Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Hilo, HI

Dog-Friendly Camping Reviews near Hilo, HI

64 Reviews of 11 Hilo Campgrounds

• 

  Christy K.

  Ranger

  Jul. 25, 2015

  Nāmakanipaio Campground — Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

  Nice grassy open area and very clean

  We stayed here Thanksgiving night prior to spending a day in Volcanoes national park. Given the holiday, everything was closed in town so make sure you bring some food and supplies. It was also pretty quiet and felt very safe.

  In the middle of the night we woke up to RAIN! And if anyone knows rain in Hawaii is HARD - so make sure you are prepared if you decide to camp in Hawaii.

  This is a great way to be close to the volcano park to get an early start.

  There is a paystation on site and restrooms, firepits and picnic tables.

• 

  Shari G.

  Legend

  Apr. 26, 2022

  Kulanaokuaiki Campground — Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

  Away from the crowds

  If getting away from the crowds is on your list at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, then this primitive camping area is one of the places to do it. This lovely primitive camping area has 9 designated sites, 1 pit toilet that was kept clean and well-stocked, and an ADA accessible paved path that accesses many of the camping sites. The sites are a short walk from the parking area so you have to carry your gear to the site. There is no water available at the campground so be prepared. Water is available at the visitor’s center up the hill about 7 miles away.  

  The campground offers expansive views of Mauna Loa and the surrounding area including some pretty cool night-time glow of the eruption in Kilauea crater. One of the great benefits of camping in the park is the proximity to many hiking trails, but also to some of the better night time viewing. The popular Kilauea overlook is packed like a rock concert as soon as the sun goes down. Parking is a disaster, and the overlook is simply too crowded. If you can wait until around 9-10pm until you arrive you can have a much easier time finding parking at the trailhead and space along the overlook. Then it’s just a short drive back to your tent, and not an hour’s drive back to your hotel in Hilo. Just outside the park is Volcano Village with a small market and gasoline station for groceries and limited camping supplies. For something specialized like camping gas we had to drive to a hardware store outside of Hilo. The Volcano House Lodge near the park visitor’s center offers two restaurants with the same menu, one is more of a bar and grill, the other a sit down style. 

  Hiking is extensive in the park, and many trails will carry you far from the crowded center of the park, but be sure to be prepared with layers, water and snacks. Hiking across the lava flows offers no discernable trail except for the regularly spaced ahu stone piles(cairns) which are the only way to navigate. Should the weather turn or fog roll in, visibility can be greatly reduced. Cycling is also a great activity along the park roads, but be ready for a great deal of elevation change.

  Note:  This campsite is NOT free. It was $10 per night.

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• 

  Shari G.

  Legend

  Apr. 26, 2022

  Hamakua Guesthouse & Camping Cabanas

  Hammock Cabanas, Hawaiian Style

  This guest house offers a wide array of lodging opportunities, but the most unique are their hammock cabanas. These elevated, screened and tented porches offer one a pleasant and inexpensive (for Hawaii) night’s sleep. Rather than providing a bed or cot, each tent has two sleeping hammocks, a small cooler, secure gear locker and some basic lighting and electricity.  Note, the power goes off at 10pm, as the whole compound runs on solar power and batteries. It was raining buckets the night we stayed there, but we were dry and comfortable, although torrential rain on any small structure might make sleeping a challenge. 

  The guest house at the top of the property has a great covered back porch with some great cooking, food preparation, and washing up options. Also the bathrooms and showers are lovely, especially if you’ve just come from a backcountry trip in the National Park!  

  The guest house also welcomes the small herd of local stray cats to roam around outside and get an evening meal. It’s so cool if you like cats, but could be a bit of a nightmare if you do not. These furry guests are not allowed inside so no worries there, but they will investigate your food bag and meow like crazy should you be trying to make dinner outside.

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• 

  Sasha W.

  Legend

  Jul. 25, 2018

  Hawaii County Park Kolekole Gulch Park - TEMPRORARILY CLOSED TO CAMPING

  Beautiful, just like Hawaii

  My family and I visit Hawaii every other Christmas. I know, spending Christmas without snow may seem weird to some people, because we always have a white Christmas where I am from (Washington State). But honestly, we love going this time of year because it isnt as busy. We love either camping, staying at my families condo, or doing a combo of both. We visited Kolekole Beach Park when we came last Christmas, and it was great. It was super clean, which we really loved. There was also some great small cliffs that we could jump off of- the whole family loved doing this. It almost feels like you are in a "jungle" only because of the greenery and trees. Not to mention the weather is pretty muggy. My family and I had a picnic here, and played in the water for the day. They didnt have any life guards on duty just FYI. Weirdly, there were a lot of cats around? Not sure why? but thought this was interesting. The park is a little hard to find, we drove past the sign and had to turn around. It's a pretty small, spray painted sign. We hiked in the morning before we came here, which was beautiful hike overlooking the water. Highly recommend!!

