Grand Naniloa Hotel Hilo - a DoubleTree by Hilton

Contrary to its name, this coffee farm is not located in Hilo, but in Mountain View, a town about a half hour drive south of Hilo. It is on the way to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, so if you plan to go there or are coming from there, this coffee farm is worth a visit. They grow their coffees right here on their 24-acre farm. There is a viewing area where you can watch them roast and package their coffees. Tours and coffee samples are being offered as well. There is a small coffee shop where you can purchase coffee by the cup or get an entire package to take home. They also sell other gift items, including chocolates, soaps, teas and more. And besides coffee, they also offer smoothies, milk shakes, ice cream and breakfast and lunch foods. You can eat it inside or outside on their lanai.

The Hilo Farmers Market is a year-round open-air market that features over 200 vendors selling their wares, which range from fresh produce, arts, and crafts, and tropical flowers to homemade food, certified organic produce, souvenirs, and gifts. Local farmers and crafters come together at the corner of Mamo Street and Kamehameha Avenue in downtown Hilo to showcase their products in this famous market, which is open every day of the week throughout the year. The market is also home to several restaurants and cafés and hosts live music and other entertainment throughout the week.

For over thirty years the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Corporation has brought you delicious macadamia nuts roasted to golden perfection. Come visit the factory, enjoy free samples and shop for a delightful array of island treats and gifts including the exclusive selection of Mauna Loa products found nowhere else. Enjoy a 3-mile drive through macadamia nut orchards as you approach our Visitor Center. View our nut & chocolate processing plant where we husk the nut and carefully dry it to exact moisture specifications. Watch as we create a delicious array of macadamia nut products that are packaged right there at the plant. Delight in chocolate demonstrations where Mauna Loa expert’s hand-dip tasty macadamia nut shortbread cookies into pure rich milk chocolate and see first-hand why at Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Corp. quality and taste are everything!

In 1933, the Hilo Parks commission began lining an entire drive with banyan trees. Banyan Drive is composed of a canopy of banyan trees outlining the Waiakea Peninsula. Along the drive, most will have plaques noting which celebrity planted the tree and when. Banyan Tree Drive is within walking distance to Liliuokalani Gardens and Coconut Island. Many trees are named for those who planted them including Amelia Earhart, King George V, Babe Ruth, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Richard Nixon. You can easily walk, bike or jog to view the beauty of the banyan trees.

Hilo is the orchid capital of the world, and a showcase of this is located on the road between Hilo and Volcano: The Akatsuka Orchid Gardens. This is a good place to pull over on a rainy day for a stop to admire the many beautiful tropical orchids as part of an organized or self-guided tour. You can see all the orchids you want as part of their ‘Orchid Maze’ experience. This self-guided and free tour lets you explore the 8,000 square foot showroom (with 500+ orchids on display) at your own pace. In the maze you can find educational displays that show the orchid growth stages as well as interactive video stations with helpful tips and growing instructions.

Established in 1977, Big Island Candies is the oldest, biggest and probably best-known sweets shop on the island, located in Hilo. The most popular items are their chocolate-dipped shortbread cookies and chocolate-covered macadamia nuts. Seasonal offerings such as the Mika Mints, truffles and crunch bars are also among the favorites. There’s also an assortment of brownies, each of them given a distinct Hawaiian twist: coconut, peanut butter, and not surprisingly, macadamia nut. The recipes are of course a well-guarded secret, but workers will gladly give you a tour of the factory. Here you will see how each ingredient is picked, each nut carefully selected and each finished product wrapped in the signature BIC packaging. You’ll even get free samples of their shortbreads and the famous Kona coffee, one of the most expensive coffees in the world. The store is a tourist mecca, so it can be quite crowded at times because many local bus tour companies stop here on the way to other island attractions.

Mehana Brewing Company produces authentic Hawaiian beers and brews on tap and by the bottle. Based in what was once a soda pop facility in the 1920s known as Hilo Soda Works, Mehana Brewing Company began brewing beer in the 1990s in partnership with Hawaii Nui and still maintains a balance between the old and new recipes that have used for decades. The brewery produces a range of beers, including Mauna Kea Pale Ale, Volcano Red Ale, Humpback Island Lager, Hawaiian Crow Porter, and Tsunami IPA. Mehana Brewing Company has a tasting room, open Monday through Saturday, where guests can taste some of the brewery’s best beers, along with a gift shop that sells a variety of beer-related merchandise, souvenirs, and gifts.

The King Kamehameha Statue stands proudly near downtown Hilo in the Wailoa River State Park. It is one of four statues of King Kamehameha I. The other three are located in Kohala on the Big Island of Hawaii, in downtown Honolulu on the island of Oahu, and in Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C. King Kamehameha I, also known as Kamehameha the Great, who was born 1758 or 1737 or 1738 (there is some debate as to the precise year of his birth) and who died in 1819, was one of the most beloved of Hawaii's heroes. Kamehameha I was the one who conquered the Hawaiian Islands, unified them and established the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810. Even during times of intense Western influence, his government managed to maintain peace and the traditional values. He developed alliances with the major Pacific colonial powers and by doing so preserved Hawaii's independence.