Hilo cruise port ⚓ 15+ things to do nearby + how far is everything? ⚓🌴🌋 Big Island Hawaii travel blog

ALOHA!

So you are headed to the Big Island by cruise ship!

What to do during your time in the Hilo cruise port?!

To get the most out of your visit to Hilo, you really need a car or to do a tour. You just won’t be experiencing the Big Island (or Hawaii) just by walking around Hilo town.

There are a number of things you can do on the Hilo side on the Big Island with a car, and this includes things in the Hilo town area, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, the Puna coast, and then some!

Among other things, you have a chance to see black sand beaches, waterfalls, turtles, and walk across lava fields!

The Hilo side of the Big Island is amazing (okay all parts of the island are amazing 🤣), and here is what you need to know about things to do from Hilo cruise port!

15+ best things to do from Hilo cruise port

How far are the top spots from the Hilo cruise port?!

Driving times are approximate and just to give you an idea! Listed times are actually from the Hilo airport, since that’s probably where you’ll be picking up your car rental.

You will want a car to do most things on the list below. (With the other option being uber or taxi, if it’s close to Hilo.)

Direct Hilo area

1. Rainbow Falls

Hilo to Rainbow Falls: maybe a 15-20 minute drive

Cost: FREE

These waterfalls near Hilo are located at Wailuku River State Park.

This is practically in Hilo town, and it can be a pretty quick stop.

Once you park, you are basically at the waterfalls lookout point.

There’s a small trail off to the left that will take you up to the spot where you can see the river that feeds the waterfalls.

There are also some banyan trees around here.

2. Kaumana Caves

Hilo to Kaumana Caves: Maybe a 20 minute drive

Cost: FREE

If you are looking for a unique volcano-related activity to do when you’re on the Big Island, consider this!

This can a fun activity to walk through caves formed by lava!

You can make this a quick stop by just visiting the cave entrance without going in, but the fun is in walking through these caves!

There are 2 main cave openings here.

Over to the left is a spot where you can get down and crawl to get up close and personal to the smaller opening that lava came through.

Over to the right, you can walk on uneven lava rocks as you venture further into the cave.

Even walking for 15-20 minutes into the cave and turning around can be a super cool experience, and you can think of it as a lava cave hike!

You light your own way, so you absolutely need to be sure to come prepared if you’re going to venture further than the immediate cave entrance. (Don’t depend on your phone light only – use this as a back-up plan!)

See more the Kaumana Caves.

3. Carlsmith Beach Park

Hilo to Carlsmith beach park: maybe a 10-15 minute drive

Cost: FREE

This can be a good spot to test your luck on seeing turtles near Hilo.

I saw a turtle while I was here in the pond-like area that opens out to sea, and I also talked to someone who said he was swimming with 4 or 5 turtles in the ocean.

🌋

I am a Viator partner.

4. Richardson Ocean Park

Hilo to Richardson Ocean Park: maybe a 15 minute drive

If you’re looking for a black sand beach near Hilo, this is it!

This ocean park or beach park can be another good spot for a good chance of seeing turtles near Hilo.

I also saw a turtle here.

This is located right down the road a few minutes from the other Hilo beach, Carlsmith beach park.

5. Akaka Falls

Hilo to Akaka Falls: maybe a 30 minute drive

Cost: $1

This is one of the best waterfalls on the Big Island, and it will start to take you a bit north of Hilo town.

Be sure to take the Akaka Falls loop trail for a more dramatic approach to the waterfalls. (And for the chance to walk in baynan trees!)

Park outside the state park gate to avoid the parking fee.

See more about Akaka Falls State Park.

/end direct Hilo area.

You can do everything on the list of things to do directly near Hilo reasonably with the time you have in port, if you have a regular day in port like most cruise ships do. But if you need to prioritize so you can do something else too, Akaka Falls and Kaumana Caves I think are the top choices!

Next, in case you want to explore some other things on the Hilo side of the Big Island (which you should highly consider!), below is a list of the best things to choose!

A bit further north

6. Waipio Valley lookout

Hilo to Waipio Valley: maybe a drive of around 1 hour and 15 minutes

Cost: FREE

Waipio Valley is one of the most famous views of the Big Island, located on the north side of the island.

This is about an hour from Akaka Falls.

See more about Waipio Valley.

It’s getting a little far, but there’s also Pololu Valley on the northern side of the Big Island.

