Top 5 Things to Do in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

See Lava

Kilauea is currently on an on again, off again schedule, roughly every 3 weeks. Each eruption has been fast and furious, lasting somewhere between 6-12hrs.

The best places to view it are at Volcano House, Steam Vents overlook, or Keanakako’i Overlook. Don’t worry, it’s completely safe to watch.

If you’re lucky enough to be visiting the island during an eruption, you’ll want to drop everything and head to the park ASAP. 

💁‍♀️ Tab’s Trip Tip: Traffic and crowds into the park can get extremely high during an eruption, so pack your patience.

Walk Through Thurston Lava Tube

One of the top highlights in the park is the 500-year-old Thurston Lava Tube.

The paved loop trail is about half a mile total, leading you through lush ferns, bamboo, and tropical plants, with plenty of birds sounds serenading the way. 

Cross a small bridge into the cave entrance, where the path turns unpaved.

Inside, dim orange lights “illuminate” the way, though it takes a moment for your eyes to adjust and even then it’s still pretty dim. It always reminds me of walking through the Indiana Jones ride line at Disneyland, ifykyk.

💁‍♀️ Tab’s Trip Tip: Between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m., the lights are turned off. Bring a flashlight if you want to experience it in complete darkness.

The lava tube is the only unpaved part of the trail and there can be damp, muddy puddles inside. But it’s a short walk through and you’ll soon reach the stairs leading you back up into the daylight.

Warm Hands Over Steam Vents

The steam vents are a fascinating stop. 

Two fenced-off vents sit right next to the parking lot, where plumes of hot volcanic steam rise from rugged openings in the ground where you can literally warm your face and hands.

⚠️Watch out! It can get super hot!

Depending on how recently it’s rained, you might also see steam drifting up along the path toward the crater, in the grassy field across the road, and even from the crater’s cliff walls. 

The mist forms when rainwater seeps underground, is heated by the magma below, and escapes back into the air through natural vents.

Look at Pu’u Loa Petroglyphs

Take an easy 2-mile round trip hike across smooth lava mounds to a short boardwalk, where you can view a small section of the 23,000 petroglyphs preserved here.

Scattered petroglyphs are also seen along the trail, so watch your step! 

No one knows for sure what all the petroglyphs mean, but one theory suggests the circular, target-like carvings represent new life. When a baby was born, the mother would place the umbilical cord in the circle and if it disappeared by morning, it was a sign the child would live a prosperous life.

💁‍♀️ Tab’s Trip Tip: Go early in the morning or late in the afternoon. The lower sun makes the carvings easier to see, and with no shade along the trail, it’s much cooler than midday.