Oahu
Waikiki Beach, hotel pickup departure, next stop Hanauma Bay "The view of the bay from above is amazing!" Then to Moanalua Gardens "It was a breathtaking experience in nature, famous for the tree from the song 'What Tree is This?'" We visited Waimanalo Shopping Center and Dole Plantation "The pineapple soft serve was delicious." We went in the order of Haleiwa and arrived at the Polynesian Cultural Center around 1 PM "It was a fantastic bus drive around half of Oahu Island, enjoying the stunning views for about three hours, the best way to learn about Oahu!"
After arriving, we had lunch, and there were various cultural experiences available in the park, all fresh and enjoyable. Canoe show "We watched many Hawaiian dances." Dinner "Steak, fruits, and dessert were delicious." The night show, “‘Ha’ Breath of Life,” which boasts the largest scale in Hawaii, featured over 100 staff performing passionately for nearly two hours. It showcased the growth of a life born on the island into a fine young man who would govern the island and protect its people, presented through songs and dances! The fire dance show in the second half was a powerful light show that you absolutely cannot see anywhere else. It was the best!
Spending time in the park until 9:30 PM, I felt like I truly experienced Hawaii and became one with the locals! It was a fulfilling tour. Thank you to all the cast members; I was moved to tears and deeply grateful.
Since I had already heard the story in Japanese from our guide during the bus drive, even though I didn't understand the language, I was able to enjoy the show smoothly and with even more intensity. Thank you to our wonderful guide; I will come back again!
ワイキキビ-チ、ホテルお迎え出発、次がハナウマ湾「上空から見る湾の景色最高!」、モアナルアガ-デン「この木なんの木♪でおなじみの大自然を満喫圧巻でした」ワイマナロショッピングセンター、ド-ルプランテ-ション「パイナップルソフトが美味しかったです」ハレイワの順番で回って、午後1時頃にポリネシアカルチャーセンターに到着「約3時間からの絶景を見ながらのオハフ島約半周,ワイキキの反対側までバスドライブでしたオアフ島を知るには最高です!」
到着後は、ランチ、園内では様々な民族の体験ができどれもが新鮮で楽しむことができました。カヌーショー「沢山のハワイの踊りを観覧」 デイナー「ステーキ,果物,デザート,美味しかったです」ハワイ最大規模を誇る“‘ハァ’ブレス・オブ・ライフ”ナイトショー「100人以上のスタッフが2時間近くに渡り熱演、島で生れた一つの命が格闘の渦中立派な青年へと成長、軈て島を治め島民を守って行く姿を舞台で、歌や踊りで披露!特に後半のファイヤーダンスショーは他では絶対に見られない迫力のライトショー」最高でした!。
夜9時半まで園内で過ごした自分は、これこそ誇れるハワイなり!と島民に成りきった思いでの大満喫出来たツアーでした♡キャストの皆さん有難う、涙と感激有難う御座いました♡。
夜のショーは、あらかじめガイドさんから日本語でバスドライブ中ストーリーを一通り聞いていた為、言語はわからずともスムーズに一層迫力を受け楽しむことができました。素敵なガイドさん有難う、又お邪魔しまーす♡。
Thank you, goodbye!
Mahalo, Aloha oe!
Ben our driver was great. Thoroughly enjoyed his narration as we traveled. Very informative. Long day but very very worth it!!
Taking this tour was very helpful in making sure we made the most out of our visit. Our guide gave us a detailed review of the area so that we were able to make an informed decision on our activities. I would definitely recommend this tour.
We participated as a couple in our 60s, and I thought we would be stuck in a can from morning till night?! But time flew by, and I'm really glad we joined (*^^*) We were able to do some sightseeing and shopping too ★ I highly recommend this tour.
60代夫婦で参加しましたが、朝から晩まで缶詰状態⁈と思ってたが、時間もあっと言う間に過ぎて本当に参加してよかった(*^^*)観光も出来買い物も★このツアーはおすすめです。
Thank you, goodbye!
Mahalo, Aloha oe!
Loved the cultural center and all its history. I felt like we could have gotten there earlier if our tk guide didn't share so many personal stories. We had many beautiful stops but he'd wait till we sat back in our seats to stand and share stories. I'd prefer to get on the road and spend more time at stop points or cultural center
We loved this trip. The guide was super helpful and friendly. We will be booking this trip again.
