How is Hilo (Volcano: 2013, homeowners insurance, buy)

[snacks0v0]

Heeeyy! I plan on going to school at univ of Hawaii at Hilo for their pre pharmacy program. I'm from Florida and lived in cocoa beach and now currently living in Orlando..what can I expect living and going to school in Hilo..I prefer a laid back type of town and love the Asian cultures.I like to fish and do outdoor activities.I've been looking at videos on YouTube and reading everything I can about Hawaii..I am very excited about going to school there..what are the pros and cons.

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by snacks0v0

Heeeyy! I plan on going to school at univ of Hawaii at Hilo for their pre pharmacy program. I'm from Florida and lived in cocoa beach and now currently living in Orlando..what can I expect living and going to school in Hilo..I prefer a laid back type of town and love the Asian cultures.I like to fish and do outdoor activities.I've been looking at videos on YouTube and reading everything I can about Hawaii..I am very excited about going to school there..what are the pros and cons.

I work at UH-Hilo a couple of days a week - what are your specific questions? Hilo is a small sleepy town of about 45,000 people, it has a very rural feel - and if you are looking for laid back you are going to the right place - the town is mostly closed by 9pm. It has a very tropical and green look from all the rain it gets - and you'll find day to day living expenses much higher than Florida. You'll find asian restaurants - but not much more in terms if asian culture in Hilo. You'll need to bring an umbrella with you if you want to partake in outdoor activities or jump in the car to a drier side of the island.

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by snacks0v0

Heeeyy! I plan on going to school at univ of Hawaii at Hilo for their pre pharmacy program.

Aloha and Congratulations,

You'll find there is a ton of general information already posted here. For the fastest overview, use the Search function to bring up topics that are of interest to you.

The biggest differences you'll see between Orlando and Hilo is that Hilo is much smaller, much slower, much funkier, like the old farm town that it is. Orlando has a lot of glitz, Hilo has none. In the old downtown area a lot of the businesses are still old-style, opening at 8am and closing by 4:30pm. Bars and restaurants that are open later are typically dark by 9 pm.

Good luck!

[hotzcatz]

Hilo is comfortable and is beginning to get more of a college town feel to it, but not by a whole lot. It is still more about friends and family than it is about organized entertainment. Nice bay for paddling, no real white sandy beaches, though, The Hilo beaches are pockets of sand in a rocky shoreline. However, the other side of the island has big white sandy beaches so you can still get to them. Lots of hiking up around Volcano, plus there's the volcano itself to see.

Hilo has a pretty good balance of slow comfortable yet enough to do if you look for it. It does rain rather frequently, but it's a warm rain and usually the sun will show up at least part time during rainy days.

[HiloDiver]

Today is my three week anniversary as a new Hilo resident! We are thrilled with our decision to move here, as we could have moved anywhere in the state. We love it here. We moved here thinking we would stay five years and then move on, but now spouse is saying "I never want to leave!" It is so beautiful here, so lush and green. Everyone is extremely friendly and helpful. It just feels like home, we feel like we've been here forever. We find that there are more things to do than we have time for...sailing, diving, kayaking, hiking, exploring, etc. plus cultural activities, live music, and awesome, affordable restaurants.

However, there really is a lack of nightlife here other than the movies and a few bars. Not a problem for us, perhaps a problem for you. However, there are so many young people around here that I'm sure you can have a good social life very quickly.

We moved here from the Caribbean and prior to that, I lived in Florida. I'm finding many prices to be similar to Florida, some even lower (toiletries seem to be cheaper) but gasoline is a bit higher and good used cars are not cheap. We have a friend attending UH who seems to get around fine without a car.

We find the prices to be MUCH lower than the Caribbean, especially electricity and food. Coming from the mainland, you may find those two higher. We do a lot of shopping at the Hilo Farmer's Market and the produce is astoundingly inexpensive and good. If you avoid prepared, packaged foods from the mainland, you can eat very economically.

To us, it is so exciting and convenient to be able to walk into a store and buy anything we want, without having to spend big bucks and wait several weeks having things we couldn't buy anywhere on our former island sent via cargo ship. And, the no hurricanes thing, we're liking that a lot. You might find Hilo to be less humid than Florida...I do, but I'm from Fort Lauderdale and Key Largo.

Some people don't like the wet weather, some people (like us) say "what weather?" Yes, it's wet, it rains a lot. But it's also sunny much more frequently than we anticipated. More often than not, it's just a light drizzle so if I'm not going far (checking the mail, walking from car to restaurant) I don't even bother with an umbrella. Truly, if you don't like the weather, wait ten minutes...it's astounding how quickly it changes!!!

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by HiloDiver

We have a friend attending UH who seems to get around fine without a car.

Let me address that matter specifically. The Hawai'i County Hele-On Bus Service on the Big Island is quite limited by "big city transit" standards, but is quite usable by "university student" standards. There are only a few routes with in Hilo, but they are set up in a way that makes it pretty easy to get from the UH campus down to the Bayfront, where the Hilo Farmer's Market and the Bus Terminal and the old Downtown is, or over to the modern shopping malls in South Hilo. Best of all, for UH students the bus is free!

Select a Schedule... — Hele-On Bus

[snacks0v0]

Originally Posted by whtviper1

I work at UH-Hilo a couple of days a week - what are your specific questions? Hilo is a small sleepy town of about 45,000 people, it has a very rural feel - and if you are looking for laid back you are going to the right place - the town is mostly closed by 9pm. It has a very tropical and green look from all the rain it gets - and you'll find day to day living expenses much higher than Florida. You'll find asian restaurants - but not much more in terms if asian culture in Hilo. You'll need to bring an umbrella with you if you want to partake in outdoor activities or jump in the car to a drier side of the island.

What is the out of state tuition.I plan on living on campus and Hawaii comm college share the same housing of Hilo?

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by snacks0v0

What is the out of state tuition.I plan on living on campus and Hawaii comm college share the same housing of Hilo?

About $9,000 year for out of state tuition.

UH Hilo Tuition Schedule

[CyberCity]

Tuition for the 2012-2013 Academic Year

Full-time undergraduate students (classified)
Non-resident: $8,736.00 (per semester)

OP, you can find info about things like tuition on the internet by checking directly with the school(s). The UH system runs a comprehensive website.

[Robert 66 CM]

Is there a Costco on the Big Is?
What price Homeowners insurance with the volcano lurking?