Aloha Spooky Queen! Want to plan your Hawaiian vacation? I’ve got you.

From accommodations, to activities, sight-seeing, and most importantly FOOD. Let’s get into it…

RESORT: Waikoloa Beach Marriot

BEACH. FRONT. Need I say more? This resort is stunning from the minute you walk in, due to the direct view to the beach through the open air lobby. The room, which was “resort view” still had a fantastic view of the mountain and was very spacious with a GORGEOUS bathroom. There is one cafe and one restaurant on the resort property, which were both delicious (more to be said in FOOD). It has multiple pools and hot tubs between the lobby and the beach. A couple yards beyond the pools, there are historical Hawaiian fish ponds, followed by the beach. It is a quiet stunning beach with a reef several yards out, ready for some snorkeling! A half hour north of Kona, this resort was the best planning choice I made.

Things to keep in mind: There is a $500 resort charge at check in which took us a back. That is a $40 resort fee per night, and $60 per night for “incidentals” and for charging things to the room. This worked out surprisingly well because we could charge food and drinks to the room and knew we were credited with a start of $60 a day. If we had not used the full $60 a day we would have been refunded. 

ACTIVITIES:

Let’s start at home base: The resort hosts daily Yoga classes on the beach every morning which are covered by the resort fee! One day we made traditional Leis and they hosted other fun activities throughout the week. Secondly, the beach has a small Ocean Sports Rentals shack where we rented snorkels two mornings and booked a snorkel cruise for a whole afternoon. The best time of day to snorkel was first thing in the morning when the ocean was calmer and there was greater visibility. Plus, less people to scare away the fish! The snorkel cruise was from 9am-12:30pm and we took a boat to an awesome spot not accessible from the shore! We saw an eagle ray which was the highlight of all the snorkeling we did!

Island Road Trip: We rented a car for the whole week and drove around *almost* the entire island. We drove along the northern coast from Waikoloa to the Hilo area (1.5hrs) to our first stop; Akaka Falls. Then onto Rainbow Falls, and lastly Volcano National Park. At Volcano National Park we did the short walk from the parking area to the Thurston Lava Tubes. Following the lava tubes we did the “Crater Rim Hike” the highest rated hike on the island. LET ME TELL YOU. It was not for the faint of heart. We agreed it’s an 8/10 difficulty due to the hike down to the floor of the crater (which is IMPRESSIVE) all the way across the crater and hiking back up the other side. It was worth it! This crater could be a scene from Star Wars with the volcano nearby spewing steam! After the hike we headed back to the resort (1.5 hr drive) but this time through the center of the island between the mountains. If you skip the hike and just *look* at the crater which is impressive enough, I would recommend continuing your drive around the island to the south east to see the green sand beach and black sand beach!

Luau: The resort hosts a Luau which we decided to sign up for the day of the event! It felt a lot like an outdoor wedding but with *CULTURE*. The performances were so wonderful, from singing to dancing and FIRE it was amazing! The pork was smoked in an emu (an underground roasting pit, not the animal). The rest of the food left something to be desired but the pork itself was worth it. Just get a full plate of pork. 

FOOD: 

Two words *Hawaiian Latte*. The big island is known for its coffee plantations and the coffee is 100% worth the hype. The Hawaiian latte has coconut and macadamia flavoring and also HEAVEN. The Mac-joy is the same with the addition of mocha. As far as meals, the next one was worth the half hour drive to south to Kona! A Guy Fieri favorite is Broke Da Mouth Grindz, where we ordered spicy Furikake chicken. It was AMAZING! If there is one thing you prioritize eating on the big island, let it be this! It is take out only, so I recommend driving five minutes to the nearest beach for a picnic. Lastly, THE FRUIT. There are many fruit stands across the island or you could hit up a farmers market in Kona. Either way, prioritize eating pineapple, drinking out of a coconut, trying rambutan (fusion, spikey and tastes like grape), and my favorite and most interesting, ice cream bean! 

 Well, that covers it! I hope this guide helps get the wheels turning on your travel plans and adds a few things to your itinerary! Have a specific questions, feel free to slide in the DMs on Instagram. Mahalo, spooky queen! 

LINKS:
Hawaii Big Island Resort | Waikoloa Beach Resort

Ocean Sports | Hawaii Snorkeling Whale Watching Cruise (hawaiioceansports.com)

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