We went on the Ahiu guided lava tour about a month ago during a trip to the big island. We knew…read morethat the active lava areas were not visible from the volcano national park. so we wanted to get up close and personal with the lava. From what we could tell, this was the best, and it didn't disappoint. They take care of all the arrangements on the phone and when you show up they have a backpack, light, snacks, water, gloves, and poncho ready for you. The tour starts at 2 pm, but it's a little drive out to the start of the hike. The guides will help you find a walking stick to help you keep your balance. Now, the hike itself is totally insane, and not for the faint of heart. It's about 3 hours of hiking through the rainforest, where there is ankle deep mud, fallen trees, puddles, and a lot of up/down and switchbacks. I've got to be honest with you, this is a pretty hard hike and not for the faint of heart. We were somewhat ill-prepared, as we only had regular sneakers. I'd definitely recommend real hiking boots. Then it's about another mile on the cooled lava fields to get to an area where the lava is actively coming out. All in all, you arrive at the lava around or just after dusk. The lava itself is one of the most amazing experiences of my life. It is so hot, that once you get within about 10 feet it starts to scorch your face and arms. You can stick your walking stick in the actively flowing lava, and the tip immediately catches on fire! Amazing, just to dip a stick in liquid rock and watch as it cools to a solid. The guide themselves are totally legit. We had 2 guides for a group of about 13, with one leading the way and another bringing up the rear. We spent a fair amount of time talking to one of the guides, Tomas, a native Hawaiian who is pretty much an all around badass. When he isn't guiding tours, hunting boar, surfing, or other stuff with the company, he does mixed martial arts training and fighting. At the time of our tour, he was still undefeated. Big ups to Tomas. The worst part is the hike out. Because you're starting at about 8 pm, and it's another 4 hours of hiking, you don't get back until midnight or so. I can safely say that it was one of the most exhausting experiences I've ever had. Well worth it though. Overall, Ahiu provided us with one of the more amazing moments in my life. I'll always remember it, and I don't say that in many reviews on Yelp. Definitely do it, but bring hiking boots!

The experience of this was truly once in a life time. The front office however is jacked up. First…read morethey called us on the wrong day and said we were late. We had to email them the reservation they sent us in the first place. Then they told us the hike was about 2 hours when it was more than double that one way. I was totally fine with that, but just be honest about it. I would like to give them less stars just for the way the front office handled the whole thing. The tour was a long hike through a rainy jungle. Then you come up to the lava fields and hike to the spot where the current flows are coming up out of the ground. This tour was an absolute must and I was extremely happy that I did it. We were definitely worn out in the end, but it was all worth it. The guides were extremely friendly and polite. You could ask for anything better. I would have given this five stars if it were not for the front office.

We purchased two Magicycle Ocelot Pro electric bikes they are so FUN you can even rent for 24 hours…read moreto see if they fit your needs. We rode in the parking lot and we're SOLD a big smile as we rode beach to EJ who took excellent care of us. Mahalo to such a nice team! Always on it if you have a need or question. If you Cannot buy RENT they have fun guided tours pricing is very fair!

I rented a couple e-bikes through Big Island Personal tours for a 3 hour (half day) excursion for…read moremy hubby's birthday. The owners were so accommodating and kind and allowed me to choose exactly the day and time that I wanted even though it wasn't their usual day for rentals. Everything was so easy and smooth for check-in and check-out. They provided helmets and there is a spot to strap down your things though I recommend wearing a backpack. We were also given locks so that we could lock up our bikes for stops. We went about 30 miles in total with a long lunch break in between. We rode all the way up to rainbow falls and Chong's pond and across Hilo and through wailoa park and some of Keaukaha. We had a blast!! The bikes felt super steady and safe because the assist is very smooth and the tires are thick. We were able to bike with the throttle all the way up kaumana drive and it was easy, I barely had to pedal. By the end of our time I still had 80% charge on my battery and I was using the throttle the whole time! I definitely recommend renting e bikes through this company. The whole experience was perfect and It was a super fun way of exploring Hilo.

