Hilo: Volcano, Lava Tube & Waterfall Small Group Day Trip

4.90

(374 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

I was honestly a little nervous stepping off the bus in Hilo — you hear “active volcano” and your mind goes wild, right? But our guide, Kaleo, just grinned and handed out island chips like it was any other Tuesday. The air smelled faintly sweet, almost earthy, with this cool mist clinging to everything. We started at Hawaii Volcanoes Park, and I remember standing near the Kilauea caldera, watching steam drift up from vents while Kaleo told us how the land keeps changing. He pointed out old lava flows that looked frozen mid-motion. I touched one; it felt rougher than I expected, almost sharp in places.

The walk through the rainforest to Nāhuku (the Thurston Lava Tube) was quieter than I thought it’d be — just bird calls and our footsteps squishing into damp earth. Inside the tube, it got cold fast. The walls were slick and my hand came away smelling like wet stone. Someone behind me joked about trolls living down there (I laughed too loud). It’s wild to think molten rock once rushed through here, shaping all of this.

Rainbow Falls was next — not as tall as some falls I’ve seen but the way sunlight caught in the spray made a little arc of color that hung there for a second. Kaleo shared an old legend about a goddess hiding behind the water. After that we wandered Liliuokalani Gardens for a bit; koi gliding under little bridges and these perfectly raked stones. I tried to say “Liliuokalani” properly — pretty sure I butchered it because Kaleo just smiled politely.

We finished with local chocolates and coffee back in town. The chocolate melted almost instantly on my tongue (it’s humid here) and the coffee had this nutty flavor that stuck around even after we left. Honestly, I still think about that view over Kilauea — kind of humbling to stand somewhere so alive and unpredictable. If you’re even half curious about volcanoes or just want to see Hilo differently for a day, this is worth it.