15 Best Kona Coffee Farm Tours: Free Tastings + $40 Deep Dives

All 15 tours end with a free tasting, paid or not. Six of the farms are free to visit; of the nine paid tours, all but Buddha’s Cup cost $20 to $50, and Buddha’s runs $60 to $190. Most sit along a stretch of Highway 11 between Kailua-Kona and Captain Cook, with two more south in Kaʻū and one north on the Hāmākua coast.

Start early. Kona mornings are usually sunny, but clouds build up the slope and it often rains after 1pm, so finish before lunch and fit two or three farms in. If you are short on time, Greenwell Farms is the easiest: free, daily, and no reservation. For a longer visit, Kuaiwi’s two-hour coffee-and-cacao tour is $50, and Buddha’s Cup runs a one-hour farm tour for $99.

All 15 farms compared (map + table)

All tour farms on this page are pinned on the map below. The comparison table underneath compares them.

Kona coffee farm tours along Highway 11 (Kailua-Kona side)

Twelve of the fifteen farms are here, most clustered around Hōlualoa near Kailua-Kona and around Captain Cook to the south. The tours range from free self-guided walks to paid tastings, and the farms sit close enough together to fit two or three into a morning.

Greenwell Farms

Tours available on: 7 days/week.

Greenwell’s tour takes the least planning of the free ones. It has won Hawaiʻi Magazine’s Best Farm Tour readers’ award five times, in 2021 and every year from 2023 through 2026, and you can join a guided walk any day without booking ahead.

Guided walks leave every 30 minutes from 8:30am, the last at 2:00pm, and run 45 to 60 minutes, from the trees through processing to the roaster. No reservation needed; just show up 10 to 15 minutes before a start time. The terrain is unpaved with some mild slope, so wear closed shoes. Coffee sampling before and after.

The farm also runs a Manual Brewing Class ($49.95 plus tax, 2 to 6 people, ages 12 and up) covering pour over, French press, AeroPress, and Moka pot, with a take-home brew guide. Book the class on their website.

Visitors take a Kona Coffee Farm Tour at the Greenwell farm. Source: here by user horspowr1001 under a CC BY-NC 2.0 license

Mountain Thunder Kona Coffee

Tours available on: 7 days/week.

Mountain Thunder runs the shortest free tour on the list, and the most frequent: 20 minutes, on the hour between 9:30am and 3:30pm, seven days a week, no reservation needed.

Mountain Thunder has been USDA certified organic, farming the slopes of Hualālai since 1994. On the tour you move from the growing trees through milling and drying to the roaster, and end with a sampling of their roast profiles. Wheelchair accessible and easy walking. If you only have 30 minutes to spare and want to see a working farm, pick this one.

More information on their website.

Rooster Farms

Tours available on: 7 days/week.

Getting here means driving up Bruner Road past a stretch of working farms. Rooster Farms is the oldest certified organic Kona coffee farm, with certification going back over 30 years, and took the 2016 Kona Coffee Cultural Festival Cupping Contest. The tour is free, runs about 30 minutes, and is led personally by farmer Ed. He walks you through the operation and finishes with a fresh pour-over tasting of their 100% Kona coffee.

Reservation required. Book at their website.

Hala Tree Coffee

Tours available on: Monday through Friday.

A certified organic Kona coffee and tea farm on the upper slopes near Captain Cook, with views down to the coast. Free one-hour tours run Monday through Friday and cover the orchard, harvesting and processing methods, and a roasting demonstration, ending with a tasting. Details at their tour page.

The paid workshops cover more than the standard tour: a hands-on roasting class with a Master Roaster (book here, you take home the beans you roast), a brewing workshop covering pour over, French press, and espresso (book here), or a cupping session (book here) where you evaluate roast level, origin, and processing side by side. Private sessions available for all three.

Holualoa Kona Coffee Company

Tours available on: Monday through Thursday.

In historic Hōlualoa, about 10 minutes from Kailua-Kona, the Kona Leʻa plantation operates as both an estate and a processing mill for more than 200 neighboring Kona farms. Free roasting tours run Monday through Thursday, 8am to 3pm, in small groups. The tour covers the roasting mill and ends at the packing room and gift shop with a tasting of fresh-roasted organic Kona coffee. USDA certified organic; all coffee cherry skins and parchment are composted back into the orchards.

More information on their website.

Heavenly Hawaiian Coffee Farms

Tours available on: Monday through Saturday.

Founded in 1994 by Dave and Trudy Bateman in Hōlualoa, Heavenly Hawaiian grows, processes, and roasts entirely on the farm. Guided tours run Monday through Saturday from 9am to 4pm on the hour, cost $27 per person, and end with a tasting on the lanai. The on-site Konalani Coffee Bar serves a cup without the tour. The farm also offers a hands-on roasting class and a brewing instruction session as separate bookings. Book the farm tour here.

