Is Hilo worth a stop on Hawaii cruise?

[billroddy]

I wasn't too impressed with Hilo on my Zaandam cruise. Quaint, but sort of shabby with shuttered stores. One restaurant highly recommended by the AAA in 2007 was vacant with a FOR SALE in the window. Did not take any of the shore excursions however, so that might be a mitigating factor.
HAL drops Kauai, when they spend two days in Honolulu, so if they dropped Hilo they could spend two days in Maui.
Bill

[Don Haynes]

Yes, some of us prefer stops that aren't hotel beach resorts. I could have stayed in Florida to enjoy a hotel beach resort.

[Sea Island Lady]

Hilo was very interesting! We took a volcano tour.

[LolaWiz]

We love Hilo and have never been via cruise ship. THere is so much around Hilo it is unbelievable. Aside from the Volcano (and the wonderful Volcano Winery), there are many waterfalls, local tasty restaurants, historic sites, lush gardens and senic look-outs. I could go on and on about the beauty that is the East side of Hawaii.
I find it sad to think that people stop at this port and only see a sleepy, "real" Hawaii town and not some tourist trap.

[Mary Ellen]

I've got to agree with Sea Island Lady and LolaWiz.

Hilo was very enjoyable. We also took a great volcano tour and "find it sad to think that people stop at this port and only see a sleepy, "real" Hawaii town and not some tourist trap".

[Krazy Kruizers]

The first time we went to Hilo we did the volcano tour - loved it.

When we were there in 2006, we found a lot of shops and restaurants open and enjoyed ourselves again there.

[Nancyquilts]

Hilo is a great place to rent a car :D It's just a short distance to Volcano National Park, and on the way back you can stop at Volcano for lunch and at an Orchid Farm or Macadamia Nut Farm, or hit one of the waterfalls - Rainbow is quite close to Hilo. Nancy

[middle-aged mom]

Hilo has some lovely gardens and interesting museums. The newest one is Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii at the University of Hawaii. See www.imiloahawaii.org (http://www.imiloahawaii.org) Definitely a must see!

I absolutely love the Big Island of Hawaii:) . Such an island of marvelous contrasts.

Karin

[AlohaPride]

There is not enough on maui to spend 2 days there. Hilo has WAY more to do.

[Sea Island Lady]

There is not enough on maui to spend 2 days there. Hilo has WAY more to do.
You don't know my DH. LOL Once he saw the Wailea Emerald Course, he could have stayed forever! We both thought that Maui was beautiful as took a day tour (in a limo) around the island.;)

[obriendan]

We also rented a car at Hilo. The rental agency picked us up at the pier and we were on our way in the rental caer by 9:00 AM. Spent the whole day driving around the Big Island with only a passing glance at Hilo. Made several stops. All-in-all a great shore independent excursion.

[ClevelandOhio]

I wouldn't miss Hilo because of Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens. http://www.htbg.com/ This is one of the most amazing tropical gardens that I have ever seen. Don't miss it.

The city of Hilo was very interesting because "real" people live there. It is not just a tourist place.

I enjoyed it very much.

[Pam in CA]

Hilo is wonderful. The Volcano National Park is something not to be missed. I could by-pass Kona but Hilo is one of those ports that I would consider a "must" for HI along with Honolulu (Oahu) and Lahaina (Maui). OK... I also love Kauai but the other three rank higher in my book.

[JLC@SD]

I wouldn't miss Hilo because of Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens. http://www.htbg.com/ This is one of the most amazing tropical gardens that I have ever seen. Don't miss it.

The city of Hilo was very interesting because "real" people live there. It is not just a tourist place.

I enjoyed it very much.

We saw the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens and loved it. Lots of walking through a beautiful gardens......and it rained while we were there (they provide umbrellas)......felt like a real rain forest.....beautiful palm trees all around and the ocean at the bottom.

.....and Hilo is not a shopping town.

[herbalsoaplady]

We loved the sleepy little town that is Hilo. Especially the Kava bar that a friend of a friend owns. They make one heck of a frozen coconut, pineapple kava drink. Very refreshing.

They have a wonderful open air market there that we ate our way through.

We were on a land voyage with 20 other folks. The big highlight of the Hilo visit was being at the volcano for sunrise. Lots of folks there .. some in native dress doing dances. The clouds passing swiftly over the cauldron appeared to us like spirits drifitng by. We left an offering of flowers to the goddess of the volcano. After a big breakfast in the lodge we hiked the volcano. What a trip that was. Don't miss the art museum/gift store wonderful art by local artists.

Try Hilo it may surprise you.

[KAYEF]

We just rented cars in every port on the Hawaii cruise...............loved Hilo as much as the other places, for sure.............there was LOTS to see and explore.
I'd like to go back to Kawaii (sp?) and spend a couple of weeks; we really enjoyed that island.
Actually, I think we liked Hilo much more than Kona.............the two sides of the Big Island are very different.................renting cars is the way to go on a Hawaii cruise.;)

[Mike2131]

I have never taken a cruise in Hawaii, but, based on my land vacations, I agree with the other posters that Hilo is definitely a worthwhile port. As has been stated, Hilo is the logical gateway to Volcano NP and the nearby rain forest.

The island of Hawaii is large and seeing both sides gives you an overview of its wonders. I don't think that there is another place on earth that offers so many climate zones in such a concentrated area.

If you are lucky enough to be there overnight, the star gazing excursion up Mona Kea is breathtaking.

[2bout2c]

With the wonderful things to see in Hilo I like it much better than Kona. The biggest plus is a dock and not a tender port.

[sassyredhat]

We took a volcano tour which lasted most of the day. DH loved it.
When we go again in April, we are going to the tsunami museum. I think you can see the tower up on the hill, as you pull in to port.

Pat

[Bruinboy]

Since I was born in Hilo, I may be a bit biased ... but it is a fantastic place to visit. I would also recommend renting a car and driving to the volcano or botanical gardens. One does not need a tour guide ... since it is on the rainy side of the island it has incredible vegetation, water falls, places to hike. Other than Kauai, it's my favorite place to visit. Of course, you have to like non touristy places to enjoy the city. My highlight was, of course, where I was baptized some 50 plus years ago ... St Joseph Catholic Church! Funny, plaque on the wall mentioning that even, but nonetheless, a great place.

[Azure Moon]

Yes, in our opinion Hilo is worth a stop.

We enjoyed our time at Hilo. We rented a car and drove through Volcano National Park, stopped at the museum/visitor centers, walked on the stretch of road that was closed off because lava had flowed across it, met some nice people who were also visiting the area. We could have spent more time there.

We didn't have time to explore all the other areas posters mentioned...we'll have to do that on future visits to Hilo :cool: .