Adventure On-site
On-Site
Guests of the Naniloa Resort can enjoy on-property activities including paddleboards (SUPs), kayaking, snorkeling, biking, swimming and an array of historic displays and museum artifacts.
Guests of the Naniloa Resort can enjoy on-property activities including paddleboards (SUPs), kayaking, snorkeling, biking, swimming and an array of historic displays and museum artifacts.
Beginning snorkelers can explore Hilo’s Leleiwi Beach and Richardson Beach Park to get a taste of the pristine waters and marine life. For those looking to explore along the Kohala Coast, Hapuna Beach, Anaehoomalu Beach and Samuel Spencer Park are popular sites. On the Kona Coast, Honaunau Bay’s calm and clear waters make for the perfect entry point just along the shoreline where volcanic rock has gradually worn away.
Just a 40 minute drive from Hilo, the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is an adventure like no other. Home to two of the most active volcanoes, Kilauea and Mauna Loa, dramatic landscapes and unique flora and fauna. Plan a day trip or stay overnight for backcountry hiking and camping. Hike the Kilauea Summit Trails, drive the Chain of Craters Road, or go cruise along Crater Rim Drive. Park is open 24 hours a day. Kilauea Visitor Center open daily, 9am – 5pm.
Legend says that anyone sick or ill would be healed by swimming around the Moku Ola, or Coconut Island, three times. In ancient times, the island was revered as pu‘uhonua – a place of refuge, where warriors would find themselves saved. Today, the small park in Hilo Bay is a popular site to spend afternoons cooling off.
The Pana'ewa Rainforest Zoo and Gardens is a 12-acre zoo that is the only naturally occurring tropical rainforest zoo in the United States. It is home to more than 80 animal species including Giant Anteaters, American Alligators and two Bengal Tigers, a white Bengal tiger named Tzatziki and an orange Bengal tiger named Sriracha. The zoo opened in 1978 and features exhibits that are designed to maximize and blend with the natural vegetation of the Pana‘ewa Forest Reserve, which gets more than 125 inches of rain a year.
You’ll also see endemic animals like the endangered ‘Io (Hawaiian Hawk), and the Pueo (Hawaiian Owl) and the state bird, Nene. Take a relaxing stroll along paved paths surrounded by a lush landscape of trees and plants stopping along the way to view our zoo animals. On your walk, you will find over 100 types of palm, many varieties of vireya (tropical rhododendron), bamboo, orchids, and bromeliads to name just a few. Keep a lookout for the Zoo's Discovery Forests, the Native Forest of trees and plants and the Agro-Forest of edible varieties. At the water-garden pond, you will see gorgeous water hyacinth and mosaic plants. You may even spot a bullfrog on a lily-pad.
The Lyman Museum's purpose is “To tell the story of Hawai`i, its islands, and its people.” Throughout the year, the Lyman Museum offers a wide range of educational programs from special lectures and talks to hands-on workshops on Hawaiian skills and crafts.
Experience a variety of flavors, cuisine and locally grown fruits and vegetables at the world-famous Hilo Farmers Market. From local-style plate lunches and ‘ono (delicious) desserts to handmade arts and crafts, jewelry and clothing, the farmers market is a must-do for both locals and returning visitors. Just two miles from the Naniloa Hotel. Open 7 days a week. For the full experience, visit on Wednesdays and Saturdays to see more than 200 vendors.
As one of the world’s premier observatories, the Mauna Kea Science Reserves includes 13 observations facilities and 9 telescopes located on the peak. A must-see for visitors, the telescopes boast a combined light-gathering power 15x greater than the Palomar Telescope and 60x greater than the Hubble Space Telescope. Views of snow-capped Mauna Kea can be seen from the Naniloa Hotel. Visitors may drive up to the summit and hike or star gaze. Open 7 days a week, 9am – 10pm.
Only a 10-minute drive from the Naniloa, the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center merges Hawaii’s past with today’s modern technology. Located just above the University of Hawaii, Hilo, the center spans 40,000 square feet of planetarium and exhibition space with more than 100 displays presented in both English and Hawaiian. Learn about Hawaiian voyaging canoes, explore the origins of the cosmos and immerse yourself between earth and sky. Open Tuesday – Sunday, 9am – 5pm.