Kona Coffee Living History Farm

Tours available on: Tuesday and Friday.

This is the only living history coffee farm in the United States. Operated by the Kona Historical Society, the farm represents a working Kona coffee operation from the 1920s. Costumed interpreters demonstrate the period tasks: cooking in the original farmhouse, processing coffee through the historic kuriba mill, drying beans on the hoshidana racks. Open Tuesday and Friday, 10am to 2pm. Admission: $20. Self-guided.

You see the domestic and agricultural life of early 20th-century Kona coffee farmers recreated on the original site, not a modern production line. More information on their website.

Ueshima Coffee (UCC)

Tours available on: 7 days a week.

UCC (Ueshima Coffee Company) is one of Japan’s largest coffee roasters, and this 35-acre Kona estate north of Hōlualoa Village is where they source their Hawaiian beans. On the guided tour ($25 per person, 30 minutes, 7 days a week, minimum 2 participants, reservation required) you walk the coffee fields, with views over Kailua-Kona and the bay. Depending on the season, you see flowering trees or cherries in various stages. Tasting and retail shopping at the on-site store after the tour. Reserve at their booking page.

Uluwehi Coffee Farm

Tours available on: Tuesday and Friday.

A small specialty operation in Hōlualoa’s Kona Uplands. The 1 to 1.5 hour tour ($28) covers every production stage: tree care, harvesting, processing (both natural and anaerobic washed methods), drying, dry milling, grading, storage, and roasting. Their SL34 variety placed 3rd at the 2024 Hawaii Coffee Association Cupping Competition, and Coffee Review has rated their coffees at 94 to 95 points. Free tasting at the end. Book at their booking page.

Hula Daddy Kona Coffee

Tours available on: Monday through Friday.

Hula Daddy calls itself the most awarded Kona coffee farm on the Big Island, The 60-minute tour ($35, Monday through Friday) covers both the orchard and the roasting room, so you see the growing and production sides of the operation together. Ends with a tasting of their competition-grade coffees at the visitor center. A good choice if you want a paid tour that is substantive but not a major time commitment. Book at their booking page.

Kuaiwi Farm

Tours available on: Wednesday and Sunday.

Kuaiwi grows coffee and cacao on five certified organic acres. The two-hour visit ($50 per adult, Sundays and Wednesdays 10am to 12pm, advance reservation required) covers both: how coffee and cacao grow alongside each other, the cacao from blossom to bean, and the full coffee production process.

The tasting on the lanai afterward includes coffee, chocolate, macadamia nuts, and seasonal fruit from the property. The farm also grows avocados, bananas, tea, and citrus, so you are walking through a diversified operation rather than rows of a single plant. A brief indoor portion requires masks. More information and reservations at their website.

Buddha’s Cup

Tours available on: Monday through Friday.

Buddha’s Cup grows its coffee at 2,400 feet, near the top of the Kona coffee belt. The farm has been women-owned and run for more than 20 years, and has won more than 60 awards since 2004, 12 of them first place, including medals at the World Coffee Challenge in Spain.

There are three ways to visit. The 30-minute farm and roasting walk costs $60, and a one-hour version of the same walk $99. The third is a 90-minute to two-hour ride ($190, ages 7 and up) around the 80-acre property with the owners, mostly aboard their ATVs. The walking tours cover the farm and roasting room; the ride covers all 80 acres. All three cost more than any tour elsewhere on this page.

Kaʻū coffee farm tours (better prices, less recognition)

Kaʻū coffee has been outscoring Kona in cupping competitions for over a decade, with farms from the district collecting wins at the Hawaii Coffee Association and Specialty Coffee Association events. The name recognition still lags far behind Kona, so a pound of high-quality Kaʻū runs 20 to 30 percent less than comparable Kona. Two farms offer tours. If you are already heading south toward South Point or Punaluʻu Black Sand Beach, adding one costs you nothing extra in miles.

Miranda’s Farm

Tours available on: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday (closed Wednesday).

Near Nāʻālehu, a short drive from South Point. The 1 to 2 hour tour ($25 per person, 15% group discount available, by reservation Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday) covers both the lower and upper sections of the farm. The presentation covers each stage of production, from growing through harvesting, picking, and processing, and includes a coffee sampling panel with cafe dessert specials. More time and more depth than most Kona tours, at a lower price.

More information and reservations at their website.

The Kaʻū Coffee Mill

Tours available on: Monday through Friday.

Free tours run Monday through Friday at 11am and 1pm, lasting 45 to 60 minutes, weather permitting. The tour covers the orchard and roasting facility, with a complimentary 2-ounce sample of estate-grown medium roast when you arrive. The volcanic soil here gives Kaʻū coffee a distinct flavor profile from Kona, and the tour explains why. An espresso bar, gift shop, and free parking are on-site. Easy to add to a South Point or Punaluʻu day without much detour. Find out more at their website.

