The view s on the way up and the top are awesome! I have done this several times and only once was there so much fog/clouds that no view was possible. Going with the visitor center people is great as you get a guide without the big $. Some people have a problem with the elevation. I have not but... More

We went with Hawaii Forest and Trail. The tour guide, Jon, was very knowledgeable and pointed out flora and fauna along the way. His star show was excellent. More

With four of us traveling, spending $800 for a summit tour was pretty much out of the question. We opted to roll the dice and rent a vehicle from Harper's Rental Agency in Kona. It is the only rental company that allows its vehicles to the summit. We arrived at Harpers and the check out procedure was almost intimidating. The... More

Views not to be missed at the summit. And telescopes too! Morning is best as the clouds start to roll into the saddle by afternoon. Not much to see at the visitor center, but it is a good stopping point for altitude acclimatization before proceeding to the summit. And take the altitude adjustment seriously. I live at 7500 ft, but... More

Cold but there are no words to describe. If you have the opportunity to watch the sunset then you would be a fool to miss it. Make sure to wear warm clothes More

We went to the summit with Hawaii Forest and Trail's Mauna Kea Summit & Stars Adventure Tour and would highly recommend this tour. Our tour guide was great! And it turned out to be the perfect place for my now husband to pop the question. Getting engaged at sunset while wearing a parka in Hawaii is something I will never... More

this is a very novel adventure b/c you can drive up in winter months to see snow in hawaii! :) you may be told otherwise, but it is usually fine to drive up in a standard car (aka: non 4-wheel drive). we took a ford mustang convertible to the summit (w/ the top UP, of course! LOL!). just drive very... More

loved it, check it out on the way to the national volcano parks... More

We only made it to the visitors center because our child was under 2, but we hiked a little bit across from the visitors center and the view was amazing. More