Adventures in Paradise

We were greeted by Jeff, Kira, Ryan immediately upon arrival. They were friendly and enthusiastic as we filled out the required paper work and were given instructions about the day. They explained the importance of respecting the marine life in the bay and led by a wonderful example!! Driving to the bay with Ryan he explained the area and the history of the bay. The kayaking was excellent and the snorkeling was amazing, the best I've seen. We were also treated to an amazing dolphin show, they just happened to be in the bay that day. We enjoyed our tour so much we booked a second trip with them, the night manta ray snorkel. Of course they cannot guarantee the manta rays will be there but we had our own private show for about 15 minutes, Amazing!! Adventures in Paradise is a wonderful company with friendly staff who provide an Eco-friendly tour. I would recommend this tour to anyone! Thanks guys, Dan and Gary

We would really recommend this tour! Mike is a fantastic guide. We got to the site early, before the other big boats full of tourists came and got to see Spinner dolphins leaping into the air! The amount of multicoulored fish was unbelievable! Mike was very informative about the sea life and history of the bay. This company obviously cares about the people of the area and the animals there too. Mike made sure that no one on his tour harassed dolphins or fish, or stepped on the coral beds. He even informed others who were on separate tour boats, as they had no clue and were stepping on and breaking coral. He had a home-made ladder to help us into the bay and made sure everyone was comfortable at all times. We were not experienced at kayaking, and felt completely looked after. The equipment was in good condition. The snacks were delicious (fresh fruit was amazing) and they had plenty of water packed. We would definitely return. Our only wish is that the county could support the Indigenous Hawaiians to limit the number of tourists in the bay at a time, and provide education and restrictions to all boats and tour groups as to how to preserve the coral and marine life.

We considered doing this activity on our own, renting kayaks without a guide. I am so glad we opted to kayak as a group with a guide. Felt very safe throughout the trip, and our guide, Mark was very informative. Watched other individuals struggle with landing their kayaks and some even getting into trouble with the shoreline, waves. We were well looked after and the ease of the trip made it that much more enjoyable. Snorkelling was wonderful, snacks provided were fresh and tasty, and our guide was GREAT!

Activity was cancelled due to high surf and safety concerns. We have not to date received our credit to our VISA as serves were not rendered.

We couldn't be any happier with our experience and so glad we booked with Adventures in Paradise. The company is located very close to the bay where we launched. We explored Kealakekua Bay where the Captain Cook Monument is located. Its the perfect place to kayak and snorkel. Our guide, Mike Difazio was awesome. Super fun and friendly and was able to give us lots of interesting information about the monument and the history of the bay. He was so helpful that he even helped lots of other people that were not even part of our tour group. He just wanted to make sure that everyone was safe at the snorkel site and made sure that those people new how not to damage the delicate eco system. We also got to see a pod of spinner dolphins while kayaking to the monument and also on the way back. The whole experience was top notch. If you are looking for a kayak snorkel trip, book with these guys for sure. Tyler Kelowna, BC, Canada

Wonder small company and the only kayak tour to Cook's monument with landing rights. It was the best thing we did on the BiG Island. The snorkeling was fantastic - coral was in excellent health and I can see why permits are required to keep it that way. Very easy kayaking and snorkelling right off the landing. Plenty of spinner dolphins in the bay. Tour guide was very helpful and informative. Would definitely recommend.

Very enthusiastic and knowledgeable guide. Kayaking portion of trip is at the novice level. Great snorkeling!!!

Really enjoyed this trip. You do not have to be an experienced kayaker, and the pace was laid back and slow. We never felt rushed. The guide was the right combination of attentive but not overbearing. We also had a close encounter with the spinner dolphins which was the hilight of my vacation. I highly recommend this trip and don't be put off by the early start time, it's the best time to go before it gets overly busy in the bay.

