Your 3-Day Volcano Travel Guide
Nestled in the rainforest and located right at the doorstep of Volcanoes National Park, our Volcano Bed and Breakfast is the perfect home base for your stay in Volcano Village. This Volcano travel guide will point you toward not-to-miss spots in the park, a nearby beach unlike any other, and places to embrace Hawaiian art and culture — in just three days, you’ll experience the best of the Big Island.
Day One – Drive, Hike, and Explore Volcanoes National Park
No visit to Volcano is complete without exploring the expansive and breathtaking 500 acres of Volcanoes National Park, just a few miles from the front door of our rainforest lodging. In addition to being the world’s most active volcano (it has been quiet as of late but had lava lake movement as recently as early March of 2023), Kilauea is also one of the only volcanoes in the world where you can drive around its crater and close to the volcanic action. Crater Rim Drive – an 11-mile loop around Kilauea with gorgeous views – is an ideal way to visit several of the park’s top destinations in one afternoon.
Start your day at the Kilauea Visitor Center – you can watch a video about the park’s history, view interactive exhibits, and ask knowledgeable park guides about the most current park conditions. Next, stop for a hike nearby at the Wahinekapu steam vents, where water hitting magma far below the Earth’s surface causes 100+ degree steam to emit from cracks in the volcanic surface. During times of little or no lava flow in Kilauea, seeing steam flowing out from within the Earth is a close second, displaying the raw volcanic power that shaped the Hawaiian islands.
Continue along Crater Rim Drive and choose from several Kilauea viewpoints, each as photo-worthy as the last, as you peer into the 4-plus-square-miles of the caldera below, where flowing lava has shaped the landscape in eruption after eruption, as recently as December of 2023. As you make your way along the entire driving loop, plan to hike either the Kilauea Iki Trail or Devastation Trail, depending on the length of outing you’re looking to do. Both are classic hikes showcasing the park’s unbelievable views. Kilauea Iki descends 400 feet into a crater, while Devastation features a paved 1-mile trail over austere volcanic terrain leading to some of the best sights of Kilauea. Wrap up your day by touring the Nahuku Thurston Lava Tube, one of the park’s most unique geological features, and the cave-like lava tube is less crowded in the late afternoon hours.
Volcano Travel Guide Day Two – A Black Sand Beach and Picnic to Remember
Many people associate Hawaii with white sand beaches, but the stunning black sand beach at Isaac Hale Beach Park is just as breathtaking. Plan a day trip to this stretch of black sand beach formed by Kilauea’s spectacular and long-lasting eruption in 2018, which reshaped large sections of the coastline in the Puna district. Let us take care of your beach picnic with our “To Take On Your Hike” special, which you can reserve on our website, and includes sandwiches, snacks, water, and local wine.
The hour-ish-long drive to Isaac Hale Beach is a relaxing and scenic introduction to the Volcano and Hilo side of the Big Island, passing by forest reserves and hardened lava from past eruptions, eventually leading to the charcoal sands of Pohoiki Bay. Relax under the palm trees with your picnic, soak in the geothermal pools, and marvel at the jet-black sand stretching the length of the bay.
Day Three – Experience the Art, Orchids, and Wine of Volcano
While the Big Island’s volcanoes and beaches are a main draw, and for a good reason, Volcano Village also has a rich tradition of art and culture. Inspired by the area’s natural beauty, artists have flocked to Volcano for generations, with their lasting influence on full display at the Volcano Art Center that’s less than 10 minutes away from our Big Island Bed and Breakfast. Whether it’s special exhibits on painted gourds, Hawaiian woodworking, photography showcasing Kilauea’s Halema’uma’u crater, or classical paintings from the “Volcano School” of artists, there’s no better place to dive into Volcano Village’s artistic past and present.
Embrace another side of Hawaiian culture by touring the Akatsuka Orchid Center, where their expert team has cultivated orchids of all varieties and other rare tropical plants for decades. Their massive 8,000-foot showroom is a feast for the senses, with aisles of unique and vibrant orchids long used by Hawaiians in traditional leis. Get an even more immersive experience of this Hawaiian pastime by signing up for our lei-making class – Debbie, part of our Volcano Village ohana, will guide you through making a haku flower crown, a wonderful keepsake to wear and bring home.
Finish up the day with a wine tasting at Volcano Winery, family-run since 1986 and producing some of the Big Island’s most delicious wines, from a complex Pinot Noir to inventive fruitier blends like their guava-grape and macadamia nut honey wines.
Stay with us in the heart of Volcano Village, where laidback bohemian vibes meet Big Island beauty!