At dusk on a cloudless day on the Kohala Coast on the northern tip of Hawaii Island, I pull into a small cove hidden by some houses in the residential neighborhood of Puakp. A couple of local families picnic on the shore, the ocean slowly turning an inky blue as it gently laps against the […]
Family-owned mom-and-pop shops are harder to come by these days amid all of Hawaiʻi’s chain stores and off-island brands. Fortunately, the island of Hawaiʻi still has plenty of small, locally owned, often family-run businesses. Nowhere is that more apparent than in the small town of Hōlualoa, located on the upland slopes of Kona. This area—at
The weather here in Hawaii has been all over the place recently. Heavy showers, thunderstorms and now—snow! Photo: Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope With an elevation greater than 13,000 feet, snowfall on Mauna Kea isn’t rare, but the sight of Mauna Kea’s highest peaks covered in a white powder is an incredible view to behold. While much of the snow has
Don’t be fooled! Although Kevin Allen clearly states it’s the 17th episode of the Have Aloha Will Travel podcast, your biweekly dose of everything Hawaii, it is, in fact, the 18th episode. This week, Cat and Kevin bring on HAWAII Magazine art director Kayla Rivera to talk about their recent trip to the Big Island. They
Nestled in an old Hawaiian garden estate surrounded by rainforest, nearly at the end of the town of Volcano on Hawaii Island, Café Ono is home to the best vegetarian lasagna we’ve ever had. It may be one of the best places to stop for lunch before exploring Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, but the excellent
Go back to the main Best of the Best menu. Or visit: Best of All Islands Best of Oahu Best of Maui Best of Kauai Best of Molokai & Lanai Best of Hawaii Island Art Gallery 1. Volcano Art Center 2. Holualoa Gallery Clothing/Fashion/Boutique Store 1. Mahina 2. Pueo Boutique 3. Jam’s World 4. Blue Ginger 5. Hilo Hattie’s Non-fashion, Non-Clothing Boutique Store
It always happens when I’m standing at the overlook at the start of the Kilauea Iki trail, seeing the barren floor of the caldera, the scene of a spectacular eruption in 1959. The once-geologist major in me stirs. This roughly 4-mile hike is one of my favorites in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Hawaii Island.
Hawaii Island, also known as The Big Island, is the youngest and largest isle in the Hawaiian archipelago. It’s also growing—fresh lava from Kilauea, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, continues to create new land and lava rock beaches. But this island has far more to offer than its world-famous volcano. Home to all but
Pools in Hawaii serve as a great alternative to the beach, nobody can deny that. However, one of the only downsides is that you can’t interact with the countless species of marine life that inhabit the waters around our Islands. Fortunately, a few cool pools in the state of Hawaii actually allow guests to swim with
As a traveler, there are some things I’ll never do. I won’t eat whale or turtle meat, I won’t surf alone at an unfamiliar break and I won’t jump off a cliff into a body of water. I tried to do that last one, standing at the edge of Ka Lae, or South Point, on
It had rained for nearly a week straight, and the thick mud along the steepest road of its length in the United States filled the air with the heady scent of fresh, wet, vegetative earth. The sun was shining, finally, and it was the perfect time to visit: The abundant rain left waterfalls streaming down
When a foodie friend of mine found out I was traveling to Hilo for the day earlier this month, she had one suggestion: Visit Popover, a new bakery about five minutes from Hilo International Airport. I admit, I had to Google it. The bakery had opened two weeks earlier—and already had about 1,000 followers on
