Last week, my friend and I had the good fortune to go on a night snorkeling adventure with Hawaiian Oceanic. To say it took our breath away is an understatement. While other boats shinned bright lights down into the water from up above, HO has devised a "light board" which had 2 purposes. It lay on the water so not only did it shine the light directly below us which attracted the plankton, but it provided "handholds" for us to grab onto. There were 9 of us and it didn't fell crowded.. I believe it was far safer than a bunch of swimmers snorkeling around individually in the pitch-dark ocean. Plus, it made it easy for those who were either beginner or not expert snorkelers. But more (most ) important was that the plankton swam up to the light beam and then, out of nowhere (or so it seemed) the most unbelievably graceful Manta Rays appeared beneath us, OMG - I hate to be redundant but it was a TRULY MAGICAL experience. Their grace and beauty takes your breath away. Completely awesome. There aren't words to properly describe the majesty and elegance of these huge creatures as they fly through the water in front of, below, and around you! My only regret was that we did this on the first night we were there, and it was far and away, the highlight of our trip. Our boat was captained by Jason, and our snorkel guide was Spencer. Unlike most of the other companies, H.O. gets you to the spot before sunset. This allowed us about 30-40 minutes to snorkel around the area and see other fish and ocean life. We got to watch the sunset while in the water. Jason and Spencer were both quite knowledgeable. My only suggestion, would be that they provide more history/discussion about the surrounding area when we are on the boat. This adventure definitely ranks in my top 10. When I go back to Hawaii, I will most definitely do this again :-)