Hanalei Charters — Attraction in Kauai

Our experience with Hanalei charters was great. We were originally booked with North Shore Charters and they canceled our morning tour, which they are doing the safe thing to do. We ended up booking last minute with Hanalei charters instead which we were grateful they could accommodate us on such short notice. We did the 7AM morning tour.

When we arrived at the meet-up location, we parked our car and had time to use the restroom and get onto our shuttle. The shuttle driver was an old guy who was nice and funny and kept our ride entertaining.

Then we took a shuttle boat out to the real boat. The boat was a "raft" but was very strong and had front facing seats and even a small toilet which was very comfortable. The boat went very fast and was a very smooth ride...on the way there haha. The captain stopped whenever we spotted any marine life. In our case, lots of dolphins and some monk seals.

Captain Philip and his crewmember Jackson had many stories, jokes, fun facts and were very pleasant to be onboard with. You can tell they love what they do. We stopped at every unique point of the NaPali coast to take our photos. The captain even took the time to take a personal photo for everyone and also a video and photo of us all in the water.

Unfortunately due to the murkiness in the water and ocean conditions at the time of our visit, we were not able to snorkel or go deep into any sea caves, but we were still able to jump off the boat and swim around a bit and get close to the sea caves to check them out. Nothing better than floating in the ocean with a beautiful backdrop.

The sandwiches and snacks were great, they even had a tray of fresh fruit which was also fantastic.

On our way back, the ride was pretty rough as it felt we were going against the waves/wind, which the captain explained beforehand. I have lower back problems from time to time and am very prone to motion sickness and I was 100% fine on this ride. I took a dramamine (the drowsy kind cause that stuff actually works) the night before and 2 in the morning just to be safe. That being said, each person knows their situation best so make the decision for yourself. I happened to be pleasantly surprised with the outcome.

All in all, we had a great time and were just happy to get out on the water to see the Napali Coast with a great crew. Would 100% recommend. Definitely wear and bring a ton of sunscreen, cover up if you can and wear a hat that won't fly off, because the sun is...

⭐️ 1/10

I was extremely disappointed with this tour, especially given how much we paid and how much we had been looking forward to it. If the ocean conditions are too rough to enter the caves or snorkel, I would highly recommend that Hanalei Charters cancel or reschedule, because without those experiences the tour simply isn’t worth it.

We had been anticipating this tour for months as the highlight of our trip, but it fell far short of expectations. The tour was advertised as running from 7am–11am, but we only spent about 2 hours on the water. A late-arriving family delayed our departure until closer to 8am, and instead of starting without them, everyone else lost time.

The ride out to the cliffs was fine, and the captain shared some history along the way. After a quick lunch stop, however, the return leg was a high-speed ride straight back to the dock — uncomfortable and rushed, with the wind hitting us the whole way. We were back around 10:15am, well before the promised end time.

Considering this was the most expensive boat tour option on the island (over $300 per person), I feel it was a complete waste of money. We splurged because of the glowing reviews and videos online, but the actual experience was poor and disappointing. I truly wish the company had rescheduled instead of pushing forward on a day when the conditions made the tour subpar. I had been anticipating it for way too long, and instead of being a highlight, it ended up being one of the biggest letdowns of our trip - I was truly left very sad...

Used to be Holo Holo charters and was sold to this company but it's basically the same awesome staff as 2 yrs ago. Saw Captain Dale when we showed up and knew we were in good hands since he was our driver in 2022. This trip Captain Phil and mate Lance on the morning charter made our trip to the Napali coast one to remember. Rainy day start, Captain Phil (native hawaiian) did a chant to bring us good weather and got one of the best views shortly after with the Napali Coast, a rainbow, and the moon as we cruised out. The amount of people on the boat is small enough that you can get personal time with each to get recommendations on local spots, etc. We got a great tip for a hike and snorkeling turtle spot. Note that if you want to snorkel, do the morning charter as typically the afternoon they don't do snorkeling. Snorkel stop is after cruising, getting local knowledge, heritage info, and dad jokes (snorkel gear included with the price of admission). They make sure you get all the photo opps you want and will take you through the caves if conditions allow. Other note, make sure you are ready to get wet on the boat as the wind and spray from the ride to and from home base will happen wherever you sit. We made sure to have our rain jackets with towels and extra change of clothes in the complimentary dry bag they give you per party. Will always come back to this company when visiting Kauai...