⚓🌴

Now heading south of Hilo

7. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

Hilo to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park: maybe a drive of around 40 minutes

Cost: $25 per vehicle

At a minimum, you’ll want to give yourself 2 hours to visit the park.

You could also find things to be here all day too.

THE hike to do here is a hike into a former lava lake.

You’ll also want to drive to the end of Chain of Craters Road which will take you to the coast. Along the way, you can see where old lava stopped flowing on the road.

There are also many opportunity to get out and walk across vast lava fields aka old lava flows!

Well, I would say Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is a must visit! So go here first, and then see how much time you have left for anything else.

See more about things to do in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and the Kilauea Iki Trail (former lava lake hike).

8. Mauna Loa Road

Hilo to Mauna Loa Road: maybe a drive of 45 minutes

Cost: FREE

Mauna Loa is one of the main volcanoes on the Big Island.

And, it’s possible drive up part way on the slopes of Mauna Loa by taking the Mauna Loa Road near the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. (The summit isn’t accessible by car.)

This takes you on a narrow road as you make your way up.

Once you reach as far as you can go by car, you can then also do a little bit of hiking on the Mauna Loa Trail.

You can’t do the whole Mauna Loa Trail as a day hike but you can hike part of it!

You can walk for an hour or so and then turn around.

Mauna Loa Road is off the main road just 5 minutes past the main Hawaii Volcanoes National Park entrance.

Now moving to a different area that’s kind of near Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

These next few activities are things to do on the Puna coast, and it’s possible to do all of these things listed below if you choose to ONLY go to Puna during your time in the Hilo cruise port. Maybe you can do these Puna coast activities, and then depending on how much time you have left before you need to get back on the ship, you can then go to Akaka Falls, Rainbow Falls, or Kaumana Caves.

Otherwise, if you choose to spend just a couple of hours at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, you can fit in at least few of these Puna activities. To get to the Puna coast from the national park is about 1 hour.

9. Kaimu black sand beach trail

Hilo to Kaimu beach: maybe a drive of 40 minutes

Cost: FREE

Take a black sand trail to get to a black sand beach!

This is a beach to just look at (not swim at) on the Puna coast, and the views are amazing!

There are lava fields around here that you can walk around.

See more about Kaimu black sand beach.

10. Red Road

Hilo to Red Road: maybe a drive of 40 minutes

Cost: FREE

One of the best scenic drives on the Big Island along the Puna coast.

It’s a pretty short drive – point to point might be 30 minutes, but you can make stops along the way.

11. Pohoiki black sand beach

Hilo to Pohoiki beach: maybe a drive of 40 minutes

Cost: FREE

This is at one end of the Red Road for another one of the black sand beaches you can see along the Puna coast.

This is the Big Island’s newest black sand beach, created in 2018 because of the lava flows.

So basically, you can drive Red Road from Kaimu to Pohoiki, from black sand beach to black sand beach!

12. Leilani Avenue

Hilo to Leilani Avenue: maybe a drive of 35 minutes

Cost: FREE

Leilani Estates is the neighborhood that was often the focus on the national news during the 2018 volcano eruption on the Big Island that destroyed homes.

Not all homes were lost in this neighborhood, but you can see where the lava flows stopped with a drive to what’s now the end of Leilani Avenue.

If you choose to go here, keep in mind that some residents are bothered by tourists who show up in their neighborhood.

13. Lava tree state monument

Hilo to Lava tree state monument: maybe a drive of 40 minutes

Cost: FREE

See lava-formed tree molds.

Further south

14. Punaluu black sand beach

Hilo to Punaluu black sand beach: maybe a drive of around 1 hour and 10 minutes

Cost: FREE

See a black sand beach AND see turtles!

Well, you’ll definitely see a black sand beach. (One of the many black sand beaches on the Big Island!)

There’s never a guarantee, but there’s a good chance you’ll see turtles at Punaluu black sand beach!

See more about the Punaluu black sand beach turtles.

Even further south

For these final 2 activities, Kona is a bit closer to them, but not by much. (Maybe like 10 minutes.)

So if these things are of interest to you, you may consider using your time docked in Hilo to go to the southernmost area of the Big Island (and Hawaii and the United States!) if there are other things you want to do when in the Kona cruise port.

These things are located pretty much right near one another and about 35 minutes past the Punaluu black sand beach.

