Big Island of Hawaii Nature & Wildlife

Kelson does a great job and knows his history. Very pleasant personality and most importantly a safe driver!! You can tell he enjoys his job.

Alex was fantastic. He is native to the islands and was extremely knowledgeable. He shared a lot of gems from his native culture to help you understand the islands and the volcanos. He is friendly, funny, engaging and draws you in. He blew a conch shell to draw us back to himself and was always clear in his directions. I would highly recommend any tour where he is the guide.

20/10 — One of the Most Incredible Ocean Experiences We’ve Ever Had!I honestly don’t know how to give Scott, Kate, and Kona Ocean Adventures enough stars for the experience they gave us tonight. Five stars doesn’t even come close. This was a 20/10 experience from beginning to end.We booked their private sunset snorkeling trip, rustic dinner, and nighttime manta ray experience, and the entire evening was absolutely incredible.A little perspective: we’re from Florida, we’re scuba divers, and we spend a lot of time in and around the ocean—so it takes quite a bit to really blow us away. Scott and Kate absolutely did.The sunset snorkel alone would have made the trip worth it. We saw an unbelievable amount of marine life—puffer fish, purple tangs, yellow tangs, unicorn tangs, blue boxfish, angelfish, foxface, all kinds of wrasses, urchins and so much more.And then there was the monk seal.A HUGE monk seal came right up between the boats and literally used the line between them to brush her teeth! 😂 We just sat there watching her work the rope through her mouth like dental floss. It was one of those completely unexpected wildlife encounters you know you’ll be talking about for years.But somehow the night was just getting started.The nighttime manta ray experience was absolutely unreal.We had at least SIX different manta rays swimming with us, and when I say close, I mean INCHES FROM OUR FACES.They came straight toward us and did barrel roll after barrel roll directly underneath us. At times they were so close you could look straight into their mouths as they rolled beneath you. They actually made physical contact with us multiple times as they passed.We have video of it, and even watching the video doesn’t completely capture what it felt like to actually be there.There were moments when you’re floating on the surface, looking down at these enormous animals coming straight toward you, and your brain is telling you there’s no possible way they can get any closer—then they roll at the last second and pass just inches underneath you.Again. And again. And again.It was spectacular.What really made the evening, though, was Scott and Kate. A private charter is supposed to feel different from being shuffled through a big commercial tour, and this absolutely did. They made the entire evening personal, relaxed, fun and memorable. You never felt rushed or like you were just the next group being moved through an itinerary.The sunset, snorkeling, dinner, wildlife, manta rays and the personal attention from Scott and Kate all came together into one of those rare vacation experiences that completely exceeds what you thought you were booking.We’ve done a lot of ocean activities and diving over the years, and this is easily one of the coolest marine experiences we have ever had.If you’re coming to Kona and considering a manta ray trip, do yourself a favor and book the private experience with Kona Ocean Adventures. Especially if you want something more personal than a large-group excursion.Scott and Kate — thank you for an absolutely unforgettable evening.We came hoping to see some manta rays.We left having watched at least six of them barrel roll inches from our faces, had a monk seal stop by to floss her teeth, saw an incredible variety of Hawaiian marine life, and made a memory we’ll be talking about for the rest of our lives.Five stars isn’t enough. 20/10. Absolutely phenomenal. 🤙🌅🌊🤿

Everything was wonderful! The people who organize these trips are amazing—so friendly, helpful, and professional. I had a fantastic experience and highly recommend these trips to everyone! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

We dove with Kona adventures in January and then again this week in July and both experiences were top-notch. They were friendly professional and accommodating. Both dives we saw Tiger shark turtles eagle rays rock fish and all the other animals of the sea. This trip we got to jump into a pot of dolphins and swim with them for a little bit. The post refreshments have never been better. Highly recommend this group.

