Some questions for visiting Kona

[Palanakonu]

Originally Posted by azgkrudi

Aloha! We will be staying at the Wyndham Mauna Loa Village for a week in June for our anniversary. We have been to Kona before, but only briefly on a cruise stop. We would like to do the best things during our trip that locals can recommend - such as a traditional luau - where is the best place to go for this?

My parents were recently here visiting and they grabbed the Luau package from Royal Kona.
They REALLY had a good time there, said the show was entertaining and the food was great.
Was it the "best" or "traditional"? I have no idea. But it has been a long time since I've seen the old man grin like that.

Also, we would like to be "lei'd" at the airport and wondering who is the best/most reliable company on the island for that. We had a great experience with that in Honolulu before.

Honestly have no idea about this one.
But I do know that some tour packages provide this service.

We will be trying to do a mix of dining out and dining in since we'll (supposedly) have a full kitchen at our disposal. Any recommendations of where to grocery shop? We are a 40-something couple who are notorious for spending a LOT on dining out , but want to balance this trip evenly both ways since we'll have the kitchen at the Wyndham timeshare property.

Shopping at Costco might leave you with quite a bit to dispose of since you will only be here a week.
We have a few grocers in Kona, but my family usually picks up food (between Costco trips mind you) at Target. Nice selection and the price is right. Plus we are usually getting sundries at the same time so it saves on a trip.
It's possible to save on dining out. Of course you need to have your "honeymoon dinner" somewhere nice (which is by your definition), but there are plenty of places to grab a bite and not break the bank. Personally I hit up 808 Grindz in Kona every time I am there... the people there are like family to us now. Great local comfort food. Best Loco moco on the island, and I'll arm wrestle anyone claiming different!
We have an awesome food truck (Aloha Mix) here in Na'alehu Tue-Fri with steak, shrimp, and acai bowls... if you find yourself down in my neck of the woods.

We'll be renting an SUV so we can drive around to ... wherever y'all recommend. How is traffic all around the island, do we need to avoid certain times of day? How long does it take to get around the entire island (worst case scenario)?

If it's just the two of you, I'd say to save your cash on the SUV and get something comfortable with good gas mileage. With only a week on-island, there are plenty of great places to go without having to attempt those off-the-beaten-path spots which (for the most part) aren't all that great to your average tourist anyhow.
As for traffic, I'd avoid the main drag in-to/out-of lower Puna during rush hour. Same can be said for both ends of Queen K in Kona. Aside from that, it's not bad here on the Big Island. Though I prefer smaller crowds and much less traffic, hence calling lower Ka'u my home.

We've always had that "do as the locals do" mentality in our 25+ years of travel and it's always behooved us, so we appreciate any tips you can provide in advance.
Mahalo!

Smile, wave, and enjoy your time here.
Take your time when touring the island, you can really miss a lot if you don't take it slow.
And my one driving tip: If you see a line of cars behind you, go ahead and pull off to let them pass, don't feel embarrassed to do it. When I'm not one of the people in a hurry in that line, I'm the slow cruiser at the head that pulls off.

[azgkrudi]

Thank you for your detailed response, Palanakonu! Much appreciated!