Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Visitor Center

Lovely home to the most popular macadamia nut companies in the world. Huge expansive acreage of macadamia nut trees with a lovely visitor center with a wide variety of macadamia nut products. Huge assortment of flavors combined with souvenirs makes this famous nut factory a must stop on the big island.

This is the visitor center of the world-largest Macadamia nut farm on earth. We visited the nice store and bought some of the delicious and healthy nuts. They offer a wide variety of Macadamias, salted, chocolate covered and much more. The Royal Hawaiian Orchards are worth a visit too. There is plenty of free parking right in front of the visitor center.

A neat stop to learn the history of the nut on the island. They also have a little garden area you can wander around and take pictures of some beautiful shrubs, trees and flowers. But the best part is the tasting of lots of varieties of nuts. We bought way too many varieties lol.

If you’re into Macadamia nuts, this is a neat stop. The short intro video gives you some background on macadamias and the company. The Nature trail is actually a walk through a garden with various plants, not really focused on macadamias. The factory store has all the varieties of Mauna Loa Macadamia products and also Hawaiian Host plus some swag with their company logo.

We visited as part of a NCL shore excursion, and we were not disappointed. The free samples were awesome, and we enjoyed walking the grounds and seeing the different plants and trees. The star of the show was the Macadamia Nut Croissants!!! Best ever!!!

Great, clean place with fantastic selection of macadamia nut produce. Recommend the nature trail where you can learn the names of various plants that grow on the island.

Very friendly staff and lots of samples to try. Clean bathrooms and a lovely little garden in the back. The factory is closed on weekends but the store was open. We grabbed some ice cream for the road.

Short Nature walk behind the Visitor Centre was nice! Cool to see Macadamia Nut trees! FREE samples before you buy was a nice touch!

If you're looking for something to do for a little bit (like 15 minutes tops). I wouldn't go out of my way to come here, but it's still pretty neat to see. The drive through the trees was the best part. Lots of sweet treats to buy and samples.

Walking the farm and getting the product straight from the source is pretty cool. It's pretty awesome to watch the workers in the assembly line hand pick the nuts to ensure quality. This stop is a must whenever visiting the island.

This place is cute but it definitely not the attraction it used to be. The packaging area was closed on the weekend and nothing was going on in the factory. The staff was kind and there is a Photo Booth which was fun. They do give you 3 macadamia nuts to try. There's also a nature walk outside and the staff told us we could take home the ripe star fruit that was delicious and ready to eat.

While in Hilo, I read about this factory and was expecting I can have a tour. Unfortunately, all I had closest to a tour is reading posters around the plant area. Interesting still, but the plant is closed already around 3ish. Windows allow visitors to peep in. The Visitor Center though was open and there's a Nature Walk outside. It's a huge garden with many trees of different species but not a single macadamia tree. Also. A video continuously plays how they process the macadamia nuts. To see the trees, it's on a long drive into the company, acres and acres of macadamia trees. It's nice to be able to sample all flavors of macadamia nuts. There's also ice cream which I expected nuts in them but my Strawberry Guava flavored ice cream had none.

This is the cheapest place to purchase Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut products probably anywhere in the world. However, not all bags are priced equally. Check the value of your purchase by taking the price and dividing by the number of ounces in the bag. Using that method, the cheapest option is buying the 8 oz bags. The tiny sample packs at 0.6 oz each are the next best value, and just ignore the 4 oz cups that have a "deal" on buying three - they're the most expensive. Samples are given freely here and it's free to visit and park.

Could be so much better and touristy. I don't know why this company doesn't ramp up visitor space. The hostesses seem like they would rather be anywhere in the world but here. But the road on the way in highlights the gorgeous macadamia nut trees and the visitor center sells every kind of macadamia nut you could want. The kids got Rocky Road ice cream while we forced them to endure the macadamia nut processing video. It really was cheesy but fun and we learned a little about the process. Like others have said, don't go out of your way to check this place out but if on your way to the volcano it's a fun snack stop.

