Big Island Hawaii Loop:
The Ultimate 3-Day Road Trip Itinerary

Leave Hilo and begin the climb from near sea level toward Maunakea. The road rises gradually, but by the time you reach the Maunakea Visitor Information Station at Halepōhaku, you’re already at about 9,200 feet above sea level.

That elevation change is significant, so take altitude sickness seriously. Slow down, hydrate, and pay attention to how you’re feeling as your body adjusts.

The visitor center is definitely cool, but it’s not the summit.

Measured from its underwater base to its summit, Maunakea rises more than 33,500 feet, making it taller from base to peak than Mount Everest is above sea level whose summit reaches 13,803 feet above sea level!!

Want to make it all the way to the top of Maunakea?

Download our free guide for the full details on how to drive to the summit yourself, what kind of vehicle you need, how to acclimate before heading higher, or how to book a guided summit tour instead.

Near the visitor station, the volcanic landscape provides an opportunity to get out of the car and experience Maunakea on foot.

This became one of our favorite viewpoints of Day 1.

And on your way out of the Maunakea area, before reaching the main road, keep an eye out for volcano goats walking across the lava fields!

We didn’t realize at the time that goats were going to become recurring characters in this road trip. We also didn’t know Hawai’i Island had so many wild goats! 

After descending toward the Kona coast, visit Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park.

This is where the road trip begins transitioning from dramatic volcanic landscapes into Hawaiian coastal history.

The Visitor Center is a great place to start. They can educate you about hiking and history. They also have restrooms available and a water refill station.

The 1,160-acre park protects important cultural resources that tell the story of Native Hawaiian life along this coastline.The park highlights historic fishponds, sacred temples, petroglyphs, and coastal wildlife like sea turtles.

After leaving the Visitor Center, head toward ʻAiʻōpio Fishtrap, one of our favorite beach discoveries of the trip, which is also part of Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park.

BONUS: Although this is a National Historical Park, admission & parking is free.

You get beautiful water, white sand, lava rock, Hawaiian history and opportunities to spot marine life in a setting that felt dramatically less crowded than many popular Hawaiian beaches. 

The traditional fishtrap here is especially cool to see and represents an important example of historic Hawaiian aquaculture.

Want to know how we accessed this part of the park?

Check it out in the free guide.

You’re leaving Kona and gradually working your way around the southern part of the Big Island toward Hilo.

This day combines wildlife, coffee, Hawaiian food, cultural history, national park, farms, pastries, sea turtles, and black sand.

Yes, you should probably start hungry.

First stop:

The End of the World.

It’s both funny and alarming to hear your GPS announce “You have arrived at the end of the world.” 

Besides having an excellent name, this volcanic coastal landscape became one of the most bizarrely entertaining wildlife stops of our trip.

Why?

VOLCANO GOATS.

Lots of them!! 

We saw goats roaming across the old lava fields, jumping, playing, enjoying life, and quickly realized that if seeing feral goats standing dramatically on volcanic rock is something you didn’t know was on your bucket list…

It is now.

We visited The Big Island in August and saw so many baby goats too. 

Our Free Big Island Road Trip Guide includes a little history about how the heck a bunch of goats ended up in lava land.

Next, head into Kona coffee country and visit Greenwell Farms.

Coffee has been grown at Greenwell Farms since the 19th century, making this a chance to experience an important part of Kona’s agricultural history while learning more about the coffee-growing process.

Coffee lovers, this one is for you! Both of us aren’t even coffee drinkers and this was a fantastic experience. Tons of free coffee samples, including classic flavors, but also one-of-a-kind flavors like Chocolate Macadamia Nut! 

And yes, the downloadable guide has additional details about visiting and the awesome tour they offer.

Now we arrive at one of the most important parts of any Full Time to Travel Time road trip:

FOOD.

Stop at Kaʻaloa’s Super J’s, a family-run restaurant known for traditional Hawaiian cuisine. We met the daughter taking orders and serving us while her mama was chopping up and preparing fresh sides for our meal.

We tried both chicken and pork laulau, meat wrapped in edible taro leaves and slowly steamed for 12 HOURS!! 

It was insanely delicious and you could definitely taste the love. 

This is exactly the kind of restaurant we love finding while traveling: local, family-run and connected to the food traditions of the place we’re actually visiting.

Continue to Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park.

Historically, this area included royal grounds and a puʻuhonua, or place of refuge for people who had broken kapu (sacred laws), and today preserves an extraordinarily important Hawaiian cultural landscape.

This Historical Park is big so give yourself time here to explore. You’ll walk past fish ponds, crashing ocean waves, lava rocks, royal burial grounds (Hale o Keawe) and striking carved kiʻi that represent Hawaiian gods and deified ancestors.

Next, explore the Kahuku Unit of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.

To be clear, this is not the main section of the National Park.

The Kahuku Unit offers multiple hiking trails through the southwest slopes of Mauna Loa, with everything from grassy meadows and old ranch roads to forests, cinder cones, and lava flows created during the 1868 eruption of Mauna Loa.

Unlike the stark black lava you may think of when you think of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, much of Kahuku is incredibly green and grassy! More than 150 years have passed since the 1868 flows, giving grasses, native plants, and forests time to grow across the volcanic landscape.

Walk the Upper Palm Trail

The Upper Palm Trail travels through scenic pastures with panoramic views while crossing volcanic features associated with the 1868 eruptive fissure and lava channel. The full loop is about 2.6 miles with roughly 310 feet of elevation change. It’s a bumpy, dirt road to get to the trail so a 4×4 is recommended. 

Even if you don’t or can’t do the entire hike, walking a section of this trail is very peaceful.

It’s also a great place to slow down and listen for native birds while exploring some of the older, greener sections of the landscape.

Hike Puʻu o Lokuana Cinder Cone

For a much shorter hike, climb Puʻu o Lokuana, a grassy cinder cone on the slopes of Mauna Loa.

The hike is only about 0.4 miles round trip, but it climbs roughly 130 feet and rewards you with a beautiful panoramic view across lower Kaʻū (and a breeze!).

The Kahuku Unit is currently open Thursday through Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., so plan your hikes accordingly and make sure you’re back at your vehicle and heading out before 4:00 p.m.

Continue south to Paradise Meadows Orchard & Bee Farm in Nā‘ālehu.

This family-friendly farm stop includes a self-guided tour (map included!), generous free samples of macadamia nuts and honey, and a very eclectic collection of resident animals!

You’ll likely meet Penny the Pig, a few macaws, several rescued birds, moscovy ducks, peacocks, and some guineafowl while exploring the property.

These were definitely the tastiest macadamia nuts we’ve ever had!! 

Stop at Punaluʻu Bake Shop, known as the southernmost bakery in the United States!

They are known for Hawaiian sweet bread and malasadas, which is like a dense, fluffy, soft, dough-like treat often rolled in sugar or filled with fresh, local Hawaiian fruit.

Our favorite?

Mango-filled malasada.

Want to know the secret on how to skip the forever line that you’ll find when you arrive?

You guessed it.

It’s in the free guide! 🙂

Finish the loop at one of the most iconic beaches for spotting sea turtles on the southern Big Island:

Punaluʻu Black Sand Beach

The dark volcanic sand beneath tropical palms creates a landscape that almost doesn’t look real.

There’s a designated area to view the Hawaiian green sea turtles, but it’s not uncommon to see them riding the waves in the public beach area. 

Punaluʻu became the perfect final wildlife stop of the road trip and an appropriately volcanic ending to three days exploring Hawaiʻi Island.

From here, continue back toward Hilo and complete the loop!