Deluxe Big Island Day Tour, Volcanoes National Park & Dinner at Kilauea Lodge reviews, Big Island tours & activities, fun things to do in Big Island | HawaiiActivities.com

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Deluxe Big Island Day Tour, Volcanoes National Park & Dinner at Kilauea Lodge

Overall Rating

4.96 4.96 / 5

Reviews

93 reviews
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Didn't see the lava show, but still was amazing

Reviewed by: Eder, 2024/01/09

This is one of the best tour I had, the driver always take care of you even if you Re late lol.
But it was an amazing experience you can meet new people and have a great time, I would do it again when I come back to kona!

Rating:
Attended as:Solo Travelers
Activity Date:2024/01/07
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Great day in Hawaii!

Reviewed by: Firelight , 2023/12/16

It was a great days long adventures around the island. I would highly recommend it!

  • Sea turtles at black sand beach!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2023/11/26
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Fabulous Trip

Reviewed by: Tracy , 2023/10/29

This tour was the highlight of my families trip. The tour was amazing and our guide was knowledgeable and friendly. He was happy to answer all of my children's questions.

Rating:
Attended as:Families
Activity Date:2023/10/02
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Amazing way to relax and explore!

Reviewed by: Megan, 2023/08/22

I definitely recommend taking this tour. It’s very well paced so that you’re never stressed out or rushed, but never bored either. I loved learning Hawaiian history and fork lore expertly told by my tour guide Uncle Jim. I would request him if you can. The stops are great and it’s a really nice day trip. Hope you can do this and have fun!

Rating:
Attended as:Solo Travelers
Activity Date:2023/07/24
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Fantastic tour!

Reviewed by: André , 2023/07/21

We loved this tour! P.J., our Tour guide, loves his job, and that was obvious in his knowledge and enthusiasm. Comfortable shuttle. Great service. Good food. Great sights!

Rating:
Attended as:Families
Activity Date:2023/07/19
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Definitely do this!

Reviewed by: Susan & Dave, 2023/04/16

This was a great way to see a lot in one day. The ride was very comfortable, our driver was extremely knowledgeable and engaging and we saw and learned so much!

Reply from activity provider

Aloha Susan and Dave,

Thank you so much for your kind words! It is a lot to see in one day for sure. We pride ourselves on having engaging guides with knowledge of all things Big Island. We're glad you enjoyed your tour and hope your time on the Big Island was enjoyable!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2023/04/13
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Great way to get an all around tour of the island

Reviewed by: Mark B, 2023/02/12

This tour was a great way to see the highlights of the entire Big Island. To start off, our tour guide, Christopher, was fantastic. He was exceptionally knowledgeable about the island, interesting to listen to, energetic, and willing to do anything needed to make our tour great. We started out being picked up at our resort in a very comfortable Mercedes van. We visited Kona Joes coffee farm where we had a good lunch. We toured the southern side of the island, and stopped at the Punalu’u Bake Shop to have excellent pastries. Next stop was the black sand beach where we watched the huge surf crashing into the rocky coast, and saw two very lazy green turtles sunning themselves on the beach. After that, we went to the Kilauea volcano crater to see it in the daytime. Wind and rain hampered this visit, so we went to dinner at a great resturant nearby. On the way, we stopped to tour the rain forest and walked through a lava tunnel. Both were great experiences. Finally, to top it all off, we say the lava eruptions at night at the crater. Fantastic experience...

  • Lava flowing at the Kilauea Crater

  • Waves crashing ashore at the Black Sand beach

  • Walking thru a lava tube

  • Lazy turtles lounging on the Black Sand beach

Reply from activity provider

Aloha Mark,

Thank you for your review, very thorough! Christopher is a gem of a guide for sure, we're so happy you enjoyed your day with us, and we hope your trip to the Big Island was great EVERY day.

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2023/02/09
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Must Do Tour! Best Part of Our Trip to Hawaii!

Reviewed by: Erika & Nate, 2022/12/06

Wow! This tour was absolutely amazing from start to finish. Our tour guide, Bryce, was one of the most knowledgeable persons I have ever met. He knew so much of the history and culture of Hawaii and told us so many in depth stories with a lot of detail. He also has extensive knowledge in almost every topic known to man and can easily talk about any topic for hours—literally! This tour was super long but so worth it. Bryce kept us entertained the whole time while driving from place to place. The volcano was spectacular to see in both the day and the night! In the day, you get to enjoy the vastness of the volcano and see all the steam vents. In the night—wow nothing will ever beat that experience—the most stars you will ever see in the night sky and the lava flow was unreal! So unbelievably cool. This really was the best tour we have ever been on—amazing sights, fun times, and extremely informative! Highly recommend!

