Kailua-Kona, or simply Kona, is the biggest city on The Big Island, and thanks to the mountains that block out tropical storms, the city is a famously dry, sunny paradise, even by Hawaii standards.
Hawaiian royalty once made their summer homes here, and you can still visit the wealth of historical and cultural sites in and around Kona to get a feel for the past. To really get to know the island, head out to the sparkling beaches, jungle-covered mountains, and stark volcanoes for the trademarks of a Big Island adventure.
The Big Island is where beautiful scenery and culture converge, and Kona is within reach of it all.
Built out of lava rock in 1838, this unique palace of Hawaiian royalty represents the Westernized shift during the era, and showcases both European artifacts and spears from Kamehameha The Great.
Just on the outskirts of Kona, this beach is a well-known spot for snorkeling in the placid, shallow waters. It’s a sure thing that you’ll meet a sea turtle and schools of friendly fish.
Learn about the history and culture of Native Hawaiians at this beachfront park, where you hike through a lava field to a black sand beach to explore tidepools and petroglyphs.
Skip the car rental counter
Book a car in Kona to take in the Big Island at your pace. Make easy shifts between beachsides, resorts, lush valleys, to mountaintops and volcanoes. Safe travels!
Book the perfect carHead into the heart of the island to Mauna Loa and Kilauea, two of the world’s most active volcanoes, to watch showers of sparks fly into the ocean off the craggy coastline.
It’s a gorgeous drive across the island to this black sand Hilo beach, where you can swim in spring-fed pools and snorkel with sea turtles.
This verdant, historic river valley is home to Hawaii’s longest waterfall, taro farms, and a dramatic vista from the 2,000-foot cliffs. If you’re lucky, you’ll see a herd of horses strolling Waipio Black Sand Beach at the end of the hike.
Recent reviews
Chad was awesome and the car was great. And an awesome deal compared to regular rental companies.
Easy rental, first time using Turo and it was easier than any other rental agency! The car was perfect for my husband and I. Super economic and clean
Nick made this car rental process easy peasy and stress free. I appreciated the clear communication and not to mention the sweet ride! We loved venturing in the jeep and are already planning a trip back!
Awesome Jeep to get around the island. Great communication, easy pick up and drop off. This a Jeep and everything that comes with it. If you want a quiet/peaceful drive get it from the rental agency.
We couldn’t be happier with our experience with Turo. The car was perfect and Daphne was awesome! The car had great gas mileage that was nice with gas prices right now. Pick up and drop off was a breeze. Thank you Daphne for being a great host.
This car was wonderful - super clean, easy pick up/drop off at the airport, and the hybrid gives you great mileage (helpful with Hawaii’s more expensive gas prices!). I would definitely book this car again!
Very accommodating and polite Jenny is an awesome person with a great car. Her new car is a hybrid so it helps with the Hawaii gas prices. I give my experience a true thumbs up.
Great car, friendly folks we rented from! We were very grateful to get a car at a time all the rental companies in the big island were booked up!
The jeep was great for going all over the island! We went up to the Maunakea summit, which a lot of rental companies and Turo owners don't allow. CJ was also great to work with, responding quickly to any questions and offering a lot of good tips for where to go and what to see!
Picked up at the airport parking lot. Easier and faster than others in our party left waiting in line at the rental counter. The Jeep was spotless an in like new condition. Much more cargo space than expected, accommodated 4 large bags plus carryons.
The car was pristine! We had four people with luggage and it fit us all comfortably. It had all the new safety features and was a nice ride. The best part was how easy it was to get and return to the airport. Beats renting from a car rental agency. Highly recommend this vehicle.
This was our first time using Turo, and I may never use a rental agency again. It was so easy and Kalena and Jessica were extremely responsive and helpful. The car was just as advertised, very clean and no issues.
It was our first Turo renting, and one of the best renting experiences we ever have, period. Watch-out the other professional rental companies, turo is coming strong. Joseph is very easy to work with, very accommodating, very informative, great communication, and professional. His car is a new 4x4, spacious, easy to drive around, which makes our trip one of the best we ever have
My first Turo rental was fantastic. Communication with Jodie and her team was excellent as was the quality of the vehicle. I will never go back to the traditional rental car agency again.
Awesome car and service. Extremely clean and reliable. The vehicle was a hybrid and 30 mpg or better all the time. This is very important with the high gas prices on the island. January 2022 was around $4.65 per gallon. We used Uber for the quick drive to their property. Fast and easy drop off and return.
TK was a great host, and the car was in tip-top condition. He responded almost immediately to inquiries with kind, clear, helpful directions. This was my first experience with Turo, and I definitely preferred it over working with a rental agency. I would look for TK again if I were back in Hawaii.
car worked perfectly for our trip to the big island. easy pick up and drop off. Jeff was very easy to work with and we saved some money which is always a bonus. Rather support Jeff than rental car companies in HI that get huge tax breaks.
