Keauhou and Kailua-Kona Shuttle Service on the Big Island

A new shuttle has started offering service in Kona – woo-hoo! It is called the Keauhou Shuttle. It is a new, open-air, 44-seat trolley-type shuttle. It’s free! (when I wrote this it was anyway, let me know if that has changed) It provides transportation in the Keauhou area and goes back and forth between Keauhou and Kailua-Kona eight times a day.

(If you are looking for a shuttle from the airport, try Speedishuttle)

The route is an hour-long loop. It departs from the Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort (which is right next to Kahalu’u Beach) to Keauhou Bay and back to the Outrigger – stopping at Keauhou shopping center, Kona Country Club, Keauhou Bay, Kailua Pier, Magic Sands Beach, and the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort and Spa. It runs from about 7:30 a.m. to 8:20 p.m.

When visitors think of Kona, or Kailua-Kona, they don’t often realize that there is more to the town than the crowded area clustered around the pier. Keauhou is an area of Kailua on the far south end of Ali’i Drive, which is the main drive along the ocean. It starts in front of the Kailua Pier and runs 7 miles, to just past the Outrigger. This shuttle can help you get from Kailua to Keauhou or vice versa. The best beaches are on the Keauhou side while the best shopping and nightlife is on the pier side, in my opinion.

Keauhou Shuttle Schedule
I visited the Sheraton Keauhou and got a trolley schedule from them – it says that the trolley starts in Kailua:

7:30 Kailua Pier
7:50 Keauhou Bay
7:55 Sheraton Keauhou
8:00 Kona Contry Club
8:05 Keauhou Shopping Center
8:10 Outrigger Keauhou
8:30 Magic Sands Beach
8:45 Kailua Pier
9:10 Outrigger Keauhou
9:15 Keauhou Shopping Center
9:20 Kona Country Club
9:25 Keauhou Bay
9:30 Sheraton Keauhou

and it goes on like this until 8:00 at night. Now, this is slightly different than another schedule I have seen online, so my guess is that the route is right and the times are not exact.

Below is a map of the area, starting at the Outrigger, and then satellite image of the area.

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View Larger Map