With all of the media coverage surrounding Kilauea’s current eruption, there’s been a ton of misinformation. So I want to come out and say that the Big Island is a safe place to visit. There’s no reason to cancel your vacation.
Kilauea’s current East Rift Zone eruption is garnering a ton of coverage around the world. There are many striking images of lava engulfing homes, ash clouds billowing from Halemaumau Crater, and more.
The Truth
Yes, Kilauea is erupting, and yes it’s causing a lot of damage. We haven’t seen this kind of eruption from the volcano in a long time, but it isn’t anything out of the ordinary. In fact, the eruption is affecting only a tiny portion of the island.
Given the distance of these areas from the eruption, you will not hear or see it if you visit any of these places. You most likely won’t see any ash either. What you may experience, though, is VOG, which is the volcanic equivalent of smog. It is composed of the same harmful gases officials are warning the public about, but the concentrations in areas away from the eruption are very low. At the levels found in other parts of the island, VOG will act as an irritant and will not be a health hazard. And while I hate VOG, as it makes me feel lethargic and dehydrated, it does make for amazingly vibrant sunsets.
Still a Lot of Fun to be Had
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park remains off-limits, which is unfortunate, as it is an amazing place to visit. However, there are still many things to do around the Big Island. For example, you could enjoy the beach, do a stargazing tour atop Mauna Kea, sample wines at Volcano Winery, go ziplining over a waterfall, experience the world’s best coffee, eat fantastic sweets, and more.
The Big Island is a Safe Place to Visit, Final Thoughts
If you’re planning a visit to the Big Island, please keep your plans. And if you’re on the fence about visiting the island, there’s no need to worry, do come. Honestly, all of the visitor cancellations are causing more damage to the island than the volcano. People are losing their jobs and businesses are floundering. The island needs visitors, and all the inaccurate negative press on the island is costing the people of Hawaii Island dearly. So despite what some outlets are reporting, the island is still entirely safe. And there are still many interesting, fun things to do on the island. Don’t believe me? Check out this excellent article by the SF Chronicle.
The prices for hotels in the Big Island have declined due to the volcanic activity making a trip to the island even more affordable, I live in Philadelphia and PHL to Kona was only 30k Alaskan Miles round trip so myself, wife and son are going for two weeks in July
Smart move, Allen! I’d like to ask, though, where are you staying? Thus far I’ve been looking at rates (out of curiosity) and they don’t seem to be much lower. Might be because I’m looking primarily at long weekends, but still.
Excellent article. We were on the Big island the first week of May and never felt unsafe. In fact, we experienced the 6.9 earthquake at the King Kamehameha Courtyard Hotel. It felt as though I was on a boat. We were also in the National Park on the Sunday and Monday prior to the beginning of the lava flow and saw very little. At this point, the only problem I envision would be wind blowing volcanic ash into the atmosphere around the airports at Hilo or Kona. We have plans to be back on the Big Island in October and assuming nothing changes drastically, we have no intention of altering our plans.
Thank you, gm1! And thank you for sharing your experience. While it’s difficult to say what will happen, the chance of ash affecting flights is very minimal. In fact, if this eruption ends up being just like a very similar eruption that took place in the same area in 1955, the eruption could end around July/August. Though that is no guarantee as we all know, volcanoes are predictably unpredictable.
In January, I stayed at Mauna Kea Beach Hotel (a Marriott Autograph property). I would recommend it, although it was overpriced. Maybe the drop in demand from the volcano could make it affordable again.
It’s a shame that Volcano National Park is closed. It’s one of the few budget-friendly things I found in Hawaii that were worth the time.
I’ve been wanting to stay there too, but you’re right, it does seem overpriced. And I don’t think the current situation is having any effect on the price, as prices for this week are still showing $550 and up per night!
Totally agree; the National Park is the best budget-friendly thing to do on the island and is the primary reason for me to return again. But, there are plenty of other things to do, they just may be a little more obscure. For example, taking tours of the octopus, seahorse, and abalone farms at NELHA by the airport are things on my list of things to do still.