Driving Kona to Hilo return

Hi fellow travellers,

I will be flying into and out from Kona, The Big Island, Hawaii.
Am I able to drive the "Southern Route" from Kona -> Captain Cook-> Ka Lae (Southpoint) -> Pahala -> Volcano National Park -> Hilo?
I then plan to take the "Northern Route" from Hilo -> Waimea -> Kona.

I'm just worried that the southern route is impacted by the lava flows. Are these routes driveable?

Thanks in advance for your assistance!

Cheers!

Driving both routes is perfect. I did it 2 years ago. Take your time to stop at all the beautifull sights on your route.

The road is open all around the island.

Allow yourself at least a day at the Volcanoes National Park. Even better, stay overnight there.

I would also suggest staying overnight in the Volcano area, especially if lava is flowing into the sea. It was awesome to hike out in the late afternoon and see the lava flow as it gets darker. Wear something sturdy on your feet and carry a good flashlight!

Great! Thanks everyone for confirming the above, I've tried to look everywhere to find out if it was possible!
I'm really looking forward to spending time in Hawaii - I'll be visiting Honolulu, Maui and the Big Island :)

I will definately try and book a night at Volcanoes National Park, another trip is to Mauna Kea observatories!

Cheers!

Don't get your hopes up about lava flows...You have to enter Volcanoes National Park ($10.00 a car to get in), drive a long way, then make a trek just to see the lava IF it is flowing...check in with Volcanoes National Park on the status of the flows. The park is awesome even without seeing lava, and the BIG ISLAND is my favorite (I am from Oahu)

You might like to check out http://volcano.wr.usgs.gov/hvostatus.php for updates on what is happening at the volcano site. Click on "images" to see some of the latest photos. Even if lava is not flowing it is still pretty awesome to be walking on some of the newest land on earth!

Hettyo- you are one lucky person! We first visited Hawaii in 1971 and it keeps drawing us back. What a wonderful place!

a follow up on the OPs post. Would that route be driveable in a relaxing day. What I mean is could we get up early and have time to stop at a few places and go all around the island in one (long) day. I will be staying just outside of hilo so I would be doing the oposite route.

The road thats closed is entirely within the park. The main road hasn't been cut by a flow in about 40 years IIRC. Its about a 2 to 3 hr drive straight through. So its easily doable in a leisurely day. If you stop at the Park for a few hours (which I consider silly, because you should spend at least a full day if not 2 or 3 there) Punalu'u, Kealakekua Bay, City of Refuge and a few other things along the way, its still not an onerous drive.

Ed