# Driving Directions Waikoloa to Hilo Questions



## suzanne (Sep 9, 2012)

We are planning a day trip from HGVC Waikoloa Beach Resort to Hilo during our stay there week of Nov 10th to 17th. We plan to stop at the Botanical Gardens, Akaka and Rainbow Falls. In looking at a map we are trying to decide which way is better.  We are thinking going up on Saddle and stopping in Hilo for lunch and then stop at the Gardens and falls coming back down thru Waimea to Waikoloa and resort. Is this the best way for a day trip or should we reverse and come back from Hilo on Saddle Road? We want to take photos of falls and gardens and the Hilo area.

Any recommendations for good local seafood place for lunch in Hilo? We don't want fancy just good food.

Suzanne


----------



## Sandy VDH (Sep 9, 2012)

Better check your car rental details, some explicitly prohibit using Saddle road.  I think there are people who have disregarded that notice, I have not, as I am usually diving and driving that high is the same as flying, which is not allowed for 12 to 24 hours after diving (depending on whos rules you follow) to avoid the bends.

http://www.hawaiihighways.com/photos-Saddle-Road.htm


----------



## BevL (Sep 9, 2012)

We've driven Saddle Road, it's fine, don't know what the hubbub is about.  Personally I'd drive it in the morning as it is very twisty and some narrow bridges, as I recall.  I could do it at night, but would prefer it during the daytime.


----------



## suzanne (Sep 9, 2012)

Rental Car agreement states we can take car on Saddle Road but not to top of  Moana Kea to the Astronomy Place. We can only go as far as the visitors center there. We will check with them again when we pick up the car regarding Saddle Road.

Suzanne


----------



## BevL (Sep 9, 2012)

suzanne said:


> Rental Car agreement states we can take car on Saddle Road but not to top of  Moana Kea to the Astronomy Place. We can only go as far as the visitors center there. We will check with them again when we pick up the car regarding Saddle Road.
> 
> Suzanne



You're a better person than I am.  Our rental agreement clearly said we were not to take the car on Saddle but they were in the middle of upgrading it last time we were on the BI.  I suppose if we'd had vehicle trouble we might have been, well, in trouble.  But it is a good road, just a bit narrow in places and twisty and turny.


----------



## suzanne (Sep 9, 2012)

How is the other road to Hilo? is it less curvy, wider etc. It looks like either way is going to take about 3 hours drive time unless we get stuck someplace.

Suzanne


----------



## cowboy (Sep 9, 2012)

Personally I would go thru waimia, go to Waipio valley, go to the sights that you mentioned, eat at cafe Pesto in Hilo, go to the hotel district and see the banyan trees planted by Babe Ruth and other interesting people and retrace your route back to Waikola Beach after eating at Merrimans in Waimia. I would avoid the saddle road as there is not much to see and it is not that much quicker.


----------



## daventrina (Sep 10, 2012)

Either direction would work.
Cafe 100 in Hilo is a good local place to grab a bite...


----------



## T_R_Oglodyte (Sep 10, 2012)

Don't hesitate to take the Saddle Road, even if you have an archaic rental car agreement that prohibits driving on the Saddle Road.  When were in Hawaii in 2011, our rental agreement allowed travel on the Saddle Road (not that that stopped us before - we even took our 2-WD compact sized rental car to the top of Mauna Kea).  Most of the Saddle Road has been upgraded.

When were on the BI in 2011 our agreement said that travel on the road to South Point was not allowed. That didn't stop us - we went as far as the end of the paved road.  People with 4-WD were continuing on to the green sand beach, but I wouldn't have driven that road with our 2-WD.

*******

The prohibitions on taking a vehicle on certain roads really doesn't mean that travel on those roads isn't allowed.  What it means that if something happens you're probably on your own as far as damages.  Your insurance company won't cover you, because you would be operating the vehicle outside the scope of the rental agreement.  So you need to decide whether going down that road is worth the risk, and that is a decision that only you can make.  I'm usually quire willing to assume those risks, as getting to some of those places is part of the whole point in going to Hawaii in the first place.  YMMV.


----------



## GregT (Sep 10, 2012)

BevL said:


> We've driven Saddle Road, it's fine, don't know what the hubbub is about.  Personally I'd drive it in the morning as it is very twisty and some narrow bridges, as I recall.  I could do it at night, but would prefer it during the daytime.