I think our guides name was AC... he was amazing, had so much interesting information, made the drive to the north shore very entertaining.
First stop was Haleiwa Town on the north shore where we could have a look around and even got to try the famous shave ice. Next a drive along the shore to see all the amazing beaches and even some celebrity houses, then had a stop at the pipeline for some photos, and then he took us to see all the activities so we knew what they all were.
My friend and I chose the waterfall hike/swim, then AC took us the Waimea Bay for a swim, then the kayaking in the afternoon, and a great burger from Haleiwa Town. On the way back to Waikiki we stopped at a beach famous for turtles and we saw one on the beach. AC then dropped us off at the dole plantation - a complete surprise - so we could have a look around and try the dole whip. On the drive back AC played some stand up comedy on the tv so we could all relax and have a laugh.
Overall an incredible day!
The show was really great. I've never seen this show before, I would suggest everyone see it at least once.
Mahalo Steve, Aloha oe!
Great way to see the island. Driver well informed and super friendly. Well recommended.
Driver was great and very informative. would highly recommend this to anyone.
For starters, the show Ha! Breath of Life is AMAZING! If nothing else, that is worth a visit.
Ok, so the Circle Island Tour - yeah, you circle (most of) the island and see some cool things (briefly), but you can get circle island tours from pretty much everyone and ended up with about 3 total after all of our activities there over our week. The biggest problem with this Circle Island Tour is that it takes TOO LONG! You're going to want ample time to do the tour, but not when that time cuts into your time at the cultural center.
We did the circle island tour and the ambassador package. By the time we finished the tour and go to the center, did all the ambassador check in crap, and got to start seeing the center, we had already lost at least 1.5 hours of the already short time available to visit the various cultures. The group tour and the guide does help you learn some cool things, but it also makes everything take longer. In the end, we went back a second day so that we could see all the things we missed the first day (maybe that's the point - more $$ from the visitors??).
I don't want to lead you to believe the center is poor. On the contrary, we very much enjoyed the center. The luau was meh. The show was GREAT! We just wouldn't recommend the circle island tour (as it was for us) or the ambassador package (unless you want to buy it for the good seats but ditch the tour guide in the park).
Definitely visit the park, definitely see the show. Consider ditching the tour guide in the park, consider doing the circle island tour with another company or on a different day, and if you see a luau anywhere else, consider skipping it here (it wasn't the best luau we attended).
Note, the 3 stars if for the package, not for the center on the whole. The center was great, we just weren't keen on the package we purchased.
Mahalo Brian for your wonderful feedback, very happy you were able to take advantage of another day; however sorry that the guide was not a benefit to you and your group. We will address these concerns with our team. Aloha oe!
I wanted to head out to the North Shore, but did not want to sit on a stodgy bus all day and listen to someone drone on and on. The Surf Bus was the PERFECT choice since I not only got to experience the highlights of the area, but got to do some fun activities as well.
I decided to do Snorkeling, the Waimea Falls nature walk and SUP. Harry was very accommodating about squeezing in two activities for the morning section, and I am so happy that he did. The snorkeling was AMAZING! It was literally like swimming in an aquarium. I got to be in the water for a little over an hour and then I was picked up to go to Waimea Falls Park. The walk was quite easy, and if you have a hard time walking, shuttles are available for $10 round-trip at the park. I didn't go into the water since I just wanted to sit and relax, but the walk to and from the waterfall was about 45 minutes total. REALLY beautiful.
For my afternoon, I chose SUP and even though I had never done it before, I figured it out pretty quickly after the briefing from the guys at the surf store. I never quite made it to the "stand up" part of "stand up paddling", but my "sit up" paddle was just as fun and I made it all the way down the river.
With about an hour left before I had to meet the bus, I had a delicious burger and fries at Teddy's Bigger Burger and washed that all down with some shave ice from Matsumotos (lychee and strawberry YUM!). All in all, a great experience and wonderful way to see the best of the North Shore in a day :)
It's been decades since I last participated. Last time I went with the standard option, but this time I chose the deluxe package, and I had a wonderful tour with a very beautiful student as my guide. The chief of Samoa was as entertaining as ever. The food wasn't anything special, but the show was even more interesting since I participated in the backstage tour beforehand.
