Context	Root Site	Selected Location	Selected Location
Type / ID	Site 637	Location 108	Location 108
Name	Tripster	Big Island Hawaii	Big Island Hawaii
RelativeUrl	/	/big-island	/big-island
Site Type	Main	Main 637	Main
Subdomain	www	www	www
SiteFolder	www	www	www
XName	www	www	www
Products	2693	62	62
SiteProducts	2693	62	62
Packages	1998	26	26
SitePackages	4731	26	26
SearchItems	1265	52	52
ProductLocations	303	6	6
ProductSubTypes	38	6	6
SearchCriteria	49	9	9
Promotions	0	0	0
Features	170	6	6
Amenities	90	51	51
Spotlights	13	4	4
Email Delivery	Smtp	Smtp	Smtp

Back to list

Mauna Kea Stellar Explorer Tour from Kona in Hilo, HI

Grand Naniloa DoubleTree by Hilton Lobby • Hilo, HI 96720

View on Map

KapohoKine Adventures Mauna Kea Stellar Explorer (Kona)

View Gallery

Based on 3,392 reviews

Spirit of Aloha Catamaran Sunset Sail in Waikoloa, Hawaii

Mauna Kea Stellar Explorer (Kona) is not currently available.

Check out our other great Big Island Things to Do.

View All Things to Do

Authorized Reseller

Details

Reviews

Map

FAQs

Select Tickets

Overview

Go on a Hawaii stargazing adventure with Kapohokine Adventures on Kona Island! One of the best locations in the world for stargazing is Mauna Kea due to its high altitude, remote position, and minimal light pollution. Take this Mauna Kea Stellar Explorer experience and use top-grade telescopes to look for constellations, planets, and flares!

1 or more people

Good To Know

Plan your trip so close to a new moon for better experience and you get to see the milky way band as well!
Learn about everything from Hawaii including culture, folk lore, geography, volcanoes, history, and astronomy!
Tour is approx. 6 hours long.
Hotel pick up is available.
Beverages and dinner is included in the package.
Wear long pants as it gets chilly after the sun sets.
This is a guided driving tour that stops at Saddle Road and Mauna Kea.
This tour does not visit Maunakea’s summit out of deference to Native Hawaiian concerns.

Description

For an out-of-this-world experience, check out Maunakea Stellar Explorer from KapohoKine Adventures. This thrilling adventure is the only Big Island star tour to feature nighttime astronomical observing and safe daytime solar viewing, with all ages welcome! Their in-house stellar explorers are the best and most experienced in Hawaii, with one having created the Mauna Kea Visitor’s Center and operated it for a decade. Others on staff have written noted articles and reviews for well-known astronomy magazines and have worked at world-class observatories.

The adventure starts with dinner. After dinner, your guide will start setting up a state-of-the-art solar telescope for your viewing pleasure. Your specially trained guide will let you safely watch the sun come alive in true color with vibrant solar flares, sunspots, prominences, and any other current activity, weather permitting. Next, you’ll travel across Saddle Road between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, two of the tallest and most massive volcanoes on Earth. Your National Park Service-trained guide will discuss the volcanology, geology, and history of these monstrous wonders, as well as provide in-depth narration on the various lava flows and flora and fauna that you’ll be passing by. Lastly, your guide will take you to one of their preferred locations on Mauna Kea for nighttime stargazing. You’ll observe the deep sky and planetary objects through a large-aperture Dobsonian telescope under one of the darkest and most pristine skies on planet Earth!

Their Dobsonian telescopes provide a true purist's view of the night sky. Their fast focal ratio enables you to see sprawling wide-field views of objects that simply aren’t possible with the types of telescopes used by other tours. Depending on what is visible in the current sky and weather permitting, you’ll observe galaxies, nebula, star clusters, planets, double star systems, the moon, and much more—all the highlights and showpiece objects you’ve never seen before! Afterward, warm up with 100% Kona coffee or hot chocolate before returning to your resort. Warm jackets are provided.

This tour does not visit Maunakea’s summit out of deference to Native Hawaiian concerns.

Promotional Images (8)

Mauna Kea Stellar Explorer (Kona) Reviews

Based on 3,392 reviews

Write a Review

hrjohns1

"Secrets of Puna with NCL"

Reviewed July 15, 2024

Would definitely recommend the Secrets of Puna Tour! Was able to see some beautiful scenery including lava fields, a black sand beach, beautiful cliffs and several sea turtles! Our guide was Marcus and he was FANTASTIC!!!! He was super friendly and very accommodating. He didn't rush us at all and made the trip very enjoyable...he was just go with the flow! Would definitely ensure you wear closed toe shoes as they're required and just know that "real" bathrooms aren't available often and the porta potties didn't always have toilet paper so you may want to bring some with you. BUT don't let that deter you...this was one of the best tours of the week! Make sure you get Marcus as your guide!

jkosfeld

Minnetonka, Minnesota

"Hawaii tour"

Reviewed February 08, 2024

It was an excellent experience, The tour guide was friendly and very knowledgeable about the island.

