The Bicycle Adventure Club - Come Ride With Us!

Hawaii 2025 – Circumnavigating the Big Island

January 10th to January 22nd

Ride Director: Maria Nelson
Ride Co-Director: Patricia Wai
Ride Driver: Sue Bunten
Report by: Rose Hewig

There is no better way to experience the Big Island of Hawaii than from the seat of a bicycle. This tour was designed as a relaxing yet challenging tour. Most days offered two or more options in terms of riding distance and terrain.  The tour schedule provided ample “free” days to take part in other Island activities besides bike riding, such as snorkeling, kayaking, hiking, or swimming.

Our counter-clockwise tour of the Big Island started in Kailua-Kona, which is the starting and ending points of the Ironman World Championship triathlon. Our pre-tour and initial rides took us along the Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway – part of the Ironman bike leg – which provided scenic views of the beautiful blue Pacific Ocean and opportunities to visit beaches, coffee farms, salt farms, aquaculture farms, and State recreation areas.

Next, we traveled south to Keauhou Bay for two-night stay at the Outrigger Kona Resort and Spa. Here, we were given a number of optional cycling routes and other activities to choose from, including kayaking and manta ray night snorkeling tours.

Our next destination was Volcano, the location of the fascinating Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and home of one of the world’s most active volcanos, Kilauea. Fortunately for us, the Kilauea volcano happened to erupt during our stay there, which is a rare treat and extraordinary experience. Our two-night stay in Volcano allowed plenty of time to view the erupting volcano and tour the National Park.  Some members of our group even rode their bikes to the Park after dinner to see the erupting volcano in the dark of night.  

From Volcano, we rode to the city of Hilo, the Big Island’s largest city. Our route to Hilo provided opportunities to tour the Hilo Orchid Farm and the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut farm along the way. Other points of interest included the Pacific Tsunami Museum, Richardson Ocean Park, and the Wailuku River State Park, where Rainbow Falls resides, all of which were within biking distance of our hotel; plenty of things to see and do during our two-night stay in Hilo.

Next, we traveled along the northeast portion of the Big Island to Waimea, a lovely rolling route with ocean views. Toward the end of the ride, we enjoyed a gentle climb on a quiet back inland road with spectacular bucolic views. The restaurants in Waimea provided both upscale dining options as well as casual.

The next day we rode along the northern tip of the Big Island to Hapuna, which is on the Kohlala Coast, for a two-night stay at the luxurious Royal Hapuna Westin.  The ride began with a beautiful climb out of Waimea, followed by a fast 25-plus mile descent to the coastline. We enjoyed a coffee and pastry break in the town of Hawi at the half-way point.  Our second day in Hapuna offered options to take a scenic bike ride and visit the local beaches and sites on the Kohala Coast, and/or relax at the hotel’s poolside or beachfront, where you could swim, boogie board, body surf, or snorkel.

For our last ride of the tour, we rode south back to Kona to complete our circumnavigation of the Island. This amazing tour was capped of by a group dinner at the Island Breeze Luau, where we were treated with an amazing menu of Hawaiian cuisine and entertainment including Hawaiian music, storytelling, singing and dancing.

Fantastic weather, great riding, great food and many of activities to choose from made this tour the perfect winter getaway and kickoff of the cycling season.