Hawaii Manta Ray Sunset & Night Time Snorkel Experience from Kona - Iruka
Overall Rating
4.85
Exhilarating Night Adventure Watching Manta Ray Under Your Feet
Reviewed by: LarryC, 2024/02/28Are ready to try an adventure that is unique? Water activities are great but what about doing something at night, in the water and mysteriously fun? You must do this! A night time viewing of majestic Manta Rey fish! Oh boy, so fun. The day came, I drove down to the facility early (good thing I did, I got lost) and introduced myself to the host. Maybe her name was Iruka, but a very friendly girl greeted me and accommodated any questions I had. She offered a wetsuit fins and mask/snorkel combo however, I bought and brought my own (because I know what it means for things not to fit right). We took off on time with about 13-15 people out into the abyss. Light was shimmering off the water as the sun was setting down. Very beautiful to see it on a boat. We took a short ride to the spot where other boats were anchored and the crew pulled out a square like raft. It had special lights in the middle to draw fish and Manta Ray. The special lights draw the plankton towards the light and the fish eat it right away.
Everyone slowly dropped ourselves over the side and crew members helped us swim to the floating raft. We had to hold a small rope handle and given floating noodles to place under our feet to make everyone horizontal. This is to keep our feet from kicking underneath the raft and scaring the fish. This also kept everyone relaxed, well until we started seeing strange fish.
So much fun! The ride back was scary fun. Traveling through the dark without any lights but the moon illuminating on the water in front of us Wow! This is something you'll never forget. Highly Recommended.
Video https://youtu.be/t4VJHokd3DI
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| Attended as: | Solo Travelers |
| Activity Date: | 2024/02/13 |
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Awesome once-in-a-lifetime experience
Reviewed by: Veronica, 2024/02/25My family did the sunset cruise and it was amazing! We got to watch the sunset in the water and got to see dolphins and look for whales before heading to the snorkeling spot. I have kids ages 12 and 9. While my 9 year old struggled a bit with the snorkel, my 12 year old had no problems at all. The crew was super fun and engaging, dancing to music and generally infecting the crowd with their great attitude. Snacks and drinks were provided as well as hot chocolate afterward. They also took videos for us and were happy to airdrop them to anyone that wanted them. I would definitely recommend this experience and this company!
Aloha Veronica!
Thank you for joining our manta ray tour and for sharing your amazing experience. We are thrilled to hear that you and your family had a great time on our boat and snorkeling with the manta rays. We hope you come back soon for more fun, mahalo
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
| Activity Date: | 2024/02/02 |
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Amazing guides, lots of mantas and fish, beautiful scenery, and fun learning experience.
Reviewed by: E & C Flores-Montoya, 2023/10/27My husband and I booked this tour for our honeymoon on the island. It was truly amazing to see the many fish and mantas in their natural habitat! I was that person who forgot their motion sickness meds. If you get motion sick/sea sick definitely take them so you can enjoy the whole experience without feeling queasy. If you come from colder climates you may not need wet suits. My husband and I didnt get them as we come from a cold climate and did fine temperature wise. The captain and his crew, Diego, were very knowledgeable and friendly. They also helped out a bunch when I wasn't feeling well. Would recommend this tour to anyone!
Aloha! Thank you so much for joining our Manta Ray tour and for choosing Iruka! It makes us so happy to hear that our guests are loving their experience. We hope to see you again soon. Mahalo!
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2023/10/25 |
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10/10, would recommend. Manta rays are a must see!
Reviewed by: Maggy, 2023/09/18This was such a breathtaking experience! Trevor and Diego were excellent captain and crew, with a great sense of humor too. They ensured I felt safe which was huge because I had never snorkeled before. I would recommend this company to anyone who asks, they provide everything you need including prescription goggles which was an amazing surprise. Diego also gave us manta ray facts as we were snorkeling and we loved it. The night began with a sunset boat ride, leading into the manta ray snorkel, and then a quick boat ride back to the harbor with snacks and hot cocoa. I will never forget this experience.
Aloha Maggy! We are so happy that you had fun on our Manta Ray tour. Thank you so much for joining us. We hope to see you again soon. Mahalo!
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2023/09/15 |
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Epic Experience!
Reviewed by: Alex, 2023/09/02The boat crew went out of their way to make sure each and every one of us was taken care of and having a good time. The mantas were surreal. This is something everyone needs to experience!
Aloha Alex! Thank you so much for joining our tour and for sharing about your experience. We are so glad that you enjoyed your time with us. Please come back soon! Mahalo
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2023/08/31 |
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Best family excursion!
