Coming dive hawaii for the first time

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donostler:
Hi, I'm going to be staying at the Hilton on the Big Island near Kona. Any recommendations for a single diver with non diving wife are greatly appreciated!

Just got back from there myself!

I had originally planned to stay on site and dive with Red Sail, but opted to drive to Kona to dive with Dive Makai after hearing such good things about them here, and am glad I did.

Lots of folks here said that the traffic is supposed to be horrible in the morning, saying that it could be 40min to an hour. But I found that it only took about 25min; in fact the traffic was the same on Sunday and Monday. On Monday I left the Hilton at 6:45 and got to the harbor at 7:10.

That said, I am willing to drive at a brisk pace and am not opposed to passing where safe.

:)

Dive Makai will only take a max of 12 divers, but on my two days there were only 5 and 6 and it was great.

Do note - their boat has no head if that's important to you.
 
donostler:
Thanks guys for the great info. I take it that I'll have to take a day off from diving first before I go up to the volcano summit to off gas?

You'd probably need two days before summiting Mauna Kea (13,000 feet), the tall dormant one. The elevation at the active volcano, Kiluea is much less but you have to drive through 6,000 foot elevations to get there. I'd honestly reccommend skipping the volcano and doing Hawaii Forest and Trail's Valley Waterfall Adventure (which also requires an off-gas day). The waterfall adventure is more enjoyable then hiking through the dust, heat and noxious fumes for the small chance of seeing any lava.
 
donostler:
Thanks guys for the great info. I take it that I'll have to take a day off from diving first before I go up to the volcano summit to off gas?

Yes you will. Kilauea (Volcanoes National Park) is 4500 ft elevation (max) so at least 12 hrs, better to be safe at 24hrs.

We drive around Waimea (2500 ft) after a couple 3 hours of offgassing.

To go to the summit of Mauna Kea (13,795 ft) you'll want the full 24 hours.
And you'll want to stop at the visitor center at 9500 ft for a half hour or more to acclimatize. You'll need 4WD to drive from the visitor center to that summit. But its worth it.
 
We stayed at the Hilton Waikoloa the summer before last. I went with Red Sail for morning boat dives on two days while we were there, and I thought they were just fine. If I had to do it again, I would totally stay put and dive with them again rather than drive all the way back down the coast to Kona -- with the one exception being for a night dive with the mantas. With Red Sail you just meet down in the lobby in the morning, and they take you on a van which goes about a quarter mile down the road to where their boat is moored, about ten yards off the beach. You have to wade into the water to get on the boat. It's just so easy. There are plenty of fabulous things to see within a very short boat ride. We saw octopus, frogfish, turtles, colorful eels, and all sorts of damselfish. There were swim-throughs and caves in the lava formations, and all sorts of interesting coral. You won't run out of places to dive and things to see diving Red Sail on the Kohala coast.

Your wife will probably be fine hanging at the hotel while you're diving. It's huge. They have a spa, water aerobics classes, morning power walks, tennis courts, endless halls filled with Asian art, time-share presentations, and covered lounge chairs by the private lagoon. (Speaking of the lagoon, you need to check out the snorkeling in the lagoon too. The viz is pretty lame - maybe 10-15 feet, but all the cool creatures you see diving seem to find their way into the lagoon too). Sign her up well in advance for the dolphin interaction program.

We rarely ate at the hotel - the food is overpriced. If you get a hotdog by the pool, expect to pay something like $12 or $14. We went to the Costco in Kona when we arrived and stocked up on stuff for breakfast, snacks, and beer. Roys is great and nearby for dinner. We enjoyed Bubba Gumps in Kona, and some of the other restaurants in the shopping center where Roy's is located. There was a place in Kawaihae we liked. Get "The Big Island Revealed" for other recommendations.

You absolutely must go to Volcano National Park, the highlight of our trip. I would plan on two nights there: drive there from Waikoloa one day via the far North shore of the island. Stop for lunch in Hawi. Take the inland road from there along the ridge (great views) and back down to Waimea, then head down to the east side and check out Hilo. It will be dinner time by the time you get to the town of Volcano. Eat at the Thai restaurant. Best food, and cheapest, that we had there. Next day, do the Kilauea Iki Hike in the morning. You go right through the center of a volcano caldera, with smoke still seeping from the cracks, then back up to the rain forest, and around the rim. That afternoon go down to the sea, where the lava buried the road. You have to park, and then walk along the road, and then scramble over the lava. Go when it's still light, but stay until after dark to see the glowing lava in the distance. The next day drive back to Kona around the bottom of the Island.

