If you ask a couple of gardeners, one of the best things about visiting the Big Island of Hawai’i is a chance to see amazing tropical flowers and plants you’ll rarely see anywhere else.
We spent the first half of this week on the Hilo side of the Big island (the east/northeast), and saw incredible blooms at Pana’ewa Zoo & Botanical Garden (famous for its white Bengal tiger, Namaste); Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park; the Hawai’i Tropical Botanical Garden (as advertised, “A Garden Valley on the Ocean”); Akaka Falls; at the farmers market in downtown Hilo; along the side of spectacular Highways 11 and 19, etc.
Rich volcanic soil, extremely regular (and sometimes horizontal) rains, and an equal dose of strong sunshine make the Hilo side of Hawai’i a perfect storm for growing nearly everything to its full potential. Plants and trees here tower over the land, forests are thicker, jungle vines stronger and flowers glow more brightly than anywhere else we’ve ever been. It’s a little like “Steroid Island”…but with fewer lawsuits.
We only know what about half of the flowers on Hawai’i are actually called, but knowing their names isn’t the real joy of discovering them. Just discovering them has been enough for us.
Just beautiful. It’s like Hawaii is calling to me…
Beautiful! My husband and I were just on the Big Island last month, and I was constantly blown away by the rainbow of colors at all the resorts…my personal favorite was the Fairmont Orchid. With a name like that, you’d pretty much expect amazing grounds, wouldn’t you?
Hooray for the Big Island! We also stayed at the Fairmont Orchid (on the western/Kona side) back in ’06 and I don’t know what was better — the amazing flowers everywhere or snorkeling beside sea turtles.
But then again, why choose?
New daily nonstop flights on United/Continental start June 9 from LAX to ITO (Hilo)so it’ll be easier than ever to discover the beautiful charms of Hilo, and the rest of Hawaii, the Big Island. You could fly into Hilo and out of Kona, saving loads of driving time, while taking in five national parks (including Hawaii Volcanoes National Park), and so much more!