15. South Point

Hilo to South Point: maybe a drive of around 1 hour 40 minutes

Cost: FREE

Visit the southernmost point of the United States of America.

16. Papakolea green sand beach

Hilo to green sand beach: maybe a drive of around 1 hour 50 minutes

Cost: FREE

Visit one of the 4 green sand beaches in the world. (So they say!)

There is a likely illegal shuttle you can take to get there, but make it a coastal hike to the green sand beach instead! The listed drive time is to the parking lot only. From there, you’ll need more time to take the shuttle or hike it.

See more about the Papakolea green sand beach.

And those are a few things to consider when you are in the Hilo cruise port on the Big Island!

Yes there is just so much to do that you’re going to need to plan a land vacation for the Big Island! 😁

Time in Hilo cruise port

If you are on the NCL Pride of America cruise ship, the expected times are:

• Arrival 8am
• Departure 6pm

Other cruise lines that dock in Hilo are likely similar, but check your Hawaii cruise itinerary to be sure to help better plan out your day.

Car rental in Hilo

If you want to explore some of the best things to do on the Big Island that are on the Hilo side, it will be best to rent a car.

This will likely be a car rental company that’s located at the Hilo airport.

Before you book your car rental, it could be best to call the Hilo car rental company you are looking to book with to confirm that they will be offering a free shuttle from the cruise port to the airport on your cruise date. (And maybe call a few days before your cruise just to double confirm too!)

Uber in Hilo

Otherwise, there is Uber on the Big Island.

This would probably only be best if you are sticking close to Hilo town though!

You can check the Uber app and input a starting point (near cruise port) and end point to get an idea of how much Uber might cost from the Hilo cruise port to where you want to go.

It would be best to do this check when it’s morning in Hawaii to get a better idea of prices, and when there’s a cruise ship in port to get an even better idea! (NCL is usually in port on Tuesdays.)

Shore excursions in Hilo cruise port

Of course tours and shore excursions are always an option when you are on a cruise!

Have a look at the shore excursions in Hilo offered by your cruise line:

• NCL Norwegian
• Carnival
• Royal Caribbean
• Princess

Recap! Quick list of things to do from the Hilo cruise port:

Hilo area/North coast

• Rainbow Falls (free)
• Kaumana Caves (free)
• Carlsmith Beach Park (free)
• Richardson Ocean Park (free)
• Akaka Falls ($1)
• Waipio Valley (free)

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park area

• Hawaii Volcanoes National Park ($25)
• Mauna Loa Road (free)

Puna coast

• Kaimu black sand beach trail (free)
• Red Road (free)
• Pohoiki black sand beach (free)
• Leilani Avenue (free)
• Lava tree state monument (free)

South coast

• Punaluu black sand beach (free)
• South Point (free)
• Papakolea green sand beach (free)

Plan more of your Hawaii cruise

• What to pack for Hawaii
• Things to do in Kona (Big Island)
• Honolulu cruise port map (Honolulu without a car)
• Things to do in Waikiki (Honolulu without a car)
• Pearl Harbor without a tour (Honolulu)
• Diamond Head hike (Honolulu)
• Haleakala National Park (Maui with a car)
• Road to Hana (Maui with a car)

HAPPY HILO CRUISE PORT PLANNING!

📌 Save this post for later! Save on Pinterest! 👈📌

🌋
Where to stay near Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Read the reviews at partner website!

• Volcano House (book sooner rather than later! This is THE lodging of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and it's in demand!)
• Lava Lodge at Hale Kilauea
• More budget-friendly option: Aloha Crater Lodge

Here are some ideas for your time on the Big Island!

Among the most popular things to do on the Big Island are Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Akaka Falls State Park, and Waipio Valley!

For Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, the main road to drive is Chain of Craters Road and it will take you to see the best lava fields in Hawaii! Before that though (or after!) you will want to make a stop for the Thurston lava tube. You can also hike into a former lava lake by doing the Kilauea Iki Trail!

Other Big Island activities you may want to make time for are the best black sand beaches in Hawaii (including Punaluu black sand beach to see turtles maybe!) and the Papakolea green sand beach of Hawaii.

👇 Explore the Big Island map on google maps!

See the list:

• Things to do on the Big Island (for VIEWS!)
• Things to do in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
• Things to do in Kona

ALOHA!