EXCURSIONES EN TIERRA

See the island’s most spectacular natural wonders, starting with a hike to Kilauea Crater in Volcanoes National Park.

The setting is so extraordinary that UNESCO deemed the park a World Biosphere site and a World Heritage site. To reach the crater, you will hike three miles roundtrip. The sights along the way will make it well worth the effort, as the volcano has been steadily erupting since 1983 and the surrounding countryside is dramatic. Afterward, you will pause for photos at magnificent Rainbow Falls, which is named for the rainbows that often form in the surrounding mist. Another photo opportunity awaits you at Liliuokalani Gardens, which pays tribute to the Japanese immigrants that worked in the sugarcane fields more than a century ago. Enjoy a local shopping stop where you can sample Hawaiian macadamia nuts before returning to the ship.

Start your tour with a leisurely drive through the "Hilo Walk of Fame” known for all the banyan trees that have been planted by celebrities. Drive by Liliuokalani Gardens, the largest ornamental Japanese garden outside of Japan. Your experienced guide will provide commentary of Hilo Town as you make your way to Wailuku State Park and Rainbow Falls.

While visiting Akaka State Park, you can see two gorgeous waterfalls- 100 foot Kahuna Falls and towering Akaka Falls which plummets 422 feet into an eroded gorge. Stop at Pana’ewa Zoo the only naturally occurring rainforest zoo in the United States. Enjoy a 3 mile drive through macadamia nut orchards as you approach the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Visitor Center. Discover a world of marine science at the only black-sand beach in the Hilo region.

Your experienced guide will provide information and narration as you drive through the "Hilo Walk of Fame" known for all the banyan trees planted by celebrities. Visit Liliuokalani Gardens, the largest ornamental Japanese garden outside of Japan. Your experienced guide will provide commentary of Hilo Town as you make your way to Wailuku State Park and Rainbow Falls.

While visiting Akaka State Park, you can see two gorgeous waterfalls- 100 foot Kahuna Falls and towering Akaka Falls which plummets 422 feet into an eroded gorge. Stop at Big Island Candies, home of the famous diagonally dipped shortbread cookies. You have a chance to purchase your Big Island souvenirs that are beautifully packaged. A true Hawaiian Classic!

Last but not least, you will experience Hawaii's Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Visitor Center. Award winning Mauna Loa has over 30 year history of perfecting one of the most delicious Macadamia Nut in the world. Explore the different flavors they have to offer.

Browse the fields and orchards of O.K. Farms and enjoy a sampling of its produce before heading deeper into the tropical environs to view two breathtaking waterfalls. Although remarkably close to Hilo, the family-owned farm feels as if it’s light-years away. Fruit and nut trees flourish, coffee plants blanket the hills and the aroma of spices wafts through the air. As you will discover, sweet lychees and longans are by far the most prevalent fruits grown there. You will likely sample them along with rambutans and hearts of palm. You will also learn a trick for cracking the rock-hard shells of macadamia nuts without damaging the meat inside. The Wailuku River winds through the 1,000-acre farm, creating Kaimukanaka Falls, which will be quite the sight to behold. You will view equally magnificent Rainbow Falls from a private vantage point that highlights the iridescent rainbows that typically form in the mist.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Tour a family-owned farm that grows tropical fruits and nuts within its 1,000 acres.
• Sample iconic Hawaiian fruits such as lychees, longans and rambutans.
• View two absolutely gorgeous cascades: Kaimukanaka Falls and Rainbow Falls.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.

Taste a variety of locally grown foods for a better understanding of Hawaiian cuisine and how dishes made with the produce pair perfectly with craft beers. While touring the fields and orchards of O.K. Farms, you will sample freshly picked herbs and spices such as lemongrass and vanilla. You may also bite into a ripe lilikoi, one of the farm’s many tropical fruits that make their way into the zesty libations that nearby Ola Brew creates. Before reaching the brewery, you will pause for photos of Kaimukanaka Falls and Rainbow Falls, two beautiful cascades in the idyllic countryside. Prepare to be equally impressed with the offerings at Ola Brew, which infuses their beers with unusual local ingredients. You will be served a flight of beers that may include a mango-flavored IPA, a lager with banana notes, and a pineapple hard cider. They will be paired with American Asian fusion-style dishes.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Sample locally grown fruits, herbs and spices while touring O.K. Farms.
• Taste beers at Ola Brew that are infused with unexpected ingredients from the farm.
• Enjoy inspired pairings of the beers with American Asian fusion-style cuisine.
• View two absolutely gorgeous cascades: Kaimukanaka Falls and Rainbow Falls.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.

