Kulanaokuaiki

• No reservations are taken. First come first served. Fees may be paid at the campground's self-registration station.
• An open, sprawling primitive campground on a lava field with sparse vegetation and small trees.

Nāmakanipaio

• Campgrounds are first come, first served. No reservations. Nāmakanipaio Campground is operated by Hawai'i Volcanoes Lodge Company. Please visit http://www.hawaiivolcanohouse.com or call (844)-569-8849 for more information.
• A campground in an open grassy area with grills and spots for tents. Adjacent to the camping area is a wooden building with restrooms, and beyond it a group of wooden camper cabins.

Alanui Kahiko

At the base of the lava-draped Hōlei Pali, see a remnant of the old Chain of Craters Road, which was reclaimed by Pele in 1972.

• A road-side pullout at the base of tall, lava-draped cliffs, with a pieces of a lava-covered road visible a short distance away.

Devastation Trail

The Devastation Trail meanders gently through a landscaped covered in cinders from the 1959 eruption of Kīlauea Iki

• A paved path through an area covered in rust-colored cinders and sparse vegetation

Eruption Viewing from Kīlauea Overlook (Kapalikapuokamohoaliʻi)

Kīlauea Overlook offers unobstructed views of the bottom of the Halemaʻumaʻu crater during an eruption. Located 2.5 miles (7 minutes) from the entrance station. Family-friendly location with great views. A short 0.4 miles walk from the overlook at Uēkahuna.

• Parking lot area of 36 stalls with vault toilet at the entrance of the parking area. Picnic area located closer towards Crater Rim Drive West. Overlook straight ahead with options to walk on Crater Rim Trail to the left and right.

Eruption Viewing from Kūpinaʻi Pali

Escape the crowds and experience the eruption in solitude. This vantage point offers stunning wide-angle views of the caldera, being the furthest overlook from the eruption. Located at the end of Crater Rim Drive West, a 0.3 miles (2 minute) drive from the entrance station. Parking available near the closed Kīlauea Visitor Center. Hike 0.5 miles (20 minutes) towards Volcano House hotel and southeast on Crater Rim Trail.

• Crater Rim Trail goes to the left and right of the overlook. The overlook provides wide angle views of Kīlauea caldera 400 feet below. The road behind the overlook was a road for vehicles that was destroyed by an earthquake in 1983. Trees and shrubs are growing from the road.

Eruption Viewing from Uēkahuna

The overlook at Uēkahuna offers great views into Halemaʻumaʻu crater and surrounding areas from the summit of Kīlauea volcano. Located at the end of Crater Rim Drive West, a 2.8 mile (7 minute) drive from the entrance station. Family-friendly location with ranger's on-site for information. More available parking compared to other locations.

• As you enter the Uēkahuna parking area, you'll notice a lot with 73 spaces. Straight ahead, you'll find the restrooms and the overlook, where you can enjoy a great view of the crater. To the left and right, there are trailheads that lead to the Crater Rim Trail, offering nice views of the crater as you walk. The area is easy to navigate with smooth paths and clear signs.

Eruption Viewing from Wahinekapu

Experience the heat from nearby steam vents as you take in the breathtaking views of the eruption, with unobstructed, panoramic views of the entire cinder cone. Located on Crater Rim Drive West, 1 mile (4 minutes) from entrance station. A popular, but congested spot due to being the first overlook you encounter upon entering the park.

• Overlook with access to Crater Rim Trail to the right and left. The area has steam emitting from the bluff with views of the caldera 400 feet below.

Eruption Viewing near Keanakākoʻi Overlook

Eruption viewing from the overlooks near Keanakākoʻi offers close-up views but requires planning. Parking is extremely limited between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m., so it's best to visit outside these hours. Have a Plan B if parking is full. The site requires a 2-mile round-trip hike (about 1 hour) from Devastation parking area. Additional parking at Puʻupuaʻi Overlook an additional 0.5 miles.

• Parking area with 58 stalls. The end of the parking lot area has trailheads to Byron Ledge Trail and Devastation Trail. At the entrance of the parking lot area is a pathway to Old Crater Rim Drive Trail. Take Old Crater Rim Drive Trail 1 mile (30 minutes) to the eruption viewing area.

Footprints Shelter

See exhibits and a shelter preserving footprints left by Native Hawaiians long ago

• A brick shelter containing exhibits and a glass case covering earth imprinted with the marks of human footprints.

Forested Pit Crater

A steep pit crater that has harbored and protected treasured native species from outside threats.

