Top Hawaii Day Trips - page 7

Chris was an excellent tour guide who was very knowledgeable about Hawaiian history, Mauna Kea, and was a wealth of interesting facts. We are from Hawaii and enjoyed this tour and learned a lot. I am so glad I took the tour rather than drive myself as it was a long drive and you needed a 4x4 at a certain point. The tour was well prepared with jackets to keep us warm, Sandwhich and hot coco, and rest stops to enjoy the scenery. The tour and tour guide was awesome!

If you’re considering doing a sunrise at Haleakalā National Park—do it! And if you’re lucky enough to get Preston as your guide, even better. Total time is around 8 hours (2:30-10:30am) at a cost of approx. $250 per person when booked through Viator. Our day started… not ideally. Our alarm didn’t go off, and we completely missed our confirmed pick-up time. About 10 minutes later, Preston called asking where we were. Mortified, we asked for just five minutes to throw ourselves together—and to our surprise, about 10 minutes later, he was back outside our hotel, calm and incredibly understanding. While I wouldn’t count on this kind of flexibility as the norm, it genuinely set the tone for the entire experience. From there, everything ran smoothly. There were only 10 guests total on a comfortable, air-conditioned bus, and most people caught some extra sleep on the drive up the mountain. Preston struck the perfect balance with his commentary—interesting and informative without being overwhelming—and gave helpful tips on how to best experience the sunrise. We arrived about 30 minutes early, which gave us time to get situated. Be warned: it was 43°F in April—pants, a heavy jacket, and even gloves are absolutely worth bringing. The sunrise itself was stunning, and we had plenty of time afterward to take photos before heading back. On the drive down, Preston took his time, sharing more local insights and fun facts about the island. The tour wrapped up at the beautiful Maui Tropical Plantation, where breakfast was served at Cafe O’Lei. Guests could choose from fruit, a continental-style option, or macadamia nut pancakes—all delicious. There was also a charming country store onsite with local produce, coffee, and artisan goods. After breakfast, we were dropped back off at our hotel—tired, but so glad we didn’t miss out on this experience. Bottom line: Incredible views, a well-paced itinerary, and a guide who went above and beyond. We highly recommend!

Our tour guide, Felix, was the best. He is very knowledgeable about the Hawai’i and life on the island, the history, plants and animals and of course different forms of lava and the landscape. It is a long day, but well worth it…leave the driving to someone who knows the area. The van was very comfortable for the 12 of us, nice size group. Felix was prepared with snacks and water/juice, and offered jackets and umbrellas if people wanted them later on in the evening. The boxed lunch at the coffee plantation while we sat on a covered patio with a view of the farm/coastline. There were plenty of bathroom stops throughout the day. Black Sand Beach was another nice stop and we saw turtles in the water and petroglyph. It was also a good time to enjoy the wonderful Malasadas that we bought at the Punalu’u Bake Shop. Felix knew all the right stops for great views throughout Volcanos National Park. We saw the crater, walked through the rain forest and through a lava tube and saw where past lava flows ran into the ocean at the end of Chain of Craters Road where the coast line is very rugged. We visited the Volcano House on the NW rim of the crater with a good view of the steam raising from Kīlauea Crater. Dinner was at a nice, casual restaurant (Volcano Lava Rock Cafe) just outside the park entrance. It was dark when we drove the short distance back to the Volcano House to watch the red glow of the lava activity at the surface. On the way back to Kona via Saddle Road, Felix knew several great spots and stopped to look for stars. Unfortunately the clouds didn’t cooperate and only parted briefly to be able to see a star or two. The weather can be unpredictable, especially in Hawaii, but it didn’t change how we felt about this experience. It was all wonderful and we would do it again in a heart beat.