Grand Princess Roundtrip San Pedro 16-Night to Hawaii
March 3, 2025, Hilo, Big Island
Our first port of call after five sea days in a row!
It was a little nerve wrecking coming to Hilo this morning. The information online was a little confusing regarding rental cars. Some saying there are free shuttles to the airport for people renting from Budget or Avis, but some said there weren't so we've got to find out as soon as possible.
We went off the ship right when they announced that the gangway was opened but the line was quite long already. By the time we got off we hurriedly walked through the cruise terminal to the front entrance and was told the first shuttle was gone already. Well, at least shuttles were available! As we were waiting, people started to gather, and some did not even pay attention to the line that was forming already and tried to cut in, causing some commotion. We were first in line but then got pushed back because of people cutting right in front of us. Oh well, as long as we can get on the bus, we'll deal with it. The guy said they'll only let the driver get on so we had our family members walked out to the port gate, across the street and wait for us to come back at the grocery store there.
About 10 minutes later, the van came back and we were able to get on, barely. People just have no shame fighting to get on.
Walking out through the terminal to the street.
Most Princess excursions gathered here.
They had maps and information here.
When we got to the Hilo Airport, there was already a line of people forming in front of the Budget counter. There was only one person working there so the line was going very slow and there must be about 10 groups of people before us.
Patiently waiting in line.
Hilo Airport, as we were waiting in line.
After about an hour of so, we finally got our rental car for the day.
We booked this through Costco Travel.
A SUV good for the five of us.
We then drove back to the port and picked up our family members from the grocery store across from the port gate. They had been waiting for two hours by now. Then we were on our way to start our day.
Fortunately, the road condition was good, no traffic and it took us about 50 minutes to get to the Volcanoes National Park, which was our main goal for the day. We have been here before but not my brother and SIL.
Volcanoes National Park
With the limited time we had, we really needed to watch where we were going and how much time we should spend at each site. We have the Lifetime National Park Pass with us, so it didn't take long to enter the park.
First stop was the Steam Vent, which was closest to the park entrance. Seemed like the steam was kind of weak on this day.
Steam Vent
Can barely see the steam.
Then it was the Kilauea Lookout, which is the main viewing point of the volcanoes. We had to walk for a few minutes to get there but it was flat easy walk.
Then, we walked further up to another overlook for better views. Not much difference.
After the volcanoes viewing, we drove south to the Thurston Lava Tube. We were fortunate to have found parking. This area is very busy with not too many parking spaces. So, my suggestion is get here as early as possible. Maybe start your day here instead, then work your way back up to the lookouts.
I did not take pictures of the Lava Tube because I did not go inside. I don't like caves and enclosed places. We have some clips on the video though.
As we finished seeing the Lava Tube, we had problems turning around because there's no place for the cars to make a turn back to the park entrance. We had to drive south until we found a spot where we were able to make a safe turnaround. Then we got out of the National Park and on our way to Black Sand Beach.
Punaluu Black Sand Beach
This is supposed to be one of the beaches that visitors can find sea turtles and that was what son wanted to see. It's about a 20-minute drive from Volcanoes National Park. We made the mistake of turning to the first turn off on the left to the beach which did not have many parking spaces. We later found the huge parking lot at the second turnoff, much easier and more spacious.
Huge parking lot with restrooms.
Beautiful beach with lava rocks.
Here!
We only saw two turtles that day.
Still a good visit. We saw many more at our third port in Kuai.
When it was time to leave the beach, we were more than a little worried because it was getting late and we still need to drive back to the airport to return the rental car. Most important was that all aboard time was 4:30 and it's getting closer every minute. So far, we haven't had any lunch yet, so we had a quick stop at Foodland in town and bought some poke to last us until dinner.
After dropping our family back at the cruise port (we were able to drive into the cruise terminal after they checked our IDs and Medallions), husband and I quickly drove back to the airport to Budget. We were told that the last shuttle to port left already, BUT, the driver may come back for another run. So we waited at the shuttle stop with a few other renters hoping for the best. Fortunately, the driver came back and took us back to the port and we were back on the ship with 10 minutes to spare. Whew! What a nerve wrecking day!
Returned the rental car at the airport.
A good dinner was in order after this dramatic day in port!
Tomorrow we will be in Honolulu for a long port day.
For video of this day, please click here.
"Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife."
Proverbs 17:1