Kalena and Jessica were great host and when we dropped the vehicle off they had just driven in. Kalena offered to drop off at the airport instead of having to get other transportation. The vehicle pick up is just a few miles from the airport but his generosity spoke volumes to us. The Kia drove very well and in good condition. We drove from one side of the island to the other and had no issues. Good on mileage which is great given gas prices in Hawaii. We did this at the last minute as the airport had no availability. Never heard of Toro until then but would definitely use again.
This was our first Turo rental. I think this Turo rental exceeded regular car rentals. One can find cars in Turo that are normally not available with rental car companies. Ryan's Jeep was totally clean and he had no restrictions like rental companies have. Ryan was very professional, friendly, courteous, his inventory is totally amazingly clean and all terrain performers. I think other Turo hosts can take Ryan as role model. Kudos Ryan. I'll rent again with you!!
Mike provided a trouble free SUV rental, with easy pick-up and drop-off at Kona airport for my week traveling in the Hilo area. Would rent a vehicle from him again.
Super easy to work with. We set up pick up at both ends of the trip. Way faster and easier than regular rental car companies. Definitely would use again!!
Claude is hands down the best host on Turo!!! He worked with us and made our first Turo experience exceptional!!! His Kia Niro helped us put high gas price worries behind us! If you are visiting the big island, you have to Turo from Claude 🤙
We booked this 2016 Nissan Rogue, and it was the perfect vehicle for our party of three on 5-day trip. If you're visiting the Big Island and are planning to see as much as possible, then you need a car. The Rogue was easy to drive, park and jump in-and-out on our power sightseeing days. We own the exact same vehicle back at home. The cost to Turo this SUV was more than 50% less than renting a compact car from the cheapest rental car company. It gets great gas mileage! We drove about 550 miles and only had to fill it up twice - that's less than $100 spent on gas. It's a SUV with good leg room and plenty of space in the back for a cooler, backpacks, boogie boards and snorkel gear. The AC and short distance drives were great breaks from the heat/humidity. This Rogue has the interior floor mats, for the sand and mud (if you go hiking) - it helps keep the mess to a minimum. We also added the pre-paid cleaning fee to our rental, which was well worth it. We recommend selecting this vehicle and supporting this host with your reservation. Tips about driving on the island: • Respect the Rogue. It is not a sports car or for off road driving. BUT!! - It will comfortably get you and your passengers to any of the hundreds of tours, beaches, bays, activities, monuments, lookout points, restaurants, gardens, parks, or waterfalls to see/visit. • Respect the locals, and don't drive fast. Be patient. You will end up behind someone driving slow. It happened to us many times, but it was no big deal. We safely got to EVERY spot on our many lists. • Drive the speed limit. It is the "Big" Island, but you can drive across the middle from Kona-to-Hilo (less than 90 miles) in less than 1.5-2 hours. • Wake up early and get out the door. The best of the Big Island is seen during the day. Take it all in. There are interesting things to see and amazing views everywhere. • Pay attention while driving to each destination. Some of the roads are narrow with no guard rails.
Pick up and drop off went without a hitch. Just know you’ll have to take a short Uber ride over to Costco area to pick up car (about $15). Frank would have met me at airport to pick up car on our last day but unfortunately, he had to be in Hilo. Give yourself time to Uber back to airport if you have to drop off at same location near Costco. Uber was low on drivers. Had to wait 15 mins and price for ride went up from $15 to $27. Still, great savings renting from Turo even with added costs. Car sits 5 very comfortably. Can certainly sit 6 or even 7 people but you won’t have much room for luggage if you do. Keep that in mind. Car worked perfectly. Frank was always available for any issues. He gave me his # so I can call him with any issues. Highly recommend!!
Great little car. It drove really well and we were very happy with it. TK is a good communicator and easy to deal with. The price is very good too.
Leolinda is a fantastic host! There was an issue with the original car we booked, but (with our agreement) she found a replacement for us and helped us through the rebook process to honor the original price we booked. She also coordinated and paid for taxi pick up and drop off to/from Kona airport for us. Check in and check out was a breeze with self-service lockbox. The car was very clean, fuel efficient, comfortable, and reliable. Leolinda made this part of our trip stress-free. Thank you for sharing with us the friendly aloha Hawaiian spirit!!
This was our first trip with Turo and it was great! Jenny was super flexible with our pick up time and the jeep was exactly what we needed to drive around Kona for the day! The car was clean and drove well everywhere.
Best Turo rental on the island! The car was perfect and clean. The extras offered are a must. Mahalo Jeff 🤙🏾
Felt like borrowing a friends car for the weekend. Cleaner than my personal car, but certainly not that stringent, anxiety-driving rental car clean. I was able to relax and enjoy my trip!