There really isn't much of a reason to stop here. It's a store next to the factory, but the prices aren't any less than if you bought Mauna Loa nuts elsewhere- and they're all over Hawaii. We got one sample. There wasn't ice cream or anything else available like previous reviews have said. It appeared that part of the store was shuttered and empty. Also sad the Macadamia Nut photo op was gone. I asked about it and they said he didn't survive covid. Quick stop - less than 30 minutes and would not drive out of the way for it.

Nice free activity to do on the big island. It was hot and humid and the store was nicely AC! Which we love. Learned a lot about macadamia nuts! We purchased a lot of nuts!!! The Toffee one is our favorite. We also enjoyed the nature walk and picked a few star fruits off the tree and ate them. Fresh fruits right off the tree is always refreshing and delicious!

This place is great. We just went to the visitor center as my parents live in Hawaii and have been a bunch. We tasted samples of different kinds and walked around to see other products. They had some icecream by the pint and some other beauty products. It was very clean and the displays were simple and showed off the product. The woman helping us was very kind and she used some jokes as well. Can't wait to go back!

The 3 mile drive through the macadamia nut groves is interesting. There are several buildings including a visitors center after the groves. The visitors center is open and carry's a wide variety of nuts, candies and Macademia nut themed articles. There is also a room of other Hawaii produced products for purchase. The prices are pretty high in my opinion. One of the most interesting things is a self guided tour of the Macademia Nut factory. We were there on a Sunday, so production was closed, but you could get the idea of the operation from posters. There are nice restroom facilities in the visitors center. Parking lot holds about 30 cars.

Here it is !! Mauna Loa's Macadamia Nut Headquarters. Easy to find only 6 miles East of Hilo on the Volcano's National Park highway. You drive a few miles through the groves & it ends at the visitor center. All kinds of free samples, beverages, theme clothing to key chains & refrigerator magnets. If you find yourself in Hilo, Hawaii, don't miss great experience

A fun place to stop and shop for macadamia nuts! I think this place has lower reviews because people are expecting a tour, but it really is a shop! They offer 10 different nut samples from sweet to savory. It was fun walking around and deciding which flavors to get. They weren't too busy when we stopped by, so we were able to take our time looking around. The ice cream section was closed, which was a bit disappointing but we stopped by at the local grocery store to try it and it was tasty and dairy free!! I now have a new go to ice cream to buy at the stores.

This place isn't going to take you long to see, but it is free (they have a gift shop, but samples are free). You can also go to the factory and see the boxing and jarring in progress. I think it would be more fun to see the actual processing of the macadamia nuts, but they do have large signage that go over the history of the company and the process. They also have a self guided nature walk, but they don't have labels on the trees, just QR codes - which is fine EXCEPT they don't have wifi and I had no signal way out there, so it is just a stroll in grass looking at random trees. It was a nice diversion in the Hilo area. I would say it is worth the trip! You do get a nice drive through the macadamia nut trees.

The shop is a little small and the items were very limited. They give you a sample of about 10 different flavors when you walk in. Then the hostess tells a little story about the macadamia nut process and they direct you to a tree outside in their botanical garden and dare you to crack it, wow they are hard. The ice cream shop was closed and they were sold out on a lot. But it's a great spot to stop on your way to hilo from Kona and stretch your legs.

Don't waste time going here. Only a gift shop. Keep driving and save 30 min of your life to do something more exciting like watch grass grow. Too bad cannot select a ZERO!

I love macadamias so of course I had to visit. Although I did end up spending over $150 there. So many flavors of macadamias, both alone and covered with different chocolates. Even white chocolate and matcha ones. I know right? Any how they give you some free samples which got me looked on the Maui onion and BBQ flavors. There is a Photo Booth that you can take pictures and send to yourself. Also there is a nice garden to enjoy macadamia trees and many other flowers and plants. I really had a good time there. We saw some Mac nuts and their flower on the tree so I thought it was pretty cool. Oh did I mention the ice cream you can purchase to enjoy out in the garden???? Stop by. You won't regret it. (But your wallet might cuz it's hard to resist)

What's happened to Mauna Loa macadamia nuts? Over the past several months I've purchased both the little plastic tubs and the metallic plastic bag, and neither option had the usual fresh crunchy nuts that we're accustomed to. In both instances they were soggy and stale. I returned them to the store (Kona Costco) for a refund. Some of my farmer friends have said that Mauna Loa no longer purchases nuts from the local farmers, but buys the cheaper imported foreign nuts. Is this why the quality has dropped so dramatically? Or is it the change in packaging that causes them to become stale? Or both? At any rate, they're too expensive to keep buying only to find out they're stale/inferior. Not worth the hassle. Sigh.