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• 

  Kristen P.

  Scout

  Jun. 16, 2018

  Nāmakanipaio Campground — Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

  10 miles from anything you are used to (except a bathroom 😂)

  This camping site is great! It’s 10 miles inside the volcanos national park. At the end of the drive there is parking for about 4 vehicles and a very clean and nice structure housing a pit toilet with paper. No running water, no fires allowed. Camping stoves ok. There are I believe 10-12 sites some right off the lot some farther out ours was up over a hill so you could not see any other sites or the lot from our location. There was a picnic table in each site. You pay at the gate (we got the year pass) and then $10 a night you put it in the bash box on site and put the receipt at your site if you happen to love for the day. We both tent camped and put up hammocks. You are in the shadow of Laura loa volcano and when we went you could see the glow of the main crater from our site however with the recent activity I am pretty sure the level may be too low now.

  We hikes for a half hour towards the crater glow in the night to get to a ridge to look out over the valley. The moon was bright enough you didn’t need flashlights. It’s very windy at night and the temp drops. I had a sleep mat in my hammock and slept in sweats with a blanket and Summer sleeping bag. Our hammocks were swaying in the wind all night.

  One of the best sites was the moon setting behind Mauna Loa just before sunrise and then watchingbehr sure from purple to pink to red as the sun came up from behind us and cast colors on her. A few miles farther on the drive you will reach a dead end with a pavilion and an incredible view of the Pacific.

  Its close enough to hilo we left our site for the day and went to the hilo parks to swim than did all of the volcano park activities in the early evening.

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• 

  Dave G.

  Guide

  Jun. 5, 2017

  Punalu`u Beach Park

  Wonderful Introduction to Hawaiin Camping

  We stayed here for two nights and greatly enjoyed quiet and near solitude of the beach park. We arrived in the dark to several locals who call the park home. We were hesitant about the situation, but after chatting with some of them, we discovered that they were very friendly and down to earth. After waking up and exploring the park, we found some sea turtles on the beach and continued walking around the various trails. We felt very comfortable here and will gladly return when we come visit Hawaii again!

• 

  SwitchbackKids

  Legend

  Jul. 3, 2017

  Kulanaokuaiki Campground — Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

  Unique camping experience on the Big Island

  For a chance to camp among the unique lava landscape of Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, Kulanaokuaiki Campground is a great opportunity.

  Although most people visit Hawaii for the luxury and relaxing beach setting, Hawai’i Volcanoes shows a very different side of the Big Island. Camping at Kulanaokuaiki allowed us to immerse ourselves into the park and access some of its greatest sights.

  The most important thing to note about this campground is that there is no water here. They do offer pit toilets, but you’ll have to be prepared with food, water, and supplies. Also remember that this small campground (only 9 sites) is first-come, first-served only, so arriving early will be important in securing a site for the night. Although the campground used to be free, there is now a $10 fee per night (as of November 2016)

  The campground itself is a very unique setting: you’ll walk among old lava flows to get to your site. The sites are spaced out nicely, offering great sunset views and quiet wake-ups.

  Other highlights from our time in the park include: learning about the myths and legends surrounding the volcanoes, seeing the “glow” from the Jaggar Museum, attending intriguing ranger programs, watching the sunset from midway up Mauna Kea, and driving the Chain of Craters road to hike short trails and see the lava destruction path. 

  You can read much more about our two days in the park on our blog: Switchback Kids (Hawai’i Volcanoes)

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• 

  Christy K.

  Ranger

  Jul. 25, 2015

  Punalu`u Beach Park

  Camping by a Black Sand Beach

  If you are like me, you want to see the black sand beaches when visiting Hawaii. This is one of the nicest, biggest parks of black sand. There are tide pools and swimming so it is a popular park for daytime beach going.

  The campground is NOT in the sand - you are on a grassy area next to the beach so you can sleep to the sound of the crashing waves without the hassle of sand.

• 

  Ashley F.

  Legend

  Jan. 18, 2023

  Treehouse.Farm

  A Very Special Place

  Ashley here with The Dyrt. We'd like to welcome your host, Ed. This special place is located in the forest. "Your site is steps away from Cannabis plants in various stages of growth. The site has a fine gravel floor with a solar panel roofing to protect you from the rain. This site is private and includes access to the outdoor bathroom which includes a hot shower and toilet." Give them a try and come back here to leave them some love!