Waterfall Hopping in Hilo Hawai’i

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Hello from Hilo, Hawai’i!  Hilo is known for it’s amazing waterfalls, it’s tropical rain forest, and for it’s erupting volcano! Trenton and I landed on the south side of the Big Island and it turns out that my aunt and uncle were vacationing there at the same time, so I got to spend some time with my cousins. 🙂

Once we landed, we got our car and headed over to my Aunt Kathy’s hotel for dinner. They were staying at the Double Tree Hilton right on the water and it was sooo gorgeous!! We had dinner at the hotel restaurant and the views were incredible! The coast in Hilo is so unique because it’s made of lava rock, so we watched the water crash against the shore line and it looked so intense! For dinner, I had this really good tuna fish with pineapple on top and wow it was delicious- I had no idea tuna fish grew in salt water I always thought it was like a lake water fish but this definitely didn’t taste like the tuna fish I eat out of a can. lol.

Anyways, so after dinner we went to Volcano to check into our Airbnb, and I just couldn’t sleep because I was so excited to be in Hawaii! (and cause of jet lag). So the next morning I went for a run then we met up with my family at Rainbow Falls (the first waterfall pics). It was super pretty and we went on this little hiking trail to get to the top of the falls, and you can see us as little specks in the picture! My cousin’s Gabriella and Michael have zero fear of heights! They were just leading the way over the little tide pools above the falls and had no problem chilling on rocks at the egde of the cliff. #yolo.

Gabriella has always been my little buddy, I even had her as junior bridesmaid in my wedding! In years past we used to always go to the beach for a week every summer and we always had blast! One time when I was a teenager and she was like 5, we walked like 25 blocks to the promenade and 25 blocks back to our beach house and she had blisters all over her feet and I felt so bad and I had no phone to call for a ride to pick us up and no money to buy us drinks (what was I thinking?!) but she didn’t complain one bit the whole time even though she definitely had the right to- haha.  And since then she’s always been my little buddy even though she’s not so little anymore!

After exploring Rainbow Falls we went to Akaka Falls! Akaka Falls is 442 feet tall- over twice the height of Niagara Falls! The entire park is so lush and green and beautiful, and there’s all sorts of flowers, fruit, and mini waterfalls to gawk at as you walk down to the main falls. I’m so glad my Aunt Kathy took us there because that wasn’t originally on my itinerary but it was so worth it!

We then went to downtown Hilo for lunch and got some burgers (yes, I ate a cheeseburger, Hawaii is known for their burgers so I had to have at least one while I was there!) and then we said our goodbyes and Trenton and I left to go to our next excursion.

I will be posting a full itinerary of everything we did on our Big Island trip, so stay tuned! But for now, check out the article I wrote for Thought Catalog called 10 Reasons You Need to Drop Everything and Visit the Island of Hawi’i This Summer. That’s the article I was sent to Hawaii to write!

Have you ever seen a waterfall? Have you ever been to Hawaii? If so, which island? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

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Hey ya'll! I'm Courtney, and I'm a Florida-born gal learning to live in East Asia. You can find travel tips, fashion inspo, and my daily adventures right here on my blog. My hope is that this blog will help inspire you to live your best life! Make sure to check out my book, The Smart Girl's Guide to Surviving Her Twenties, for more tips on how to survive, and thrive, throughout the most transformative decade of your life.

87 thoughts on “Waterfall Hopping in Hilo Hawai’i”

  5. Great post! Josh and I went to Hawai’i exactly this week last year for our 10 year anniversary! It was a cruise that included most of the major islands (including Hilo & Kona). I couldn’t believe Hawai’i was as gorgeous as it was AND it’s one of OUR STATES! We had the time of our life. I can’t wait to go back. Thanks for the post!

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    1. I remember seeing your pictures from your cruise to Hawaii last year! You guys always go on the coolest vacations! I’d love to go back one day and do the cruise so I could see more of the other islands! Thanks for reading Courtney!!

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  31. Wow, that’s awesome that you were sent to Hawaii just to write that article! I also read in your “About Me” that you’ve got a book being published?! Wow! Can’t wait til it comes out! Congrats on everything! (I’ve just found your blog today so I know I’m probably late to all of your news.) Your life seems like a dream.

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  34. Beautiful photos ! I just love Hawaii. I was recently there and saw some beautiful waterfalls in Kauai. I didn’t get a chance to go to Hilo, I really need to add it to my bucket list 🙂

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  43. Looks like you had lots of fun. This is great. Love Hawaii. I have beautiful memories from my last trip, too long ago I am afraid. On my way to see the other article! -Dominique

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