, picnicking and interacting with the local chickens. It's a very family friendly beach with lots of little kids laughing and families playing in the sand. This beach is unique because of how close the trees come to the water creating little amphitheaters of seating under the shade. While it makes for minimal spots for people, it is so relaxing and paradise-making to get one of the spots.

Get there early for one of the public beach parking spots and avoid weekends. The beach is…read morebeautiful and pretty quiet, we stayed the entire day. The parking lot is close to the beach, maybe 10 minutes. It was nice to have clean restrooms with toilet seat covers, toilet paper, running water, and paper towels. Showers for rinsing off are outside the restroom.

Wow, how lucky we are! We got a spot! Usually, they only allow 10 parking spots open but in the…read moretemporary lot, there's many more guest beach parking The security guard at the entrance will let you know if you are able to come through and he will give you a parking pass here. They will give you a parking pass if there are spots open. Currently there is construction to build a larger parking lot to allow more than 10 parking spots so you will be sent to another parking area that allows a lot more spots. Everyone is excited for the new parking lot. This beach is really fun for boogie boarding, building sand castles, and (if you like small waves )surfing . The walk from the temporary parking lot to the beach was really nice included a lot of trees, flowers, and a garden. Tucked away behind the garden a gift shop. The gift shop also sells boogie boards, but you can bring your own

This is by far one of my favorite hikes on the Big Island. I have venture on it twice. The…read moretrailhead is located in Waipio Valley! Take the very steep road (Kukuihaele Road) down to the valley. When you arrive at the bottom of the steep road, you can go left or you can go right. Right takes you to the beach! Take a left and travel down the town dirt road. You are going to take this road for 0.6 of one mile until you hit a stream in the middle of the road! Do NOT cross the stream (crossing the streams is bad)! There is a trail-head immediately to the left of the road, exactly before the stream road crossing. You walk upwards on the dirt. There will be signs that say, "trail closed," "private property," etc. You will know that is the trail you want to take! Follow this trail as much as possible and try to stick to whatever appears to be a trail! I try to avoid the homes on the left of the trail as much as possible, to respect their privacy! While on the trail, you will traverse down by the river and back up and down by the river and back up, a few times...that is normal! Then, you will eventually come to many signs saying, "Under surveillance" and more warning signs...you are on the right track! There are two tiny fences you can either climb over easily or slightly go around...not too hard. Then you come to a man-made dam in the river! You will want to cross that dam! I walked in front of the dam, because there was less water. Then, once on the other side, I climb the dam and enter the waist high (depending on your height) water. I stay on the far right side of the ridge until I climb up on the rocks and back on a trail. Now, keep in mind, the trail will go upwards and downwards, along the river and back up on an actual trail. You will also cross the river several times, because quite frankly, there is no other way to do this hike AND the trail continues on the other side. You go through a bamboo forest too! Towards the last 1/5 of the hike, there is a longer well seen trail on the right side, which will eventually lead you to the Hi'ilawe Falls! My wife I and I did this hike and we only saw three people (a group) along the way, who turned back, because they did not have enough time to complete it. My wife is on the slower side, so it took us 2.5 hours to get there and 2 hours to hike back. On my first hike when I did this alone, I made the trip back in 1 hour (not sure about the bike there by myself, because I spent more time hiking over boulders and did not notice the trail on most of the journey until hiking back). A good rule of thumb...stay away from the stream as much as possible! Inevitably, you will have to hike on the side of the stream. Stay away from hiking over boulders as much as possible. The less you have to hike over boulders and rely more on the trails, the shorter the hike will be. Trust me, the trails are there, you just have to look for them and use some blasted hiking common sense. Wear water proof boots at all possible! I brought a backpack which I carried over my head while in the river at the dam area...only a couple of minutes worth of holding it. There are a few very slippery rocks...keep that in mind. If it looks green and mossy...it is going to be slippery! Best of luck! Happy hiking!

This is a great 'less known' beach. I recently spent 3 days…read moreon this beach and there was never more than just a few people. The water is clear and very little waves in May so it was perfect for floating around, snorkeling or swimming. We saw a few turtles swim by as we were floating around enjoying the water. No lifeguards, no bathrooms, no parking lot, no nothing.... just a trail down to a nice beach. More locals than tourists usually. Leave your resort wear and screaming kids at the resort. This is a mellow beach......... don't ruin it for the rest of us.

Tucked away and not too crowded even at peak season this is a little golden nugget of a beach. Some…read moresnorkeling opportunities just off the beach too, explored a few small coral reefs with schools of tropical fish and even a large sea turtle.

Wow. This view was breathtaking!…read more I visited in April and we definitely got lucky. I hear that all the tour busses come by and parking is often difficult to find. There is a slight hike so if you aren't physically able, this might be inaccessible for you. Tourists used to be able to access the property below the valley but that has changed since the pandemic (unfortunately). Still, nonetheless it doesn't cost a penny and it's a stunning view.

This was such an epic view. The lookout is a short but steep walk from the parking lot and had…read morebathroom facilities. This is definitely worth a stop if on the big island. The day we went, was right after rain and there was a waterfall falling onto a black sand beach. Where else in the world can you see that?

We loved this so much! Our entire family had the best time. Great people, so many turtles. SUPs…read moreare so cool and unique. Felt totally safe. We will be back for sure! 10/10!!

Highly recommend! We initially found LightSUP on Yelp at the top with all its stellar reviews and…read morewith SUP on my check off list, we booked it. I talked to Kelly on the phone and she was amazing ! and very patient answering all my questions, I had a lot lol since this was our first time. Looking at weather and surf conditions, she assured us Tuesday would be a great am for lessons. We drove down to Kona from Waikoloa ~30 min drive. Meet up was near a wharf, where we found free 2 hour parking off of Ali'i drive. Met up with our instructor Mark 830 am - a super friendly and understanding dude and he made us feel at ease. He went over some instructions with us regarding the board, how to, safety, and possible route. He warned us, looking at the windsock, it was a little windy, waters might be rough, but that we could make it work. Life vests were available, I wore one since I'm not the greatest swimmer. The boards were really cool, with the upper half containing a clear glass portion for views of marine life in the ocean. In the evenings, they offer lit up SUP boards. When I got onto the water, the waves were soooooo choppy, I immediately felt seasick- nauseous and dizzy, I was only able paddle for less than a half hour. Hubby was able to stand up a few times, but soon was washed off the board due to the waves. Mark noted that it was definitely advanced waters kinda day. We weren't able to enjoy as much as we had liked to or be out the two hours allotted. But, he made us feel comfortable and was so kind. He shared with us all the videos and pics he took of our am. He called and left a message with Kelly, the owner, of our uneventful morning. I messaged Kelly as well, and she did not charge us. Mahalo! We definitely tipped Mark for his time, kindness, and patience : ) This is a wonderful small owned company that cares about its clients! Check them out!