Second time renting this vehicle from Gary. He and his wife are very helpful and accommodating with meeting us at the airport and getting us the vehicle to the return. They are fantastic to deal with. I appreciate how nice this all went. The Nissan Rogue is a great vehicle for touring the big island. We have been all over the island between our two trips with the vehicle. Comfortable, reliable, and decent fuel mileage, which is a good thing here. We had three adults traveling on this trip and always had plenty of room on our adventures. I hope that this vehicle is available for our next trip here.
Solid jeep! Will is super responsive and worked with our change in itinerary to get us the car earlier than we had originally asked. I’ll be sure to seek another rental from him on my next trip to the Big Island!
Our host was super friendly & helpful, quick to respond, answered all our questions, provided a good looking, clean, super durable, dependable, quality vehicle at a good price!!! Not a minute spent worrying about it. 💗
First time using Turo and it was great! Daphne's pre-trip and post-trip communications were excellent. We got to her car in about one minute once we had our luggage (much faster than a rental car agency). The car was spotless and in great shape. Good gas mileage as well. I will rent from Daphne again on our next trip to the Big Island.
Bethany was very friendly and made renting a car from Turo so comfortable as this was my first experience. From the beginning of communicating with her, I knew I was dealing with someone who was courteous and professional. Then when I went to pick up the car, she immediately had an aloha connection with my mom who absolutely adored her. Bethany called my mom “Aunty” as is customary in Hawaiian culture and my mom was so pleased with meeting with her. I will rent from Bethany from here on out and not going through big name rental car companies! I much prefer the personal touch and know that I am helping a local person or “kamaaina” instead of a large corporation.
Nice family that really wants to make your experience the best it can be. Rental Car companies are extremely expensive , if you can find a car at all. Met for pickup and drop off at the airport. The car ran smoothly and was reliable. Windows could not be rolled up from driver’s side, but other than that, the car was solid. This was our first time using Turo and we would do it again if rental cars are scarce. These are good people
John provided us with a great car for our trip exploring the island. It got very good gas mileage, was reliable and clean, just perfect for our needs. Just a note, we saw a couple of places that recommended four-wheel drive, and we opted not to go there. It looked like those roads definitely needed higher clearance than a standard SUV
Claude was an amazing host. Car was spotless when we came to pick it up and he made the Turo rental process seamless. Upon return he was very flexible and went above and beyond to help me get back to the hotel safely. Thank you Claude. I will rent from you again when I am back on the big island!
Really enjoyed exploring the Big Island in Anna's brand new Jeep. The pickup and dropoff were effortless. The Jeep was handed to us clean and with beach gears loaded. Anna was very responsive to all my questions and requests throughout the trip and also gave me great tips on where to go. The Jeep drove great with its new A/T tires (not the regular road tires you'll find on the Jeeps from rental companies). We were able to summit Mauna Kea, go down to Waipio Valley and visit green sand beach without any issues (We did ask for Anna's prior permission for driving the 4x4 only roads).
Ride in luxury. Vehicle ran great. Smooth cruising. Best part of the car is the panoramic sunroof. Almost felt like a convertible. Will rent again next time I’m on island.
Perfect family vehicle for this island! Brandon was super mellow, I accidentally booked our trip from 12 am to 12 am but I I actually meant 12pm - 12pm and Brandon was communicative and professional about the mistake. He did not give me a hard time about the inconvenience. Brandon and I spoke a few times via text once I made the reservation. He did not bother us or make anything a hassle. He was responsive and the SUV was waiting for us as planned with no hiccups or surprises. We took the vehicle to the Hilo side one day a checked out a few water falls along the way. We could fit everything we needed and more. We used the USB to listen to music on our iPhones as there is both aux and usb jacks in the car. Pick up and drop off were both hassle free and I will be renting from Brandon next time we come to the island.
Brannon was very accommodating & responsive. The Jeep was fabulous and ran very smoothly. Made our trip so much easier, for a great price! Would 100% rent again!
As we expected the Soul was a fun and zippy car to drive. What we didn't expect was a fender bender, Totally our fault. Yet Amy dealt with it so well, understanding that we didn't realize what had happened until after the trip. Amy communicated with our tired travel brains and quickly arranged for the repairs at a fair and reasonable cost. We weren't surprised by Amy's fabulous customer service. She brought the car right to the arrival area and let us return it at the curb. Best rental service we've had. Thank you Amy!
Great car for our trip! Fit all 6 in our family comfortably. Ryan was very friendly and accommodating
Great car, clear instructions, friendly service. Car was conveniently located steps from our airport terminal. The cooler, chairs, body board and umbrella were a great feature we happily used! I would certainly recommend renting from Shawn. Mahalo for helping making our vacation go smoothly.
