A Snorkeling + Kayaking experience by Kona Boys. Back to all Big Island tours.
Tour Summary: Check-in is at 7 AM, so you reach the Captain Cook monument when the water is clearest and the fewest boats are out. Self-guided rentals can't land at the monument; this guided tour can. Best odds on spinner dolphins, plus a reef holding 200-plus fish species.
Glassy, protected water is the payoff for the 7 AM start. 
One of the many Pristine coral formations within Kealakekua Bay on the Big Island of Hawaii. Photo by Sarah Lee on Unsplash The crossing to Kaʻawaloa, where dolphins often turn up on the early paddle. he reef at Kaʻawaloa holds more than 200 species of fish in clear, protected water. Calm morning water makes the bay an easy place to snorkel with kids. Landing at Kaʻawaloa, the shoreline self-guided rentals are not allowed to reach. Onshore at Kaʻawaloa for snacks and history, the part of the bay rentals can't reach. The pali rises straight from the water along the north side of the bay.
5 Tour Highlights:
- Land at Kaʻawaloa and stand at the monument, something self-guided rentals are barred from doing
- Snorkel the clearest, glassiest water of the day before the afternoon wind picks up
- Reach the monument reef before the commercial snorkel boats arrive
- Best odds of spotting naiʻa (Hawaiian spinner dolphins) on the early paddle across
- Snorkel a reef holding more than 200 species of fish
Important: This is not a pickup tour: you self-drive from the Kona Boys shop down to the bay launch and back, so you need your own vehicle and should plan for two separate locations.
Tour Information:
| Price: | Adult | Youth |
|---|---|---|
| (excluding taxes & fees) | $249.99 | $229.99 |
Tour Provider: Kona Boys
Activity: Snorkeling + Kayaking
Tour start time: 7:00 AM
Duration: 4.5 hours
Location: Kealakekua Bay
Pick-up available? No
Included: Certified guide, all kayak equipment, snorkel gear, local lunch from The Coffee Shack, refreshments and drinks, Captain Cook monument visit
Cancellations: Kona Boys reserves the right to charge the full amount with less than 48 hours notice of cancellation. Any cancellations before 48 hours will have a full refund. Customers will receive a full refund in case of operator cancellation due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances. Contact Kona Boys by phone to cancel or inquire about a cancellation. No-shows will be charged the full price.
Read more: about snorkeling in our Big Island snorkeling guide.
About this tour
Check-in is at 7:00 AM. That’s earlier than the midday departures, so you reach the Captain Cook monument before the large commercial snorkel boats arrive. The water is calm, and for the first part of the morning you have the reef mostly to yourselves. By the time the day-trip crowds motor in, you are already in the water or eating lunch.
The morning begins at the Kona Boys shop on Māmalahoa Hwy in Kealakekua, where you review the Conservation District rules, get an orientation, and fit your snorkel gear. From there you self-drive down to Kealakekua Bay, where your guide is waiting with the kayaks, lunch, drinks, and the rest of the equipment. After a short safety talk and paddle plan at the launch, you cross the bay to Kaʻawaloa on the monument side.
The crossing to Kaʻawaloa, where the early paddle has the best odds of spinner dolphins.
One of the only ways to stand at the monument without hiking
The state runs a strict permit system in Kealakekua Bay. A self-guided rental can paddle across the bay, but under state rules those vessels are prohibited from landing at Kaʻawaloa, the shoreline below the Captain Cook monument. On a rental you tie off your kayaks in the water and snorkel from there. You never set foot on shore. The only ways to actually stand on land at the monument are to hike the steep Kaʻawaloa Trail down from the highway and back up, or to book one of the few permitted commercial guided tours. Kona Boys is one of those operators, and on this tour you land the kayaks at Kaʻawaloa and walk over to the monument before you snorkel. If you want to stand at the monument without the hike, a permitted tour like this one is the way to do it.
Onshore at Kaʻawaloa for snacks and history, where rental kayaks can’t land.
Morning conditions: calm water, clear visibility and spinner dolphins
Kona-coast breezes pick up by midday and chop the surface, so the water is glassiest and visibility clearest in the early hours. The bay is protected and calm at that hour, so first-time kayakers can handle the paddle. Spinner dolphins (naiʻa) move into the bay to rest through the day, and you have better odds of seeing them on the early paddle, usually on the crossing rather than at the reef. Federal rules prohibit approaching resting dolphins within 50 yards, so this is watching from a distance, not swimming with them. In whale season you may see humpbacks offshore.
With calm water in the morning, the bay is an easy place to snorkel with kids.
What you get for the price
At $249.99 for adults and $229.99 for ages 18 and under, this covers a certified guide, all kayak and snorkel equipment, a local lunch from The Coffee Shack, and refreshments at the bay. The reef here holds more than 200 species of fish, with turtles, eels, rays, and the occasional reef shark turning up.
After the snorkel there is time for lunch, a look at the monument, and some talk story (casual conversation) before the paddle back across the bay, which can be choppier than the morning crossing. The whole tour runs 4.5 hours and wraps up around 11:30 AM. When we looked at the gear, it was high-end and well-maintained, and the guides fitted it to each person.
Reviewers praise the guides, who take their time with first-timers and know both the Hawaiian history and the marine life, and the wildlife on the paddle across as well as at the reef. There’s no hotel pickup. You drive yourself, first to the shop for gear, then down to the bay and back, so you need a car.
Kona Boys also runs an afternoon departure on the same bay for a lower price. If you’d rather not get up early, take that one. If you can make the 7:00 AM start, book the morning: the water is clearer, the dolphin odds are better, and you reach the reef before the day-trip boats.
[Video] See a video about this kayak and snorkeling tour
About Kona Boys
Self-guided rentals can paddle Kealakekua Bay but are barred from landing at Kaʻawaloa, so the only ways to stand at the Captain Cook monument are the steep hike down or a guided tour with one of the few permitted operators. Kona Boys is one of them, and this is its best-conditions departure. The 7:00 AM check-in puts you on the clearest, glassiest water of the day, at the reef before the commercial fleet, and gives you the best odds of spinner dolphins on the crossing.
Guides here are named repeatedly for knowing both the Hawaiian history and the marine life and for being patient with first-time paddlers. At $249.99 it suits anyone who wants the monument and the best water of the day and does not mind an early start and their own driving to the launch. Prefer to sleep in and pay less? See the afternoon departure on the same bay.
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