Day 1
We arrived in SFO a little after 9am. Being that it was Monday, it was a bit crowded at the airport. We had a little over an hour and a half before boarding, so we walked to the United Club lounge near our gate and hung out, filling up with sugar.
After our 5 hour flight (but with the clock set back 3 hours), we arrived mid afternoon in Kona International Airport. It was hot in the upper middle 80s with some humidity, and (at least for me) it felt like we landed in tropical paradise. We cued up and got in our shuttle to our car rental, and drove off in our Jeep Cherokee to Waikoloa.
Waikoloa is, according the the iPhone, 26 minutes away from the airport. We arrived at Kingsland Waikoloa shortly before 3:30, so we were half hour early from check in. We went through the paper work formalities, and to kill time, we took a quick stroll around the main part of Kingsland (mainly the pools) and we settled down at the Bistro Lounge. Frankly, Kingsland is smaller than I expected – the properties are spread out but the main area is concentrated, with the pools as the main attraction. There is clearly an effort to promote the timeshare here, as the HGV office is next to the lobby and the concierge is eager to see if you have a meeting with them. At the Bistro Lounge we had some gelato and banana bread, and at 4pm we received our text to confirm that our room was ready. Our room was in building 23 – you could walk it from the main area in about 10 minutes but certainly easier to drive 2 minutes.
We had a junior 1 bedroom – smaller but newer, and with the sofa converted to a bed it was fine for us and the two kids (12 and 7; our 12 year old loved the bed). We dropped off our stuff and immediately headed out to the Queens market Island Gourmet Market for groceries. (A few tips: You need to buy your own salt and pepper as they are apparently not supplied in the rooms, and the body wash/shampoo/conditioner are not large, so you may want to buy them too. We also bought coffee filters and kitchen sponge. We bought toilet paper that were much more to our liking. Lastly, we bought a ton of water and mineral water). The great thing is that this grocery store is less than 5 driving minutes away. One more note, our room would not be cleaned until Thursday, as this is not a hotel.
Kingsland is maybe 5 minutes from the Hilton Waikoloa Village (HWV) – the other two Hilton timeshare properties (Kohala Suites and Bay Club) are closer but what’s great about Kingsland is we have full access to the HWV amenities, and we can charge our costs to our room. Parking, as Kingsland guests, is free. All you do is show them your Kingsland room card and your parking ticket and the valet will validate it. Self parking is a bit of a walk (a few minutes, really), but not an issue. Interestingly, Ocean Tower (the fourth Hilton timeshare, this one in the HWV)1 charges its guests $30 per day to park. We also found that Ocean Tower is a hike from the lobby and pools at HWV, and so we never checked it out. It did look really nice, though, and if given the time, we would have loved to check it out.
For dinner, we ate at Nui Italian, a restaurant located two tram stops away from the HWV lobby entrance. We could have walked it but our son really loved the tram.
After dinner we walked the HWV grounds with their many bridges and Asian themed statues and impressive displays. We saw a turtle at the edge of the lagoon, getting cleaned by small fish. This resort is huge – no wonder they have trams running.
Day 2
I woke up way too early… 5:30 California time is awfully early in Hawaii. We had our breakfast at Kingsland (eggs, sausage, bacon, pastries, waffles, fruit, rice, miso soup) at 8am when they opened. One challenge is that there are very few breakfast options before 8am in Waikoloa. The grocery store in the Queens marketplace, however, is open by 7am and we did some shopping before we had our breakfast.
We went to the Seahorse farm (tickets purchased a week in advance) where we toured the lot and got to “hold” a seahorse. Definitely geared toward kids but interesting for adults. It’s an hour long tour and it’s about half hour away from Waikoloa.
On the way back, we found a wonderful gem: Kona Mountain Coffee. Great coffee, chocolate treats and general gift items for friends back home. My wife is a coffee drinker, and I’m a chocolate lover. The kids enjoyed their hot chocolate drinks.
Once we were back in our room, we “boys” went to the main pool at Kingsland while the “girls” hung around in the room. The pool water was warm, yet cool enough to enjoy. There were 2 really good slides plus one fun short one, and one more for little kids. Our son could not get enough, we must have been on them 20 times. The main pool areas are all connected and range from 3.5 feet to 5 feel deep, much of it in the 4 foot range. The hot tub felt great too. The kids pool area is very shallow, and there are pebbles on the floor instead of a regular pool surface. The kids can play with the pebbles like sand without carrying too much of it into the pool water.
We grabbed our lunch from the Bistro Lounge, consisting of hamburger steak (beef patty, rice, macaroni salad) and a 10 inch pizza with Kailua pork and pineapples. They were surprisingly good! We ended up bringing the pizza back to the “girls” since our son couldn’t eat it all.