This is exactly how I feel -- we just did this in June -- had no problems driving across during the day, but I wasn't comfortable driving it at night so we took the longer way -- approx another 30 mins (but with some beautiful vista's along the way).

Enjoy your trip!

Greg


----------



## Timeshare Von (Sep 10, 2012)

Back in the day, the Saddle Road was in rough shape, including gravel in many places.  The last time I was on the Big Island (2010) it was 100% in good shape with no gravel areas.  I would say that there should be no issues today with rental car agreements since the road has been completely redone in the last decade.


----------



## Timeshare Von (Sep 10, 2012)

GregT said:


> This is exactly how I feel -- we just did this in June -- had no problems driving across during the day, but I wasn't comfortable driving it at night so we took the longer way -- approx another 30 mins (but with some beautiful vista's along the way).
> 
> Enjoy your trip!
> 
> Greg



Wow, most people I've taken to the Big Island have not like the alternative(s) vs. the Saddle Road.


----------



## SmithOp (Sep 10, 2012)

Go on Wed or Saturday to catch the farmers mkt.

http://www.hilofarmersmarket.com/

We always take the north coast route because there are so many interesting places to stop, coming and going.  Last time we went down to the beach with a tsunami memorial, the local kids were all excited because there was a shark so we went shark watching with them.  PS here's a tip from the locals, if you need a bathroom stop, the beaches all have them, the mom and pop stores and gas stations don't.


----------



## suzanne (Sep 10, 2012)

Thanks all for your help. I will talk to the other couple going with us to see which route they feel comfortable taking. Since I don't see well enough to do any night driving they will be doing that. Thanks for the heads up on the bathrooms at the beaches along the way. That is real important knowledge.  

Suzanne


----------



## cowboy (Sep 10, 2012)

You might want to purchase a copy of Hawaii The Big Island Revealed by Andrew Doughty to help you in your decision making. We never go anywhere in Hawaii without the latest version. You can purchase it before you leave and have good reading on the flight over.


----------



## hibbeln (Sep 10, 2012)

We did the exact same trip, July 2011.  We were staying in Waikoloa also.  We went out on the Saddle Rd and came back through Waimea.  We thought it was great.  2 different views.  And honestly the Saddle Rd was fun to drive!  
I don't think I would do it in reverse because the Saddle Rd would be pitch black at night, though honestly the Waimea route has very dark and foggy areas, also. The difference is that the Saddle Rd doesn't have shoulders and the Waimea route has country highways. 
 Plus there are places to stop and eat dinner on the way back by going the Waimea route.


----------



## daventrina (Sep 11, 2012)

One trip going over Saddle Road ... we stopped at the summit to visit Pu'u Huluhulu Cinder Cone Along the Saddle Road (http://www.instanthawaii.com/cgi-bin/hawaii?Hikes.hulu). It was a very nice side trip/hike/stop. It sits between the 1843 and 1935 lava flows. It is one of few location with  trails through native wooded forests with native plants and birds that thrive on the protected cinder cone.







https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&....007708,0.01237&t=h&z=17&lci=org.wikipedia.en


----------



## suzanne (Sep 11, 2012)

I really appreciate everyones help. I have purchased the latest issue of the  Big Island Revealed Book and will be taking it with me. I also just ordered the latest Fodor's Guide mostly for its maps. I  sent a copy of the Big Island Revealed Book to our friends in Oregon so they can be reading up on the Island to. It's hard trying to cover everything with them when we are on two different coasts. Any other tips anyone has would be really helpful.

Suzanne


----------



## daventrina (Sep 11, 2012)

suzanne said:


> I have purchased the latest issue of the  Big Island Revealed Book.  It's hard trying to cover everything ...


We stick prioritized sticky tabs on everything we want to do and pull them off as we complete them. Then the next trip ... we all ready have the book marked.

If you get a JEEP, there are some very nice, but not paved, side trips in the book to some very nice beaches. Second the suggestion to go to Waipio Valley (need a 4x4 to drive down, but there are various tours including via horse).

Mo'okini Heiau and the Birthplace of Kamehameha the Great is in the book and definitely worth the time to visit. It really is as interesting as strange as described in the book. On the way up or back ... one must stop at Pu`ukoholā Heiau.