Reviewed by: Molly L, 2023/06/25MUST DO-Our family comes to Hawaii every summer and this is by far the most magical experience we've ever had on an excursion!!! There were four manta rays swimming around us-truly awe inspiring! Our kids are 16, 14, and 10...ALL LOVED IT and said it was the highlight of our trip! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Aloha Molly! Thank you for joining our tour and leaving such positive feedback! We are so glad that your family enjoyed your time with the manta rays. We hope to see you again in the future! Mahalo
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2023/06/23 |
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Once in a lifetime experience..I'd enjoy again and again!
Reviewed by: reneec, 2023/04/01The crew made the cruise fun and enjoyable for people of all ages.
Snacks were included, but you may not want to est if you get seasick easily.
As part of the experience, they even took some pictures during so we could just enjoy the experience ourselves.
Note: If it's the right season, you may even be able to see other wildlife on the Sunset cruise like we did!
Aloha! Thank you for joining our manta ray tour. We appreciate your kind words and are thrilled to hear that you had a great time. Come back soon, Mahalo
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2023/03/09 |
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LIFE CHANGING
Reviewed by: Nikki Clark, 2023/01/31First of all, WOW. From beginning to end, this experience was one for the record books.
For $10 this crew sets you up with a wet suit (recommended), and then a snorkel set at no additional charge. Once we boarded, we were met with a warm welcome, and a good belly laugh. Excellent staff! They were informative, safe, and most importantly, knew how to have fun!
During the boat ride we were met with bottle nose dolphins and a humpback whale sighting! The dolphins were curious and playful, and swam all around our boat! I may or may not have shed a tear of joy. It was seriously rad.
Once we got to our destination they gave us a noodle for floating, and set up a large, square floatation device for everyone to hold onto while we watched the mana rays. They are huge! They’re giant, friendly, and bring their appetite for plankton. You’ll also see tons of fish while you snorkel.
After our time was up, and we boarded, they passed out cups of hot chocolate.
The entire experience as a whole was one we will never forget. YOU HAVE TO DO THIS while you’re here!
Thank you so much for the experience of a lifetime! Keep up the good work, guys! Mahalo
Aloha Nikki,
Thank you for the amazing comments about our team, we're glad your group felt safe and satisfied! We do offer a repeater discount of 20% off, so please keep us in mind for future travel plans.
Mahalo,
Iruka Hawaii
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2023/01/29 |
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Magical!!
Reviewed by: Lea, 2022/10/27Hands down a memorable experience. I absolutely loved it and want to go back ASAP. I went in September and I still can't stop thinking about it. The parking was right in front of the loading area. The crew was welcoming right away. They got us set up with gear and even let us use our own gear if we brought. They had snacks and beverages on board. We got to watch the sky light on fire for sunset as we sailed out to where the mantas were. Lots of other companies were around in the harbor as well but the crew made sure to stay a safe distance away without disrupting the other experiences. And !!for the main event!! we saw SIX manta rays! Maybe more. They were so beautiful and flipping right underneath us. The captain also shared some knowledge atop the floating mat while we snorkeled so we could hear her stories while appreciating the creatures. The mantas stuck around the whole time. When it was time to head back in, the crew treated us to hot chocolate. They were also happy to share footage they took during the experience. I fully appreciated their generosity. I would definitely go back and do this again with Iruka! And a BIG MAHALO to HawaiiActivities.com and the Hawaii Reef Hero contest for making this possible for me and my friends <3
Aloha Lea,
Mahalo nui for sharing your kind words and amazing photos of your experience with us! We are so happy the crew was able to provide a memorable experience for your group, and all returning customers receive a 20% repeater discount. We hope to see you again!
Mahalo,
Team Iruka Hawaii
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| Attended as: | Friends |
| Activity Date: | 2022/09/05 |
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Amaze balls
Reviewed by: Matt, 2022/07/30Excellent crew and amazing experience swimming with the fishes. Highly recommended.
Aloha!
We love to hear all the positive feedback about our Manta Ray Experience! Mahalo for joining us and we hope to see you again soon, we offer a 20% discount for repeating customers.
Best,
Team Iruka Hawaii
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2022/07/07 |
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Amazing experience.
Reviewed by: Hilari Freeman , 2022/06/19The tour was great. The sunset was amazing. The boat ride out was super fun with water and sodas. The guides worked hard to get us positioned for the rays. We got to see several rays with one completely in the center of our group doing several flips while eating. Afterwards we got hot chocolate.
Aloha Hilari,
We're so glad to hear all the positive things you had to say about your trip with us, and thank you for sharing your pictures! All returning customer's receive a 20% repeater discount if you folks plan on returning!
Mahalo,
Iruka Hawaii Team!
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2022/06/17 |
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A very exciting and entertaining adventure!
Reviewed by: Juliann, 2022/04/23Trevor, Allie and Diego were excellent hosts, both informative and entertaining. They provided all safety info in a clear manner, all the manta ray facts you could wish for, and a good laugh as well! We saw so many rays!! Allie was helpful with participants having trouble with positioning, Diego took great photos and shared them, and Trevor kept us all afloat and played great tunes. Would recommend, would go again! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Aloha Juliann!
