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Volcano Unveiled Tour Highlights

• Duration: 12-hours
• Rated: easy to moderate, ages 8 and above
• Max group size is 12
• Viewing of Kilauea by a professional, local guide
• Kilauea eruption is starting and stopping frequently. If seeing an erupting volcano is a must, check the status here: USGS Kilauea Volcano Update
• The tour will visit a large private lava tube known for its bright yellow and gold microbial mats living on the cave walls. This lava tube is only accessible to Hawaii Forest & Trail guests
• Leaves early in the morning. Your pick-up time varies based on your resort location
• On this in-depth park experience, your interpretive guide will illuminate the historical events that changed the landscape of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
• Enjoy 2-3 miles of hiking around the park’s dynamic terrain
• Enjoy a stop at the world-famous Rainbow Falls in Hilo

Click the Book Online button to find a time that works best for your group!

Volcano Unveiled Tour

An in-depth volcano experience on the Island of Hawaii is offered by Hawaii Forest & Trail. Your National Park Certified Guide will share a mix of natural and cultural history about the island’s formation, illuminating the stories behind the ever-changing landscape of the Big Island.

Erica and I find this tour to be well-priced as it includes lunch, dinner, an entrance to the park, and a guided tour on a very nice shuttle van. The price is hard to beat for an all-day tour with a max of 12 people.

This is an all-day trip as they pick you up on the west coast and take you to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, south of Hilo, on the east coast. Let the tour guide do the driving for you. Trips depart from Kona, with pickups in Waikoloa (Kohala Coast). The tour time is approx. 10-12 hours round trip.

The best part is walking the crater rim and exploring the private lava tube.

Erica and I are big fans of Hawaii Forest and Trail for their knowledgeable guides and selection of Hawaii’s best tours. Check out some of their other tours here:

• The Best Stargazing Tour on the Big Island
• Hidden Craters Hike: A Tour on the Big Island’s Hualalai Volcano
• The Best Big Island Waterfall Hike is the Kohala Waterfall Adventure Tour

FAQs: Volcano Unveiled Tour

What is included?

Snacks, beverages, deli-style lunch, dinner, National Park entrance fees.

Bring your own reusable water bottle.

They provide hiking gear too! Walking sticks, flashlights, and rain ponchos.

How much hiking do we do?

The tour hikes for 2-3 miles at a location determined by park conditions that day.

About Hawaii Forest and Trail Team

Try to find another tour company with better reviews than Hawaii Forest and Trail. Even their sister company, Kohala Zipline, knocks it out of the park with reviews and A+ experience. We trust them with your Island of Hawaii vacation. 

Rob Pacheco has a passion for the natural world of Hawaii. It is a passion that began almost as soon as he stepped off the plane here in 1990 and quickly realized that these islands contain diverse and unique ecosystems rivaling any place on earth.

Because of its isolation in the middle of the Pacific and its volcanic geology, Rob realized that Hawaii is a place unparalleled for studying evolutionary biology, extinction, endangered species, and conservation. It is a place where the fundamental lessons of creation and earth sciences could be seen, experienced, and understood.

At the same time Pacheco, who had worked as a naturalist on the mainland, concluded most residents and visitors were only seeing Hawaii’s beautiful scenery and had little knowledge of Hawaii’s natural history.

Pacheco decided to combine his passion with a vision: to share his passion for natural history with others and to help conserve Hawaii’s endangered environment by educating them about it.

It was a vision that fit well with the growing worldwide interest in eco-tourism. Soon thereafter, and with the help of his wife Cindy whom he had met in Kona, the idea for Hawaii Forest & Trail was born.

One of the integral ideas the Pachecos instituted was to establish partnerships with private landowners that would allow tours to places with wild and remote native ecosystems that had been previously inaccessible. Hawaii Forest & Trail is one of the few tour companies allowed access to private lands and controlled-access wildlife refuges.

Another important element Pacheco built into Hawaii Forest & Trail was the practice of having knowledgeable and qualified guides. In 1993, when Hawaii Forest & Trail began offering its first adventures, Pacheco was “the only guide” for every trip.

Since then he has built up a team of guides with strong academic backgrounds in biology, geology, Hawaiian culture and history, and extensive natural history field experience. It’s not enough for the guides to simply “know things”, they must also have a real passion for Hawaii’s natural world and enthusiasm for sharing it.

We are affiliate partners with Hawaii Forest and Trail which means we receive a small commission for each completed booking made through this site. This is done without any additional cost to you. You can read more about our affiliate policies here. Know that we only recommend tour operators that we know and trust. Your positive experience and your trust in us mean more than any affiliate commission. By booking tours through our website you help us to provide free information and videos to help you and other readers plan their perfect Hawaii vacation. Thank you so much for your support — you are amazing!