Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, established in 1916, displays the results of 70 million years of volcanism, migration, and evolution - processes that thrust a bare land from the sea and clothed it with complex and unique ecosystems and a distinct human culture. The park encompasses 230,000 acres and ranges from sea level to the summit of the earth's most massive volcano, Mauna Loa at 13,677 feet. Kilauea, the world's most active volcano, offers scientists insights into the birth of the Hawaiian Islands and visitors views of dramatic volcanic landscapes. Over half the park is designated wilderness and provides unusual hiking and camping opportunities. In recognition of its outstanding natural values, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has been honored as an International Biosphere Reserve and a World Heritage Site.

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General Information

Visitation

About 2.5 million visitors a year; summer, Christmas and Easter are peak visitation periods.

Location

On the Island of Hawaii, 96 miles from Kailua-Kona and 30 miles from Hilo.

Address

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
P.O. Box 52
Hawaii National Park, HI 96718-0052

Telephone

Park headquarters/Visitor information, daily, 7:30 a.m. - 4 p.m., Hawaii Standard Time: (808) 985-6000

Fax (24 hours): (808) 967-8186

Eruption Information Message (24 hours): (808) 985-6000

Operating Hours & Seasons

The park is open 24 hours, all year. Kilauea Visitor Center is open daily 7:45 a.m. - 5 p.m. Jaggar Museum is open daily 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Climate & Recommended Clothing

The park has distinct climate zones so visitors should be prepared for a wide range of weather conditions. Weather at Kilauea's summit (4,000 feet elevation) fluctuates daily and can be rainy and chilly any time of the year. The coastal plain at the end of Chain of Craters Road is often hot, dry, and windy. Bring rain gear, light sweaters and windbreakers, sturdy shoes, hats, water bottles, sunglasses and high UV factor sunscreen. For weather forecasts call (808) 935-8555.

Directions

From Hilo: 30 miles southwest on Highway 11; from Kailua-Kona: 96 miles southeast on Highway 11, or 125 miles through Waimea and Hilo via highways 19 and 11.

Transportation

Hilo and Kona Airports are served by inter-island carriers. Some major airlines have direct flights to Kona from the continental United States. Rental cars may be reserved at both airports. At various locations the public bus (Hele-on at (808) 935-8241), commercial tour buses, taxis, motorcycles, and bicycles are available. No rental vehicles or bicycles may be obtained in the park.

Fees, Costs & Rates

Entrance to the park is $10 per vehicle for a seven-day permit; $5 for pedestrians or bicyclists. Fees for those arriving by commercial bus or tour vary by passenger capacity. Persons holding a Golden Age Passport or Golden Eagle Passport are admitted free of charge.

Golden Eagle Passport

The Golden Eagle Passport is an entrance pass to any national park, monument, historical site, recreation area, and national wildlife refuge that charges an entrance fee. It is a great convenience for those who plan on visiting several different areas that charge special fees. It is valid for one year from the purchase date. A Golden Eagle Passport may be purchased for $50 at any National Park Service entrance fee area or by mail. To order by mail, send check or money order (no cash, please) to:

National Park Service
1100 Ohio Drive, SW
Room 138
Washington, DC 20242
Attention: Golden Eagle Passport

Where entry is by private vehicle, the Golden Eagle Passport will admit the passholder as well as any passengers. Where entry by private vehicle is not possible, the pass will admit the passholder, spouse, children and parents.

The Golden Eagle Passport will not reduce use fees, such as those for camping, swimming, parking, boat launching, or cave tours. It covers entrance fees only.

Golden Age Passport

The Golden Age Passport is a lifetime entrance pass for those United States residents 62 years or older. These may be purchased at any National Park Service entrance fee area for a one-time processing fee of $10. The Golden Age Passport cannot be purchased by mail or telephone. Proof of age and citizenship or permanent residence must be shown at the time of purchase.

The Golden Age Passport will admit the passholder and any passengers in a private vehicle. When entrance is not via private vehicle, the pass will admit the passholder as well as children, spouse, and parents.

The Golden Age Pass grants a 50% discount to the holder on any federal use fees charged for things such as camping, swimming, parking, boat launching, or tours. It does not, however, reduce the price of special recreation permit fees or fees for concessions.

Golden Access Passport

The Golden Access Passport is a free entrance pass to any national park, monument, historic site, recreation area, and national wildlife refuge for those who are blind or permanently disabled. The Golden Access passport may be obtained at any National Park Service entrance fee area. Proof of a medically determined disability and eligibility for receiving benefits under federal law is necessary at purchase.