• A steep pit crater filled with Hawaiian trees, ferns, and plants. The crater is surrounded by rolling green grass and ʻōhiʻa forest.

Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park Entrance Station

The entrance station at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park is an essential starting point for any park visit and is where you are required to purchase an entrance pass or present an existing pass to gain access to the park.

• An entrance station at the national park.

Haʻakulamanu (Sulphur Banks)

See where volcanic gases deposited colorful sulfur crystals and other minerals along this paved trail and boardwalk.

• Fumes rise from the earth, scorching vegetation and depositing crystals of white, yellow, orange, and red on nearby rocks

Hilina Pali Overlook

This CCC-era stone shelter sits on the southern flank of Kīlauea with dramatic, sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean and coast below.

• A stone shelter located on the Hilina Pali overlooking the pacific ocean

Hōlei Sea Arch

An arch of lava rock extending from steep cliffs into the Pacific Ocean.

• A tall, black rock arch extending from vertical sea cliffs into the pounding waves of the ocean.

Kamakapaʻa

A small cinder cone surrounded by rolling, grassy meadows.

• A small cinder cone surrounded by rolling, grassy meadows and scattered trees

Kaʻauea

Kaʻauea is a place on the northern rim of Kīlauea, referenced in Hawaiian chants and oral histories going back hundreds of years.Today it is home to a kahua hula platform and a newly constructed hale, a traditional-style Hawaiian house.

• A traditional thatched Hawaiian hale, located a short distance from an elevated hula platform raised from the ground on slabs of black lava rock

Kealakomo Overlook

A scenic overlook above a vast lava plain with views toward the Pacific Ocean

• Wooden ramp and scenic overlook above lava fields on a cliff looking toward the coastline and ocean.

Keanakākoʻi Crater

Along a section of Old Crater Rim Drive, Keanakākoʻi is a pit crater that has been witness to dramatic geologic events over the centuries.

• A pit crater surrounded by cinders and small trees, along a paved road and across the road from the large caldera of Kīlauea volcano.

Kona Trail

Relics of Kahuku’s ranching era, pasture land and the 1887 lava flow define this trek.

• ROD Quarantine gate sits in the middle of road. Trailhead to upper paddocks of Kahuku.

Kīlauea Iki Overlook

The Kīlauea Iki Overlook peers into the volcanic crater that hosted the jawdropping lava fountains and lava lake in 1959.

• A volcanic crater with a large cinder cone on the left-hand side and a large volcano beyond.

Kīlauea Overlook

Kīlauea Overlook provides the most dramatic views of Kīlauea caldera and Halemaʻumaʻu crater

• A large volcanic caldera with a deep, collapsed crater near the center

Kīpukapuaulu

An "island within an island", this kīpuka is home to treasured and endangered native species and features a short hiking trail.

• A narrow dirt path through dense Hawaiian forest of koa and ʻōhiʻa trees, featuring many birds

Kīpukapuaulu Picnic Area

A day-use picnic area with amenities including a three-sided shelter

• A picnic area in a grassy area with picnic tables, grills, and a red covered shelter with a corrugated tin roof

Kūkamāhuākea

The vast, steamy flat situated between Haʻakulamanu and Wahinekapu is known as Kūkamāhuākea. To many Native Hawaiians the steam that rises is a manifestation of Kū, one of four primary akua (gods) of Hawaiʻi.

• A broad expansive area emitting steam from a grassy plain.

Kūpinaʻi Pali (Waldron Ledge)

Trail along an old road damaged by an earthquake in 1983 with panoramic views of Kaluapele

• Trail along an old road on the forested edge of a volcanic caldera

Luamanu and July 1974 Flow

Meaning "bird crater", lava most recently entered this pit crater in 1974

• A volcanic crater with forest on the opposite side and adjacent to a large lava flow.

Mau Loa o Maunaulu

Witness the dramatic expanse of the lava flows of Maunaulu that blanketed the landscape from 1969 to 1974 at this pullout on Chain of Craters Road

• An expansive, open field of dark brown pāhoehoe lava, with a large lava shield visible in the distance in one direction, and the Pacific Ocean visible in the other.

Mauna Loa Lookout

A scenic overlook atop the narrow, winding Mauna Loa Road. It also marks the start of the Mauna Loa Trail and provides a short trail to a silversword plant exclosure.

• A parking lot featuring a handicapped accessible restroom and an octagonal stone overlook shelter looking out down the slopes of a mountain toward a distant volcanic caldera and the ocean.

Mauna Loa Observatory Trailhead

This remote and difficult trail through jagged lava fields leads to the summit of Mauna Loa.

