• Kona was once the home to kings.Kona Skies image by Rick Chesler from Fotolia.com
  
  Kona is a district on the western, or leeward side of the Big Island of Hawaii. It lies south of the Kohala district and north of the Kau district. The island's massive volcanoes shelter Kona from rain and wind, making it one of the hotter, drier areas on the island. Because the island is so new you won't find the long stretches of white sand beach so common on the other islands. You will, however, find many activities. Famous for its annual International Billfish Tournament, the Ironman Triathlon and sumptuous Kona coffee, there is a lot to experience in Kona.
  
  

Kona Coffee Farms

• Nestled on the slopes of two of the Big Island's five volcanoes lie farms that produce some of the best gourmet coffee beans in the world. Kona coffee, as a crop, dates back to the 1820s and today there are a little over 700 coffee farms in Kona. Many of these farms offer tours where you can see how coffee is grown and learn about the process from the farm to the cup. You can find a list of these farms at the Kona Coffee Farmers Association website in the References section.
  
  

City of Refuge

• Imagine running--or swimming--for your life, with hordes of royal soldiers with spears and other weapons chasing you. If you can make it to the city of refuge, your crimes will be absolved and the death sentence lifted. This is a scenario that played out daily in ancient Hawaii. Kapu, or law, generally carried a death sentence if broken. The only way to overturn the sentence was to make it to refuge and a kahuna, or priest, for absolution. Pu'uhonua O Honaunau, now a national park, is once such city. Located in south Kona, Pu'uhonua O Honaunau has been painstakingly preserved and parts of it rebuilt. Here you can see the royal grounds and fish pond and the great wall that separates them from the commoner areas. Learn how the ancient Hawaiians built canoes and houses. If you do no other activity in Kona, visit Pu'uhonua O Honaunau.
  
  

Kealakekua Bay

• One of the best places to snorkel in Kona is Kealakekua Bay State Historical Park. Located a little over 30 minutes south of Kailua village, it is here that Captain James Cook first set foot on the island and, eventually, died. Although there is a monument on the shores of the bay, it is what is in the bay that is most fascinating. A national marine life conservation district, it is illegal to remove marine life, sand and coral from the bay around the monument. Because of this, it is teeming with life and snorkeling here is like snorkeling in a tropical fish aquarium. Several companies offer dive tours or you can drive to the bay and snorkel on your own.