Planning a Trip

Most people arrive on the Big Island at Kona International Airport, on the island's west coast. From the airport, Kilauea volcano is to the right (counterclockwise), and the ritzy Kohala Coast is to the left (clockwise). (If you land in Hilo, of course, the volcano is clockwise and Kohala is counterclockwise.)

Arriving

The Big Island has two major airports for jet traffic between the islands, in Kona and Hilo.

The Kona International Airport receives direct overseas flights from Japan on Japan Airlines (tel. 800/525-3663; www.jal.co.jp/en) and from Vancouver on Air Canada (tel. 888/247-2262; www.aircanada.com). Carriers from the mainland include American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com), with flights from Los Angeles; Delta Air Lines (tel. 800/221-1212; www.delta.com), with nonstop flights from Salt Lake City (originating in Atlanta); Northwest Airlines (tel. 800/225-2525; www.nwa.com), with flights from Seattle; U.S. Airways/American West (tel. 800/428-4322; www.usairways.com), with flights from Phoenix; and United Airlines (tel. 800/241-6522; www.united.com), with nonstop flights from Denver, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, and a direct flight from Chicago.

The Hilo International Airport used to have a direct flight from Oakland via ATA, but with the demise of that airline, it is now served only by interisland carriers.

If you cannot get a direct flight to the Big Island, you'll have to pick up an interisland flight in Honolulu. Hawaiian Airlines (tel. 800/367-5320; www.hawaiianair.com) and go! (tel. 888/I-FLY-GO-2; www.iflygo.com) offer jet service to both Big Island airports.

All major rental companies have cars available at both airports.

Visitor Information

The Big Island Visitors Bureau (tel. 800/648-2441; www.bigisland.org) has two offices on the Big Island: one at 250 Keawe St., Hilo, HI 96720 (tel. 808/961-5797; fax 808/961-2126), and one on the other side of the island at 250 Waikoloa Beach Dr., Waikoloa, HI 96738 (tel. 808/886-1655; fax 808/886-1652).

On the west side of the island, there are two additional sources to contact for information: the Kohala Coast Resort Association, 68-1310 Mauna Lani Dr., Suite 101, Kohala Coast, HI 96743 (tel. 800/318-3637 or 808/885-6414; fax 808/885-6145; www.kohalacoastresorts.com); and Destination Kona, P.O. Box 2850, Kailua-Kona, HI 96745 (tel. 808/322-6809; fax 808/322-8899). On the east side, you can contact Destination Hilo, P.O. Box 1391, Hilo, HI 96721 (tel. 808/935-5294; fax 808/969-1984). And in the middle, contact the Waimea Visitor Center, P.O. Box 6570, Kamuela, HI 96743 (tel. 808/885-6707; fax 808/885-0885).

The Big Island's best free tourist publications are This Week, the Beach and Activity Guide, and 101 Things to Do on Hawaii the Big Island. All three offer lots of useful information, as well as discount coupons on a variety of island adventures. Copies are easy to find all around the island.

The Beach and Activity Guide is affiliated with the Activity Connection, Bougainvillea Plaza, 75-5656 Kuakini Hwy., Suite 102, Kailua-Kona (tel. 800/459-7156 or 808/329-1038; fax 808/327-9411; www.beachactivityguide.com), a discount activities desk offering real savings (no fees, no timeshares) of up to 15% on activities including island tours, snorkel and dive trips, submarine and horseback rides, luau, and more. The office is open daily from 7:30am to 5:30pm.

Getting Around

By Car -- You'll need a rental car on the Big Island; not having one will really limit you. All major car-rental firms have agencies at the airports and at the Kohala Coast resorts.

There are more than 480 miles of paved road on the Big Island. The highway that circles the island is called the Hawaii Belt Road. On the Kona side of the island, you have two choices: the scenic "upper" road, Mamalahoa Highway (Hwy. 190), or the speedier "lower" road, Queen Kaahumanu Highway (Hwy. 19). The road that links east to west is called Saddle Road (Hwy. 200). Saddle Road looks like a shortcut from Kona to Hilo, but it usually doesn't make for a shorter trip. It's rough, narrow, and plagued by bad weather; as a result, most rental-car agencies forbid you from taking their cars on it.

By Taxi -- Taxis are readily available at both Kona and Hilo airports. In Kailua-Kona, call Kona Airport Taxi (tel. 808/329-7779). In Hilo, call Ace-1 (tel. 808/935-8303). Taxis will take you wherever you want to go on the Big Island, but it's prohibitively expensive to use them for long distances.

By Bus & Shuttle -- For transportation from the Kona Airport, there are shuttle services that will come when you call them, as well as a discount shuttle that leaves the airport every hour on the hour and drops you at your hotel. Door-to-door service is provided by SpeediShuttle (tel. 808/329-5433; www.speedishuttle.com). Some sample per-person rates from the airport: $24 to Kailua-Kona, $24 to the Four Seasons, and $65 to the Mauna Lani Resort.

The islandwide bus system, the Hele-On Bus (tel. 808/961-8744; www.co.hawaii.hi.us/mass_transit/heleonbus.html), offers the best deal on the island -- it's free -- but, unfortunately, does not serve either airport. The recently created Kokua Zone allows riders in West Hawaii to travel from as far south as Ocean View to as far north as Kawaihae for free; in East Hawaii, riders can ride free from Pahoa to Hilo. Visitors can pick up the free, air-conditioned bus from the Kohala hotels and ride south to shopping destinations like Costco, Lanihau Center, Kmart, Wal-Mart, and Keauhou Shopping Center. The Hele-On Bus also stops at the Kona Community Hospital and provides wheelchair access.

In the Keauhou Resort area, there's a free, open-air, 44-seat Keauhou Resort Trolley, with stops at Keauhou Bay, Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa, Kona Country Club, Keauhou Shopping Center, Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort, and Kahaluu Beach Park. In addition, three times a day the trolley travels round-trip, via Alii Drive to Kailua Village, stopping at White Sands Beach on the way. For information, contact the concierge at either the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa (tel. 808/930-4900) or the Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort (tel. 808/322-3411).