Reply from activity provider

Aloha Erika and Nate,

Thanks for your review, we're so glad you enjoyed it! Bryce is a wealth of information for sure, and we're lucky to have him as a guide. You're timing was great for the eruption, we're so glad you were able to see it live! We hope your time on the island was amazing!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
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The best tour we had in Hawaii!

Reviewed by: RnJ, 2022/12/05

We had a great time! The whole tour was packed with well thought out stops.
Our guide Chris was a wealth of information on the history and culture of the island. We could not have asked for a better guide. He was engaging, attentive and professional. He never tired of the countless questions we had.
The coffee farm was the perfect setting for a quick lunch. The views were absolutely beautiful!
The dinner was nice and cozy and gave us a chance to get to know our fellow riders.
The night sky was incredible! Living in a city, we forget what the night sky really looks like beyond the skyscrapers and light pollution. Thank you for a great and for us, a very memorable tour!

  • Hiking Trail

  • Coffee Farm

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/11/13
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Well-rounded tour

Reviewed by: Cathy Barbieri , 2022/11/05

I must admit I almost didn’t book this tour because of the duration. I’m so glad we did though!! This tour was a fantastic blend experiences. Our guide was super knowledgeable and kept us engaged in conversation just enough. When we had stops to explore the coffee farm, black sand beach, lava tube, nighttime lava flow. None of the stops felt rushed or lingered too long. I would highly recommend this. It was one of the best experiences we had on our trip.

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/10/10
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Awesome experience

Reviewed by: Anish, 2022/11/02

Dylan was a fantastic guide! He put an interesting spin on the whole tour, and he taught us a lot about the geology of the island as a whole. Every part of the tour was great. The coffee farm had a wonderful view, the bakery was great, the beach was very unique, and the volcano + hike were really cool. The fact that they'd brought a telescope made it even easier to see the laval.

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/10/14
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Very good - great guide!

Reviewed by: Laura , 2022/10/16

The tour was a lot of fun! Kona Joe's has a great view and good coffee, stopped here for lunch included in tour. Then went on to the bakery at South Point for a Malasada. I don't recommend waiting in the line for purchasing anything else. The malasadas are called in so you don't have to wait, but the line for other items was super long and you can buy their bread in grocery stores. Then to the black sand beach - very cool to see and we saw a sea turtle in the beach! Then on to Volcano Park for a quick tour and to see the caldera and steam vents. On to the lodge for dinner, which was pretty good. I don't recommend the broccoli Cheddar soup and they only had ranch dressing for salads. The blackened catch of the day was great! Then to the lava glow - where our tour guide PJ brought a scope for a better look. It was very cool, but not as close as I thought we'd be so it's not a bright red like in the picture.
But the tour guide was the best part - full of information, fun to talk with and really looked out for his guests! I'd recommend!

Reply from activity provider

Aloha Laura,
Thank you so much for your review! We're glad you enjoyed PJ, he's a wonderful guide. We appreciate your recommendation!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/10/13
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All day volcano.

Reviewed by: David/Ofelia , 2022/10/09

I have to say, the the experience from the beginning was very impressive. Bruce, the tour guide reached out to everyone, he was very intelligent and very knowledgeable of all things we were doing. Bruce made sure everyone in the tour was taken care of, feed, and having a great time. At the volcano Brice made sure everyone in the group was safe and having a good time . We have been on many tours in the past and this by far was the most enjoyable tour we have ever taken. Thank you Brice for all you did.

David and Ofelia
Rio Rancho, New Mexico

Reply from activity provider

Aloha David and Ofelia,

Thank you for posting your review! We appreciate you taking the time to do so. Bryce is a special guide and we're lucky to have him on Team Kailani! We hope you enjoyed your time on the island!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/10/02
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Expert guide and attention to detail

Reviewed by: Bruce, 2022/09/27

We were going to see a volcano, and our guide went to the University of Hawaii with a degree in geology and volcanology. I didn't even know the latter existed!

Grant's knowledge was only exceeded by his enthusiasm. The tour provides everything you could think of - two types of jackets if you come unprepared, flashlights to make the short hike (really a walk) safe at night, glow lights to wear so we don't lose each other.

The meals were well prepared at our two stops for them. The van we rode in was luxurious.

Thanks to the sighting scope Grant set up, we had close-up views of the labs lake and spewing lava

A great tour, not to be missed!

Reply from activity provider

Thank you for your review, Bruce. Grant is a wealth of information for sure! We're so happy you enjoyed your time on the Deluxe Volcano Experience. We hope you enjoyed the rest of your time on the island as well!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/09/25
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Good guide

Reviewed by: Koko, 2022/08/20

What a guide!!
He was so kind and his talking was amazing

Reply from activity provider

Thank you for touring with us and we are so happy you liked your guide! We hope you enjoyed the island!

Rating:
Attended as:Families
Activity Date:2022/08/17
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Fantastic tour with great tour guide!

