October 6, 2017

A Guide to The Big Island, Hawaii

Here is my breakdown of what to do on The Big Island of Hawaii. Where to stay, what to eat, how to pass time and more plus a mini recap of my last trip over there with my mom. Enjoy!

Hawaii is such a special place to me and my family. I have been lucky enough to spend time there every year since I was born…most years spending the summers there with my family and going over after Christmas, too. My dad moved over there when I was about 8 and although my mom and brothers and I didn’t make the move over, we still get over there every year.

Specifically, my family is very connected to the Mauna Lani Resort in Puako where my parents have had a condo for nearly 30 years, my dad built the house my family was going to move to and my grandparents have had a house there for ages. It feels like home when we are there, and while the resort had undergone many changes and the familiar faces that used to work at the Beach Club and the family photos of us all over the walls are gone, I still know it like the back of my hand.

Even though I’ve been to The Big Island maybe 50 times I am always so happy to be back and revisit my favorite restaurants and beaches, and explore new places.

This past trip, my mom and I flew over for about a week to do some furniture shopping and design work to get some pieces for the new house my dad finished building and revamp some of the furniture in my parent’s condo. The condo is a rental most of the year at The Mauna Lani Point, F101 and it has an amazing view for sunsets and of the signature golf course hole. (If anyone is looking for a rental, let me know and I can put you in touch).

We spent the first couple days in Kona town going through about a dozen furniture, consignment and design stores and weren’t having the best luck. Most of the stores are in large garage style warehouses that have no AC so you can imagine how hot it gets in the island humidity.

Luckily, we got a couple good pieces to work off of and my parents decided to look for the rest of the furniture and artwork in the upcoming months. So the rest of the trip was time to relax and enjoy on island time. Below are some of my favorite places to stay, restaurants to eat at, beaches to lounge on and more. I could ramble about Hawaii for way too long so I bolded the main points if you are planning a trip or interested in going to The Big Island at any point.

ACCOMMODATIONS:

I have only stayed at a hotel a few times in Hawaii because my family has always had a house or condo. I definitely recommend staying at a house if you have a group of people you are traveling with, or if you are staying for a long time and plan to cook some meals. There are tons of rentals on VRBO and through resorts. The hotels I would recommend though are all really nice and have different price points for any traveler.

In Mauna Lani, The Fairmont Orchid has a great pool area and restaurants. The Mauna Lani Hotel is more dated but has more dining options and a great open layout.

The Mauna Kea Hotel is really nice as well, and on the more pricey side. My mom describes it as East Coast Wealthy and I will admit I see a lot of polos and khaki shorts walking around there. I have stayed there before after the 4th of July and they have great celebrations and Clam Bakes and an amazing brunch if you want to visit for a day.

Waikoloa Village has a few large hotels such as a Marriott and Hilton which is wonderful for kids because there are several pools and water slides and a lot of activities to do including swimming with dolphins.

The best resort that my family loved and has been going to since the 70s was Kona Village. There is talk about it reopening in a couple of summers but next to that is The Four Seasons which is amazing if you can afford to spend around 1k a night!

FOOD:

We knew we had our staple restaurants we wanted to hit. In Mauna Lani, which is kind of like home base, The Beach Club is a daily staple. It used to be the running joke in our family every year when we went back to wonder if anything had changed on the menu. And one year to our surprise, after over 15 years of the same 6 items, there was a new menu. Their ‘Snow Cone Martini’ is a must have and so are their french fries. I also love their tuna fish sandwich and if the fresh catch is ever Ono, get it!

Monstera is one of my favorite spots. It is an Asian Fusion restaurant with a sushi bar and full menu with noodles, stir frys, soups, you name it. The Yaki Udon, Kabocha Squash and The Chuck Norris Roll are amazing.

If you find yourself in Waimea, Merriman’s is amazing. He has several restaurants throughout the Islands but this original location is the flagship for the rest of his spots. It is a farm to table style restaurant and you can taste the freshness. Basil from the garden outside the window in your Martini and the freshest tomatoes on a sandwich are the special touches you get here. You also have to try dessert, the Chocolate Purse is unbelievable!

