Maunakea Visitor Information Station, Hawaii, United States
4.5 (1.668 reviews) Tuesday: 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM Spent 2-3 hours Ranking #9 in Island of Hawaii Visitor Centers
Lesson for Jeep renters
Absolutely spectacular to watch the sunset from the top. But I’m writing this review mostly because we had a very stressful time with our fuel. We got to the visitor center with half a tank. The guys that assess you for driving to the top advised against it since the nearest gas station is over 30 miles away. But we are idiots on vacation so we went! The remaining range went down pretty quickly, but then really plummeted on the way down, with an indicated 22 miles of range left when we got back to the visitor center. Yikes! Put the Jeep in 2 wheel drive and started to limp to the closest station, only to find that the range just kept going up and up. We drove the 50 miles back to Waikaloa and STILL had 120 miles of range! Lesson: if you have half a tank of gas at the visitor center you are totally fine to go up. The top itself is other-worldly. Do it!
Address
177 Makaala St, Hilo, Island of Hawaii, HI 96720
Mobile
Website
http://hilo.hawaii.edu/maunakea/visitor-information/
Working hours
Monday : 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Tuesday : 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Wednesday : 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Thursday : 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Friday : 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Saturday : 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Sunday : 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Current local date and time now
Tuesday, May 07, 2024, 21:37
User Ratings
4.5 based on (1.668 reviews)
Reviews
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5M5332BLjohnb 5:00 PM Aug 1, 2022
Lesson for Jeep renters
Absolutely spectacular to watch the sunset from the top. But I’m writing this review mostly because we had a very stressful time with our fuel. We got to the visitor center with half a tank. The guys that assess you for driving to the top advised against it since the nearest gas station is over 30 miles away. But we are idiots on vacation so we went! The remaining range went down pretty quickly, but then really plummeted on the way down, with an indicated 22 miles of range left when we got back to the visitor center. Yikes! Put the Jeep in 2 wheel drive and started to limp to the closest station, only to find that the range just kept going up and up. We drove the 50 miles back to Waikaloa and STILL had 120 miles of range! Lesson: if you have half a tank of gas at the visitor center you are totally fine to go up. The top itself is other-worldly. Do it!
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5AREEN7 5:00 PM Feb 27, 2020
Worth the trouble
The visitor information station is a must stop just to get used to the altitude and throw on some extra clothes. One of the women in my group did start feeling ill after a couple of hours at the summit. This is a GREAT trip, but you MUST rent a vehicle that can drive it. Weather can change in an instant, and it can blizzard in the winter. And IT. IS. COLD. Watching the sunset over the clouds is breathtaking. And afterwards, there's an orange glow on the horizon I've never seen before. The snow is wind swept into interesting patterns (DON'T touch-not for snowballs). On the way down, there's a parking area to stargaze and take pictures of the milkyway. And aside from the cost of the vehicle, it's free.