We travel the world and always look for unique, relaxing, comfortable places to stay. I never -…read moreEVER - toss out 5 stars. This place would've earned six. Time of stay: 8-11 Mar 2014 Weather: Tropical low (think 1-2 in/hour rain for 22 of 24 hours for 3 days) Sierra (the homeowner) makes this house feel like home! Without such a grand house, I doubt that our solid-rain visit would have been as pleasant and successful as we'd hoped! By comparison, we visited the hotels on Hilo Bay and to a one, they were all rundown, shabby, and uninspiring. One master bedroom with a generous bathroom, one bedroom with a full hallway bath, and a double-bed futon in the family room, plus a full kitchen and screened, covered, walk around porch make this house fully functional for 6. Cable TV proves that 50+ Time-Warner channels provides nothing worth watching (grin), but it comes with WiFi. Bring a HDMI-HDMI cable to port your Netflix to the TV. There are games, books and magazines as well. The kitchen is stocked with all normal utensils and often condiments from prior visitors, but you'll want to do your own grocery shopping. Sierra will leave some items for you upon arrival - fruit, nuts, candies, etc. With the tea candles, it makes for a very lovely arrival after a long trip to Hilo. The view from the rear porch is nothing short of mesmerizing! You will be looking out over your own small waterfall and pond, safe for swimming, 20 feet below your deck. The trek to the pond is a bit challenging, but those without severe joint disease or a walking aid can make it. I recommend "beach shoes" for swimming. Wake up to brew some 100% Kona coffee, fry up some eggs and ham, and you'll be ready to take on a day of sight-seeing, knowing that your home-away-from-home is just 30 minutes away to wash and dry your clothes, have a nice meal (or drive 5-10 minutes to any of the good restaurants in town), and enjoy a great night's rest. Sierra also provided a rental vehicle - Honda CRV van. Plenty of room for 6 with luggage. The back-up camera is essential for backing into the 10%-grade (down) driveway, or you can park on a gravel lot at the top of the hill. You can't miss the coco frogs, as they make their presence known - very loudly - all night long. Combined with the falls - and our errant tropical storm - I was awakened just once. The majority of the time the sound was welcome "white noise." In fact, I cannot recall when I'd been so rested on a vacation! This was the nicest rental I can recall in 12+ years of travel in CONUS and abroad. (Note - Don't miss the air tours over the volcano, as you cannot see the lava from the ground, due to a recent change in lava flows. If helicopters aren't your thing, the locals have a Part 135 (airline level) service using 4 and 7-person Cessnas. As a GA pilot myself, I knew to look for these, and we much-preferred this tour to helicopter. It is also MUCH cheaper and you will see the same or more.)

We arrived late at night on our first night at Aloha Falls. It was so dark that we hardly could…read morepark our car and find our way into the house. Unfortunately, the owner had double booked the house by mistake... so we had to stay the first night in the ground-floor level of the house. So, when we walked into the house in pitch darkness to find unfinished basement-like place...We felt like we had made the biggest mistake of our lives. We were hoping it wouldn't end like a horror film with us murdered. When we woke up the next morning and went outside, we were blown away by the beautiful greenery, fruit trees, and waterfall. When we moved to the upstairs of the house, we found a beautiful spa-like home with everything you could want and more in a Hawaii getaway. Besides the slight hiccup on our first night there...the rest of the stay was wonderful. Next time we visit the Big Island, we will definitely make sure to stay at Aloha Falls again.

DeWaine with Holoholo Adventures is awesome! My husband and I visited the Big Island in January…read more2018, and we were very glad we booked with Holoholo Adventures to tour the Hilo side of the island and Volcano National Park. First of all, they were very accommodating when we were making our plans. They asked if we had any food issues and if there was anything specific we wanted to see. Big plus, the cafe they stop at on the way to Volcano National Park has gluten free sandwiches! Second, having a small tour was amazing! He said they do no more than 5-6 people! With a group that small and a van we were able to go to places that would have been more difficult with a large bus. DeWaine was amazing at adjusting his tour based on the weather. Since the Hilo side is more of a rainforest this is key! He could like sense the rain, we'd hop in a little shop for a snack while it rained, and boom 10 minutes later we were golden! Also, they had everything we could need in the van! Folding chairs, umbrellas, coolers, etc. - we were all set for an adventure and got to save space in our luggage! Third, and most importantly, having a local tour guide like DeWaine made our experiences more memorable. When we only had a day or so to tour an area, it was really nice to have him provide tidbits of what we were seeing. Now when I go through pictures I have stories about the flowers, bridges in the jungle, Volcano tubes, Pele's hair, etc. Sidenote about pictures, DeWaine will send you a link to any pictures he takes for you to download for free! It was nice to see candid pictures from him. Overall, we both really enjoyed our experience and would recommend!