248jbc

"Amazing tour, entertaining and educational "

Reviewed January 03, 2024

Ok, so Ray is a wealth of information, and Sam is just as informative. We did a Captain Cook snorkeling and Coffee tour in Kona, Hawaii, and my wife was the happiest I’ve seen her. I am here to say Wow, she and I will do it again.

iowacityia

"Sunday, December 3rd day tour."

Reviewed December 13, 2023

My wife and I took this van day tour as a Holland America cruise excursion. The title of the excursion was Hawaii Volcanoes National Park & Waterfall Explorer. We were picked up from the cruise terminal. Greeted by Hunter, he would be our driver, and our tour guide. Let me tell you right away that Hunter was great! Both as a driver, and especially as a tour guide. He is a pro. A great speaker. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with him. Our van tour started with an informative drive through Hilo. We did visit a couple of wonderful waterfalls, then Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Including the crater, steam vents, the visitors center, and then the lava tube. While by the crater we stopped for a nice picnic lunch. I think this ended up being around a 6-7hr tour. It went fast. This was our last excursion while visiting the Hawaiian islands on this cruise. And our last tour ended up being our best. Hunter did a great job. I would certainly do this tour again.

Loritravels11

Grants Pass, Oregon

"A Fabulous Day in Hilo!!"

Reviewed November 10, 2023

I booked the Waterfalls and Volcano National Park Tour through Princess Cruises. We docked in Hilo at 8:00 and met our tour guide, Victor, in the terminal at 8:20. There were 12 of us in a modern van. Victor was so warm and personable, and made us all feel instantly comfortable! We spent over 7 hours touring different waterfalls and looking at the volcanos. He made the history of Hilo come to life! I learned so much! We had lunch in the afternoon, plenty of bathroom breaks, and an opportunity to pick up some souvenirs. The tour itinerary was good……but Victor was fabulous!!! I highly recommend any tour that he is leading!!

cherylgJ3966DD

"Secrets of Puna"

Reviewed October 19, 2023

Secrets of Puna sounded like a wonderful excursion offered by our cruise. The trip started out wonderfully, with a few stops showing areas of past lava flow along the coastline. The second half of the trip was supposed to give us the availability of snorkeling and shopping. Well, we had 45 minutes at the hotel where the tour agency was located where snorkling was off a boat dock and shopping was at the hotel gift shop. Courtney, our tour guide, did a good job, but most tourists don't ay good money to go to a hotel gift shop.

Magsonthemove

Orlando, Florida

"Look elsewhere, they don’t want your money."

Reviewed October 18, 2023

We stayed at the Grand Naniloa and attempted to rent kayaks every day of our stay. Every day we were told that we couldn’t due to “staffing issues” and to come back after 10am on Wednesday. We even checked on Tuesday to see if we needed to make reservations for Wednesday (the last day of our trip) and were assured that we didn’t need reservations just show up “anytime after 10am”. We showed up at 12:30 and were told we couldn’t rent a kayak even though there were 3 people at the desk because the one man that told us to come “anytime after 10” was going home soon. It would have been really helpful if he had said “anytime after 10am” meant 10-12pm. TLDR- even after asking everyday we still missed the 2 hour window they were willing to rent kayaks during the week. No one there could have cared any less that they’d given us the run around all week. Truly horrible service. Hilo ocean adventures is just down the road and the staff is actually nice and willing to do their jobs. Stop there first, I wish I had.

View all 3,392 Tripadvisor Reviews

Mauna Kea Stellar Explorer (Kona) is located at Grand Naniloa DoubleTree by Hilton Lobby • Hilo, HI 96720

Attractions

Hotels & Lodging

Nearby Things to Do

Spirit of Aloha Catamaran Sunset Sail

Nearby Hotels & Lodging

Frequently Asked Questions about Mauna Kea Stellar Explorer (Kona)

Where do we meet for the Mauna Kea Stellar Explorer trip?

You can be picked up at your hotel for this stargazing Big Island Hawaii tour! Please confirm you pick up date and time via the number located on your e-ticket.

How long is the tour?

The tour is approximately 6 hours long from beginning to end.

Should I eat before the tour?

Beverages and dinner is included in your tour price and experience.

Will the tour operate in the case of rain?

This stellar explorer experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

What health restrictions are in place?

No heart problems or other serious medical conditions. This tour is not wheelchair accessible.

Are there other tour restrictions I should know about?

Yes. The following tour restrictions and regulations apply: (1) State law requires child safety seats for all guests under 4 years of age. (2) Booster seats required for all guests between ages 4 and 7 and under 4 feet 9 inches tall and 80 pounds weight. (3) Guests under the age of 18 MUST be accompanied by an adult. They are able to provide booster and safety seats for children who require them if given advance notice. Please note your request for a booster and/or safety seat when making your reservation, or by contacting the number located on your e-ticket.

What should I bring on the tour?

You must bring and present a government-issued ID. If desired, guests may bring a video camera/camera.

What is included in my tour?

You will get bottled water, driver and personal guide, hotel pickup and drop-off, dinner, and entry/admission to Saddle Road.

I have a food allergy or dietary restriction. Can this be accommodated?

Yes. Given advance notice, all food allergies and dietary restrictions can be accommodated. Please note this request when making your reservation and/or contact the number located on your eticket.

Load Time	00.00:01:48
Age	00.00:05:37