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

Wed 23 Oct

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $263.76

Make a reservation

Wed 23 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)

300ajays

Dec 2018

This tour starts with picking us up at our hotel in Kona. First stop is a Kona coffee estate. Amazing location and views. We did coffee tasting. They explained how they grow it and the whole process. Very hospitable. Then our guide Lawrence (the best) had brought Hawaiian grilled food. We had chicken and veggies. Lawrence had personally backed delicious brownies. After dinner we watched the famous Kona sunset over the Pacific ocean. Next stop was the most amazing part. Star gazing on the slopes of Mauna Kea. I have never seen Soo many stars across the sky. The thing that REALLY made the difference was the tour guide Lawrence. He shared information constantly. He loves his job and the passion showed. At first there were some clouds. He was prepared the initially wait for it to clear or go find another place. Fortunately it cleared and we had a perfectly clear sky. We watched through two telescopes. Joey was also super helpful. Lawrence shared a lot of history and geography of Hawaii. Very interesting.

DRS69

Dec 2018

This was the most disappointing trip we have ever taken! Firstly, we were taken to a coffee 'plantation' - not sure why. This was a 1/2 hour wait. Then we were taken a few hundred yards down the property to a mosquito infested dinner. Food was dreadful, and served a 5pm! Mercifully, this was a short visit. We finally drove up to the star gazing event. Company should tell people to bring warm hats. We came prepared for the cold, and the company did provide suitable coats. This part of the trip was fun. People just need to be made aware that there is a 30 degrees temperature difference between sea and summit. Warm hats a must! This 'adventure' could easily have been a wonderful trip. Just pick people up after dinner, and go and see the stars. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable, and made very effort to make this a productive evening. The company is wasting good talent!

Response from Host

Jan 2019

Aloha DRS69! We are sorry that a part of your tour with us did not live up to your expectations. The coffee farm where we make our stop is a favorite of many visitors who enjoy tasting the 100% estate grown coffee and learning a little about how it is produced. The location for the BBQ dinner was clearly outlined in the tour description and is considered one of the most stunning surroundings with the largest reflective pool in the state. We also inform our guests about the low temperatures in the high altitude of Maunakea. A warm parka is provided for each guest, however, hats and warm pants, socks, etc. is up to everyone individually. We are glad that you enjoyed the stargazing! Kind regards,

Daryush G

Dec 2018

We went on the stargazing tour to Mauna Kea!! The tour started around 2:45 pm and ended around 10:00pm. Our guides Jon S. and Todd were both absolutely wonderful!! Jon had amazing storytelling skills that kept us entertained for hours, he is incredibly informative. Not only that, but he cooked us dinner extremely fast, and had everything ready in the perfect amount of time!! Once we got to 7000 ft of elevation Jon and Todd swiftly set up the telescope, handed out parkas, and had snacks ready!! We had good looks at all the celestial bodies. When it was time to head home Jon’s driving and storytelling was so comforting through the cloudy night. We had a WONDERFUL time!! All because of our wonderful guides!! They had so much knowledge and experience the both of them were absolutely delightful and full of information!! They could answer any question we threw at them! Would come back any day, recommend to anybody and everybody!!

Response from Host

Jan 2019

Happy New Year, Daryush and thank you so much for sharing your experience with the TripAdvisor world! We'll let Jon and Todd know about your great review!