Hilo
Hilo is the largest city on the island, and fourth largest in the state of Hawaii. It is the seat of Hawaii County, and the commercial and political center of the Big Island, with a population of approximately 47.000. It also boasts some of the largest orchid and anthurium gardens and macadamia nut orchards in the state, and is smack in the middle of one of the wettest parts of the island, averaging nearly 140 inches of rainfall annually. The city itself is situated at the head of Hilo Bay, fanning out south and westward, surrounded by lush, green hills. It is, quite characteristically, filled with contemporary as well as turn- of-the-century homes and buildings, as well as abundant public parks and recreation areas, plant nurseries and flower gardens. It also has a couple of museums of interest, and fresh produce and fish markets, a handful of beach parks quite close at hand, and best of all, a tropical rainforest zoo, the only one of its kind in the country.
Downtown Hilo
Downtown Hilo is a good place to begin your tour of Hilo. It lies largely between the Wailuku River - which runs along the west side of the city - and the Waiakea Peninsula at the northeastern end. Most of the city’s historic, landmark buildings are located on Waianuenue Avenue and Kalakaua Street, which also border the large, grassy Kalakaua Park. In the city center, too, on Haili Street, are the Lyman Museum and New England-style Mission House, the latter built in 1839. The museum is rich in Hawaiian artifacts and Chinese and Hawaiian art and pottery, some of it dating from 2 BC.
Around Hilo
A premier place of interest in greater Hilo, at the north end of Waianuenue Avenue, is the Wailuku River State Park, a 16-acre park lying largely along the 23-mile Wailuku River - the longest perennial river in Hawaii. In the park you can search you can search out the Rainbow Falls, which plunge approximately 80 feet into a large, natural pool.
Among other attractions in Hilo are the Hilo Bayfront Park that borders Hilo Bay; the mile-long Banyan Drive that loops around the Waiakea Peninsula (also fronting on Hilo Bay); the Queen Liiuokalani Gardens on Lihiwai Street, which are the largest Yedo-type gardens outside of Japan; the daily fish auction at the Suisan Fish Market at the corner of Banyan Drive and Lihiwai Street, which offers an authentic cultural experience; and the 150-acre Wailoa River State Park at the southern edge of Hilo Bay, created as tsunami buffer zone after the 1960 tsunami.
Also in the Hilo area are the Panaewa Rainforest Zoo, the only rainforest zoo in the U.S., and the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Visitor Center, surrounded by more than a million macadamia nut trees, where you can visit a macadamia nut factory and learn all about macadamia nuts.