A Few of Our Favorite things:
**Swimming Beaches: Mauna Kea is the furthest north if the three. Wait for a parking permit, it’s worth it! Hapuna and A Bay are our other two favorites. **Snorkeling Beaches: Kapaluu is just south and has Manta Rays at night now, Place of Refuge (turn right as you enter the pay entrance), Captain Cook - Kealakekua Bay - rent a kayak and paddle over 1-2 coves. (We used Ehu and Kai-they are right on the water so you don't have to tie the kayak to the car.) **Waterfalls on the Hilo side: Akaka Falls: you can swim at the park below the falls, Rainbow Falls: ignore the signs and hike up to the top to the swimming pool, it’s just great! Peepee Falls is up the road from Rainbow. **Surfing at Banyon, Kapaluu, or ask where the surf is up. **Boogie Boarding: Disappearing Sands Beach or swimming areas. **Don’t miss the orchids and Lava Caves at Volcanoes National Park. Parker Ranch in the interior has Hawaiian Cowboys. Luau and Hula dancing are everywhere. Whales/dolphins spotted year round
Kailua Kona-the town:
We prefer nature but Kailua Kona is a nice town where the waves crash over the sea wall and is an easy, fun, romantic place to spend time. There are lots of restaurants-like Kona Inn on the water, tour information stands, stores, internet cafés, a library, hotels and places to hang. There are shopping malls with everything from Hawaiian clothes and swim wear to Macy's to Costco, bookstores, coffee shops, movies, video rentals-the works. You can shop until you drop. In front of the Casa is a bathing suit store, flower shop, massage therapist and deli-convenience store. The deli has huge sandwiches/Hawaiian plates when you are hungry after the flight. People love the farmer's market and I like to buy Hawaiian crafts on Kapaluu beach, where my sea turtle Henrietta lives. She follows me out of the water every time I swim-please visit her. Hula is everywhere-often the shopping centers or the rec center downtown has dancers performing. The Iron Man swim starts from the wharf-1 mile from us.
What I love about Casa DeEmdeko:
Casa is a romantic place where you can listen to the birds sing as you awake. You can feed the birds scraps and they will sing even louder. They will also visit you in the unit if you don't close the screen door. It is a great place to swim; the salt water is heated by the sun. It may be the only salt pool left on Kona. The fresh water pool is heated and the gardens are very nice with birds by day and frogs by night. I love to watch the sunset; I do every night. It is spectacular as you can tell from my pictures, most taken from the sea wall. The flowers are fragrant and beautiful. Kona coffee is great and strong, it wakes you up in the mornings. Snorkeling and diving in the Big Island are rated tops by experts, you simple must do it. Buy your gear at home! I love our little beach, it is fun to cook on the water and hear the waves crash. The people at Casa are friendly; we all love our units and most of us plan to retire there. Please come visit.
Other Activities:
Snorkeling, Diving, Waterfalls, Orchid Farms, Salt Water Pool, Iron Man, Running, Boating, Fishing, Golfing