• High-elevation gravel parking lot surrounded by lava fields with white buildings behind the gate.

Maunaiki Trail

The Maunaiki Trail is a 16-mile one-way hike through lava fields to the Mauna Iki and Puʻu Koaʻe cones, showcasing the park's distinctive volcanic landscapes and ecosystems.

• A volcanic desert with volcanic lava flows that date 400 to 750 years old. A variety of dryland native plants growing in the lava rock.

Maunaulu

A short day hike to Puʻuhuluhulu cinder cone provides views of the Maunaulu lava shield and lava flows from the 1969-1974 eruption

• A small forested hill surrounded by lava fields next to a large lava shield

Muliwai a Pele

The platform provides a vantage point with a view of the remnants of a lava channel that once carried a massive river of molten lava.

• A barren volcanic landscape with a wooden overlook. The overlook sits beside a lava channel similar to a dried out river bed.

Nāhuku Lava Tube

A 500-year old cave where a river of lava once flowed.

• A large lava tube lit by electric light, surrounded by rainforest

Other Lava Shields Along the East Rift Zone

• Open views of volcanic landscape from the top of a forested cinder cone.

Pauahi Crater

This large pit crater has hosted three eruptions in recent decades.

• A large volcanic crater with a barren bottom. A large lava shield looms in the far distance.

Puhimau Crater

A dramatic chasm representative of the pit crater phenomenon that occurs many places along Chain of Craters Road.

• A pit crater with loose, rocky walls and piles of rocky debris on the bottom. The rim of the crater is thick with tropical rainforest.

Puʻu o Lokuana

A steep hill with a historic cinder quarry and sweeping views of surrounding ranchlands.

• A green, grassy hill with an exposed red cinder quarry at the top. From the summit, rolling green ranchlands and a distant coastline are visible.

Puʻuhuluhulu

• Large forested cinder cone sits to the left of Maunaulu lava shield.

Puʻuloa Petroglyphs

A sacred site and the largest grouping of petroglyphs in Hawaiʻi.

• Boardwalk around a field of petroglyphs carved into gray lava rock with patches of tall grass scattered throughout. A cliff and the ocean loom in the distance.

Puʻupuaʻi Overlook

Look into Kīlauea Iki crater from a perch next to the massive cinder cone created by lava fountains in 1959

• An overlook next to a large cinder cone and looking into a deep volcanic crater

Ranger Tips For A Successful Visit

Plan Like A Park Ranger at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park

• Active volcano with layers of old lava flows, and rainforests. Sea cliffs along the coastline.

Stop 1- Kīpukapuaulu

Stop 1- Puʻuloa Petroglyphs

• Parking lot area next to Chain of Craters Road. A trail through rugged lava flow fields marked with cairns.

Stop 10- Kīpukapuaulu

• Old growth mesic forest with dirt trail.

Stop 11- Kīpukapuaulu

• Old growth mesic forest with dirt trail.

Stop 2- Kīpukapuaulu

• Old growth mesic forest with dirt trail.

Stop 2- Puʻuloa Petroglyphs

• Hiking trail through rugged lava flow field marked with cairns. View of ocean to your right.

Stop 3- Kīpukapuaulu

• Old growth mesic forest with dirt trail.

Stop 3- Puʻuloa Petroglyphs

• Uneven trail on lava rock.

Stop 4- Kīpukapuaulu

• Old growth mesic forest with dirt trail.

Stop 4- Puʻuloa Petroglyphs

• Boardwalk area around a petroglyph field.

Kahuku Visitor Contact Station

• Kahuku Visitor Contact Station
• Located at the Kahuku Unit of the park in the district of Ka'ū, the Kahuku Visitor Contact Station provides park information, assistance, and books and gifts available through Hawaiʻi Pacific Parks Association.

Welcome Center

• Welcome Center
• The Welcome Center is a great first stop when entering the park. Rangers and volunteers are on duty daily to provide visitors with the latest information on the current conditions, hiking information, things to do and the daily schedule of ranger-led activities. The Hawai'i Pacific Parks Association operates a park store in the Welcome Center that sells books, posters, and other educational materials. Proceeds benefit park programs.

• Park Bookstore
• Hawaiʻi Pacific Parks Association operates the official park bookstores at the Welcome Center and the Kahuku Unit.

• Kūpinaʻi Pali (Waldron Ledge)
• Walk along an old road damaged by an earthquake in 1983 and get panoramic views of Kaluapele

• Devastation Trail
• Stroll on a paved path through a recovering landscape that was buried by falling cinder from the 1959 Kīlauea Iki eruption.

