Hilo, the largest city on the windward side of the Big Island, gets an average rainfall of 128 inches annually, making it the wettest city in the United States. Because of the rainfall, Hilo is tropical and lush, with rich vegetation and bright exotic flowers. The town sits on two shield volcanoes: Mauna Loa, an active volcano, and Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano.
Hilo’s bay front is a mix of shops, art galleries, specialty clothing stores, restaurants, an old theatre/art house, a weekly year-round farmer’s market and many parks. After being hit with two tsunamis, in 1946 and 1960, the town rebuilt it’s low-lying bay front areas as parks and memorials and now much of the community lives on higher ground. Hilo has Hawaii’s only tsunami museum and is also home to the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Corporation, one of the world’s largest suppliers of macadamia nuts.
Hilo was the center of political grown in the late 1700’s, under King Kamehameha’s rule, and then grew into a commercial center with the advent of missionaries, sugar plantations and other Western influences. Hilo hosts the Merrie Monarch Festival every year, which takes place after Easter, and is a week long celebration. Hilo is home to The University of Hawaii at Hilo and is served by the local Hilo International Airport.