Also on the area is Lapakahi State Historical Park.

On one of the trips north of Kona a good side stop is the Kaloko Fishponds.

Lava Trees State Park gets kinda bad reviews, but when we were there we really enjoyed the stop. We tried to stop at Cafe 100 in Hilo for Loco Moco breakfast ... but got there for lunch and had awesome Mahi Mahi.

‘Akaka Falls State Park was a nice stop too that has had sort of a bad rap as a "tourist spot." Seem that if you don't live in Hawaii now they snag you for $5/car to get in.

Rainbow Falls and Boiling pots at Wailuku River State Park were also worth the visit. No fee YET to get in there.

Don't forget the Lava Flow if it behaves...
And there is the Manta Dive/snorkel...

This will keep you busy for a week


----------



## suzanne (Sep 11, 2012)

Can hardly wait til our trip. So much to see and do. I wish we could afford to spend a month there seeing everything.

Suzanne


----------



## Jim Bryan (Sep 13, 2012)

We've always gone the North route. Pretty drive. Stop at Tex's for some Malasadas.    http://www.texdriveinhawaii.com/


----------



## T_R_Oglodyte (Sep 13, 2012)

This is not related to driving to Hilo, but is a general trip suggestion.  One of your days you should take the road north from Waimea that goes over Mt. Kahala to the north coast.  Then turn right and go all the way to the end of the road, where it stops at the Pololu lookout, facing the Kahala Sea Cliffs. This is the other end of the stretch of shoreline that you see from the Waipo'o Valley lookout, mentioned above. 

There's a beautiful lookout there, as well as a trail that goes down to Pololu beach below (not a swimming beach).  On the way down you can catch glimpses of the distant waterfalls that drop off the faces of the Koahala sea cliffs. The trail is easy, but fairly steep.  It can be slippery when wet.


----------



## GregT (Sep 13, 2012)

Steve, that is a spectacular picture.  Wow!!  Makes me want to go to Hawaii right now!!!


----------



## suzanne (Sep 13, 2012)

Thats a beautiful photo. Thank you for sharing. We will be checking this out. Good thing I am taking my laptop with me so I can go back and review everyone's great tips during our trip so we don't miss or forget anything. Books are awesome but there is nothing like hearing about a spot that someone on TUG has actually been to.

Suzanne


----------



## pacman (Sep 14, 2012)

T_R_Oglodyte said:


> This is not related to driving to Hilo, but is a general trip suggestion.  One of your days you should take the road north from Waimea that goes over Mt. Kahala to the north coast.  Then turn right and go all the way to the end of the road, where it stops at the Pololu lookout, facing the Kahala Sea Cliffs. This is the other end of the stretch of shoreline that you see from the Waipo'o Valley lookout, mentioned above.
> 
> There's a beautiful lookout there, as well as a trail that goes down to Pololu beach below (not a swimming beach).  On the way down you can catch glimpses of the distant waterfalls that drop off the faces of the Koahala sea cliffs. The trail is easy, but fairly steep.  It can be slippery when wet.



We went to this "black sand" beach also, last time were on the BI.  Well worth it. Very beautiful. Will definitely return there on our next BI trip in February.

pacman


----------



## cgeidl (Sep 14, 2012)

*Rental company not liable for the tow*

If your car konks out on Saddle Road you are on your own. We have driven a dozen or more times over the years and the last couple times had no clause on using the road.
We live in AZ in the winter and a visit on the Navajo resrvation has a shallow river you can drive up. The Navajo tribe has trucks with open seating in the back that you can hire. They tell you that you can take your own vehicle but if you get stuck in the sort of quicksand bottom the price to tow you out is $5000.The tribe sends two trucks together as they often tow each other out and the bad spots shift regularly.
Don;t know the Saddle road charge but Hawaii isn't inexpensive.


----------



## T_R_Oglodyte (Sep 14, 2012)

cgeidl said:


> If your car konks out on Saddle Road you are on your own.



Why would you be any more on your own on Saddle Road as compared with, say, the other road through Waimea?  It's not as if driving on the Saddle Road is prohibited by car rental contracts, unlike the road to the top of Mauna Kea or the South Point road.


----------