We love to hear all the positive feedback about our captain and crew! Mahalo for joining us and we hope to see you again soon, we offer a 20% discount for repeating customers.
Best,
Team Iruka Hawaii
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| Attended as: | Friends |
| Activity Date: | 2022/04/21 |
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Definitely recommend this manta ray experience
Reviewed by: J. Williams , 2022/04/15The manta rays definitely put on an amazing show for us, so I would give them five stars. More importantly though, we would give the crew five stars. They put in a lot of effort to make sure everyone was informed and comfortable, and they were very efficient. We would certainly recommend Iruka for this manta ray experience.
Aloha!
We love to hear all the positive feedback about our Manta Ray Experience! Mahalo for joining us and we hope to see you again soon, we offer a 20% discount for repeating customers.
Best,
Team Iruka Hawaii
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2022/04/13 |
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Amazing experience
Reviewed by: Eric, 2022/04/09We booked our tour not knowing quite what to expect. We were absolutely blown away. The staff was knowledgeable, professional, and hilarious. I was new to snorkeling and nervous (i had approximately 1 hour practice messing around on a local beach) but i immediately knew i was in good hands with the crew and there was always a crew member close enough so i could relax. Words cannot explain seeing these amazing creature swim inches from you. The rays were super active the night we went and put on quite a show. I think the topper for me was a few days after our tour we saw a crew member at a local farmers market and he remembered us and came up and spoke to us about our experience. I absolutely recommend doing this because we will do it again next trip.
Aloha Eric!
We love to hear all the positive feedback about our captain and crew! Mahalo for joining us and we hope to see you again soon, we offer a 20% discount for repeating customers.
Best,
Team Iruka Hawaii
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2022/03/18 |
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Better than I ever expected
Reviewed by: Teresa , 2022/03/22I’ve never been snorkeling before so this was a first experience for me. This company offers great services. They have an option for you to pay $30 more per person for them to come pick you up at local hotel (within their distance). Great option because we didn’t rent a car for our trip to Hawaii. They offer wet suit for rental $10 per person. We didn’t rent any because it was warm enough but it’s a great option. The boat ride was about 30 minutes each way and they included sodas/a cup of hot chocolate and chips for you. The manta-rays we saw were huge and there were so many of them!! They came super close as well. The best part was that they even recorded the manta-rays and air dropped the videos to us!!! I don’t have an underwater camera so it was a great surprise when she (the owner?) offered to airdrop us videos.
Aloha! Thank you so much for joining our tour and for sharing about your experience. We are so glad that you enjoyed your time with us. Please come back soon! Mahalo
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2022/03/20 |
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Awesome experience.
Reviewed by: Katy C, 2021/10/13The entire experience from start to finish was amazing! The sunset cruise was a fun addition to swimming with the Mantas. The staff is super fun, helpful and knowledgeable. The Mantas are breathtaking- we were in awe of them! I’m so glad we did this tour, definitely a major highlight of our week in Kona!
Aloha,
We are grad you had a great time with Manta Rays,
They come so close and flip flip flips..it's really amazing!
Thank you very much for your nice pic ;)
Mahalo
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2021/10/11 |
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Spectacular adventure!
Reviewed by: Donna W., 2021/07/27Amazing crew who shared humor, but were extremely focused on safety and total enjoyment for each guest. Thank you Captain Scott, Bryce, and the entire Ikuka Team for this amazing experience. We will definitely be returning. Mahalo!
Thank you for joining with us and beautiful Manta Ray shots!
We are looking forward to seeing you again!
A hui hou
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2021/07/25 |
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Manta Ray snorkel
Reviewed by: Ninnette H, 2021/07/24This was such an awesome experience! My family and I had such a great time. It was a little scary at first but you get over it really quick once you see the mantas! The crew was also awesome. They made everyone comfortable and constantly checked on us to make sure we were on in the water! 10/10!
Thank you for your nice picture!
People sometimes feel scared first in the dark Ocean but no need to worry.
Manta Rays flip in the blue light is so beautiful.
Mahalo!
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2021/07/03 |
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Simply Amazing!! Best of my my things I have done on Big Island!
Reviewed by: Roxene Gascoigne, 2021/07/20This has been the most thrilling adventure ever snorkeling with this big creatures!!! Loved it and loved the reggae music on the boat ride out to the snorkel area.
Aloha
Thank you for your beautiful photos.
Yeah, Mantas are amazing!
Please come again.
Mahalo!
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| Attended as: | Friends |
| Activity Date: | 2021/07/19 |
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Aloha Larry!
Thank you so much for joining our manta ray tour on the big island of Hawai'i! We are happy to hear that you had a great time with our awesome crew and in the water with the manta rays! Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us! Your videos and pictures are amazing to see. Come back soon, mahalo