We booked this tour last minute to get help seeing and getting access to the waterfalls we wanted to see. From the outset Shawn was superbly professional. He delivered on his promises of clear communication and tailoring the day to include what we wanted. The private waterfall and rappelling were amazing and see all the other waterfalls on the east and north side of the island were breathtaking. The farm tour and cooking class were….interesting. See the potential there but the folks running that (not related Shawn or his company and to his credit he agreed with our assessment) need some more professional organization.Eric and Cora were great and felt completely safe rappellingPickup and drop off at our condo were seamless. When Shawn learned we had been at Volcanoes National Park the day before he happily filled in with extra information we had missed out on and answered our questions as we drove from Waikoloa to Hilo. His knowledge of the geology, history and culture of the island and Hawai’i are superb. And on the drive home we talked restaurant recommendations rations and they were all spot on. His talent for subtly figuring out what clients are asking for and then delivering exactly the experience they want makes home the best. We had a great day.Mahalo nui Shawn!!

We contacted several tour companies looking for a private tour. Malahini was the first we found that was very accommodating for a private small group tour. We had other plans that day and our guide adjusted the tour to meet our needs. Dan was our guide and was extremely knowledgeable, friendly and fun. He made the day a great experience. Highly recommend this private tour.

The tour gave us a perfect taste of the entire island. Lisa was our guide and a wealth of information. We experienced sea turtles, black beach, volcano, lava tubes, beautiful water falls, a great picnic and a wonderful dinner. The transportation was very clean and on time at designated pick up. A very full day but so glad we had booked the excursion.

We went to Rainbow Falls and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Dan was very good and provided excellent commentary. It was a very good experience

I have lived out here in Hawaii for 39 years or so and I have visited and stayed at many many area throughout the island itself.. I had a friend come out for 1 day only .. 36 hours!!! She’s a wildcat…And she booked this tour group and we spent the day with Shawn… he came and picked us up at the house… had everything you needed for a tour .. great snacks, water, chocolates, jackets, binoculars… everything.. took us to an incredible secluded forest .. spent hours listening and watching the true Hawaiian birds, saw wild boars, goats, sheep.. up in the mountains.. it was one of the most beautiful magical days .. he is incredibly knowledgeable and genuinely kind to everyone .. went to Hilo and checked out the beautiful town, had a wonderful lunch, drove the coastline and went to more magical waterfalls and secluded area.. the vehicle was super clean, spacious, comfortable and truly cool… this IS ONE OF THE BEST Tours .. I have ever been one here out on the big island.. if you love adventures and you love 💕 being at one of the most incredible areas out on the Big Island .. go with Shawn and his co partner Lisa🌋💗✨🌺.. absolutely the best!!! I will do this again w them 💯.. highly recommend ⭐️✨

This was a great trip. The family loved it including the kiddos. Rob was great and very accommodating. The trip from Kona is a long day if you drive it yourself. This is a great way to see the volcano from Kona and have some energy for the pool or Kona nightlife.

Tour guide communicated time of arrival and was punctual.. We had a great tour guide, extremely knowledgeable. Very nice tour, enjoyed it!

Rainbow falls is beautiful. We are lucky enough that Kilauea was near eruption sputtering lava. Lava tube was cool. Macadamia nut was neat. Cool Hawaiis description is inaccurate we did not have a beach but it wasn't part of what we booked so it's fine.

Kelson was awesome- so knowledgeable and friendly! Highly recommend this tour.

We worked with the company to do a special booking of this, and did a 3 hour private sunset cruise. We didn't do a lot of the exciting stuff that others might do because my wife isn't a swimmer, so we sailed around, so some wild life from the boat, and caught an amazing sunset. They cut us a deal by making it a bit shorter than normal, picked us up at our resort, and served us food and wine on the boat. It was a gorgeous trip for our anniversary. Raj and Hanna were our captains and were both extremely friendly, knowledgeable, and did a great job at making the night special for us. We caught about the most gorgeous sunset I've ever seen, and saw some nice wildlife along the way.

The private Manta snorkel event was so much fun. My entire family went and it was fantastic. Captain Scott was super friendly and was very knowledgeable when my kids asked questions. He brought a book and showed us photos of all the creatures we were about to see. Our guide Kate made the snorkeling experience effortless. Anytime we lost a noodle she would swim over for us and retrieve it. She was able to identify all the creatures we saw which elevated the experience since we knew what we were looking at. Seeing the manta rays were breathtaking. At one point we had three of them all belly rolling around us. It was so much fun we will definitely do it again soon.