Fun experience! Self guided look at how the process works with the nuts. There's history to read through. The gift shop is nice with local gifts & free samples! Yummy! Friendly staff & great service.

This was an interesting experience. On the one hand you'll get to buy and try a ton of different flavored nuts but on the other hand you won't get much to see in terms of the plant. They discontinued the factory tour and now you have to walk along windows on a boardwalk outside of the plant to peek into the factory while reading signs about the processes they do. They have a nature walk that is basically a garden but I'd warn anyone that has trouble walking as it is all grass on uneven ground. The staff was friendly and the shop was sparse but still nice. I was a little disappointed.

This used to be a decent company with a fair product. Under the original owners I would give it an 8 out of 10. When Hersey bought them it dropped to 7 but was still edible. Hawaiian Host is the current owner. The product has deteriorated to the point that it is unfit for consumption. The broken and small nuts are bad enough but the rancid ones are horrible. I had two bags in a row that were horrid. I called them three times over three weeks before I made a contact. I told them they own me the product. they listened politely and then told me there was nothing they could do. They only get a one so it rates. A zero is actually more like it. The nuts are so bad they might make a person ill.

This is not a factory tour anymore. It's an overpriced gift shop that has a seating area that plays a video on repeat showing what happens in the factory. Ignore all the old photos showing people walking to viewing glasses of the factory - those are in the past. There is a short nature walk which you would assume would cover various stages of Macademia tree growth or similar. Wrong, it's just a poorly labeled collection of various plants/trees. There are no unique flavors or items I noticed here either - standard commercial stuff from any Hawaii store and at possibly even higher prices here. Most coffee farms know how to do tours so it's clearly a choice on the behalf of Mauna Loa nut company. Absolute hard skip - not worth your time driving to it or visiting.

Cool place to stop and try the macadamia nut candy. The gift shop is fun and they sell all types of macadamia nuts flavors. The prices are often better at Target. The drive into the visitors area is awesome as you pass thousands of Macadamia Nut trees. There is a self guided tour of the factory where you get to see the workers packing up the chocolates. Unfortunately, no free tasting and they no longer have ice cream to purchase. Customer service is really good and the place is bright and organized. Lots of boards with good information about the history of the company. Overall glad I stopped, nice experience.

staff is friendly, store is clean, food is good, variety of options, price is somewhat reasonable, plaza parking

Try and visit during the week. Unfortunately we came on a Sunday, so we couldn't see the packaging in action. Not only do they have all the mac flavors, they also feature local artisans and small businesses. Great place to buy some souvenirs and gifts. They have a little photo booth set up too.

Saw this on the map when we were headed out back to Kona on our trip. Absolutely had to stop in and check it out. I thought it was going to be right off the main highway but it's definitely a little further back. Was worth the drive back as the Mac nut snacks are so so good here! Be warned that there are flavors for everyone's flavor palate so if you dare stop in....theres most certainly something for everyone here. They girls here were so nice and explained the visitor center when we walked in as well as offered free samples of some of the popular flavors. Plenty of local items to choose from in the back section as well.

I was hoping to catch the factory tour, but no such luck. I did come and do the visitor center where you can walk about and view the garden they have on campus. I also shopped around their visitor center. When you walk in you are greeted by a friendly faced staff member whom offers you samples of the macadamia nuts. Walking round the shop you can see and buy local venders that have partnered with Mauna Loa Mac nut center- from mushroom chocolate to local honey you can get all your shopping done here. I will say that when I went they had the strawberry white chocolate covered macadamia nuts that were nearly sold out and they pretty much ruined my life because I have never tasted anything better. It was easily a sweet treat for the remainder of my trip and I am certain that I bought out the last few packs they had (partnered with Hawaiian Host). Joey I think was the name of the staff member and she was fabulous! The garden is incredible. And I walked away with yummy treats for all of my family.