The best Jeep to rent in the Big Island, host is super cooperative when it comes to your needs. Some beach available if requested, I will definitely rent this Jeep again.
Fantastic rental experience. Ethan was communicative and the vehicle was clean and in good condition. The delivery and pickup was a nice perk!
Great communication with Kalena! Very accommodating too! The Kia Soul is a perfect car for cruising the island and it’s great on gas. We loved everything about this booking! We’ll definitely rent from Kalena again our next trip!
Great vehicle! Got good gas mileage, super cute, had no issues whatsoever. This vehicle worked out so nice for my trip, and I'd rent from Randyl again if I ever decide to visit the big island again.
We had a great experience with Bill. The car was super clean, it was available on time at the airport and large enough for our family of 5. Bill’s instructions were easy to follow and I would high recommend renting from Bill.
Loved, LOVED this rental! Kalena was amazing to work with and the process was so easy. I can’t recommend these folks enough! Absolutely FIVE STARS from me!!!
Ryan’s keep renegade was the perfect vehicle for this magical trip. It was able to handle everything we threw at it (within reasonable limits of what the contract allowed, of course). And it was supremely comfortable with excellent side and rear visibility and high ground clearance. It is also equipped with a very good GPS system. In particular, Waipio Valley and Mauna Kea were challenges that it handled splendidly. The low gear and downslope modes are intuitive and allowed us to drive with total confidence on sometimes harrowing roads. For a car of this type, the gas mpg was also quite good. Ryan himself was a wonderful and chill guy, who made us feel totally comfortable and welcome before, during and after the trip. He provided valuable tips about places to visit, and was totally up front and responsive during the trip, and gave us confidence that someone had our backs. We forgot to bring our tripod for astrophotogeaphy on Mauna Kea, and he stepped up with a very good tripod that he sold to us at a very reasonable price. On the last day when we were late for our flight, he even drove us to the airport!! A stand up guy all round and someone you can rent one of his excellent fleet of jeeps from with total confidence.
Nick is amazing and really great and efficient with his turo rentals. He’s got it down! Highly recommend and the car was so incredible. Five stars!! See you again soon
We had the EASIEST pick up and drop off experience. The host is so kind and responds promptly. We had ZERO issue with anything with the 4-Runner. The host included a cooler, beach chairs, beach mats, and a boogie board — all of which were SO helpful on our trip. If we ever come back to the Big Island we will 1000% be renting from Shawn again. We traveled with 2 adults and 2 kids. I highly recommend this host and vehicle.
Kalena was a great host that really worked with us, he delivered the vehicle to our condo and picked it up from our condo at the end of our trip!! The Kia was clean, in great condition and the gas tank was full. I will definitely rent from Kalena during our next trip to Hawaii!!
Mychelle with Fantastic Race Kona was super helpful and accommodating from the moment we booked our vehicle rental. We only needed her Jeep rental for one day so we could go up to the Mauna Kea summit, and she offered tips and information every step of the way, including a personal tutorial on how to use 4WD so we would feel comfortable and safe. When our flight into Kona got delayed by 3 hours and we needed to adjust our rental time at the last minute, Mychelle was promptly responsive and communicative. She also helped us with some itinerary planning so we could make the most of our 3 short days on Big Island. Book with Fantastic Race, you won’t regret it! Thank you so much for a wonderful first time Turo experience!!
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Take this route at the Hawaii Volcano National Park in your Kona car rental alternative for glimpses of fresh lava flow, petroglyph sites, and the dramatic 4,000-foot drop from crater to coast.
Take Highway 137 in your Kona car rental alternative through tunnels of trees just off the Puna coast until Isaac Hale Beach Park, where the road was cut off by lava flow.
Head south in your Kona car rental alternative to pick up Highway 160 in Captain Cook and ribbon your way through the lush green forests where farmers grow coffee. Catch Highway 11 back up to town.
* Any personal insurance you may have that covers damage to the host’s vehicle would kick in before your protection plan, except in limited situations for trips booked in Maryland, but this protects your own wallet. Liability insurance is provided under a policy issued to Turo by Travelers Excess and Surplus Lines Company. Terms, conditions, and exclusions apply. The policy does not provide coverage for damage to a host’s vehicle.
For questions or information about the third party liability insurance that is included in protection plans, consumers in Maryland and the licensed states listed here may contact Turo Insurance Agency at (415) 508-0283 or [email protected] For questions about how damage to a host’s vehicle is handled, visit the Turo Support site.
When a trip is booked in the state of Washington, physical damage to the host’s vehicle is covered by insurance purchased by Turo, but Turo’s insurance does not change the contractual responsibilities of hosts or guests with respect to physical damage to a host’s vehicle.