Have a great time!
 
Excellent suggestions by mposin.
RE Vocanoes NP:
Bring sturdy hiking shoes, a walking stick, LOTS of water & a flashlight or two if you plan to walk to the lava flow. Its tough coming back in the dark, but as mentioned worth it. We take ALL our able bodied visitors out there for a once in a lifetime experience. Overnite in Volcano Village at the Kilauea Lodge (excellent restraunt too). Its a splurge but worth it.
The Thai restraunt is also good. Bring a light fleece or sweatshirt for the cool mornings, you are at 4500 ft elevation.

Kilauea Iki is a great first hike at Vocanoes NP as mentioned above. Easy to follow and surreal. There is a short lava tube you can visit across the road from the trail head/parking lot there as well, and bathrooms. You can do it rain or shine. Be sure to drive around Crater Rim and stop at a few of the pullouts for some vistas of the caldera. All of this can fit into one day if you are starting out in Volcano or Hilo, but it would be a long drive back in the dark to Kona. My suggestion would also be 2 nights a Kilauea Lodge.
 
donnyb:
Excellent suggestions by mposin.
RE Vocanoes NP:
Bring sturdy hiking shoes, a walking stick, LOTS of water & a flashlight or two if you plan to walk to the lava flow. Its tough coming back in the dark, but as mentioned worth it. We take ALL our able bodied visitors out there for a once in a lifetime experience. Overnite in Volcano Village at the Kilauea Lodge (excellent restraunt too). Its a splurge but worth it.
The Thai restraunt is also good. Bring a light fleece or sweatshirt for the cool mornings, you are at 4500 ft elevation.

Kilauea Iki is a great first hike at Vocanoes NP as mentioned above. Easy to follow and surreal. There is a short lava tube you can visit across the road from the trail head/parking lot there as well, and bathrooms. You can do it rain or shine. Be sure to drive around Crater Rim and stop at a few of the pullouts for some vistas of the caldera. All of this can fit into one day if you are starting out in Volcano or Hilo, but it would be a long drive back in the dark to Kona. My suggestion would also be 2 nights a Kilauea Lodge.
Thanks guys...other than the manta dive what is the one dive site I shouldn't miss?
 
donostler:
Thanks guys...other than the manta dive what is the one dive site I shouldn't miss?

That's a loaded question. There is no obvious best dive site like there are in some locations, there are lots of good ones - probably more than most of the posters on this board have dove. Every operator will do their best to find sites that meets their customer's needs and capabilities, and will be a good dive based on the conditions of the day.

Enjoy whatever dives you do do and don't worry about possibly having missed something. Every dive site here has something to offer.

Have fun,
 
I don't know where you've done most of your diving, but I'd really recommend that you condition your mind to the reality that Hawaii is before you dive there. I often tell folks that diving in the Caribbean is like being in a tropical rain forest...it's lush and thick with growth and you don't have to look hard to see a lot of stuff. However, diving in Hawaii is like being in the desert....there's a lot there, its just not always so obvious and really requires you to slow down and take your time.

Because Hawaii literally sits in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, it is subject to cool currents which are not condusive to soft coral and sponge growth. What you get are hard corals, rare species that can be found nowhere else on earth, and really cool lava formations under water. It's a hardscape, not a softscape and if you slow down and adjust your mind to look for small and hidden things, you'll be amazed and what you'll find.

We dive Maui at least once a year and look forward to it's underwater beauty each and every time. We also look forward to hearing the whale song, seeing sharks, manta rays, oodles of turtles, and eagle rays to name a few of the more obvious critters . :wink:
 
DiveMaven:
...diving in Hawaii is like being in the desert....there's a lot there, its just not always so obvious and really requires you to slow down and take your time.

Because Hawaii literally sits in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, it is subject to cool currents which are not condusive to soft coral and sponge growth. What you get are hard corals, rare species that can be found nowhere else on earth, and really cool lava formations under water. It's a hardscape, not a softscape and if you slow down and adjust your mind to look for small and hidden things, you'll be amazed and what you'll find.

Very, very nicely said :yelclap: :yelclap: :yelclap:
 
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