Do not buy their macadamias with choc in a plastic container (they used to be in a tin can). There is hardly any mac nuts just a little balls of chocolate. There's probably 4 full mac nuts, the rest are small pieces covered with chocolate. They are as small as a raisins. Thumbs down! Will not go back again.

Cute little stop to check out their selection. They give you a few samples when you walk in but the staff who handed em out didn't have that Island love feeling. The ice cream is worth the stop! It's Vegan and so so delish! The woman who checked us out did have that Island warm feeling and she was super sweet when she spoke about her fav ice cream flavor.

I just received an order for roasted macadamia nuts with sea salt, six pack although the expiration date was good and they were sealed the nuts were rancid. Just horrible.

While I haven't been to the factory in Hilo, I've eaten my fair share of macadamia nuts from Mauna Loa. They sell a variety of dry roasted and chocolate-covered macadamia nuts in cans and pouches of different sizes. BRIEF HISTORY: Planting started in 1946 with its first harvest 10 years later. The company has changed hands over the years, once owned by C. Brewer & Co. (one a big Hawaii territory-based company), Hershey, and currently owned by Hawaiian Host. MY FAVORITES: Maui Onion & Garlic If you're on Maui, the best place to buy these are at Long's Drug in Maui Mall as the 10 ounce bags are always on sale for $9.99. These are dry roasted macadamia nuts coated in a heavenly, salty seasoning. Most of the nuts are halved but you get a whole piece once in a while. Sea Salt Simply seasoned with salt, you get the full flavor spectrum of the macadamia nut in this one. Honey Roasted I love honey roasted peanuts but for some reason don't enjoy them as much with mac nuts. The flavors are similar, a mix of sweet and savory and a bit sticky when chewing. Chocolate-Covered Unlike parent company Hawaiian Host, the Mauna Loa version are individually coated balls rather than larger clusters of chocolate. I prefer the latter as more chocolate is always better! TIPS: Costco Kahului sells a big tub of snack-sized 0.5 ounce pouches with a mixed variety of flavors. Raw macadamia nuts taste absolutely delish. If you ever get a chance to try some, I highly recommend it. OVERALL: The best choice for dry roasted macadamia nuts, period.

There are no tours, but it was still worth the visit. Large gift shop offers free samples. I would have liked to have purchased a T-shirt, but the only size they had were size small. They didn't have any ice cream either. The garden was nice. Be sure to grab a map that is at the door to the garden so you can identify the plants. There were no macs on the ground that day to pick up. The video playing outside in the patio is excellent.

Whether or not you have been to Hawaii before, you probably have come across chocolate covered macadamia nuts. After all, chocolate covered macadamia nuts are among the most popular gifts to bring back from Hawaii. They are affordable, tasty, and found in every gift shop and grocery store in Hawaii. There are a few different brands to choose from. Personally, I prefer Hawaiian Host's chocolates just because they have been the brand I have been gifted the most. However, Mauna Loa's products are made on the Big Island so they make a slightly more personal gift when visiting the Big Island. The factory and visitor center are located in Hilo. It is a short 3 mile drive from the entrance to the buildings. During that drive, enjoy looking at the macadamia orchards and reading some facts posted on the signs along the road. Parking is easy and is right outside the buildings. The visitor center is to the left, and the factory is to the right. I recommend visiting the factory first while your hands are still free from shopping bags. It is a very quick walk up and down the stairs and along the side of the building. The factory tour is basically looking through the windows and reading facts on the walls. The last few times I went to the factory, parts of the tour area were closed off. It is not much of a tour, but it is good enough since there are much more fun things to do in Hawaii than learning about macadamia nuts in depth. Outside the visitor center, you will see a giant inflatable can of macadamia nuts and the macadamia nut mascot. Enjoy the photo opportunities there. Inside the visitor center, you can sample all the different macadamia nut flavors. This is where Mauna Loa stands out from their competitors. There are 12 flavors. Some of the flavors are Maui onion & garlic, mango chipotle, honey sriracha, Kona coffee glaze, milk chocolate, and dark chocolate. Of course, there are the plain salted and unsalted ones too. These nuts are sold in little 5 ounce cans or in the bigger 10 ounce bags. Buy at least 5 of the bigger bags to get a free insulated bag. Aside from macadamia nut products, there are other gift items such as shirts, coffee, and also pearls. There is even an ice cream shop too. Cool off with some ice cream while watching the factory tour video, or go take a walk in the little garden. The items in the gift shop might not be the best deal. They might be cheaper in a grocery store or at Costco depending on the sales going on, but the stuff at the visitor center are priced within reason. You can find Mauna Loa products anywhere in Hawaii, but it is nice to be able to visit the factory and get their products at the source.

