There are three driving options (north, straight across, and south). North and straight across are faster by about an hour. I can't speak to them, but I can say that the drive along the south is very pretty. You get to see some lush green areas, the ocean, and very cool lava fields.

As someone else suggested, if you have the energy, sneaking in a waterfall on the east side or volcanic national park on your way to Kona could be fun. When I stayed in Kona we skipped the entire east side because of travel time. The volcanos took an entire day with 3-4 hours of driving. So it might be a blessing in disguise that you land and leave on that side of the island.