Kulaniapia Falls — Local services in Hawaii

A Memorable Day! Our family did the falls and the Farm to Table Cooking Class in late November 2024. We started with the cooking class at 9:00am that was far more than we expected. It started with a multi-hour walking tour of their sustainable farm with a rich variety of native plants and food sources all around. This is not like a modern factory farm, instead it’s a charming look at living with the land. Davvy and his team were incredibly knowledgable answering lots of questions. We picked fruits and vegetables from a variety of plants each filling large baskets that would eventually be lunch. I must admit the slower pace of grabbing produce at first challenged me (I’m so accustomed to a grocery store), but slowing down, learning and savoring the future meal while harvesting became a wonderful life lesson. We played with and fed animals on the farm as well. Eventually we made our way to the 2nd floor of a large barn with a massive extraordinary kitchen and views of Hilo that were amazing. We all participated (7 of us) in preparing the meal while learning cooking techniques we had never experienced. It was an absolutely delicious meal and we dinned together in conversation and enjoyment of our mornings harvest. Highly recommend if you enjoy unique experiences. We did the falls afterwards and swam in the cool pool below the falls and watched another family rappel. We left just in time to drive to the top of Mona Kea right before sunset in our jeep and jackets. We had the best day ever and life long memories...

We were very torn about whether to give this a go or just stick to free/public waterfalls, because it IS very expensive to visit ($60-70 per adult). They don’t provide food or towels or anything with the day pass (although they did provide us with life jackets), and paddle boards etc. cost extra. But the day before we were planning to go, the weather forecast looked hot and sunny and the waterfall cam showed perfect swimming conditions, so we went for it. I’m SO happy we did. It was the most magical day. We brought picnic lunches and stayed for 3 hours and there were very few other people there. There’s showers and change rooms were nice too. To take a lunch break, there’s a stone path once you get down to the pond and you can follow it to a nice shaded gazebo with seating.

If you’re on a limited budget or are already spending a lot of money on excursions and activities, it’s maybe not the best choice. But we didn’t really do any paid activities on our trip and this one felt worth it for the unique...

The private property is beautiful with a welcoming staff. But the waterfall tour with bamboo garden and hike and possible paddle board etc depending on weather experience is very limited. I wish we knew before we drove 1.5 hours from Kona & spent $230 for 4 with a 30 min canoe for 2 pass. It’s literally a path to walk on a property thru a few bamboo plants, to a POND with a waterfall where you can paddle around in front of 20 other people while you sit on a few wet semi flat spots or rocks. I would say 1 hour max timeframe & not at all worth the money. There was no food, snacks or water. It was a beautiful, quick peek, on a private property, of a pond with waterfall. With everything else there is to do on the island, it was a waste of time and money. There are other places nearby where you can jump off rocks, see sea turtles, swim...