Hāmākua coast: one farm, worth the detour

One farm on this coast offers tours. Hog Heaven Coffee is an owner-operated micro-farm that has won Best Hāmākua Coffee at statewide cupping competitions in both 2022 and 2023. Tours are kept small and personal. Further from Kona than the other farms on this page, but a natural add-on if you are already heading north along the coast toward Waipiʻo Valley.

Hog Heaven Coffee

Tours available on: 7 days/week.

Mike and Sookyung run Hog Heaven as an owner-operated micro-farm, and tours are limited to 1 to 6 guests so you spend the time with the people who grow the coffee. The 45-minute to one-hour tour ($40) follows production from cherry to cup and often runs longer when the conversation keeps going. The farm looks over the ocean. Freshly brewed tasting included; beans available for purchase. More information on their website.

Coffee in Hilo: no tours, but worth knowing

Hilo Coffee Mill previously offered tours but has discontinued them. The tasting bar is still open if you want to try the coffee. They also organize a Farmers market Saturdays from 9 am to 2 pm. See their website for details.

For coffee without a tour: Paradise Roasters (250 Keawe St, website) and Koana (halfway between Hilo and Volcano Village, website) are both good stops.

What happens on a Kona coffee tour

More than 650 coffee farms sit on the strip of volcanic slope between Kailua-Kona and Captain Cook, and the ones that offer tours follow a similar order: a walk through the rows of coffee trees, a look at how cherries get pulped, washed, dried, and roasted, then a tasting at the visitor center where you can buy a bag.

Most tours run 30 to 60 minutes. A few of the farther-out ones (Kuaiwi, Buddha’s Cup VIP, Hog Heaven) run longer and go deeper. Walking is light, the ground is uneven in spots, and there is little shade.

Coffee for sale on highway 11 in the Kaʻū district, between Nāʻālehu and Volcano

Planning your route along Highway 11

Visiting one or two coffee farms is a natural way to break up a south-Kona drive: tastings, a conversation with the farmer, and a bag of coffee to take home.

A farm tour pairs well with the rest of the morning. Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau national park is a short drive on, and two of our favorite snorkeling spots, Kealakekua Bay and Hōnaunau Bay (Two Step), are close by.

The farms sit on or near the road climbing the Hualālai and Mauna Loa slopes between Kailua-Kona and Captain Cook. Add a few shops, cafes, and St. Benedict’s Painted Church in Hōnaunau, and you have a full self-drive coffee morning. Plan one to two hours per farm, and check ahead whether the one you want takes reservations.

Kona coffee tour FAQ

When is the best time to go on a Kona coffee tour, and what months are best if you can choose?

Q: What is the best time of day to go on a coffee tour?

Coffee trees need both sunshine and frequent rain, so expect both when visiting. The mornings on the south Kona coast are usually sunny, and the clouds and rain appear after about 1PM (read more about the typical weather in Kona).

So, if you like sunshine and staying dry, the best time to plan your Kona coffee tour is before noon.

Q: What is the best month to go on a coffee tour?

Coffee farms on the Big Island are open for tours and tastings the whole year round, and the coffee they serve for the free tasting is always fresh.

What you see in the fields depends on the month. Our favorite stages of the coffee cycle are those between the blossoming (February + March) and the harvesting of the ripe, red, fruits (August), making February through August our favorite months to go on a Kona Coffee tour.

Q: When do the Kona coffee flowers bloom? ("Kona Snow")

When coffee plants bloom in the months February and March they carry lots of small, fragrant white flowers. These flowers are especially impressive when you see whole fields of coffee covered with them. It almost looks like the coffee plants are covered in snow. Growers call the flowering fields “Kona snow”.

Flowers of Kona coffee (“Kona snow”), South Kona, in early March 2012. By Frank Schulenburg, Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link

Q: When to see the green and red coffee berries (cherries)?

After coffee flowers are pollinated they fall off and a small green berry starts growing at its base. These berries start appearing on the plants in April, and they stay green until they are red, ripe, and ready to be harvested. The berries turn so red that they are called “cherries” for their resemblance to a cherry.

Each tree needs to be hand-picked several times between August and ~January, but August, September, and October, are our favorite months to see the red cherries on the coffee plants.

Ripe coffee berries ready for harvesting. By Jonathan Wilkins, own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link.

More on Kona coffee and Hawaiʻi coffee

If you would like to find out more about Kona coffee Our Kona Coffee guide covers:

• The 200 year history of Kona Coffee on the Big Island
• Why Kona Coffee is so special
• What to pay attention to when buying Kona Coffee in a shop or online
• The other Big Island coffees that are not “Kona” but are just as good and more affordable.

The Kona Coffee Guide

Most "Kona coffee" in shops is 10% Kona beans and 90% filler. Real 100% Kona costs $40–$70/lb. How to read the label, plus cheaper Kaʻū and Puna.

Read more →