The Golden Access Passport will admit the passholder and any passengers in a private vehicle. Where entrance is not by vehicle, the pass will admit the passholder, spouse, children and parents.

The Golden Access Passport also provides a 50% discount on any federal use fees charged for services and facilities. It does not cover special recreation permit fees or fees charged for concessions.

All passes described above are non-transferable.

Facilities & Opportunities

Visitor Center & Exhibits

Kilauea Visitor Center, located just inside the park entrance, offers visitor information and exhibits. Films and videos are shown in the auditorium throughout the day.

Thomas A. Jaggar Museum, located about 3 miles from the park entrance, offers earth science displays and features murals depicting Hawaiian culture. An adjacent overlook offers a panoramic view of Kilauea Caldera and Mauna Loa.

Hawaii Natural History Association operates bookstores at both locations with an extensive selection of books, maps, videotapes, slides, and other educational items.

Trails & Roads

Hike the park trails to experience the park's essence and gain an understanding of the natural and cultural history of Kilauea and Mauna Loa volcanoes. Day hikes as well as backcountry trips of several days duration are available.

Popular day hikes include: Halema`uma`u Overlook, a 10-minute walk to the crater's edge; Devastation Trail, a 30-minute walk through the cinder outfall of the 1959 Kilauea Iki eruption; Thurston Lava Tube, a 20-minute walk through a tree-fern forest and prehistoric lava tube; Kilauea Iki, a two-hour hike along a 4-mile loop descending 400 feet through native forest into a crater and across lava flows still steaming from the 1959 Kilauea Iki eruption; Pu`u Huluhulu, a two-hour hike of 3 miles over 1973-74 lava flows to the top of a 150-foot prehistoric cinder cone; and Kipuka Puaulu, a one-hour, one-mile loop trail through an "island" of forest rich with rare plants.

Other Concessions & NPS-Managed Visitor Facilities and Opportunities

Volcano House Hotel, across from the Kilauea Visitor Center on the caldera rim, provides lodging, including rustic cabin rental, gift shops, restaurant, and snack bar. Call (808) 967- 7321.

Volcano Art Center features works by local artists and hand-crafted articles at a gallery adjacent to the Kilauea Visitor Center and provides programs that interpret the park through the arts. Call (808) 967-7565.

Kilauea Military Camp, located one mile from the park entrance, extends rooms, meals and other amenities to active duty and retired military personnel and civilian employees of the Department of Defense. Call (808) 967-7315).

Nearby Volcano Village has general stores, gas stations, restaurants and bed & breakfast lodging.

Recommended Activities & Park Use

Refer to the parkwide map and Kilauea Summit map for orientation to park features.

Scenic Drives

Explore the summit of Kilauea Volcano via Crater Rim Drive, an 11-mile loop road that encircles the summit caldera, passes through the Ka`u Desert and tropical rainforest and provides access to well-marked scenic stops and short walks. Allow one to three hours, depending on how often you stop.

If you have three to four hours, you may also explore the East Rift and coastal area via Chain of Craters Road. This road descends 3,700 feet in 20 miles and ends where a 1995 lava flow crosses the road. Depending on changing volcanic activity, there may be opportunities for viewing active lava flows. No food or fuel is available along the Chain of Craters Road.

Interpretive Activities

Rangers provide an array of scheduled walks and talks to interpret the park's natural and cultural resources. Interpretive program schedules are posted daily in the Kilauea Visitor Center. Educational programs for school groups are provided throughout the year on a reservation basis.

Handicap Accessibility

The Kilauea Visitor Center, Jaggar Museum, Volcano House Hotel, and Volcano Art Center Gallery are wheelchair accessible. Pullouts along Crater Rim Drive and Chain of Craters Road afford panoramic views of the park. For information on accessible pathways, and other facilities and programs, inquire at the visitor center.

Backpacking

Overnight backcountry camping permits are required. Apply at the Kilauea Visitor Center no earlier than the day preceding your hike for these free permits. Hikers on the summit trail to 13,677 foot Mauna Loa can encounter high winds and snow at any time of the year. Backpackers to Mauna Loa should be adequately equipped, experienced in backcountry/high altitude trekking, and physically fit.

Backpackers to coastal sites should take precautions against heat exhaustion.

