Hawaii without all the people

I am an avid traveler, but money isn't something I've had while doing that! Traveling on a budget is something I have learned to be good at. If I weren't so good at it I would have had far fewer chances to see the beautiful things that I have gotten the opportunity to see. I am currently traveling in Hawaii, and while the big island sees far fewer tourists throughout the year, there is not an inadequate amount of beautiful scenery and beaches to explore.

While my boyfriend and I are here doing a work-stay program, where we work on a farm 20 hours a week in exchange for housing and some of our food provided, we have 4 days off a week. This allows plenty of time to explore the rest of the island. With bikes, a backpack, and a tent we have learned that the island offers amazing opportunity to see everything you can. The free bus system, and hitchhiking being readily accessible proves that.

With Volcanoes National Park and beautiful snorkeling at black sand beaches I am surprised the big island of Hawaii does not attract more tourism. There are two airports on the big island, allowing you to fly into either Kona or Hilo International Airports. We flew into Kona, scoring round trip flights on Delta for only $415! Kona does tend to be the cheaper airport to fly into, but is only a 3 hour drive from the Hilo side, allowing you to explore the whole island in one trip!

After arriving in Hawaii my boyfriend and I both bought bikes off of Facebook Marketplace, only setting us back about $100. This allows us to get from place to place within the towns and not have to rely (completely) on the bus. It is also much cheaper than renting a car for the duration of your stay.

In Kona you can walk around their downtown, which offers a variety of shops selling trinkets, shirts, and such, and also stop at a variety of restaurants selling amazing meals, a lot of which feature fresh seafood on their menus! Heading out of Kona, Captain Cook has beautiful beaches that are worth the stop to snorkel at. There is also some amazing camping in Captain Cook, which is a great place to spend your first night.

When heading out of Kona you can grab the bus, named Hele-On, which is a completely free bus system that goes around the island. While the time tables can sometimes be hard to read and the bus is not always on time, there is no beating free transportation!

If you brought your hiking shoes then the next place that's an amazing stop is Volcanoes National Park. About halfway between Kona and Hilo on the south side of the island there is a great amount of world class hiking. With a campground that is only $12 a night right outside the park there is a great place to crash as well. Hiking the very famous, and somewhat active volcano Mauna Loa is definitely worth putting on your bucket list.

Hilo, while a real city and a little bit busier than Volcanoes National Park will be, it is definitely worth the stop. There are many places on Hipcamp, which is a very prevelent way to find camping on the island, just outside of the city very close to the beach. We stayed at Abbots Lodge in our tent, which gave us amazing access to beaches, restaurants, and stores just a short bike away! Here we snorkeled with sea turtles, ate lots of fresh seafood, drank coffee sourced from the island, and so much more.

While there is so much more to do on the island, a more in depth guide may need a travel agent to make it for you. I'm a budget traveler with a lot of great suggestions, but they are definitely the best for people looking to travel in a very low maintenance way. It is possibe, though, to get around the big island with just a bike and a backpack, and make it feel like a luxury vacation. Keep the secret, though, and let the tourists keep going to the other islands in Hawaii!