Fair Wind Cruises — Attraction in Hawaii

Had a great time on the Fair Wind II. Directions to parking and check in procedure were clear and well organized. The staff and crew were very professional, friendly and tolerant, given the range of ages and abilities of the guests. They worked hard to make sure everyone had a great experience.

The boat felt more spacious than I anticipated, even with 90 guests on board. On the way out, crew served us muffins and fresh local fruit. Our enthusiastic captain Cory kept us apprised of sights along the way. The crew trolled for deep sea fish along the way, and caught two Ono.

On arrival at the Captain Cook monument, crew gave is a safety lecture, then set everyone loose in the sheltered cove. The variety and concentration of fish and coral was outstanding, even compared to other popular snorkeling sites like Two Step and Kahalu'u.

While we floated around the clear warm water admiring the sea life, the crew prepared lunch on the barbecue - hamburgers, hot dogs, a nice pasta salad, Maui style chips. Vegetarian options were also available. Lunch was called for 11 am. After lunch, we jumped back into the water for another hour or so of snorkeling.

I opted to rent a 10 megapixel underwater camera from the Fair Wind shop for $35. The fee covers rental of the camera, plus an 8GB SD card to hold the photos or video that you take. The card can hold a couple thousand photos, so I just clicked away like mad while snorkeling.

I did notice that the lens fogged over after 15 or 20 minutes, so the last few pictures turned out a bit fuzzier than underwater shots already appear.

The lens did clear up over the lunch break, so I managed to get another set of photos after lunch. In total I took about 230 photos over the 2 and a half hours in the water.

On the return trip, the crew provided snacks and drinks, and a lecture on the local marine ecology which was well attended by the children on board. Although not travelling with small children myself, I did note that the crew made every effort to accomodate families.

When I told the front desk staff about the camera fogging, they took the time to review the photos, then agreed to refund $20, and gave me the option to keep the SD card with the photos for $15, which I felt was a reasonable compromise.

As it turned out, after I upload the photos to Google Photos and applied colour correction, nearly all of the photos were acceptable. I've attached a few to this review so you can judge for yourself.

If you don't have the time or inclination to organize your own snorkeling then the Fair Wind tour is a great way to experience one of the best snorkeling locations on...

We did the manta ray night snorkel and the morning snorkel to captain cook. Both were excellent and the crew is very friendly and knowledgeable and treats you like family. I have a gluten and dairy food intolerance. Everything they serve is vegan on both tours so I didn’t have to worry about the dairy part. They told me both the soup and hot chocolate at the manta Ray night snorkel were GF. For the captain cook meal they served it to me without the sandwich buns. We had a Mai tai which they make from scratch and was really good. In general their cooking had homemade and thoughtful/creative ingredients that I appreciated. Many people could not even tell the food was vegan. At captain cook you get about 2 hours so I didn’t feel rushed at all. It was the best snorkeling I did in my entire life and had so much to see. It was very relaxing and they even have a slide and diving platform on the boat. I was scared to do the slide but I did it 1x and it was not bad. They provide you will all the gear you need for both tours. I recommend you take bonine 30 mins or more before getting on any boat because there was at least 1 person who got sick on both tours. Honestly if you can get your doctor to prescribe quick dissolving zofran proactively it can’t hurt to help with nausea if that becomes an issue but that’s a general tip. The boat ride for the manta Ray is short though. Seeing the manta rays is a once in a lifetime incredible experience. I get pretty scared/worried about things in general but even though the manta rays literally came so close enough to touch me it never stressed me out. Stay out to watch the manta rays until they force you back on the boat! We saw the best showing of the rays at the very end! Pack some warm clothes to wear because you will be a bit cold at night after the manta ray tour. I wore one of those packable Patagonia coats and it was perfect. Also bring your own towels for both tours as they are not provided. Both tours are excellent and I highly recommend that you book both! We got to see a great showing of spinner dolphins on the captain cook tour including a mom swimming with baby. Absolutely beautiful! Bring a go pro with you if you can swing it, you’ll get great...

Our friends visiting from SF and who we met up for a mini vacay of our own, wanted to do this. You know, the typical touristy thing lol.

I am not a snorkeling fan, so I tried to opt out of my boat ride & lunch but, what else was I going to do in Kona?

The drive from our hotel in the Mauna Lani area was about 45 minutes to Keauhou Bay.

Going down Kamehameha II road, go straight at the intersection with the "no outlet" sign. Just before the end of the road you'll see the "Fair Wind" parking sign. Turn left into the gravel lot and immediately make a sharp right. That leads you to a gravel parking lot just off the street. From there it's an easy 5 minute walk to the dock.

Head in to the check in/gift shop office, sign in, and you'll receive your boarding pass.

Our boat was the Fair Wind II. It's a short, stubby boat with 2 levels of mostly covered seating, 2 high dive platforms, and 2 water slides. There's a bar, grill, and restroom on the first level. Up top is where the captain navigates, along with the rest of the at-sea water facilities.

The destination was Kealakekua Bay. It took about 45 minutes to get there. In the mean time they served a continental breakfast consisting of fresh fruits, muffins, and eggs that were done in a muffin pan. We arrived to the bay at 10am. Conditions were calm. Once there, you get to see the Captain Cook monument which was a first for me. I believe access to that site is only via foot, hiking down a mountain quite some ways. A photo from afar was good enough for me.

The bay is very calm, with crystal clear water, and pretty shallow reefs. Jump in, float, lounge, swim, snorkel, SNUBA, dive off the platform, or go down the water slide. There was only 1 other boat there so it wasn't crowded at all.

Lunch was good. Options were cheeseburgers, veggie burgers, and hot dog buns. My cheeseburger was tasty; juicy patty, fresh sesame seed bun, alfalfa sprouts, with a side of plain salt chips.

Beer is available for purchase.

SERVICE: Everyone was friendly, from the check in staff to the crew on board.

OVERALL: Nice boat, pretty good food, nice snorkel location,...