As background for my commentary - the real timing of the trip. It goes like this - 4:00pm 20 people check-in, 4:15pm Speech from Captain Bill, 4:30pm Depart, 5:00pm - Arrive at Manta Ray spot, 7:00pm - Get in water, 7:45pm - Out of water, 8:15pm Depart, 8:45pm arrive at wharf.
These were the aggressive words from Captain Bill at the start - "This is not a snorkeling trip - anybody who doesn't like that should go back up to the car park." (Your confirmation is from "Snorkeling in Kona"). As it turned out we were stuck on the boat for two hours snacking on pineapple and drinking water, while other groups around us were having fun in the water.
A cynical highlight was when Captain Bill, after telling us that we couldn't snorkel, actually yelled out and guided a snorkeler from another boat towards two Manta Rays. The 2-hour wait on a rocking boat was too much for one of the guests who spent the rest of the evening heaving his guts over the side of the boat.
On the positive side, the boat was great, Shana and Payton (the mother and daughter crew) were friendly although they didn't know much about Hawai'i or Manta Rays, and the actual Manta Ray viewing went reasonably well. They were very impressive creatures but didn't come very close to us. None came up for the fabled tummy roll.
All-in-all a reasonable trip, but I would advise you to find one without a two hour wait and a dictatorial captain.
Відповідь від хоста
May 2019
Hi we appreciate your feed back and you are welcome to attend another trip on us or not. We leave earlier than most boats for the sole reason that there are a limited amount of available mooring spots and we do not anchor or do "live boating". Our procedures and guidelines are in place for the Safety of our guest and are not flexible.
Mahalo