Aloha Reader,

My youngest and I were sitting at dinner inside Volcano House, the lodge that sits right on the rim of Kilauea caldera, and the lava was glowing through the window behind our food. Not a photo of lava. Not a viewing platform. Dinner. With lava. In the background.

I couldn't stop looking at it. Neither could he. At some point we both just put our forks down and stared.

That moment is why I think the Big Island is the most underrated island in Hawaii for families. Most people skip it. They go straight to Maui or Oahu, which are both great, but they never see this one. And I genuinely think they're missing something.

Here's what the Big Island has that nowhere else does.

​Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is unlike anything else in the state. The lava fields, the crater hike, the lava tubes you can actually walk through (it's genuinely otherworldly). Kids who think they're too cool for national parks tend to last about ten minutes before they're completely hooked. And staying at Volcano House if it fits your budget is worth every penny. That dinner is still one of my favorite Hawaii memories from any trip on any island.

The diversity of landscape is staggering. You can stand on a black sand beach in the morning, drive through a rainforest, and end the day watching the sun set over a snow-capped volcano. On one island. In one day. There is nowhere else in Hawaii where that's possible.

The crowds are thinner. The Big Island is the largest island in the chain and has a fraction of the visitors that Maui and Oahu see. You feel it immediately. Beaches that would be packed on Oahu have plenty of room. Restaurants are easier to get into. The whole pace is different.

The snorkeling at Kealakekua Bay and the manta ray night dives off Kona are bucket-list level. Manta ray snorkeling in particular is one of those experiences that families talk about for years. If that's on anyone's list, the Big Island is the only place to do it.

It does take a little more planning than the other islands. The distances are real (the Big Island is bigger than all the other Hawaiian islands combined) so renting a car and thinking through which side you want to base yourself on matters. Kona side for sun, beach, and snorkeling. Hilo side for waterfalls, rainforest, and the volcano. A lot of families split the trip between both.

I have a full Big Island guide on the site with everything from where to stay to which side of the island makes sense for different types of families.

​Plan Your Big Island Trip →​

Talk soon,

Marcie