In Kona, my mom and I stopped at ‘On The Rocks’ after shopping and had a really great meal on the water. Their Mai Tai’s are incredible and you can’t beat the view. One of their other restaurants is another favorite called Lava Lava which is closer to where we live in Waikoloa. You can eat on the sand or the deck above, play corn hole while you wait for your food and it is the perfect sunset spot.

Another restaurant with the best sunset view is at The Canoe House at the Mauna Lani Hotel. This is one of the fancier spots in the resort with really great food and an unbeatable sunset view. I like to get an early reservation to eat during golden hour. I would stick to fish and classic meat dishes, their short ribs are amazing. This last time I got Mochi Fried Goat Cheese which was a miss for me, but the drinks are great.

The Beech Tree at The Four Seasons is great. In the last few years it has turned into an Italian menu at night which is a nice change from all of the seafood and tropical items if you have been eating out a lot. I recommend the Spaghetti with Cheese and Pepper as well as the Wild Mushroom Pappardelle. Their Lava Flows are amazing too.

BEACHES:

Some of the nicest beaches on the Big Island are pretty hard to get to. There is a green sand beach that my dad drove me and my friends to in high school. You need to be a skilled off road driver and have 4 wheel drive for this, so not counting this spot, my favorite beach is Hapuna Beach. There used to only be a super windy road to get to the beach which was always fun for my cousins and I when we were little, but it has since been evened out. The best way I like to get here is to go to the hotel for lunch and then walk down to the sand. The further end of the beach is predominantly locals and one thing locals don’t like is tourists honing in on their beaches. Makalawena beach and the black sand beaches are mostly for locals. Hapuna is in a resort area though and it is the softest, whitest sand ever and there are hardly any rocks in the water. The beach is also great for boogie boarding and has fun waves to body surf.

Next to Hapuna is Mauna Kea Resort Beach which is equally as amazing. When Rockefeller built the resort in the 80s, he flew up and down the coast of the island looking for the best beaches and chose this one to build his resort.

For a good family beach, The Beach Club in Mauna Lani or at The Orchid are great. They are man made coves that are protected and have restaurants on the premises.

ENTERTAINMENT:

Most of the time vacations are meant for two things; eating/drinking and relaxing. This is definitely the case in Hawaii where you spend most of the day lounging on the beach and deciding between a Mai Tai or Lava Flow. There are awesome activities to get up to though when you want a break from the all day beaching. The volcano and helicopter rides are signature adventures but I haven’t done either of those in ages. Once you see it, you don’t really need to keep seeing it. I would recommend it to any first time visitors though! That, and watching sunrise or sunset on the top of Mauna Kea.

There are a lot of great hikes you can do, one of my favorites is in Waipio Valley. Kayaking and stand up paddling are usually available for rent at any hotel or resort beach too. Snorkeling is a big favorite of mine because it isn’t as involved as diving and you don’t need to commit as much time to it. The signature hole on the golf course in Mauna Lani has a great black and white rock bay to snorkel in. If you want an easier entry, the Beach Club is perfect. If you do want to make a day out of it, there are a lot of great charters on the Island that go out of resorts as well as in town.

Sunset cruises and charters are also a great way to get the best sunset view. One of the nights we met up with some friends who were staying at the Four Seasons and they had chartered a huge sailboat for the night, just for the four of us. Hawaii Nautical is up and coming on the Big Island but they are very popular on Maui. This was one of the highlights from the trip. The crew was friendly and awesome and they had a full bar and snacks on board.

STYLE-

Like I said in my packing post, all you really need in Hawaii are a couple of bathings suits, a pair of shorts and a tank top and some sandals. Everywhere is pretty laid back but you can get as dressed up as you want. I am not one to pack only for necessity, so I crammed in lots of outfits into my carryon and had fun getting dressed up for dinner and daily excursions. Flowy outfits are a must here to deal with the humidity. It is hot and sticky most of the year and if you have sensitive skin like me, you want to keep dry and comfortable.

I loved wearing this floral set and roomy jumpsuit.

The best accessory I bought aside from sunglasses were these folding visors from Amazon. They roll up to fit in your beach bag and are easy to throw on with whatever you’re wearing and give lots of sun protection. Amazon also had a lot of cute swimsuits including these two that I got a handful of questions about. Shop the black one here, and the stripped one here.

I also brought some body chains to dress up my night time looks, both from Boho Queen Jewelry where you can use my code “withwildflowers” to get 20% off your order.