Terrible food quality. And worse customer service. They should be ashamed So sad. Terrible.

Despite the most recent reviews I had a great time when I visited! I was immediately greeted by Karen who offered me samples, provided me with a brief explanation on how the nuts were harvested, and explained a bit about the property. She then suggested I take a look at the local items they sell there, go on the nature walk to check out all the fruit trees, and to take a picture at their photo booth set up there! I did not once feel pressured to buy anything but simply to explore and have a great time! The items are a bit expensive but I splurged and got a bag to share with a family member! Karen needs a raise because she is the best!!

We didn't even know we would be driving past until we past the sign for the visitor center. So we did a U turn and went back. Hey we're on vaca and thought we are here why not be total tourist. The drive thought the grove was impressing, then the visitor center was very impressive. The person that greeted us was very friendly and knowledgeable and showed us all the stages of the Macadamia nut and gave us some free samples. Also took us on a tour of the tropical gardens and encouraged us to pick some star fruit from their tree. It was worth the stop and yes we did pickup some Macadamia nuts right from the source.

the nuts packaged in plastic cans are rancid. ever since they stopped using metal cans the nuts aren't good.

So SAD there is no snack bar in the back anymore! Also now you don't get to try ANY of the chocolate covered Mac Nut flavors! To view the making and preparation of the Mac Nut candies in the factory is NOT available!!!! This used to be a treat and a fun adventure whenever we came and now SO boring and not fun anymore!!!! I rate this place with 1 stars!!!!

The service, ambiance and food is great definitely worth driving in the farm and try their products

Nice visitor center and outdoor garden you can walk around. Factory tour is currently not available.

Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't. Actually, I always feel like having macadamia nuts! I'm nuts for these nuts! We stopped by the shop and were amazed by all the different flavors of macadamia nuts Mauna Loa had available. There are some tasty varieties you won't be able to find on the mainland so I stocked up on a few! I loved that you can have free samples of any of the flavors and the person giving out samples was very nice and friendly. The sriracha honey was one of my favorites and I liked that they offered other varieties such as cookies and cream, mango chipotle as well as Kona coffee glazed. They also have unsalted macadamia nuts for a good price too if you buy a multi-can set. If getting macadamia nuts at a macadamia nut factory isn't your thing, have no fear! They also sell general Hawaii gift shop items and there's a jewelry area. I did get a bit annoyed that I bought a bag, thinking it was a good deal, only to find out they were selling it cheaper when we went to the local Foodland in Haleiwa a few days later! Go figure.

So, unfortunately, we were not very impressed with this tour. My bad for not looking more into it before driving almost 2 hours to go there. My party was visiting from RI & my brother-in-law loves macadamia nuts, so touring the factory seemed like an obvious thing to do. We were initially excited when we saw an adorable giant inflated macadamia nut perfectly positioned for a touristy photo op. But, sadly, the excitement ended there. The "tour" was completely self guided & a complete waste of time. You climbed a set of stairs that took you to a series of windows into which you could look down to view certain parts of the factory. There was supposed to be a video to explain what we were looking at, but it wasn't working; there was a sign directing us to view it in the gift shop. There was also a "photo gallery"....and by photo gallery, they meant a few posters with the evolution of the brand development. Another wast of time. We next went to the gift shop. #overpriced! The only good thing I got out of it was that I got to sample a lot of different flavors that were new to me. They tried to sell us some, but we had seen many of the exact same items at the Walmart near our hotel for several dollars less/bag, so we didn't buy any there. And that video promised by the tour...not running. The cashier seemed nice, as did the woman handing out the samples. Unfortunately, this was just a colossal waste for us. Wish I knew before we drove all that way...sigh...

