[JB135i]

We will be going back to Polululu for sure. The beach area appears safe (daytime) and there is enough other people around, but not crowded (at least when we went) there should not be an issue.

I was mearly commenting that the valley floor may not be a good place to venture for those not in the "local agricultural" business LOL.

Point taken on the lava viewing, it will be busy if that flow (or any) is easy to get to.

The time we saw flowing lava, it was at an elevation of around 1500' and was a long but fun 2.5 hour walk, one way. We walked back in the dark (4+ hours), one of the most dangerous things I have ever done, including becoming a H3 Hangglider pilot.

[Maestro]

Originally Posted by aus

For the Black and Green sand beaches, I keep hearing from local's that it's "desolate" down there and that a lot of cars get broken into down there. Is it safe to go? We won't leave anything in the car.
We did the Akaka falls and stopped at Ed's bakery in Honomu right outside the falls. What a GREAT place. Awesome Wedding ring cookies and great shaved ice. We didn't have time for big Island Candies, but did make it to Kens' Houe of Pancakes at around 8PM. We didn't get back to the hotel till 11PM. The Volcano Park is pretty cool, but better to go at night.



So do you plan on going back down at Pololu?
If you want to see lava, then go around 5-6PM down 130 and plan to wait until it gets dark-7:30 now. It took out a house recently, so there have been a LOT of people out. They're saying up to 2,000/night so you need to get there early to get some parking.



Who does the tours/shuttle?
We were thinking of driving down yesterday since I have a Jeep, but I didn't want to piss off the local's down their either.

When we were there, there were 10 seat 4wheel drive vans sitting at the top and if I remember correctly there was little hut or building where you could arrange the ride down and back up. There are only a few locals who still live in the valley, we went down checked out the water fall and went to the black sand beach and hung out there and had lunch.

Even with a jeep I would not attempt the drive down, since the road is very narrow and there are only a few points where two vehicles can pass and so you might have to back up to one of those points and trust me you will not want to do it.

I can not believe they made a road on the side of the cliff.

[aus]

Thanks for all the recommendations guys. We had a GREAT trip. Went to Manna's and it was very good. I really wanted to go to Hawaiian Style Cafe, but they're not open for dinner. This Big local guy who was doing the omlets at the first hotel eye's LIT UP when I asked him for a good local plate lunch place. We did hit Merriman's twice and Sansei twice. It's kinda scary how empty Sansei was, even for the 5:30 25% early bird. There were hardly any people today when we went. I'm hoping to make it to Pine Tree right before we go to the airport since our flight isn't until 1PM.

Thanks again for all the info. There's a TON to do here. I don't know why people say there's nothing to do here. There's nothing at night, but that's not why we come here.

[vioaltec]

dude ur going to hawaii, might as well go crazy and splurge ur money at the Four Seasons lol

[aus]

Dude, this is my second trip this year. The Four Seasons was sweet but the beach at Mauna Kea was amazing and worth the stay to check it out. The service and rooms were only ok at best and the food was pricey.
The Mauna Lani Bay has much better service but the beach is a bay with lots of reefs. They had poolside service and the food was less and better. Wifi and snorkles and stuff were included.

Pine Tree was great. We'll be going a lot next time

[Hi-Life]

Glad you liked the food. There are tons of things to do on vacation. It when you live there things get boring, and yes the night life is shit.

[achien]

Black sand beach is easy to get to, just drive to the southeast side of the Big Island.

As for the Green sand beach, you will need an AWD, someone guide you to climb that SUV up the hills, and walk down from the top of the cliff to the beach. It's very nice and windy down there, I have attached a couple of photos for you.

It's definitely one of those must go places.

Originally Posted by aus

For the Black and Green sand beaches, I keep hearing from local's that it's "desolate" down there and that a lot of cars get broken into down there. Is it safe to go? We won't leave anything in the car.
We did the Akaka falls and stopped at Ed's bakery in Honomu right outside the falls. What a GREAT place. Awesome Wedding ring cookies and great shaved ice. We didn't have time for big Island Candies, but did make it to Kens' Houe of Pancakes at around 8PM. We didn't get back to the hotel till 11PM. The Volcano Park is pretty cool, but better to go at night.



So do you plan on going back down at Pololu?
If you want to see lava, then go around 5-6PM down 130 and plan to wait until it gets dark-7:30 now. It took out a house recently, so there have been a LOT of people out. They're saying up to 2,000/night so you need to get there early to get some parking.



Who does the tours/shuttle?
We were thinking of driving down yesterday since I have a Jeep, but I didn't want to piss off the local's down their either.

[aus]

Thanks for the pics. How did you find someone to guide you to the green sand? We didn't have time to do either, but it's on the list of things to do next time. We're definitely going back.

[achien]

Just luck, there were four (4) local guys driving their jeep with over-size tires (tires taller than most compact cars) also on their way to the Green Sand Beach.

I have more pictures, but I consider this one my master piece (taken in one of the dark inactive volcanic caves).

Originally Posted by aus

Thanks for the pics. How did you find someone to guide you to the green sand? We didn't have time to do either, but it's on the list of things to do next time. We're definitely going back.