Private Tour
Big Island Hawaii Self-Guided Driving Tour
Overview
Available languages
Mobile ticket
Purchase one tour per car, not per person. Everyone listens together!
Get a taste of paradise on Hawaii’s Big Island. This driving tour guides you along the island’s picturesque coast and through lush jungle scenery. Lounge on pristine beaches, hike atop dormant volcanoes, go snorkeling in crystal-clear water, and more—all while learning about the fascinating history of this island and the people who call it home. Plus, learn about Hawaiian history, visit ancient burial grounds, and really get to know this island’s rich culture.
After booking, check your email/text to download the separate Audio Tour Guide App by Action while connected to WiFi or mobile data. Enter the password, download the tour, and enjoy it offline. Follow the audio instructions and route from the designated starting point.
New, Lifetime access, no expiry. Use it anytime, on any trip, as many times as you want.
This isn't an entrance ticket. Check opening hours before your visit.
Additional Info
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
How To Access: After booking, you’ll get an email and text with setup instructions and password (search “audio tour” in emails and texts). • Download the separate tour app by Action • Enter the password sent by email and text. • MUST download the tour while in strong wifi/cellular. • Works offline after download.
How to start touring: Open Action’s separate audio tour guide app once onsite. • If there is just one tour, launch it. • If multiple tour versions exist, launch the one with your planned starting point and direction.
Go to the starting point No one will meet you at the start. This tour is self-guided Enter the first story’s point and the audio will begin automatically Follow the audio cues to the next story, which will also play automatically. Enjoy hands-free exploring. If you face audio issues, contact support. Stick to the tour route & speed limit for the best experience.
Travel worry-free: Use the tour app anytime, on any day, and over multiple days. Start and pause the tour whenever you like, taking breaks and exploring side excursions at your own pace. Skip anything you don’t care about or explore bonus content for everything that interests you
Savings tips: Driving tours: purchase just one tour for everyone in the car
New, Lifetime access, no expiry. Use it anytime, on any trip, as many times as you want.
Audio Setup: Connect your phone to your car's stereo system using Bluetooth, USB, or AUX. For the best experience, consider using headphones for walking tours. Audio playback is compatible with Apple CarPlay, with navigation features coming soon. Support for Android Auto is also on the way.
The tour requires a supported mobile device for navigation. Please use an iPhone with iOS 15 or later, an Android device with Android 9 or later, or an iPad/tablet with GPS and cellular service.
Important Note: Some Big Island attractions along this tour require advance reservations or paid admission, including places such as Huliheʻe Palace, Kula Kai Caverns, Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, Akaka Falls State Park, and more. We recommend planning ahead and allowing 1–2 days to enjoy the full tour at a relaxed pace.
Important: Recent Kona storms caused flooding, debris, and temporary road closures in Hawaiʻi. Conditions are improving, but parts of Maui County and Hawaiʻi Island may still have delays, cleanup, or closures.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What To Expect
Hilo
Hilo is a town on Hawaii, commonly called the Big Island, in the state of Hawaii. It’s known for Wailuku River State Park, featuring Waianuenue, or Rainbow Falls, with its colorful mist effects. The bubbling basalt-lava rock pools known as the Boiling Pots are nearby. To the south is Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, home to rainforests and the active Kilauea and Mauna Loa volcanoes. Note: The tour is over 300+ miles long, with more than 210+ audio stories, and takes about 7-8 hours to complete. New, Lifetime access, no expiry. Use it anytime, on any trip, as many times as you want.
The deck is a steel grid which creates a singing sound from the tires of cars driving on it.
What‘s Included
Great value: One purchase per car, not per person. More affordable than bus or guided tours!
Easy-to-use app: download Action’s Tour Guide App onto your phone
Perfect narrator: nothing can beat listening to a great voice. Proven with tons of rave reviews!
Offline maps: no signal, no problem! Works perfectly without cellular or wifi.
Comprehensive route and stops: See it all, miss nothing, leave no stone unturned!
Go at your own pace: Start anytime, pause anywhere, enjoy breaks for snacks and photos freely!
Hands-free: audio stories play on their own based on your location. Easy to use!
Engaging storytelling: Uncover unique tales, history, and facts for a memorable journey!
Attraction passes, entry tickets, or reservations
Options
Big Island Hawaii Self-Guided Driving Tour
Reviews
47 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Good tour. Give yourself plenty of time.
Susan R,Mar 6, 2026
- Review from Viator
4.00The 7-8 hour estimate for the tour doesn't count any stops you make along the way. It's a big island to drive around! Start early. Tour was informative. There were a few spots that required reservations that weren't marked on the tour. A few things that were closed (tsunami museum) or had far diff hours than listed.
Not easy for non-tech people
Peggy G,Feb 28, 2026
- Review from Viator
1.00Couldn't figure out how to get it to work in time. You need this code for this and that. Had to back out of app to get to email code.
Loved going solo and still getting “the rest of the story!”
Amy B,Feb 6, 2026
- Review from Viator
4.00Loved having a tour guide without a bus and crowd! An easy way to learn the history of a place and driving directions were good. We used the Hawaii bundle. It would have been helpful to have a zoomed out map that showed all of the available tours and the main points of interest so that we could decide in what order to do the tours and prioritize the things we wanted to see. We ended up missing a couple things we wanted to do because we didn’t have that big picture perspective to use our time wisely.
Big island audio self tour
Mcpc23,Dec 9, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
4.00the audio was good and informative-the only drawback was not starting at the designate starting spot and not being able to just pick up where we were on the road
Volcano National Park - awesome!
Jessica M,Sep 28, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00Great tour and easy to use. My only “but” is that it would have been helpful to know that the excursion into volcano national park was not the main park entrance. We were fortunate that the road was closed and we didn’t spend 40 minutes driving all the way to the end and then discover we had not seen the main park area. It would be helpful to advise the options well before the first entrance to Volcano National Park. The Volcano National Park was incredible - the highlight of our trip to Hawaii!
Disappointed in self driving tour
Randal T,Sep 27, 2025
- Review from Viator
1.00The self driving tour doesn't stay on track, repeats and completely detours around popular things to see like Cooks momument.
Helpful guide
Viola H,Sep 3, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00Lots of information about Hawaii and not very much about actual sights along the way but very professional. Was a little hard to find the starting points. It would be nice if you could pick it up somewhere along the route rather than having to go to the starting point.
Do this one!
christC2406BK,Aug 9, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Excellent self driving tour. The app employs good tech and has great information spanning the whole of the Big Island. One benefit is that you don't have to do all of it at one time.
The app and guide was...
Emily G,Aug 2, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00The app and guide was user friendly. A lot of great facts . It’s convenient that we can stop and finish the tour at our own pace. Reasonable price, great value.
Our First Self Driving Tour
Amy I,Jul 31, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00It was worth the price and made the drive a whole lot more interesting! We only drove bits and pieces of the island, but we learned a lot and stopped to see places and we otherwise would have driven right past! We enjoyed it and will consider doing more self guided driving tours in the future!
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