Maunakea Stellar Explorer from KONA

Overview

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! Our 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.

City: Big Island of Hawaii

Thu 24 Oct

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $263.76

Make a reservation

Thu 24 Oct

Starting at $263.76

Make a reservation

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What's Included

Hotel pickup and drop-off

Bottled water

Driver/guide

Dinner

Jackets

Additional Info

Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels

What To Expect

Kailua-Kona

The adventure starts with dinner.

Saddle Road

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 providing 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 our preferred locations on Mauna Kea for nighttime stargazing.

Mauna Kea

You’ll observe deep sky and planetary objects through a large aperture Dobsonian telescope under one of the darkest and most pristine skies on planet Earth! Our Dobsonian telescopes are a true purist’s experience to view 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 like you’ve never seen before! Afterwards, warm up with Kona coffee and hot chocolate before returning to your resort. Warm jackets provided. This tour does not visit Maunakea’s summit out of deference to Native Hawaiian concerns.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (70)

Martin66Moab_UT

Aug 2021

Very disappointing! We called the day of our scheduled tour to confirm the time of our pick-up and were told that they cancelled the tour for that day. Thank goodness we called, otherwise we would have been waiting for a pick-up for the tour that would have never come. Being in the tourism industry and working regularly with Trip Advisor they should have cancelled our reservation with Trip Advisor, who then would have issued us a complete refund. They did not do that, so instead, we had to spend an hour on the phone with Trip Advisor trying to get our money back. A horrible experience all around.

Cheryl_K

Aug 2021

Marcus was a great tour guide. He is very friendly and knowledgeable about the history of the island, the vegetation, the microclimates, the volcanic activity, and full of suggestions for places to go. The star gazing through the telescope was amazing. We saw the rings of Saturn and nebulae and constellations. This is a great experience for all ages and definitely worth the money. Highly recommend.

crystalrQ3478TY

Aug 2021

Marcus picked all of us up at our hotels and drove us to a place to eat. They had called and preordered our meals so they were ready when we arrived. He had a telescope set up to view the sun with and that was pretty good. Then we drove up to the midway point of Mauna Kea and he set a bigger telescope up and we started with Venus and ended with a fantastic view of Saturn. We were very fortunate to have a great clear dark night and no clouds or moon to interfere. He provided hot chocolate and parkas when it got colder. He let me use his tripod to practice shooting the milky way with my camera and helped us use our phones to try to get good shots of those planets. Take warm clothing and maybe a towel to lay on while looking at this stars as well. This is a great tour, try to see what the moon schedule is before booking and pick the darkest night with no clouds for the best viewing.