Lava Hike vs. Boat Tour

We will be in Hilo on POA in February. The ship is only import from 8-6. I really want to see lava and hope it is still flowing when we get there. I thought about taking a lava hike, but wouldn't be able to see VNP is we do the hike. Another option is the lava boat tours, which are very expensive, and possibly unsafe. I didn't want to take a helicopter ride because we are doing that in Kuaui.

My question is: has anyone done a lava hike or lava boat tour duirng the day, and if so, was it worth it? I know the view is better at night, but the ship isn't there overnight.

Also, is the "sail-by" that the POA does a good view, or would it be much better to see it from the lava boat? I am also considering missing the boat and catching back up in Kona (I know that Kona is a tender port and the ship might not dock there-and I checked with NCL about missing the port in Hilo) so that I can see the lava at night, but if the view is good enough from the ship, then there would be no need and would spare me the stress of worrying if the ship doesn't port in Kona.

Any advise or suggestions would be appreciated?

We will be in Hilo on POA in February. The ship is only import from 8-6. I really want to see lava and hope it is still flowing when we get there. I thought about taking a lava hike, but wouldn't be able to see VNP is we do the hike. Another option is the lava boat tours, which are very expensive, and possibly unsafe. I didn't want to take a helicopter ride because we are doing that in Kuaui.

 

My question is: has anyone done a lava hike or lava boat tour duirng the day, and if so, was it worth it? I know the view is better at night, but the ship isn't there overnight.

 

Also, is the "sail-by" that the POA does a good view, or would it be much better to see it from the lava boat? I am also considering missing the boat and catching back up in Kona (I know that Kona is a tender port and the ship might not dock there-and I checked with NCL about missing the port in Hilo) so that I can see the lava at night, but if the view is good enough from the ship, then there would be no need and would spare me the stress of worrying if the ship doesn't port in Kona.

 

Any advise or suggestions would be appreciated?

I have not done the hike, the lava boat or the sail by on POA, but I have looked on the lava boat website at the day tours, and they do get very close to where the lava enters the water, IF if is flowing, judging by the pictures on the website.

You will get no where near that close with a cruiseship sail by. Comments I have seen indicate that you would see a red glow in the distance and would need a good telephoto lens to get any sort of picture. I would look at info on the hike to see where this takes you, and if you can actually view the lava entering the water from the cliff above.

I would think the more spectacular view would be from the water, either at night or even the day tour. As you suggested, you could miss the ship in Hilo and take the night tour, or do the day one instead. if you did the night tour, you could hit VNP early the following am, and then drive to Kona, arriving before the ship departs. Worst case scenario, the ship does not dock in Kona, you simply take a cheap inter island flight and meet the ship in Kauai.

The problem I saw when we considered the day tour was that it appeared to leave very early, and it takes time to debark, pick up a rental car and drive 1 hour to meet the tour. It hardly seemed possible. But, they may have later day tours if you plan on missing the ship. That might allow time for night viewing at VNP which they say is very special as you can see the glow from the crater.

We did the lava hike in September of this year. Seeing an active flow was number 1 on our wishlist of things to do in Hawaii. On the sail by you are pretty far away to see much, just orange glow in the distance, but still a great sight! We really wanted to do a Lava boat tour but the timing did not work with the POA time in port. But we were determined to see the flow so we booked the lava hike through NCL. It was expensive but it was the adventure of a lifetime. Just be prepared if you do the hike, it isn't a walk in the park! It was very hot and sunny the day we were there, the hike is long and some of the group didn't make it to the flow. The water they supply is not nearly enough so be sure to bring additional. There is nothing better than sitting on lava rocks, eating lunch and watching the lava hit the water, truly a bucketlist adventure.

Activity right now is pretty strong, so views should be good. I would not attempt the hike unless you are willing to risk re-boarding in Kona - it's very rough terrain and if you rush it, injuries become much more likely. It sounds like you're already aware that some of the boat tours may be unsafe. Make sure you verify (not sure how!) that the operator and the boats are US Coast Guard approved. That's been the problem in the past - some unsafe equipment and reckless navigating much too close for safety.

Hopefully someone will post about the current view from the POA at night - I think there is more flow now than in September, so you may get better view than dcagg03 experienced. We were on the long-gone US Constitution around the island in 1988 when the eruptions were going strong and the view from ship was awesome. The captain turned the ship 180 degrees so that everyone had a view.

In regards to the possible lava boat tour, you might want to look at the recent info on these two threads just down the page, POA Seeing the Lava, and Huge Lava Stream into the Ocean.

Apparently, a large chunk of the sea cliff above the large flow fell into the ocean in the last few days. Video taken from one of the boats shows debris falling onto one of the boats (and passengers?) and into the water all around.

The articles I've read said they knew in advance that a large section of hardened lava was close to falling into the ocean. I don't think I'd trust a lava tour boat company who got so close that debris fell onto the boat. :eek:

I'd still prefer a boat tour because the hazardous steam cloud prevented us from hiking to the shoreline lava flow into the ocean. This was several years ago & we drove to the end of the Chain of Craters road to hike to the lava flow. Unfortunately the wind blew the sulphuric steam cloud (a result of lava entering the ocean) over land blocking access to the lava flow. Even without the hazardous cloud, there's always a risk of a shelf collapsing which has resulted in fatalities.

That's why I'd prefer a boat tour because a cautious professional captain can maneuver the boat to safely view it. For me a hike even if everything goes perfectly is still not as good as from a boat.

A helicopter tour would provide the best lava viewing but would probably be difficult to get a reservation. It may also be difficult to make a boat or hiking tour.

We recently drove to VNP and the road to Halemaumau crater (a lava "lake" at Kilauea crater) is closed due to activity including rising & collapsing floor.

Another very large chunk of the sea cliff fell into the ocean on New Year's Eve. It's an unstable situation out there.

The articles I've read said they knew in advance that a large section of hardened lava was close to falling into the ocean. I don't think I'd trust a lava tour boat company who got so close that debris fell onto the boat. :eek:

 

I'd still prefer a boat tour because the hazardous steam cloud prevented us from hiking to the shoreline lava flow into the ocean. This was several years ago & we drove to the end of the Chain of Craters road to hike to the lava flow. Unfortunately the wind blew the sulphuric steam cloud (a result of lava entering the ocean) over land blocking access to the lava flow. Even without the hazardous cloud, there's always a risk of a shelf collapsing which has resulted in fatalities.

 

That's why I'd prefer a boat tour because a cautious professional captain can maneuver the boat to safely view it. For me a hike even if everything goes perfectly is still not as good as from a boat.

 

A helicopter tour would provide the best lava viewing but would probably be difficult to get a reservation. It may also be difficult to make a boat or hiking tour.

 

We recently drove to VNP and the road to Halemaumau crater (a lava "lake" at Kilauea crater) is closed due to activity including rising & collapsing floor.

I agree that the best view would absolutely be from the water or a helicopter, if you can afford it and get the reservation. The problem I have with the Lava boats is that it seems difficult for the tourist to discern whether the companies involved actually have "cautious professional captains" or are the companies pushing the boundaries too far for safety. It seems to me that if rocks are falling onto the boats that this is probably not the case. The picture I saw on one of the websites was the deciding factor for me. It also appears to be a very long and rough ride out to the actual lava site.

Anyone who is considering one of these should ask lots of questions of the company and read lots of reviews. Trip Advisor, a sister company of Cruise Critic, is a good site for this.