" Nice Place With Nice Employees " The Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut factory is a must see if you are touring around the island of Hilo. We spent about an hour at the factory walking around and looking at where the Macadamia Nuts are actual boxed up for sale. They also have very nice employees giving samples inside the store of all different kinds of Macadamia Nut products. YUM ! They also have an outside covered restaurant seating area where you can enjoy some lunch items if you want. We would definitely go back to Mauna Loa.

Hilo has loads of things to do and one of the places we visited was the Macadamia Nut factory and gift shop Amazing experience and boys enjoyed seeing the whole process of taking the self guided nature walk We ended up spending couple hours just seeing the process and enjoy some samples

The recent use of plastic containers for nuts is spoiling faster than the prior aluminum cans. Our recent purchases have a bad after-taste of old nuts and oil. Many friends also complained about giving out bad-tasting nuts to foreign recipients saying the same. Mauna Loa should look into this before the brand is tainted.

This is definitely a good tourist spot if you're visiting the Big Island. It's located on the Hilo side of the island. If you're staying in Kona it's about an hour drive. You can tour the factory to see how they package the macadamia nuts. There's a souvenir shop that sells all the varieties of macadamia nuts and you can sample them all. They have some discounts if you buy a lot. They also have some souvenirs you can buy. There's plenty of free parking.

I've been here a couple of times now. It is on the Hilo side of the Big Island. It's a bit touristy but it's still kinda cool. They have a small tour that you can take yourself where you see the plant and the workers working. They also have a small gift shop that sells souvenirs, nuts, chocolates and even some jewelry, oh and ice cream. Lots of free parking in the back.

My family and I visited Mauna Loa today. When we walked in we received a lovely greeting by Lana and Malia. They gave us free samples of several different flavors of macadamia nuts. Absolutely delicious! Lana and Malia were very professional and outgoing. Encouraged us to stay a while to visit the garden area in the back and go across the way to look at the factory windows to see the history of Mauna Loa. ( Due to the Christmas holidays the factory was closed.) It was a great read to see how it's done. We went back inside to purchase several different items for gifts and us of course! They also have ice cream you can purchase in quart size I believe. We were told by Jeremiah the manager they are selling the DAIRY FREE ice cream at Costco and Whole Foods. We had the Carmel macadamia. It was delicious! Jeremiah was chatting with us about all the wonderful things going at Mauna Loa and what he hopes they will be doing in the future. Just an FYI, I noticed another review that referenced not knowing Mauna Loa didn't take cash. There is a sign on the front door they take credit cards only.

If you are coming back from the Volcanoes National Park, of course this is a must stop on your way back to Hilo. A short 2 mile drive off of the main road is the Nut Factory where you can take a self guided tour of the packing facility, and the gift shop. In the shop you can try samples of the nuts as well as buy many other souvenirs as well. Don't miss the Macadamia Nut Ice cream outside on the back patio. It's simply marvelous and has a very distinct nut flavor which you can't get anywhere else. And be sure to take a picture with the big blow up Nut in the front entryway before you leave!

Hawaii is a good place to go nuts. Many people are familiar with the Mauna Loa brand found in supermarkets across the world, so it's fun to visit the factory and store near Hilo on the big island of Hawaii. Parking is decent, but the place is popular with bus and taxi tours and can get overwhelmed. The factory tour is self guided with television displays. The facility is a little small, but they do process a lot of nuts here. You can also walk a small nature trail behind the store which is really nice with a lot of tropical plants. There is a small snack bar out back top selling ice cream, sandwiches, and beverages. The main attraction is the factory store. Prices are not that great at the store with better deals elsewhere, but you can get some special flavors and the combinations are a good deal. It's a fun stop heading back from the volcano for a special souvenir.