BeforeYouGo.com

The Big Island of Hawaii is probably my favorite vacation destination of all the places I have travelled to.  It has great variety and some very unique features.  Walking up to flowing hot lava is one of those things that few people ever get the chance to do, and if you're lucky you can do that on the Big Island. 

The Big Island also has some of the best snorkeling in the world.  One of our favorite spots is by the Captain Cook Monument in Kealakekua Bay.  This isn't an easy spot to get to, but it is a lot of fun getting there.  I'd recommend renty a kayak and then you can launch your boat from the town of Captain Cook.  You then paddle across the bay heading toward the white monument.  Sometimes there are dolphins swimming in the bay to make it an extra special trip.  Once you make it across the bay, you can "park" your kayak and swim around among a plethora of fish and the dolphins may even join you.

Our best advice before going to the Big Island of Hawaii is to get the book Big Island Revealed. You can get it here.

That series of books are hands down the best guide books we’ve seen for any destination. You’ll see other people with the book all over the island.

If you enjoy snorkeling, we highly recommend buying your own snorkeling gear here. It will be cheaper than renting gear and in a place like the Big Island of Hawaii, there are dozens of great snorkeling spots you can do free if you have your own gear. You just go to the beach, put on your gear, and hop in the water.  The water around Hawaii has all sorts of amazing sea life.  Just when snorkeling off the beach you could see sea turtles, dolphins, eels, sharks, rays, octopus, and hundreds of different kinds of fish, including the humuhumunukunukuapua'a, the now unofficial state fish of Hawaii.

One thing people don’t realize about the Big Island is that it really is BIG. It is bigger than the other Hawaiian Islands combined. You cannot really drive around the island in a day and have any meaningful stops along the way. Especially on the Big Island, due to the size, it is important to plan ahead before you go. Think about what you want to see and, if possible, book hotels near those attractions. We recommend at least a couple nights in Kona and a couple nights in Hilo. Those are the two biggest cities on the Big Island and they are on opposite sides of the island.

The most unique thing about the Big Island is Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.  This is one of the few places in the world, and the only place in the United States, that you can safely watch hot lava flow from a volcano. If you’re lucky, and there is a flow in the right place when you are there, you could walk right up next to the lava for a photo op. Close enough to feel the heat. This is truly and an amazing, once in a lifetime opportunity.