数十年ぶりの参加です。前回はスタンダードだったので今回はデラックスにしましたが、とっても綺麗な学生さんがツアーガイドについてくださり、とても楽しいツアーでした。サモアの酋長さんも相変わらず面白い。食事はたいしたことないですが、ショウはバックステージツアーに参加してから観たのでよけいに面白かったです。
Thank you, farewell!
Mahalo, Aloha oe!
The story from our Japanese guide, Maki, was so enjoyable that we couldn't stop laughing during the half-day tour. The Polynesian show in the second half was far more impressive than we had anticipated, and it moved me to tears. I highly recommend this tour. I hope to see Maki again!
日本人の名物ガイド・マキさんのお話が楽しくて楽しくて…笑いっぱなしの半日観光でした。後半のポリネシアンショーは予想していたより遥かに見ごたえがあり、感動して涙してしまいました。お勧めのツアーです。またマキさんに会えたらいいね!
Thank you, goodbye!
Mahalo, aloha oe!
Our guide, Maki, was very kind and attentive. The roads in Hawaii are not very good, and combined with the uncomfortable bus ride, I experienced a bit of motion sickness. It would have been better if the bus windows were a little cleaner. At the Polynesian Cultural Center, there were many things to see and do, and we spent a very rich time there. It started to rain during our visit, but we were helped by receiving a free vinyl poncho. The behind-the-scenes tour included in the deluxe course is a must-see. The roast beef for dinner was delicious. It would have been even better if alcohol had been included.
ガイドのマキさん、とても親切で気の利く方でした。ハワイの道があまり良くないのと、バスの乗り心地が悪いのが相まって、少々車酔いしました。バスの窓がもう少し掃除して綺麗だと良かったです。ポリネシア文化センターでは見たりやったりが沢山で、かなり濃い時間を過ごしました。途中、雨が降ってきましたが、ビニールのポンチョを無料で頂けたので助かりました。デラックスコースに付いている、舞台裏の見学は必見です。夕食のローストビーフは美味でした。これでアルコールがOKならもっと良かったのですが。
Thank you and farewell!
Mahalo and Aloha oe!
I mentioned this before on the phone. This was fun, but was only able to do one activity. Unfortunately the ad misleads you into thinking you can do whatever activities, whenever. You are allowed to swim, snorkel, bike ride or hike in the morning. Then you can either surf(which you cant cause it will cost you more when you never did it, apparently you have to take a lesson before using their boards), kayak, or stand up paddleboard in the afternoon. It just was a disappointment to have an expectaion of what to get for my day, then not do it. In other words, two spereate locations for the morning and afternoon activities, so majority of your time is traveling. Which is fine, but also would of have a different opinion. Knowing what i know now, i probably would never choosen this activity.
I missed the bus to go to the afternoon location, needless to say i was given the wrong time by tourist, but honsestly by the time i got there, i was out of time. One thing that is odd is the memory game, being dropped off somwhere and being picked up elsewhere. However, the people that works at the snorkel rental place, especially that young kid, clueless to his surroundings. Knew who i was & i who else i was there with in regards of the other party on the tour bus & couldnt inform me of the other party making it back. So knowing the time i had to be picked up, this kid not being observant and missing the bus is all my fault, right? So thanks for that! I had to wait for the city bus to pick me up to find out where the tour bus was to get back on it.
All in all, i only did one activity and did a lot of sitting & waiting around. Snorkeling was fun, but was my excitement was short lived with the turmoil. I had fun snorkeling, and thats about it. Oh yeah, dont worry, ill take care of that bus fare!
We are sorry you got the pick up times mixed up and were forced to catch a city bus to catch up , therefore missing your second activity. Normally we have other drivers on the North Shore and could have expatiated things so sorry for that too.PLEASE GIVE US A FUTURE DATE TO COMP YOU THE TOUR SO WE CAN SHOW YOU WHAT ITS REALLY LIKE.
P.S; FOR SAFTEY REASONS SURFING IS THE ONLY ACTIVITY WHICH IF YOU HAVE NO PRIOR EXPERIENCE WE REQUIRE YOU DO A LESSON. Those with some prior experience may surf with our basic package pricing.
Aloha Justin
Lanai ensured we had a Wonderful day. Great itinerary, local food and we came away with a deeper understanding of the islands, its people and culture.
Simply wonderful. You travel around Oahu, visiting many beaches and points of attraction, like the Budist temple, Kualua Ranch, Dole Plantation and much more. The tour guide was excelent, I give him the highest calification.