• Nāhuku Lava Tube Trail
• Walk through lush rainforest and see a cave where a river of lava flowed 500 years ago.

• Backcountry Camp at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
• Looking for solitude or adventure? The vast backcountry on Kīlauea and Mauna Loa provides ample opportunities.

• Visit Kahuku: Palm Trail
• Hike or bike to some of the best views of Kahuku and along the fissure of the 1868 Mauna Loa eruption

• Puʻuloa Petroglyphs Trail
• Hike across a lava field to the largest group of petroglyphs in Hawaiʻi.

• Maunaulu via Nāpau Trail
• Explore the 1969-1974 lava flows of Maunaulu and hike to the top of Puʻuhuluhulu cinder cone.

• Kīlauea Iki Trail
• Descend 400 feet (122 m) through rainforest into a volcanic crater and hike across a hardened lava lake from the 1959 eruption.

• See Crater Rim Drive and Chain of Craters Road
• Drive the two primary roads in the park for a scenic adventure through a dynamic geological and cultural landscape

• Crater Rim Trail
• Catch views of Kīlauea caldera, feel the breath of the volcano at Steaming Bluff (Wahinekapu), and walk through lush rainforest.

• Visit Kahuku: Kona Trail
• Hike through scenic pasturelands with native trees, and transverse the 1887 lava flow.

• Visit Kahuku: Glover Trail
• Take a strenuous hike to a pit crater filled with an array of native Hawaiian species.

• Visit Kahuku: Forested Pit Crater
• Take a strenuous hike to a pit crater filled with an array of native Hawaiian species.

• Become a Junior Ranger at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes
• Earn your official Junior Ranger badge at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park

• Birdwatching at Kīpukapuaulu
• Look for birds in a unique area of biological diversity with rare and endangered species.

• Hōlei Sea Arch
• Walk a short distance to a view of dramatic sea cliffs and a 90-foot high arch sculpted by the sea.

• Haʻakulamanu via Sulphur Banks Trail
• See where volcanic gases have deposited colorful crystals.

• Halemaʻumaʻu Trail
• Hike down to the floor of Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera), with possible longer connections to Byron Ledge, Kīlauea Iki, and Nāhuku.

• Visit Kahuku: Kamakapaʻa Trail
• A walk up to a small cinder cone surrounded by rolling, grassy meadows

• Kīpukapuaulu Trail
• A loop hike through a unique area of biological diversity with rare plants, birds, and old-growth trees.

• Footprints Area
• Traverse the rugged Kaʻū Desert and see footprints left by Native Hawaiians long ago.

• Keanakākoʻi
• Walk along an old portion of Crater Rim Drive to Keanakāko'i Crater and views toward the massive Halemaʻumaʻu.

• Visit Kahuku: Puʻu o Lokuana
• Hike to the top of Puʻu o Lokuana cinder cone, with choices for a shorter or longer loop.

A First Visit

If you have limited time to spend in the park, see these sites around the summit of Kīlauea first!

Driving Tour of Chain of Craters Road

This exceptionally scenic drive traverses the flanks of Kīlauea down to the sea. On the way, it passes amazing geological and cultural sites including its namesake pit craters, dramatic cliffs, and petroglyphs. This tour is meant to be done in a vehicle, with options for three short hikes or walks along the way.

Driving Tour of Crater Rim Drive

Crater Rim Drive traverses the eastern portion of the summit caldera of Kīlauea, passing by incredible geological phenomena, cultural sites, and breathtaking vistas of one of the world's most active volcanoes. This tour is meant to be done in a vehicle, with options for three short hikes.

Hiking Tour of Kīpukapuaulu

This trail reveals a story of struggle and survival for some of rarest plants and animals of Hawaiʻi. Plant picking is prohibited in this Special Ecological Area (SEA). Dogs, horses, and bicycles are prohibited on this trail.

Hiking Tour of Maunaulu

Venture through a landscape formed in a five-year eruption that re-created this land. This trail tells the story of one of the longest known rift zone eruptions of Kīlauea. The well-marked trail crosses massive lava fields, skirts gaping fissures, and takes you to spectacular features formed by rapidly cooling lava flows.

Hiking Tour of Puʻuloa Petroglyphs

Walk in the footsteps of the kūpuna (elders) to Puʻuloa (hill of long life). It is a sacred and awe-inspiring gallery of kiʻi pōhaku (images carved in stone). These simple etchings document the life and culture of the native Hawaiian people. The petroglyphs are very fragile. Stay on the boardwalk. Walking on the lava surface will fragment the delicate petroglyphs.