Hawaii North Hilo Report

North Hilo is the southernmost extension of the Hamakua coastline as it rolls down Highway 19. North Hilo is a rural district of waterfalls, agriculture, horticulture, and various tourism activities. For many, being a resident of North Hilo allows them to experience the slow pace of old Hawaiʻi while having an easy commute to Hilo, the second largest city in the Hawaiian Islands, and the county seat of the Big Island.

There are popular areas to surf along the coastline of North Hilo. Kolekole Beach Park sits along a stream that opens to the ocean and is a hot spot for surfing and body-boarding. Close to the small plantation town of Honomu is Akaka Falls State Park, a beautiful attraction with a half-mile walking path through stunning rain forests leading up to the 420 ft. Akaka Falls. Hawaiʻi Tropical Botanical Gardens is a showcase for the flora of North Hilo and its self-guided trails feature over 2,000 species of flowers, tropical plants and, waterfalls.

Like the Hamakua coast and Hilo, the flavor of old Hawaiʻi remains in the North Hilo district. Ample rainfall, and lots of sunshine, has made North Hilo an agricultural powerhouse for hundreds of years, and home to a world-wide tropical plant and flower industry. Wave after wave of immigrants who came in support of the sugar industry left behind a very multi-cultural population. Residents of Hilo prefer the slower pace of the East side to that of metropolitan Kona.