Tonight was our luau at the Hilton Waikoloa Village. We had made the extra purchase for VIP seating a few months in advance. Here, VIPs are not assigned specific seats at the time of ticket purchase, though you’ll get the front tables and get to eat earlier than the general group. To get the best seating, be sure to be in the VIP line at 5pm sharp. We had really good seats, and an excellent view of the dancers. Frankly, I would not consider the general seating given the distance from the stage. The performances were fantastic, especially the host’s (host is named Hoku) eldest son, a world champion, who performed awesome sets of fire dances. He was among the best we’ve seen in all the past shows (and that includes Moorea, Rarotonga, Aitutaki, Oahu and Maui).
The luau dinner was excellent, though typical; the appetizers and drinks for the VIP seats start as soon as we get seated. Dinner is the first part of the event starting at 6:00, the pre-show starts around 6:40, and the actual show is at 7:00. Kids can start eating right away around 5:30 (mac n cheese, chicken tenders, tater tots, fruit, juice, milk, etc.) regardless of seating. Our daughter also bought flower clips for her hair from the local vendors who lined the back of the event floor. At the end of the show, we purchased our family photo, which was very nice for $40.
We casually got back to our room around 9pm.
Day 3
We woke up early to start the day. We made breakfast in our kitchen, turned the dishwasher on and off we went.
Our first destination was Akaka Falls, about an hour and a half drive away. There are two falls there, Akaka and Kahuna, though the latter was pretty much covered by foliage. Frankly, Akaka Falls, while beautiful, was a bit of a disappointment when compared to the likes of the waterfalls in Yosemite. The hike around the state park ($5 parking fee) was easy.
We were advised by the attendant at Akaka Falls to check out the botanical garden, so off we went to the next destination. On our way, we happened to spot Mr. Ed’s Bakery, and because we needed some sugar and coffee, we checked it out. It’s a great bakery: the guava bear claws were awesome, the ensamada was a buttery sweet goodness, and the azuki anpan was just what I needed. The wife purchased her chilled coffee at the café two doors down and she was happy. A perfect detour.
The Hawaiian Botanical Garden is a must see destination. Maybe 20 minutes from Akaka Falls but it’s a whole new world. Anyone who loves to be surrounded by lush greenery and even more loves orchids would fall in love with this place. It’s $20 per adult and $5 per child and worth every penny. It starts with a steep walk down an incline and eventually goes down to a jungle setting and a small water fall. Further down, we encounter the ocean waves crashing against the walls, a beautiful sight. This turned out to be the highlight of the day (a couple of hours worth of time).
We decided on a late lunch, and since we were so close, we checked out downtown Hilo. Frankly, it’s a rather run down town and a world of difference from Waikoloa. We walked into Puka Puka Kitchen, a hole in the wall that had good reviews. Food was not bad, though each item (curry chicken, chicken katsu and chicken katsu donburi) was all the same fried chicken but flavored differently. It was not what we expected but it was fine. It seemed though, there were a lot of locals who went there, as the restaurant lady there knew all of them. Clearly, the Hawaiian version of these foods are nothing like the Japanese version.
We stopped on our drive back at the Imiloa Astronomy Center. Just a few short minutes drive from downtown Hilo, there’s a small planetarium and a small exhibit. One free planetarium show comes with the entrance fee. And the planetarium show gave me a quick nap.
We made it back to our room by 5pm, exhausted. Our son, however, had his power nap on the drive back, so he was ready to go. Our son and I therefore took a quick 7 minute drive to the beach where Lava Lava Beach Club is located (aka A-Beach). It was a very nice stretch of beach: very calm, warm waters, shallow enough to play and swim in. It’s a short walk from the parking lot and we spotted a shave ice kiosk (it was closed when we got there around 5:30). The beach doesn’t have the fine white sand, but our son didn’t mind.
We made it back to the room around 6:30. We were all too tired, so we once again went to the Island Gourmet Market, this time for some take outs. We ate as we ran our laundry (the washing machine by the way is very loud).
Day 4
Every morning, I’ve been awake before 5am and working. The benefit of the time difference is that I can do the work while everyone in California starts their day.
Today, we drove about half hour down to Kona to eat at 808 Grindz. My wife tried their macadamia nut pancake with the macadamia sauce, I had the Wowie Maui, daughter the waffle and our son the chocolate chip pancake. It was all good.
The HGVC update was scheduled for 11am. We met for the hour, and in exchange received $100 toward purchases at participating locations (we used it for the breakfast buffet a couple days later), and a discount card to be used (we used it at Roy’s Waikoloa for 15% off). The sales person was not pushy, but he certainly made a case for an upgrade in the future, especially as the newer locations will require more points.
We had our lunch at the Bistro Lounge again, consisting of fish sandwich, a grilled chicken salad, and grilled cheese sandwiches. We went back to the room by 1pm, just as housekeeping came in.
The kids and I changed into our swimwear and drove over to HWV for some water fun. We first went over to the main pool area where there is a giant waterfall. We put down our belongings and went to the towel vending machine. We simply put our room key to the reader and we took out our towels. These towels are tracked individually to ensure they are returned. We swam across multiple sections of the pool, and enjoyed the slide as well. It’s a much tamer slide than the two slides at Kingsland. The personnel don’t seem to enforce much, but you’re supposed to wear your bracelet (given at the pool desk) to show you’re a guest at the hotel.
