About us
Built by people who got tired of hearing “sorry, we can’t”
Access Big Island Hawaii is a locally owned accessible transport company on Hawaiʻi Island. We started it because visitors and kamaʻāina who use wheelchairs kept being told that the best of this island was not for them.
Our story
The island did not get less beautiful. The access just never showed up.
Hawaiʻi Island has more accessible sightseeing than almost anywhere in the state — paved caldera overlooks, a step-free waterfall viewpoint, a flat Japanese garden on the bay. What it did not have was a reliable way to get there if you use a power chair or a scooter.
Rental companies will not touch an accessible van. Coach tours cannot load one. Taxis and rideshare are a lottery. So people either stayed at the resort, or did not come at all.
[Founder story — replace with the real one: who started this, what happened that made them do it, and what they did before. Two or three short paragraphs. This is the single most-read section on most small-business sites, so it is worth writing properly.]
The same vehicle that makes a volcano day possible also makes Tuesday’s dialysis appointment possible. That is why we do both, and why the medical side is not an afterthought.
How we work
Four things we hold to
Tell the truth about access
If a viewpoint is not reachable in your chair, we say so before you book — even when it costs us the trip.
Kūleana
Responsibility for the people in our care and for the places we take them. We follow site rules, respect cultural sites, and leave nothing behind.
Never rush a person
Boarding takes as long as it takes. Nobody in our van is ever made to feel like they are holding things up.
Local, and staying that way
We live here, we maintain the van here, and the person who answers the phone is the person who drives it.
Who drives
You will know your driver’s name
[Owner name] — owner & driver
[Driver bio — how long on island, background before this, why accessible transport, anything that builds trust with a family handing over someone they love. Three or four sentences.]
- Licence
- [class / endorsements TBD]
- Certifications
- [CPR, First Aid, defensive driving, passenger assistance — TBD]
- Background check
- [TBD]
- Years on Hawaiʻi Island
- [TBD]
- Languages
- [TBD]
Service area
All of Hawaiʻi Island
Based in Hilo, Hawaiʻi Island, running island-wide. Longer runs are quoted with drive time included, so the price you are given is the price you pay.
East side
Hilo, Keaʻau, Pahoa, Honomu, Hakalau, Laupāhoehoe
Volcano & Kaʻū
Volcano Village, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes NP, Pāhala, Nāʻālehu, Punaluʻu
West side
Kailua-Kona, Holualoa, Captain Cook, Hōnaunau, Keauhou
North & Kohala
Waimea, Honokaʻa, Waikoloa, Hāpuna, Kawaihae, Hawi
Pick-up points include hotels and condos, private residences, care facilities, Hilo (ITO) and Kona (KOA) airports, and the Hilo cruise pier.
Come see the island properly.
Whether it is a volcano at dusk or a ride to an appointment across town, we would like to be the reason it happens.