We had a wonderful day with AC as our guide. He was very knowledgeable, pointing out local sites and giving history along the way. He bent over backwards to accommodate everyone on the tour, taking each group to their favorite locations, running back and forth moving us around from hot spot to hotspot as we each finished our excursions. He was very professional at all times. We would hIghly recommend him as a tour guide. We had a blast! He even went out of his way to go back and find a lost article for us- which fell out of the van at a previous stop.
Our original driver lost his wallet so could not drive us. We had to wait close to an hour to get a new driver. This combined with heavy traffic due to a Christmas parade resulted in our tour being significantly delayed and feeling somewhat rushed as we tried to save time at each stop. Our second driver was very knowledgeable and gave us an excellent running commentary as we toured. We did skip a couple of stops/activities due to the delays, but we're not offered any type of compensation. While this is a highly recommended tour company that provided the service, I find it disappointing they did nothing to make up for their issues.
The tour guide was entertaining, funny, and knowledgeable. The scenery was breathtaking. Enjoyed all the stops.
We had an excellent day out and learnt a lot of interesting facts about Hawai'i, and the shrimps were fantastic
Paul our driver was very informative and told us many stories about the island and showed us so many beautiful places. Shrimp lunch was yummy.
Started out from our hotel with a great driver who was very knowledgable and entertaining. We stopped to see Hanauma Bay which was beautiful then moved on to see some very beautiful scenery areas and a stop for ice cream. We hadn't seen this part of the island before especially the beautiful homes with ocean scenery. We ended up at Kuala Ranch that had a tram tour that was somewhat of a disappointment because we saw scenery from the ranch that we could see from the road but now much of the ranch or ranching activities. The gold buffet lunch was okay but only came with complimentary water with tiny plastic glasses. If we wanted any other drinks we had to stand in line while our food got cold. We headed to Dole thinking we would get a tour but again only stopped at the gift shop for shopping. Best part of that was we had another pineapple whip which was great. We saw many of the same things on this tour that we saw the day before on our Pearl Harbor / Polynesian tour. The driver was great and very informative but the tour was just so-so and wouldn't recommend it to others who do the Pearl Harbor / Polynesian Cultural Center.
I had such a wonderful time!
This was the best way to explore the west side of the island, and we visited so many beautiful spots off the beaten path!
Akima and Robert are really good guides and snorkel instructors. They know a lot about the island and gave us rich information about the history of Hawaii, the legends and marine life. They have maps and pictures to illustrate what they are talking about. They are also professional photographers and took many cool pictures for us, including underwater shots. The vehicle was very clean and comfortable and they were on time for pick up.
My favorite time was the snorkel, I am not a good swimmer but the guides made me feel very comfortable and safe.
I would definitely recommend Hawaii Real Nature to everyone visiting Oahu!
It was a long day but the time flew by as our tour guide/driver kept us entertained the entire day. We will definitely recommend this tour to friends and family and we look forward to booking more tours the next time we're in Oahu!
This was one of the most enjoyable and informative tours I have been on, Tiffany was an excellent and knowledgeable host this tour offers more than the tour description indicates and includes detailed interesting natural fauna information. I can highly recomend this very enjoyable tour and is excellent value for money the shrimp meal was enjoyable. Well done Tiffany for making our day day an enjoyable one.
Aloha Eric,
Thank you for your great review, and awesome praise of Tiffany. We will be sure to let her know how much you appreciated her tour. We are thrilled you had a great day, and got an amazing experience with her knowledge and information. That is the Oahu Nature Tour Difference. We hope you join us on another one of our adventures the next time you are in Oahu.
Mahalo,
Oahu Nature Tours
We spent 2 nights in Honolulu after a cruise so as we were short on time so this was the best way to see most of the Island. It was an amazing tour, very well organized and saw a lot of places we would never of seen on our own. Our guide Ernie was brilliant, I would highly recommend this tour for anyone staying on the Island.
Great day at the north beach. We chose the waterfall hike as our activity in the morning. You could have done snorkelling or bike rides if preferred. We then had free time on waimea bay beach. In the afternoon we had a free lunch instead of doing another activity such as kayaking. Saw sea turtles at a beach on the way home
Rained most of day, so sopping wet weather in water or not. Confusion all day about activities etc.