Read the powerful stories of past tsunami survivors and learn about what Hawaii is doing today in the museum’s mission to educate the public and saving lives in the event of a tsunami. Exhibits include a model of Hilo pre-1946, the Story of Hilo and rebuilding communities, the Science of Tsunamis and amazing rescue stories from survivors. Open Tuesday – Saturday, 10am – 4pm.
Named after Hawaii’s last reigning monarch, Queen Liluokalani, the beautifully landscaped and lush Liliuokalani Park is located just one block from the Naniloa Hotel along Hilo’s iconic Banyan Drive. Spanning across 30 acres, a Japanese-style garden sits within the park featuring signature red bridges over fishponds, tranquil pagodas and rock gardens, and breathtaking vistas of Hilo Bay and Moku Ola, known as Coconut Island.
For over thirty years the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Corporation has brought you delicious macadamia nuts roasted to golden perfection. Come visit the factory, enjoy free samples and shop for a delightful array of island treats and gifts including the exclusive selection of Mauna Loa products found nowhere else.
Enjoy a 3-mile drive through macadamia nut orchards as you approach our Visitor Center. View our nut & chocolate processing plant where we husk the nut and carefully dry it to exact moisture specifications. Watch as we create a delicious array of macadamia nut products that are packaged right there at the plant. Delight in chocolate demonstrations where Mauna Loa expert’s hand-dip tasty macadamia nut shortbread cookies into pure rich milk chocolate and see first-hand why at Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Corp. quality and taste are everything!
Contrary to its name, this coffee farm is not located in Hilo, but in Mountain View, a town about a half hour drive south of Hilo. It is on the way to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, so if you plan to go there or are coming from there, this coffee farm is worth a visit. They grow their coffees right here on their 24-acre farm. There is a viewing area where you can watch them roast and package their coffees. Tours and coffee samples are being offered as well.
There is a small coffee shop where you can purchase coffee by the cup or get an entire package to take home. They also sell other gift items, including chocolates, soaps, teas and more. And besides coffee, they also offer smoothies, milkshakes, ice cream and breakfast, and lunch foods. You can eat it inside or outside on their lanai.
Located on the banks of the Wailoa River, the Wailoa River State Recreation Area is a public park in Hilo that offers a variety of places to picnic, wander, and relax. Encircling Waiakea Pond, a spring-fed estuary that is home to a variety of saltwater species, the Wailoa River State Recreation Area is home to two memorials, one of which honors tsunami victims while the other honors Vietnam War veterans. The park is also home to the Wailoa Center, which features changing cultural displays that tell the story of the region.
The Waipi'o Valley is often referred to as the "Valley of the Kings" because it was once the home to many of the rulers of Hawaii, and as a result, the valley has both historical and cultural importance to the Hawaiian people.
According to oral histories as few as 4,000 or as many as 10,000 people lived in Waipi'o during the times before the arrival of Captain Cook in 1778; Waipi'o was the most fertile and productive valley on the Big Island of Hawaii.
It was at Waipi'o in 1780 that Kamehameha the Great received his war god Kukailimoku who proclaimed him the future ruler of the islands. It was off the coast of Waimanu, near Waipi'o, that Kamehameha engaged Kahekili, the Lord of the leeward islands, and his half-brother, Kaeokulani of Kaua'i, in the first naval battle in Hawaiian history—Kepuwahaulaula, known as the Battle of the Red-Mouthed Guns. Kamehameha thus began his conquest of the islands.
In the late 1800s, many Chinese immigrants settled in the valley. At one time the valley had churches, restaurants, and schools as well as a hotel, post office, and jail. But in 1946, the most devastating tsunami in Hawaii's history swept great waves far back into the valley. Afterward, most people left the valley, and it has been sparsely populated ever since.
A severe deluge in 1979 covered the valley from side to side in four feet of water. Today only about 50 people live in the Waipi'o Valley. These are taro farmers, fishermen, and others who are reluctant to leave their simple lifestyle.