Basic Visit Recommendations

The park is situated on two active volcanoes. There are many hidden hazards for the unwary and those unfamiliar with volcanic environments. Wear adequate clothing and sturdy shoes; stay on designated trails and do not enter closed areas or lava tubes (except Thurston Lava Tube); carry and consume water and use precautions against excessive sun exposure. Volcanic fumes are hazardous to your health and can be life-threatening. Visitors with heart or breathing problems, infants, young children and pregnant women are especially at risk and should avoid stopping at Sulphur Banks, Halema`uma`u Crater and other areas where fumes are present.

Special Events & Programs

After Dark in the park is a series of evening presentations generally offered two or three times per month. The free educational programs on biological and geological subjects and Hawaiian cultural and historical topics are held in the Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium. The annual cultural festival celebrates Hawaii's native cultural heritage by encouraging visitor hands-on participation in traditional arts and crafts, music and games.

Island of Hawaii Visitor Attractions

Seaside county parks along the south coast and in Hilo and Kona offer swimming, snorkeling, and surfboarding. The Saddle Road, Route 200, and Mauna Kea summit, 13,796 feet, are accessible to four-wheel drive vehicles, which are available through rental agencies. Self-guided access into Kaumana Lava Tube is possible at Mile 4 of the Saddle Road above Hilo. Golf courses are located in Hilo (municipal), Kona, and adjacent to the park. Lyman Museum in Hilo features cultural and historical exhibits.

Other national park areas in Hawaii include:

Pu`uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park at Honaunau on the Island of Hawaii.
Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park near Kailua-Kona on the Island of Hawaii.
Pu`ukohola Heiau National Historic Site at Kawaihae on the Island of Hawaii.
Haleakala National Park on Maui.
USS Arizona Memorial on O`ahu.

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History

The Arrival of Life

Winds, ocean currents and birds carried life to these islands. Where barren flows once existed, forests now grow. Over many millennia, the plants, birds, insects, spiders, snails that made their way here adapted to their new volcanic home. It has been estimated that a successful immigrant became established here only once every 30,000 to 50,000 years. On an island like Hawaii, where eruptions continue to dramatically change the landscape, older flows and forests are buried and reburied by lava flows and, occasionally, by explosive debris. In 1790, a series of eruptions at the summit of Kiluea devastated the entire region surrounding the caldera. The rich forest that exists today has grown back since that time.

Kiluea Caldera

The summit of Kiluea Volcano is crowned by a caldera, or basin-shaped depression. A caldera is formed when the magma reservoir inside the mountain shrinks, leaving the surface unsupported and the top of the mountain caves in. The caldera may, during the course of hundreds of years, fill up, overflow, and then collapse again, as the magma reservoir swells and shrinks. Kilauea Caldera is about 3 miles across and 400 feet deep.

Cultural History

Legend tells that the islands are the children of various creative forces of nature. Each island was inhabited by spirits who took their forms from nature. When the first people arrived, they became aware of a deity who lived at Kilauea. The god was called 'Ail'au, or forest eater. His powers were said to be limited to Kilauea, as the lands of Puna and Kau were forested and rivers flowed through them.

The time of quiet eruptions did not last long. Pele, a daughter of Sky and Earth, came to Hawaii from her distant homeland in Kahiki. She first landed on Nihoa, a small island north of the group. She found it unsuitable for her family and her fires, so she moved southward. Each subsequent island was unsuitable, but then Pele reached the island of Hawaii. She landed at Keahialaka in the district of Puna. Parts of the East Rift Zone of Kilauea are said to have been formed as she moved along the land toward the summit of Kilauea.

Here she was pleased and prepared a home for herself and her family. 'Ailaau eventually fled in fear of Pele. The surrounding lands changed as Pele moved her molten body. The people of Hawaii learned to fear and respect the goddess. She was called ka wahine'ai honua, the woman who devours earth.

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Reservation Information

Camping Reservations

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has two drive-in campgrounds: Namakani Paio, located off Highway 11, and Kipuka Nene, along Hilina Pali Road. Camping is on a first-come, first-served basis; no fees are charged. Stays are limited to seven days per campground per year. There is no wood for fireplaces.

Permits

Backcountry camping is by permit only. You must register at the Kilauea Visitor Center, 7:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. daily, prior to departure.

Entrance Fees

Private non-commercial vehicle: $10 for a seven day pass.

Individual Entry of bike or foot: $5 for a seven day pass.

No reservations are needed to enter Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

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