We were a party of 4 adults (42, 39, 60, 64 yrs). The 64yr old has vision impairment and had never kayaked before and wasn't sure he'd snorkel. The team were very helpful and friendly. You didn't need to be experienced to do the kayak in the incredibly calm bay. The pace was 'relaxed' and our guide, Mike, knowledgable and chatty without being 'overbearing'. The snorkelling was lovely. Mike assisted the 2older members with the snorkelling, helping them enter the water and making suggestions to make it easier. The 'light snack' turned in to a small banquet of yummy snacks. Fresh fruit, muffins, museli bars etc and plenty of bottled water. We bought a disposable under water camera at one of the many ABC Convenience stores in Hawaii to use on the trip. All round one of the highlights of our trip.

The activity is a good experience to do but is too much expensive for the expectatives. There are a lot of people snorkeling in the bay at the same time (this devalue the experience).

We really enjoyed our kayaking and snorkelling trip. Bree, our guide, was friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. We were surrounded by a big group of spinner dolphins while paddling and got to the top snorkelling site before the big boats full of snorkellers. My husband and I were on honeymoon and this trip was one of the highlights of our time on the Big Island.

My husband and I are from Australia and have done some amazing snorkelling trips on the Great Barrier Reef and other places in the world. We have to admit that the snorkelling here was one of the best experiences we have had. Beautiful clear waters, an amazing variety of fish, colourful coral. We were a small group (6) with a friendly guide and we kayaked out to the Captain Cook monument. The company we travelled with had a permit that allowed us to land our kayaks on the beach. (one of the reasons that we decided to choose this company over any others) Our guide Bree looked after us and gave us a lot of information about the significant historical aspects of the area as well as the marine biology of the waters below. We were provided with drinks and snacks when we had finished snorkelling. We then kayaked back across the bay to our starting point, with a huge pod of dolphins playfully swimming alongside us for some of the way. Highly recommended. Great value.

What we liked: The tour was very informative and the guide was great. Most of the equipment used was also very good, probably the best snorkel gear that I have seen on any of the snorkel adventures that we have done. What might be improved: Not much really. Possibly a bit more organized to start- have the gear ready to go. Seat belts in the van should be readily available, they were hidden away in two of the three benches in the back. In summary A very enjoyable morning in which all of our party felt safe, had a good time and carried back good memories.

My husband and I, along with another couple, took this kayak trip on Dec. 30, 2012. We were unaware that the state of Hawaii was scheduled to enforce a ban on watercraft in this bay two days later (January 1), so we feel lucky to have participated. The tour guides who accompanied us -- I think their names were Chris and Reid -- were both friendly and seemed more professional than another, smaller group who appeared on the boat launch at about the same time. (Those guys were smoking cigarettes and didn't appear to be very friendly to their patrons. I would have been completely irritated by that!) Chris is a schoolteacher and was just a pleasant and well-informed young man. Despite only having moved to Hawaii several months before, he was very well-versed in the history of Captain Cook and the monument. On the van ride to the boat launch, he described some history of Hawaiian royalty and the story of Capt. Cook's arrival and ultimate demise, and he continued the history discussion after we kayaked to the site. It was clear that he really enjoyed this part of the job and I bet he's a well-liked teacher! He and Reid were quite helpful and attentive getting everyone safely into and out of their kayaks, which was tricky on this day with some rough seas. The trip itself was a lot of fun and not too strenuous for reasonably active and adventurous people. I think young children and the elderly might have more difficulty, but I wouldn't call it dangerous. The snorkeling in front of the monument is great; the best reef I've seen in Hawaii, personally. We saw an eel among the fishes, and then on the way back in the kayaks, a couple of people saw a manta ray near the surface. A pod of spinner dolphins was swimming some distance away, between us and the sheer cliff face. It was the first trip to Hawaii for one of our friends, and the first sea kayak adventure for all four of us in our group. While I understand the state's reasons for banning all watercraft in the bay (due to many people disregarding the rules and landing on the monument site without permits), it really is too bad that it hurts responsible outfitters like these guys. We hope the ban is only temporary so they can resume offering this trip. It is worth the price.

Very nicely run trip with knowledgeable operators. They are lcensed and take care of the fragile area around the monument.