Maita'i Catamaran — Attraction in Honolulu

TOURIST TRAP! The word that comes to mind is simply that- if you're a tourist looking for a cruise, look elsewhere! My friend had her bachelorette/bachelor party with this "company". When someone called me they didn't tell us exactly where they were located and they DO NOT validate parking (parking at the hotel is $2 for every 20 minutes)- it will add up! When my husband and I arrived we went to check in- they told us "You have a party of four under your name" - We said NO, we have a party of 2 that we reserved a spot for. The attendant insisted that we show her our phones because the system was a glitch (no biggie, but what was strange is that their system was so messed up - a gentleman near us THEY CANCELLED his reservation and never notified him!).Once our friends and their family arrived they split us up from them for pictures. We tried to respectively decline having our picture taken because a) we live here. and b) we were already not feeling what we were about to go on. The woman taking the photos DEMANDED that we had to take the photo or we wouldn't be allowed on the boat (but guess what everyone... they wouldn't do a refund if we didn't get on).

Finally we are on the boat, they packed so many people on this boat (obviously they made some good money off this trip). Then the website says its open bar and they play "top 40s music"... Well the captain and crew (aka the bartender) only had premade MaiTais that were terrible, Budlight beer and a few soft drinks (Thats it folks!) so much for open bar with good drinks... The music WAS AWFUL! it was oldies (more like 50s/60s music nothing newer). The captain and crew had NO personality, didn't point anything out to anyone and we made it to shore before actual sunset. I don't recommend this to anyone tourist or not! Its definitely a trap to lure people in to waste your money! You will be pretty much staring at the water unsure of your surroundings if you have never been to Hawaii! Definitely look elsewhere for a better time!

(Look into a different "booze cruise" and sunset cruise. There are better! We went to one for thanksgiving that was elsewhere and had so much fun we were able to sit in the nets, on the roof of the bar area and had unlimited beers of different sorts, all sorts of liquor etc and it was cheaper than this...

We had a wonderful experience with the Maita’i Catamaran. We did the 3PM trade wind sail and had an enjoyable hour and a half scenic sail along the coast towards Diamond Head.

Ahead of time, the company was very communicative, sending out a couple of texts and an email as the launch spot had changed due to high tide. This was much appreciated. Our hosts were thoughtful and pleasant and had plenty of neat anecdotes to share about the area. The drinks were good and inexpensive, especially for Honolulu – Budweiser, Bud Light, Maui Brewing, and of course the Mai Tais ($5-$6, all cash-only). They were billed as the “best Mai Tai on or off the island”, and although we didn’t try one, everyone else seemed to be enjoying them. Bottled water and non-alcoholic drinks were also available ($3). The group we were sailing with (about 25-30 people?) were all friendly.

The sailing itself was fun, and there was plenty of time to relax and take photos of the Honolulu skyline and Diamond Head. It was windy so there was some splashing up in the front, but this wasn’t a problem and definitely made things exciting. I would recommend bringing a waterproof camera or phone case though. There was a bathroom on board, and there was storage area for shoes and bags.

I would highly recommend this as a great and affordable activity to do while visiting Oahu! If you’re looking for a little discount, try looking at Groupon or Yelp, however I would say this was worth full-price. It was awesome to get out on the ocean during our visit, and we even saw a sea turtle swimming towards the end. The scenery alone was fantastic, but the crew really made our...

No aloha spirit and a sour end to our week on Oahu. We scheduled a 5pm sunset cruise yesterday (Friday) with Mai Tai Catamaran. My husband dropped me off in front of the Sheraton and I ran around to the beach to let them know that he was parking the car and would be there in a minute. It was 4:57 and they told me that they could not hold the boat. I completely understand not holding it indefinitely or for 10+ minutes. However, my husband called me at 5pm exactly and said he was running and only a block away. I told the Mai Tai Catamaran employee and she told me the boat had to go and that her boss and herself both hold a very strict timeliness. She gave the nod to the captain so he could immediately push back. At 5:02, my husband and I stood there watching the boat float away. How frustrating!! No refunds, no aloha spirit, and a sour end to our week in Hawaii. She said that she has to give everyone their full 90 minutes. I respect that but asked if that meant the boat will return at exactly 6:30 and not 6:28 or 6:32. She claimed "yes".... ha.

Being very clear about our frustration, we were finally allowed to transfer our reservation to the 11am sail today (Saturday). We made it work before rushing to the airport for our flight. Oh, and we pushed off the shore at 11:02 today... maybe those 2 minutes don't matter to the company today as much as they did yesterday??

Two stars instead of one because Alex and Ian were great hosts today. Overall, I would try another company in the future who shows better forgiveness of their guests and friendliness from the employees. Because seriously......