Savor wine and hors d’oeuvres at the Volcano House, the only hotel in Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii’s only UNESCO World Heritage site. As an introduction to the wonders of the surrounding volcanic landscape, you will accompany a volcanologist on a leisurely walk along the summit rim of Kilauea, one of the world’s most active and easily accessible volcanoes. It will be quite the experience as you peer into the crater that stretches down about three miles. Depending on the state of the volcano, you may see steam rising from the vents or an active lava lake. You will then head to the Volcano House, a historical hotel that Mark Twain visited in 1866 and mentioned in his book “Roughing It.” There, you will be served Hawaiian fruit wine with traditional hors d’oeuvres known as pupus. The views from the hotel are spectacular as it perches about 4,000 feet above sea level and overlooks the Kilauea caldera.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Walk along the summit of Kilauea, one of the world’s most active volcanoes.
• Enjoy Hawaiian fruit wine and traditional hors d’oeuvres at the historical Volcano House.
• Take in the panoramas of Volcanoes National Park from several vantage points.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.

Enjoy an enlightening tour of America’s southernmost winery and sample a variety of its premium wines. A spectacularly scenic drive inland will bring you to the aptly named Volcano Winery, whose vineyards blanket an elevated expanse of volcanically formed terrain. Grape varieties such as Symphony, Pinot Noir, Maréchal Foch and Cayuga flourish there. While touring the family-owned winery, you will discover how these unique wines have been produced over the past several decades. Many of them are infused with local fruits such as yellow guava and jaboticaba berries that lend the wines their original flavors. Others are infused with Hawaiian-grown tea and honey from bees that pollinate the blossoms of the island’s famed macadamia nut trees. The exact wines for your tasting will be chosen upon your arrival to ensure that they are at their peak. They many include Volcano Red, a signature red blend with black cherry and cranberry notes.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Tour the family-owned Volcano Winery, the southernmost winery in America.
• Sample a selection of premium wines, many of them infused with local fruit flavors.
• Enjoy a picturesque drive inland through a lush volcanically formed landscape.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.

Your exciting day begins with a scenic narrated drive along the beautiful Hamakua coastline from the cruise ship pier to the rain forest at Botanical World Adventures.

Take an incredible journey by bike through an area of the Hamakua Coast once dominated by Hawai`i’s sugar industry. This adventurous tour makes its way through a segment of the Old Mamalahoa Highway where you are surrounded by green rolling pastures and lush botanical scenery. This once well traveled road takes us back in time as we make our way through old plantation villages, cross over bridges from the early 1900’s and become mesmerized by the abundance of greenery. View beautiful streams and waterfalls originating from the slopes of Mauna Kea as you cross over each bridge.

This ride engages all of our senses with the smells and sounds of the rainforest, the sights of the brightly colored tropical flowers, and the tastes of paradise. Within the botanical gardens you are surrounded with an entourage of foliage from all over the world, as there are fruits in the trees above you, orchids blossoming beside you, and a carpet of grass below you. Before you know it, you are on a treasure hunt to find all the seasonal jewels and gems this amazing botanical garden has to offer. The guides will then transport you by van to their private waterfall on the property for one last amazing photo opportunity!

The experience continues as you journey back to the pier with a stop at Low Store, a family owned treasure since 1925 where you can purchase tropical smoothies and Hawaiian shaved ice. Then continue on the incredible scenic route of Onomea Bay to make a final stop at Big Island Candies, famous for their handmade macadamia nut shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate!

Pass through the visually stunning countryside in the Puna district just outside Hilo, where you will see lava fields from past eruptions and an extraordinary black-sand beach composed of lava fragments. According to legend, the volatile Hawaiian volcano goddess Pele lives in the district’s Kīlauea volcano. She not only creates new land, but also destroys what stands in the path of the lava, which is known as “frozen fire” once it cools and hardens. However, the historical Painted Church was spared during Kīlauea’s eruption in 1990 when the entire structure was lifted off its foundation and moved to safety. While browsing the wooden church, which features wonderful painted ceiling frescoes, you will hear more about its salvation. You will also visit a newly formed black-sand beach to learn intriguing details about the volcanic eruption that created it. Afterwards, you will have the opportunity to shop for locally made merchandise and meander along Hilo Bay.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Behold the devastation of past volcanic eruptions and the natural beauty left in their wakes.
• See the historical Painted Church that villagers moved to save it from a nearby lava flow.
• Gaze out over a gorgeous black-sand beach that a volcanic eruption created.
• Shop for locally made merchandise in and around Hilo.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.

