I just had the opportunity to spend a weekend on the Big Island of Hawaii.  It is a very unique island and I would recommend staying a week or longer in order to enjoy everything the island has to offer.

We stayed at the Waikoloa Beach Resort.  The resort had really grown since we were last there three years ago.  There were two new condo complexes and the Queens Marketplace.  The Queens Marketplace had a large grocery store, which was very convenient.  We stayed at one of the newer vacation rental complexes, Kolea.  It was right on the sandy beach in the resort and was one of the most luxurious vacation rentals I have ever stayed at.

Since it was a time to relax we spent most of the time at the beach, which was less than a two minute walk from our villa at Kolea.  The other day we went on a whale watch tour.  I have seen them thousands of time driving along the coast, but there is nothing like getting to see them up close.  I would highly recommend this to anyone visiting the Hawaiian Islands in the winter.  The tour took us by some whales on our way to Kealekekua Bay, which is a marine sanctuary on the Big Island of Hawaii.  They took us to an area where you could only get to by boat and we did some snorkeling.  There were tons of fish and they would swim right up to you.  It was some of the best snorkeling I have ever done.  On the way back to the harbor we spotted some spinner dolphins, which was great to cap off the trip.