HOLOHOLO, "to go out, especially for a ride for leisure", was a great beginning for our Hawaiian…read moreADVENTURE! DeWaine is the perfect person to share his genuine Island interest and knowledge, offering a personalized tour suited for the guests' interests, and adapting the itinerary given the changing weather. DeWaine's fully equipped comfortable van accommodates the needs of the guests for the day's travel. Being with a small group, with an exceptional guide, was the highlight of our vacation. Without reservation, we highly recommend Holoholo Adventures for a memorable experience!!

Phenomenal Fishing Trip!! Captain Jerry and first hand Shibu are great. They make for an awesome…read morefishing trip. We did the 6 hours trip and we were able to get a bit of everything! 3 tunas, 2 mahi mahi and 1 Ono. It was a lot of fun to reel in the big fish. Also what is great is that once you are back to shore, they will fillet you the fish and give it to you to bring it home so you can have plenty of fish for many days.

This was such an amazing experience! We took our son for his birthday and the captain and first…read moremate made him feel so special. They truly made this a once in a lifetime birthday. Thank you so much for the amazing time!

Went above and beyond to make sure friends were taken care of during the tsunami warning. He could…read morehave told them, "Not my problem" as another establishment did, but he didn't. Mike called a friend that could give them a safe place to stay as they navigated through this unexpected disaster

Karen was great. Our tour was on the smaller side so it was like a private tour. She was so…read morehelpful and even though I have done this tour with other companies I learned a lot. Mahalo!

I know that Robert's of Hawaii Tours have a reputation as a tourist cattle car but I happen to…read morethink they do a very good job at an affordable price. Like many of the other Yelps here, I also took the "Circle Island Tour" around the big island of Hawaii. It was a long day but what a wonderful way to see the island. I was fortunate enough to have James (aka Miles) as my driver & guide. He was fabulous and shared all his knowledge about the islands with the 18 people on the bus. All the stops we made along the way never felt rushed or rote. Although my personal preference is to take the tour in smaller buses and not the large coaches Robert's utilizes, I still learned so much and soaked in unbelievable beauty along the way. Stopping at the University of Hawaii at Hilo's Imiloa Astronomy Center was fascinating and, of course the Volcano overlook was fabulous. I managed to get some shopping done for the family back home at the Macadamia Nut Farm & Kona Coffee Company. It is one thing to come to Hawaii and lay by the pool or on the beach soaking up the island sun, which is fine by me. But I also want to learn and take in the magnificent scenery. If I did not take the Robert's Tour, I would have probably skipped on seeing Hilo, and it is a wonderful wet world over there. You will not regret spending the day on the Robert's Circle Island Tour. 5 YELP STARS for tour guide James (aka Miles) !

Aloha A wonderful experience all the way around…read more Polynesian Cultural Center was great. The Trip out to Dole etc was also great. The drive to the airport also a good experience. The driver from the Cultural center was very friendly and knowledgeable he used to dance for this very place, he was very kind and we enjoyed our day with him very much. So upset that I can't remember his name. The Dole trip was very informative as well. Koko was our driver. We liked him very much too. The man who picked us up from the hotel the morning of the 13th or 14th was nice and we enjoyed the Hawaiian music on the way to the Oahu airport. We were heading to Hilo. All in all a wonderful bunch of guys. A great company. Clean buses in good condition w good AC. Highly recommend Roberts !!! Call them ! Aloha

Robert is knowledgeable, high energy guy....a world traveler....a geologist...and true advocate for…read morethe aloha spirit. He keeps the tour moving, the better to ensure all the key sights are seen before the ship weighs anchor. He even managed to make our "liquid sunshine" enjoyable. Very accommodating, too, to the members of our party with mobility issues. We are glad we landed a C Big Island tour!

Really enjoyed our snorkel trip with C Big Island. The crew was so nice and accomodating and…read moreshared all kinds of neat information. We saw so many fish we had never seen before. The boat ride was enjoyable and they picked us up and had us back all plenty of time for our cruise schedule. Definitely recommend!