Reviewed by: Michelle Matheson, 2022/08/15

Derek was awesome! This was a great way to see a lot in one day. Started out with amazing views at a coffee farm. Derek set up a nice picnic lunch there (turkey sandwich, bag of chips, and a delicious cookie). After that we went to the southernmost bakery in the United States. Malasadas were provided (either passion fruit or original) and you had the option to purchase any additional if you wanted. Then we headed to the black sand beach where we saw a turtle. It was beautiful there. After that we head to volcano National park where we saw some steam vents and some awesome views and then volcano house where they have an incredible views of the crater. We had dinner after that at Kilauea Lodge. The food was good and the service was excellent. Surprisingly we had live entertainment too (although we were told that was rare). Then we went on a mile walk in the dark to see the lava. Really flat and easy walk for the most part. The end is mostly rocks but not bad at all. Derek provided jackets, flashlights and had a telescope set up to enhance the views and we were lucky enough to have a very active night. Highlight of the trip!! Then we walked back and headed back home. Throughout the day there's a lot of driving but derek keeps everyone entertained with lots of stories about Hawaiian history and the geology of the islands. I found it all fascinating. The ride home is a bit longer ( 2 1/2ish hours but Derek put on a movie which made the time go by fast). We also stopped on the way home and were able to do some Star gazing. Throughout the day Derek provided water and drinks and snacks so we had everything we needed at all times. Overall it was the best tour we've ever been on. Highly recommend and well worth the price! Derek was the best!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/08/13
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A dream come true

Reviewed by: Marchelle, 2022/08/07

Grant was amazing. I enjoyed his jokes, enthusiasm, love, and care for the island. I hope he continues to stay blessed on this island and continues to do what he loves happily. Thanks, Grant and Deluxe volcano tour for giving me my money's worth. Everything you needed was provided and you don’t need to spend any more money because they feed you well. I could brag all day about this tour because everything about it was amazing!! If you're going to Kona book this tour with Grant!! He is knowledgeable and will make it worth it!! Mahalo

Reply from activity provider

Aloha Marchelle,

Thank you for your kind words about our Deluxe Volcano Experience Tour and Grant, our senior guide. We're glad you enjoyed the tour and the way in which Grant conducts the tours. He is enthusiastic about his work and it shows! Thank you again for posting a review, we hope you had a wonderful time on the island!

Rating:
Attended as:Families
Activity Date:2022/08/05
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Awesome experience!

Reviewed by: Stephanie, 2022/08/03

This tour was awesome! We would certainly book this excursion again. It was so nice to stop at the Coffee farm and learn about the interesting way they grow the coffee beans- beautiful scenery as well. Black Sands beach was amazing, so unique and picturesque. The nightcap was the best of all, seeing the volcano and its red glow..... truly amazing and something we will never forget. I definitely have to commend our tour guide, Derek, who was spectacular. He was very knowledgeable and I could tell he really enjoyed teaching us about the island and things we experiences and saw along our tour. Definitely a must do when you come to the island.

Rating:
Attended as:Families
Activity Date:2022/08/01
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Wonderful trip

Reviewed by: Maiya, 2022/07/26

We had a great time with the deluxe volcano tour. Gary was professional, knowledgeable, nice and took a very good care of us and everyone in the trip. We had a yummy lunchbox and tasty three courses dinner with the nice ambiance. Lava flow at night was amazing. Thank you so much. Recommended!!

Reply from activity provider

Aloha Maiye,

Thank you for recommending our Deluxe Volcano Experience tour, we really appreciate it. Your timing was impeccable to be able to see the eruption at Kilauea at night. It's a once in a lifetime experience for most folks and we're glad you experienced it! Gary is an awesome guide and thanks for giving him a shout out! We hope you enjoyed your stay on the Big Island.

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/07/24
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Fantastic Tour!!!

Reviewed by: Cortney, 2022/07/05

Overall this tour was the highlight of my trip to the big island (night swimming with mantas came in a close 2nd). It was super interesting and well paced. Our guide, Derek, really made the trip: he was informative, jovial, and generally lovely without being too jokey or overly pedantic, which really hit the tour guide sweet spot! I was solo, but this trip could work for anyone, families, couples, whomever. There is very little walking (a mile or 2), I might’ve actually preferred a bit more, but it made the trip very accessible to people of all ages and abilities

The sights:

Seeing a bubbling pool of lava was naturally the highlight. Most tours come in the day time, when we would’ve seen essentially nothing but steam. Our guide brought a telescope, so even though the activity in the volcano was pretty low key we could see spluttering and bubbling! The coffee plantation (orchard?) was a nice buzzy start to a long day. The black sand beach was ok

A well thought out experience:

The van was large and comfortable. Bathrooms were placed often enough that I didn’t have to avoid hydrating despite my tiny bladder. Enough food and snacks to keep everyone happy. Flashlights and jackets were provided, which was crucial!

