Lying in the heart of the Kilauea summit, this crater is the abode of the almighty Pele, Goddess of fire and volcanoes.

When Mark Twain visited this 270 foot deep crater in the 19th century, he described it to be like “gazing at the sun at noon-day”, with “bursting gorgeous sprays of lava-gouts and gem spangles, some white, some red and some golden”. As you gaze into the steaming lava lake in the crater floor, at the bottom of which a red, ominous glow still emanates through the cracks, it’s not hard to conjure the picture that Twain painted in his journals. In 1924, the lava retreated below the surface once more, resulting in catastrophic steam explosions when the rain fell into the mouth of the volcano, hurling giant rocks around the rim of the crater. In 2015, the lava rose out of the earth’s belly and poured out over the crater floor, creating a lake of fresh lava 9 metres deep. The aftermath of these events can be seen as you hike The Halema'uma'u Trail.

This trek will take you from the lookout, across the kileau caldera and ends at the visitor’s centre on the other side. Along the way, there are 3 lookout places that will allow you to get as up close as possible within a 1 mile distance of the crater to soak in it’s true splendour; The most accessible Jaggar museum overlook, the newer and more secluded viewing area a short distance away from the Jaggar museum and the Kilauea overlook, closest to the high point of the caldera. Other ways to see the crater are to rent a bike or, for the adventure lovers, hop into a helicopter for a superior bird’s eye view.