Explore the famed Hamakua Coast, home to magnificent country reminiscent of “old Hawaii” on this small-group adventure. Sparsely populated Hamakua is studded with breathtaking waterfalls, stunning valleys, and eccentric towns. Traveling north, first stop at Tex Drive-In, famous for made-to- order malasadas. These fried Portuguese sweet treats were originally brought to Hawaii by immigrants who worked in the cattle industry and have been a local favorite ever since. Watch the treats being made through the window and have the option to purchase a fresh one with a cup of coffee. The Valley of the Kings, Waipio Valley is a place of impossibly steep cliffs carved by plunging waterfalls cascading more than a thousand feet to the valley floor below. Waipio Valley is still home to taro farmers as it has been for a thousand years. Look closely from the overlook and glimpses of the wild horses that roam the valley floor might be possible. Turning off the highway we descend into Laupahoehoe Point. Laupahoehoe village was located here until the destruction left behind the 1946 tsunami forced the town to move to higher ground.

. Look for the monument erected in the names of those who lost there lives here. Next stop at Akaka Falls State Park, the site of the largest easily accessible waterfall on the island. You’ll traverse a paved walking path right through the center of a lush rainforest to Akaka Falls, a stunning 442 foot waterfall that plunges down a sheer cliff and into the water below. Continue your adventure with stops at two icons of Hilo, Rainbow Falls and the King Kamehameha statue. Rainbow falls is an iconic waterfall right off a postcard featuring an 80 foot tall twin waterfall system. Look for the rainbow effect that gives the waterfall its name! Leaving the Hamakua coast behind, you travel to historic Hilo Bay to enjoy a deli style lunch. Snorkel, swim or rent a kayak to explore Hilo Bay. Complete the day with a shopping stop with Hawaiian mac nut samples, Hawaii Island crafts, local products, Kona coffee and more.

Exploring Hawaii Island’s explosive side is what this tour is all about. Walk Kilauea’s most recent lava flows along the East Rift Zone, including the historic flows of 2018. Start with a drive through quaint Hilo town where you’ll drive along the historic waterfront past Liliuokalani Japanese Gardens before heading out to Kilauea. Your National Park Service certified guide will discuss the volcanology, geology, and history of Hawaii, as well as providing in-depth narration on the various lava flows and flora and fauna that you’ll be passing by. First stop is MacKenzie State Recreation Area closed by the marching 40 foot tall wall of crumbly a’a lava as it continued through the Park to the sea. Take a walk along the altered coastline and cliffs overlooking the new black sand beach. Isaac Hale Beach Park is next. Lava floes encircled this popular Park miraculously sparing the infrastructure while completely destroying everything around it. Be sure to check out the boat launch ramp, now sitting in a pond cut off from the ocean by a natural berm of lava.

Stop by Star of the Sea Painted Church. Moved by the community twice to save it from advancing lava flows in 1990, this decommissioned church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A deli style lunch is included. The final stop includes snorkeling, swimming and shopping. Grab a free snorkel set or just jump in the water and explore the unique lava rock coastline of Hilo Bay. Kayaks and paddle boards are available to rent. Stock up on fresh roasted Kona coffee, Hawaiian mac nuts, and other local products and crafts before heading back to the port.

Awaken your senses to the best the Big Island has to offer! Explore Kilauea Volcano in a unique way by taking the road less traveled with a small group of no more than 12 guests per departure! Entice your taste buds with 100% Hawaiian grown coffee, complimentary wine and handmade chocolate treats created exclusively on this island.

Start your morning right with locally grown and freshly roasted Hawaiian coffee at the exclusive O.K. Farms on your way to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Once you arrive at the park, an experienced guide will take your intimate size group on short leisurely strolls showcasing the incredible changes the landscape has undergone since the May 2018 lava eruption. Kilauea Volcano has been extremely active and has changed our island in extraordinary ways. You will witness how the explosive power of this volcano has expanded Halema’uma’u crater to a size never before seen. The volume change alone is over 1 billion cubic yards. Walk across new lava formations and actually see the rebirth of the native Hawaiian rainforest in its first stages of life. Embrace this natural wonder that was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982!

Enjoy a picnic style specialty lunch and a complimentary glass of wine on the lush grounds of Volcano Garden Arts, a fine art gallery showcasing Hawai’i artists. A definite treat for the senses! No Hawaiian adventure would be complete without a stop at Big Island Candies known for their handmade macadamia nut shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate!