Since we could not go to Hawaii during the Covid bull shit since their idiot Governor had the island closed off or required a negative test to enter, we decided to take full advantage of Hawaii being fully opened to tourism in 2022!  So, we went back to the Hawaii for Labor Day after our nice trip to Maui a month before for the 4th of July.  Southwest had direct flights to Honolulu, Maui, and Kona from Sacramento so it was an easy flight for us to get there!  Although I went to the Big Island with my family back in 1997, Joy had not been there yet so I booked a nice trip out to relax on the Kona side and go on some adventures on the Hilo side of the Big Island of Hawaii!  Aloha!

    After we arrived on the Big Island, we got our Dodge Challenger muscle car rental and headed over to the Hilton Waikoloa Village Resort after a nice island style plate lunch near the airport.  I love the island plates with chicken, rice, and of course mac salad!  Once we arrived at the massive resort, the valet took the car, and we checked into the Palace Tower of the resort.  There were three main towers at the property, and one could take a tram or boat to get around the huge complex.  Although the coastline had no beach, the resort had a lagoon which had a beach area.  Since I am a Diamond guest, we got upgraded to a nice oceanview room with a balcony.  We also got a daily $36 dining credit too.  I decided to use points for this stay since I had over a million HHonors points, and the rate was around $700 or more per night so the points were well worth it for this redemption!  We had plenty of time to chill at the resort that first day.  I checked out one of the pool areas and got to go down the waterslide.  Joy got me the usual pina colada also as I swam around in the beautiful oblong pool with cool statues all around it.  For dinner, we went to Sansei, which is a great sushi restaurant in the Waikoloa Village.  Afterwards, we had a nightcap at the Kona Tap Room at our resort.

    The next morning, we explored the cool Asian art work at the resort before having breakfast at the outdoor Nui restaurant.  We were able to go see the dolphins play also at the resort.  I was able to snorkel in the lagoon and just chill on the chairs that were partially in the water.  Joy and I enjoyed another island style lunch at A-Boy's in the village before getting the best shaved ice on the island at OBISIC.  I loved the "Kimra" creation they had there which was Ube ice cream with shaved ice that had coconut syrup.  It was topped with haupia and mochi!  We had time to snorkel and kayak in the lagoon after lunch, and we saw a lot of sea turtles in the water!  That night, we went to a fine dining restaurant called Ulu at the Four Seasons Kona.  The food and ambiance was amazing!

    We headed to the Hilo side the next day via Waimea.  In Waimea, we saw rural Hawaii, and the clouds were passing by so low since we were up there in elevation.  We tried the delicious malasadas, which are like filled donuts.  On the Hilo side, we explored two water falls that day including Akaka Falls and Rainbow Falls before checking into the iconic Grand Naniloa Hotel in Hilo.  We got upgraded to an amazing one bedroom suite with a great view of Hilo Bay.  The suite even had a cool modern bath tub in the living room to take in the view!  I had a chance to swim in the rocky water front and hotel pool before working out as the typical rain storm rolled in.  After the storm passed, we enjoyed dinner at the WSW Steakhouse in Hilo.

    The next morning started off rainy as well.  We went to the Hawaii Volcanos National Park after breakfast at the hotel.  There was a great viewing spot for the eruption zone where we saw little red sparks which we think was lava!  As we drove around the park, we could see evidence of the many eruptions there with the old lava flows and volcanic craters!  After getting back to Hilo, we explored the downtown area including the Hilo Farmer's Market.  I got another coconut to drink.  That night, we went to a great Japanese restaurant called Miyo's.  We loved the sashimi!

    I craved one more shaved ice before leaving Hawaii the next day so we went to Kula Shaved Ice at the Farmer's Market.  After getting poke for lunch, we stopped at a local Starbucks to get their 100% Kona beans to bring home.  Another great Hawaii trip was in the books!  We loved it!  Aloha for now!