We then dried ourselves off and walked along the waters to take a quick look at Dolphin Quest, and then stopped by Shaka Cone for some Hawaiian ice cream and sorbet (charged to our room). Conveniently, the lagoon was right next door. We rented a standup paddle board (also charged to our room) and had a great time for a good hour. The waters were calm, and depths ranged greatly from spot to spot. We saw some fish and crabs (this was the same place we saw the turtle on our first day). This was absolutely the highlight of the day.
We walked back to the main pool, swam some more under the giant waterfalls and finally went home. 4 hours had passed in a flash.
Our dinner was at Roy’s Waikoloa. Just 6 minutes away, in the King’s Shops (Queen’s Market and King’s Shops are next to each other). We had a great dinner, including the mixed grill (salmon, shrimp, ribs), butterfish with miso glaze, and the kids’ chicken teriyaki. We ended the meal with dark chocolate soufflé, a fruit cobbler and a couple of ice cream sandwiches. Interestingly, the mixed grill tasted different than Roy’s in San Francisco just a few weeks prior. Great meal.
Day 5
Time is flying by. We haven’t done so many things on our list, yet we have clearly been busy. Part of the reason is that this island is so much bigger than the others and it takes time to drive from one place to the other. And almost everywhere we drove, we saw the hardened black lava filling the landscape. The volcanoes have clearly made their mark, the most recent in 2018.
We left our room around 8:45am to Hawaii National Park to see the volcano. It’s a bit under 2 hours away, and we once again found ourselves driving on Route 200 toward Hilo, where the temperatures dipped and there was quite a bit of fog and rain. We had known that as we drove closer to Hilo, there would be more rain, yet the amount of fog and rain was surprising and dangerous.
We arrived at the visitor center around 10:30 with some sprinkles of rain. We first walked through a short trail where we could see steam rising from the ground everywhere. The smell of sulphur was in the air, though not strong. Here, we could see the crater of the volcano. After the quick visit, we had lunch at Volcano House, where the salad and crab cakes were good, and the kids enjoyed the pizza and hot dog. We then continued in our car to see the effects of the lava that spread in years past. We made a number of stops along the way until we reached the end where the lava had in the past flowed into the ocean. We did not see any flowing lava this time around.
We drove back to Waikoloa, and went straight to A-Bay next to the Lava Lava Beach Club to see the sunset at 7pm. The pink clouds looked like cotton candy and it was beautiful. We spend considerable time trying to help our daughter make that perfect Instagram photo…
We ended the night with dinner at Macaroni Grill around the corner in the Queens Market for some high calorie pasta. Admittedly, it was good after a long day of travels.
Day 6
We started the day with a breakfast at the Big Island Breakfast at HWV. This buffet is huge – it’s like a Vegas buffet. We walked down a flight of stairs to arrive at the buffet, a little pre-work out. There are stations for omelets, waffles, American breakfast, and continental. And, there was the donut wall, which was not as big as I thought it would be, but it brought me smiles. There was something for every member of the family. The only catch is that by 8am, the buffet was starting a wait time, though short. By the time we left, there was a long line winding up the staircase.
After breakfast, we went back to the grocery store, one last time. We turned in our receipts to redeem our 3 mugs (a free mug per $100 spent).
For our last full day, we went to the Kingsland pool as a family, swam around and went through the slides a few times. Then, we drove over to HWV and went straight to the lagoon. There we did some more standup paddle boarding, and rented the water cycle. Our daughter snorkeled and swam with a few turtles and fish, and even made a friend in the process. After almost a couple of hours, we sat down at the Lagoon Grill (right next door).
The Lagoon Grill was a good place to re-energize. The wife had ahi salad (which was really good), I had some egg rolls and the kids had chocolate ice cream from Shaka Cone. The wife also had a macadamia nut ice cream. Only during vacation are we allowed to have ice cream as an entrée.
To end our swimming day, we jumped into the main pool, swam under the waterfalls a few times, warmed up in the hot tub and finally went back to Kingsland. It was nearly 4pm.
On our last night, we decided to eat at Lava Lava Beach Club at 5pm (you can call ahead to get in line). We had edamame for appetizers. For dinner, the teriyaki steak was excellent, and our daughter really liked her burger. The wife ate some ribs and our son pineapple fried rice. Live music filled the air, and the buzz if waiters and guests made for a festive atmosphere.
We hung around until the sunset at 7pm. Our son and I made sand castles, while our daughter played with a group of cats. At 7pm, we took a bunch of photos for our daughter’s Instagram photo (again). It’s hard work to get the right photo, I’ve never worked so hard for a social media photo.
Day 7
It’s time to go home. There was still so much to see and do – we didn’t get to see the black sand, the pink sand and green sand beaches, we didn’t drive up to Mauna Kea (I understand it’s freezing up there), go to any of the farm tours (except the sea horse… and there is also the octopus farm we didn’t do), do any horseback riding north of Waikoloa, spend time at the Fairmont in Kona, the list is still long. We talked about planning for the next trip back… in between all the other destinations we could go.
