big island locations
Cliffs at the Sheraton
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End of the World
Volcano National Park
Secret Black Sand Beach - Hilo, HI
Mahai'ula/
Makalawena Beach
Historical Bay south of kona
black sand beach + jungle near pahoa
Kukio Beach + Kikaua Point
Green Sands Beach/South Point Cliffs (Kalae)
Southpoint Cliffs
The Inn At Kulaniapia Falls
Onomea Bay
Punalu'u Black Sand Beach
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
15min
Nearest town:
Keahou, HI
Black Lava Cliffs + Palm Trees: Cliffs at the Sheraton
Location is limited to 2-5 people
HIKE:
Not really a hike, 5min walk on sidewalk through resort to cliffs. Likely need Aunty Tutu to officiate here to get access. Walk through the resort to a beautiful outcropping of cliffs. Near a golf course, but the photos turn out beautiful. There are also some nice locations on site for bride, groom, couples photos.
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
15min
Nearest town:
Keahou, HI
Black lava cliffs + bright blue water: End of the World
hike:
15-20min to a more secluded location (first area has a lot of spots where people jump off of the cliffs)
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
1hr 50m
Nearest towns:
Volcano, Naalehu, Pahoa, Hilo
Volcano National Park
hike:
25minutes down, and then back up (there are tons of locations in the park if you want to adventure more including a sea arch, but this trail is one of the more common ones!)
Distance from Hilo:
40min
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
1.5hours
Nearest town:
Hilo, HI
Secret Black Sand Beach - Hilo, HI
hike:
5 minute walk down a staircase and then out to the beach
About:
This is a local surfing beach so there will be people going in and out of the water closer to the beginning of the beach. Best at sunrise to avoid crowds close to sunset. Nice variety of gorgeous tropical palm trees, black sand, a green lawn, and cool black stone area of the beach.
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
40min
Nearest town:
Waikoloa, HI
Mahai'ula/Makalawena Beach
hike:
10min to the first beach where there are more people but beautiful palm tree OR 25min from parking lot to the next beach, Makalawena which is more secluded.
Secluded White Sand Beach With Black Lava Rock & Brackish/Freshwater Pond With Palm Trees:
Terrain:
Hard lava rock, then gravel lava rock then sand. but a nice well maintained trail. You need sneakers or sandals...you will alternate between gravel like lava rock and sand. Flat.
Unique:
I can help you set up a boat charter and we can anchor at Makalawena (20min boat ride from harbor), and then swim to shore or kayak or possibly take a small dingy. Option for ceremony on the boat or on shore :)
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
30min
Nearest town:
Kona, Captain Cook
Historical Bay South Of Kona
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
2hr 15m
Black Sand Beach + Jungle Near Pahoa (Sunrise Only)
I have not shot here yet so I am using example photos from my colleagues. I will be shooting an elopement here in November and will upload those when complete
Nearest towns:
Pahoa, Keeau, Hilo
About:
This is a clothing optional beach so I only shoot here at sunrise! I also recommend renting an airbnb in this area because it is a really far drive.
Distance from Hilo:
50min
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
30min
Kukio Beach + Kikaua Point
hike:
n/a both easy to access, you go through a security gate because it’s a resort/residential area, but public beach access is allowed
About:
Kukio is a sandy beach with a few areas for ceremonies, a long beach, and a boardwalk.
Kikaua Point has more lava rock/points that make for unique photos but also has a sandy beach and a nice grassy area. Ceremonies in the morning at both locations are likely to have less people, but these areas in general can get crowded because they are near the Four Seasons resort. Both have nice public restrooms.
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
1.5hours
Nearest towns:
Naalehu, Pahala, Mountain View, Volcano
PROS/CONS:
You can find your own secluded spot. Sometimes there are horses on the way down. Depending on if there has been rain or not it will have green grass or yellowish grass. So you might get a different feel in your photos depending on the time of year. It can be very exposed here...not a lot of shade...but there’s always usually strong winds. So you won’t feel hot, but make sure you bring plenty of water, and leaving earlier is better :)
Green Sands Beach/South Point Cliffs (Kalae)
makes a good morning shoot location)
***requires 4x4 rental and offroading experience, or getting dirty
Access:
Depends on if you want to go all the way to Green Sands Beach or find a cove/lookout along the way. You can hike (but it take 3-6hours round trip), you can offroad if you have previous 4x4 off-roading experience (30 minute drive), or locals run shuttles in large pickup trucks out there. You will get dirty unless you have off-roading experience and can rent a jeep.
Location Details
Southpoint Cliffs
ABOUT:
Southpoint cliffs (you can drive right up to this on the main road)…(pictured below)..there is also a jump here so you can say you jumped off the southern most point in the US. I’ve done it a few times! But it still makes for amazing photos along the cliffs here without jumping, haha!
shot a wedding here recently, and will upload when done editing (Off the same road as the access road to Green Sands Beach)
Waterfalls
For waterfalls you need to travel to Hilo side and the Hamakua coast. Most of the waterfalls on Big Island involve trespassing so my recommendation is to go through a venue/airbnb and pay for a photo permit to get access to their property.
Location Details
About:
Beautiful location ($200 for permit access for 1-2 hour access without a ceremony, need to inquire through them for ceremony access…they have a intimate wedding package for around $750)
This is a really cool hotel I would recommend looking into! It has an incredible waterfall! If you don’t want to stay there, there is the option to pay for a permit to utilize the site for the ceremony we could look into! Some of the rooms and cabins have a direct view if you are interested in staying!
The Inn at Kulaniapia Falls
Unique:
They also do some farm-to-table cooking classes SUPs & waterfall rappelling
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
1-1.5hrs
Onomea Bay
hike:
15-30min (can get muddy, or change at location)
About:
Beautiful bay with gorgeous rock outcropping. I haven’t photographed here so these are example photos from my colleagues, but I imagine both the plants on the hike and the rocky point would make for incredible photos!
Location Details
Distance from Kona:
1.5hours
Nearest towns:
Naalehu or Volcano
ACCESS:
Just drive up :)
Punalu'u Black Sand Beach
FEATURES:
Black sand, palm trees, lava rock, tide pools, greenery.
It gets super busy mid-morning to the afternoon so I strongly suggest a morning ceremony here!
Distance from Hilo:
1.5hours
