Pu’uhonua O Honaunau National Historic Park

There are quite a few National Historic parks on the Big Island of Hawaii but we only had time to do one. I chose to do this one because it was close to a really popular snorkel spot which we did after our visit. This park is beautiful and well worth a visit to learn more about the native Hawaiians that lived here long ago.

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Pu’uhonua O Honaunau National Historic Park
The visitor’s center is open year round from 8:30am – 4:30pm. You will have to pay an entry fee into the park of $20 per vehicle or present your National Park Pass to get in for free (if you have one). Active Duty military members can get the America the Beautiful Pass for free, which gets you into all National Parks, and National Monuments.
For more information check out the National Park’s website HERE.

This is a National Historic Park so that means they have the Junior Ranger Program and park stamps for your National Park journal. We love getting our books stamped and seeing the different types from all over the world. The Junior Ranger program is a FREE program for kids (or adults) where you fill out an educational booklet about the place you’re visiting and turn it back in for a badge. Aurora loves collecting these for her vest and I like framing them. I have linked some National Park stamp books below (click the image to shop).

pu'uhonua o honaunau national historic park hawaii

This place was a sanctuary, a place of refuge for the native Hawaiians. Watch a video in the pavilion about the history of this place and learn about the natives who came here.
To learn more about the history, click HERE.

pu'uhonua o honaunau national historic park

This area is beautiful, I can see why they used as a sanctuary. Tons of palm trees, crystal clear waters, and small waves.

This was an old game, much like checkers, that the Hawaiians use to play.

They do offer cultural demonstrations by locals such as storytelling and hand crafts. Ask the park ranger when you visit if there will be any cultural demonstrations during your time there.
Read more about these demonstrations HERE.

The waters were so clear you could see fish from the rocks. Entry into the water is prohibited inside the park. I highly suggest going next door to “Two Step” for snorkeling after your visit.
Read my blog post on snorkeling at Two Step beach HERE.