Anyplace decent in Hilo, Hawaii?
 

Seems I have a non-tourist related need to be near Hilo later this year and need to find a place to stay as I don't want to commute from Kona or even Volcano House.

My impression is there isn't much around Hilo but if anyone has any thoughts, I'd appreciate hearing them.

Thanks in advance!

I went to VRBO to try to find the house that my husband & I rented 3 or 4 years ago, and couldn't find it but I found one that looks interesting. Don't know how to post a link but it's The Falls at Reed's Island & might be worth checking out.

Hadn't thought of vacation rental. I usually avoid them because so many rentals demand a huge breakage deposit or (in a few cases) even ask for you to give them a signed blank credit card form or check.

Hi Richard, the recommendation to stay at the Falls home on Reeds Island, is a very good suggestion, though it is often booked months in advance. The next best option is staying at the Shipman House (a non-luxury but charming and comfortable inn).

We have lived in Hilo for the past two years (on Reeds Island) and though it has many incredible things to see (Volcano National Park, Richardson beach with turtles and views of the mountains), it would be worth it to me to commute 2.0 hours each way to stay at Hualalai...

For dining...go to Paul's Café. Its worth seeking out.

Also, for gifts, find the artist on Wednesdays and Saturdays at the Hilo Farmer's Market who hand paints endangered Hawaiian flora and fauna, in addition to other beautiful animal life, on charms for necklaces and bracelets. She is gifted.

Unfortunately in this case commuting isn't an option. The Falls appears to be fully booked for the next year except for a few one night bookings, which they won't take.

Should I be worried that nothing at Shipman's has a/c?

Depends on the elevation. We lived in Kona (on the other side of the island, granted) for five years with neither heat nor a/c, and other than about one day a year, didn't miss either.

I did NOT know you could set up preferences to hide annoying Signatures Displayed at bottom of some posts. Now I do, and they are gone!
Thank you karenkay.

Hi Richard,

During summer the temperature could be 80 indoors. In the evenings it would be a not unpleasant 75 at night. If you need AC then you want the Hilo Hawaiian hotel, a decidedly average 3 star hotel. Book the ocean view, not because of the view (though it is beautiful) but to avoid the sound of the invasive frog species.

If you do not absolutely need AC then the Shipman house is a better choice.

I will leave the reasons why such a beautiful place doesn't have a nice hotel to the omni forum.

One thing to consider, the Saddle Rd alignment project is complete now and runs straight down to Waikoloa Village, shortening the Kohala<>Hilo commute substantially. If you can't find a reasonable hotel option near Hilo, and unless you would need to go back and forth frequently, you may want to consider staying in the Hualalai-Waikoloa-Kohala area and doing the drive across.

Ended up with Shipman house for the Hilo portion but am trying Hualalai for a short time earlier in the trip. There have been some grumbles about the Hualalai A/C system in this forum, but there are so many kudos for the hotel that I think it's worth sampling.

I posted in the Hualalai thread that I've never had a problem with air conditioning at the hotel in all the years I've been staying there - in fact, I often need to turn the temperature up at night because it can get too cold.

When you say Volcano House, are you referring to the crater side property?

http://www.hawaiivolcanohouse.com/

Thanks!

Yes, have now stayed there for 2 nights for the geology part of my trip.

It was renovated in 2009 and is now solidly at the Motel 6 level, in all of hard product, soft product, and food service. The main exceptions are that it is hundreds of dollars more a night and the rooms have no TVs. Location, locstion, location!

Thanks - we just booked for January. Looking forward to some great hiking.

Location is paramount for us as well. The reason we stayed at the Zion and Bryce Lodges earlier this year. As the only 'in the park' options, the quality of lodgings and food was secondary to starting our day right in the middle of things!

We've just stayed at Shipman House - great stay apart from lack of air con. There is a room downstairs in the main house which was much cooler which in retrospect we should have booked. Easy day trip to the Volcano National Park but we're not Hikers so just did the easy tracks. Hilo is a lovely town with lots of historic buildings and a great choice of restaurants.