Bring:
Long pants/sweatshirt - microclimates mean that it can be super hot in Kona and misty and cool at the park.
Binoculars - though the telescope was awesome, it would have been even better to have my own so I would t have to share.
A real camera - my iPhone 13pro was fine, but with such beauty, it’d be nice to have something with a little more control!

  • LAVA

  • Steam & Sulfur vents

  • Chameleon at the coffee farm

  • Black sand beach

  • GIANT fern!

Reply from activity provider

Aloha Cortney,
Thank you so much for posting your review, we really appreciate it! Your timing was impeccable, being here when the volcano was erupting. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity for visitors, we are thrilled you were able to witness it! Derek is awesome too, you're right, he's such an amiable guide. Again, thank you!

Rating:
Attended as:Solo Travelers
Activity Date:2022/07/03
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Amazing experience

Reviewed by: Richard J, 2022/06/16

The overall experience was amazing. With the long trip to volcanoes national park, they did a great job of breaking up the trek with stops for food, coffee, snacks, and dinner. The driver was great and had lots of interesting facts to share as we traveled, and gave us his unique perspective on the island and points of interest. The night portion was amazing and it was a perfect end to the trip to see the lava glow at night. Highly recommend the guided tour over DIY!

Reply from activity provider

Aloha Richard,
Thank you so much for commenting on your tour experience, we're glad you felt the experience was worthwhile! Having a guide is a real added value on a tour to the volcano. It's a long trip, but we appreciate you touring with us, and hope your stay on the island was amazing!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/06/12
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Beautiful Volcano Scenes

Reviewed by: Kara, 2022/04/29

The Black Sands Beach was unreal, it is so cool to see the crystal shine! The whole tour was filled with breathtaking views, great experiences, and yummy treats :)

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/04/27
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Volcano Experience

Reviewed by: Donna McCurdy-Wolke, 2022/04/04

It is a long day but that is due to the distance of volcano from hotel. PJ was a great host and VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE. Loved the volcano area. Something I have never experienced!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/04/01
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Big Trip

Reviewed by: Mike, 2022/03/28

Bryce our guide is who made the trip extra special. Great and intelligent conversations. Very informative, and it didn’t hurt that the volcano was fantastic.
For sure your tour will be recommended to anyone that asks!
Good job.

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2022/03/26
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Outstanding

Reviewed by: Kara, 2022/03/21

Beautiful tour of the Big Island of Hawaii! The volcano park is awesome!

Rating:
Attended as:Solo Travelers
Activity Date:2022/03/20
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Absolutely amazing!

Reviewed by: Lleur, 2022/02/08

This tour was an amazing experience! The drive to Volcano National Park was beautiful and we enjoyed each stop along the way. Viewing the lava field was phenomenal! Our tour guide, Bryce, was a font of knowledge and made the day even more special. Every comfort was thought of from a clean, spacious Mercedes van, to rain jackets and warm parkas. I would do this tour again in a heartbeat!

Rating:
Attended as:Families
Activity Date:2022/02/06
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Amazing tour

Reviewed by: Kevin L., 2021/11/19

We had an amazing time on this tour. PJ, our guide, could not have been better. He was so entertaining and informative, and made the whole day fun & interesting. The highlight was getting to see the lava at night - truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Highly recommend!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2021/11/11
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Amazing Experience. SO. MUCH. FUN!!

Reviewed by: Kara, 2021/11/08

This tour will have you learning so many great things about Big Island. They pushed our tour back a tad but they did this to let us see more of the night lava flow!

There are simply too many good things about this tour - from the stop at Black Sands (breathtaking) to the 3 course dinner that was TO DIE FOR and all local!

I would recommend this to anyone!!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2021/11/07
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Joyb

Reviewed by: Joyb, 2020/03/30

Awesome awesome awesome. We had a volcano tour on 3/8/20 with Mike. He was the best. He was especially good with our very inquisitive grandson. He was knowledgeable also!!!! He was great great great!!!!

Rating:
Attended as:Families
Activity Date:2020/03/08
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Def worthwhile

Reviewed by: Tanya , 2020/01/06

The total experience is awesome! We had a looong day without questions. But the guider made sure the tour was full of fun, stories and care, we didn't feel exhausted.
Started from the lava cave, which is cooler than I expected. Black beach is beautiful. The newly formed lava flow is stunning, also sad when we heard stories from local residents, sorry for their loss. Didn't spend much time in the national volcano park, but it was exactly what we needed, also good timing enjoying the sunset there. 3-courses dinner in the volcano house was perfect, with yummy food and wonderful view overlooking the whole crater. Last but not least, stunning stargazing with professional telescope. Sorry I'm terrible at remembering people's name, thanks very much, our lovely & kind & interesting driver & guider!

Rating:
Attended as:Couples
Activity Date:2019/12/14
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