This travel can be circumnavigated in either direction. We read its best to hike counter-clockwise, and yet we were disoriented and followed the trail clockwise. Doesn't matter. Coming from Colorado, hiking a nearly 4-mile trail at 4000 ft through forest and caldera was not particularly difficult. There are somewhat steep, but shaded steps carved into the first mile or so of the trail, with 15 markers (be sure to grab the corresponding booklet at the visitor center) along the path describing flora, fauna, and volcano attributes (e.g., crater rim, steam vents, lava lake migrations). The center mile takes you into and eventually out of the caldera, which is hot, dusty and often uneven. The final mile or so returns you to the shaded forest area above the 1959 lava lake (it took 30 years to cool!) with railroad tie steps and exposed root pathways. When I visited in 2017, it was cool, raining and wet. January of 2023 was hot, full-on sun and dry. Be prepared for either with water. Both visits were hiked in tennis shoes.

This trail takes you from the tropical forest through the eerie landscape of the caldera, plus a short side trip through Thurston Lava Tube just across the street from the main trail's end. The 400-foot descent/ascent takes place relatively quickly, so it's not a super easy hike, but more in the moderate range. If you have time for just one hike (as we did), definitely consider this one.

The trek into the crater went rather quickly. The trails had some improvements like an occasional railroad tie or large log embedded, but be aware of where you are placing your feet. The trail was muddy with protruding roots. The walk across the caldera was well marked with NPS cairns placed to guide you. The official cairns are large and obvious with plenty of area to frolic. Please do not build your own little cairns; they could lead hikers into unsafe areas! The caldera walk was challenging towards the end. The climb out of the crater was a bit more difficult. Rain again made the path slick, carved steps were of inconsistent heights with a few at 18 inches or more; thank goodness for hand rails! The ascent seemed to be much steeper and longer (or it may have just seemed that way as this group of senior citizens were starting to tire!). We actually danced like Rocky on the stairs when we reached the top! Just a few words of advice - wear decent shoes that have good grip; allow at least 2 hours, more if you like to stop and observe your surroundings; bring a good attitude.

We thought because of rain in Hilo & on way that we wouldn’t see anything but the weather changes so frequently that I suggest you give this a try. Although we were there in morning around 9am, I reckon it could be terribly hot in afternoon. We are an active family with a 10 year old & made it in 1 hour 40 minutes with many photo breaks. The signs are very informative on the plants you see & it is so interesting seeing all the ways the lava dries into rock as well as the cracks from earthquakes & fault lines. We all enjoyed this but be prepared for all weather. It was rainy, sunny, windy, rainy again. My pants that turn into shorts were the right choice!

We successfully followed the counter clockwise recommendation of others but it would have been just fine to go clockwise. Around 4 mile hike with definitive descent and ascent elements along with hike on crater base. Easy to access from lava tube. Lava tube parking lot usually quite busy so park at trailhead parking lot.

A great hike and walk through another planet on the lava field in the crater. Recommend hiking down from the main trail head and up the thurston lava tube side vs starting at the tube because of the intensity of the trail. This gives you a steep path down and gravity helps you, and a gradual, forested path back up, vs trying to go up a brutal, rocky path.

Moderate length hike with somewhat challenging, steep ascent/descent at the west end of the crater, but very much worth it to walk across a lava lake that had last erupted in 1959. We started by hiking around the northern rim of the crater. The occasional views into the crater are striking, made more remarkable by the sight of people hiking across the crater floor. We appreciated getting a glimpse of the hike to come. We stopped for a quick peak over the main caldera at Byron's ledge, then descended down into Kilauea Iki. The geology of the crater is amazing. The west end of Iki is dominated by ʻaʻā lava. About 1/4 of the way across the lava becomes smooth pāhoehoe. The bottom of the crater is quite alien and the transition of the lush jungle of the rim to the nearly barren crater floor is breathtaking. Various sections of the crater floor show the heaving and settling that occurred after the lava cooled. Be sure to take a hat, sunscreen, and water. There is no shelter in the bottom of the crater. There is also no bathroom, so be sure to make a pitstop at the parking lot.

Its a long hike but definitely worth it. For the hike, you need to be in decent physical shape but not necessarily in great shape. The path is steep. It took us about an hour to go down the base of the crater and come back up. Along the way, you will find amazing plants. I will strongly recommend to not rush it and take in the scenery. The hike is beautiful. For parking, you may want to park at the Lava tube because the start of the hike and the lava tube are easily accessible from there. Even if you park at the lava tube, you should hike to the iki trail's parking lot as there are a no. of look out points along the way. Its about 15 mins to get from lava tube to Iki trail's parking lot. The Iki trail is within the Hawaii Volcano National Park. So the entrance fee of $30 that you will need to pay at the park's entrance is all that's needed. The entrance fee gives you access to the park for 7 consecutive days.