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Big Island: Volcanoes, Waterfalls & Black Sand Day Trip

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/11

Duration11h

GroupUp to 13

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

Walk lava tubes taste Kona coffee and see wild waterfalls with a local guide

You’ll walk black sand beaches looking for sea turtles, sip fresh Kona coffee at a local farm, feel mist from towering waterfalls like Akaka and Rainbow Falls, and explore ancient lava tubes inside Volcanoes National Park—all with a local guide and picnic lunch included. Expect moments that stick with you long after you leave.

11h

Step-by-step itinerary

Pick up guests from Kohala Coast resorts
Drive through historic Downtown Kona
Tour Kona Coffee Farm and sample coffee
Visit Punalu’u Black Sand Beach for turtles
Explore Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Walk to Thurston Lava Tube cave
Drive through Downtown Hilo
See Rainbow Falls and rainbows
Walk to Akaka Falls viewpoint
Stop at Waipio Valley lookout
Drive through Parker Ranch pastures

The Experience

I’ll never forget stepping out of the van near Punaluʻu Black Sand Beach—the sand really is that dark, almost blue-black, and I actually laughed when I saw my shoes disappear into it. Our guide, Kaleo, told us to keep an eye out for honu (green sea turtles). Sure enough, there was one just lounging like he owned the place. The air smelled salty and a little sweet from the nearby palms. It’s weird how you can feel so far from home but instantly at ease here.

The drive across Big Island is its own kind of show—one minute you’re rolling through Parker Ranch’s green pastures (I didn’t expect cowboys in Hawaii, but there they are), and then suddenly everything goes lush and dense as we got closer to Akaka Falls. The rain had just let up when we walked to the lookout; the path was slippery and full of birdsong. I leaned over the railing and got hit by this cool mist from the waterfall—my shirt stayed damp for hours after, but I didn’t mind. Rainbow Falls was next, smaller but with this wild rainbow arcing right through the spray. Someone behind me gasped—honestly, same.

Lunch was picnic style—nothing fancy but somehow perfect after all that walking. We’d already sampled Kona coffee earlier at a small farm (the owner made us laugh trying to explain “peaberry” beans), so I was buzzing in more ways than one by the time we reached Volcanoes National Park. The steam vents hissed in the distance and you could smell sulfur faintly on the wind. Walking through Thurston Lava Tube felt surreal—like being inside a giant’s secret tunnel, cool and echoey underfoot. Kaleo pointed out old flow marks on the walls; I tried to imagine what it sounded like when lava rushed through here centuries ago.

The last stop was Waipio Valley lookout—the cliffs drop so sharply into this green bowl it almost doesn’t look real. Everyone went quiet for a second except for one kid who kept asking if there were wild horses down there (apparently yes). On the way back through Hilo, I watched rain streak down the window while someone passed around pineapple candy from a gas station stop—sticky sweet, oddly comforting. Even now, I still think about that view over Waipio and how small we all felt standing there together.

What’s included

Your day includes hotel pickup from Kailua Kona or Waikoloa resorts in a comfortable Mercedes Sprinter van with a small group led by a local guide.
all entry fees to sites like Volcanoes National Park.
bottled water, Hawaiian juice, snacks throughout.
plus a picnic-style lunch before returning in the evening.

Good to know

Easy physical level

Operated by Wasabi Tours Hawaii