We are incredibly grateful for Keku's Driving Academy and especially for Scott Keku. Years ago, we…read morepurchased their driving course for our daughter when she was still in high school. The program included both a classroom component and a behind-the-wheel component. At the time, she was able to complete the classroom portion, which helped her successfully obtain her learner's permit. Unfortunately, due to timing and life transitions, she never had the opportunity to use the hands-on driving portion before graduating high school and moving on to college. Fast forward a few years--my daughter has been struggling to pass her driving exam, so I reached out to Scott to explain our situation and simply ask if there was any way he might be willing to help. Scott went above and beyond anything we expected. He graciously offered my daughter a complimentary driving session, even though years had passed since we originally purchased the course. During that session, Scott was outstanding. He took my daughter through the actual exam route, explained exactly what examiners look for, and gave her clear, practical feedback on what she needs to improve. He even ran the lesson as if it were a real driving test--playing the role of the examiner and scoring her--so she could truly understand the expectations and feel prepared. His knowledge of the DMV testing process is impressive, and his ability to explain things calmly and clearly made a huge difference in my daughter's confidence. Scott is the definition of a true professional: compassionate, patient, extremely knowledgeable, and genuinely invested in helping students succeed. My daughter walked away from that session feeling informed, empowered, and confident that she now has the tools she needs to pass her driving exam. We are so thankful for Scott's kindness and generosity, and we cannot recommend Keku's Driving Academy highly enough. If you have a child who needs to learn the rules of the road, build confidence behind the wheel, and be truly prepared for their driving test, this is the driving school you want. Mahalo, Scott--you made a real difference for our family.

After 40 years of not driving, I knew lessons were going to be key so I reached out to all the…read moredifferent driving schools and Keku's was the most responsive, by far. They're flexible and they had me scheduled quickly and were patient with my nervousness, but also great at bolstering my confidence. Jimmy was a great instructor and fun to chat with during lessons (1.5 hours in a car is a lot of driving!). Passed the road test on the first try! On a complete sidenote, they're also both just super nice. When we were there for my road test (I was using their car), another person taking their road test found out that someone stole the safety inspection sticker, which meant they couldn't use her car. Jimmy offered to let her use their company car, which def saved the day!

Jacob is excellent!…read more Life is busy, and we thought it would be extremely difficult to get our 16-year-old licensed--especially with all the Honolulu Graduated Driver Licensing Program requirements, which felt intimidating to us as newbies. Thanks to Jacob, the entire process was smooth and stress-free. He was responsive, patient, and an excellent communicator, guiding us step-by-step through exactly what needed to be done. Our daughter attended six consecutive Sunday classroom sessions and, despite some initial apprehension, ended up really enjoying herself. Jacob made the classes fun and engaging with group assignments, skits, videos, and friendly competitions. He even bought boba for the winners--which alone would have won our daughter over! As an added bonus, she got to know students from other schools. The one-on-one behind-the-wheel sessions were just as wonderful. Jacob's car has a passenger-side brake, which eased a lot of our fear and helped our daughter progress much faster. Over the course of the required 50 hours of parent-child driving practice, we noticed a clear boost in her confidence after every session with Jacob. It was also incredibly helpful that he took her on the actual test route the day before her exam, which made her feel fully prepared. Our daughter "passed first crack," and we couldn't be happier! To top it off, Jacob highlights his students' accomplishments on Instagram, which is fun and motivating. We were so fortunate to have found him--Jacob is truly the best!

There are numerous driving schools to choose from, but we chose Driving Alliance School due to a…read morerecommendation from a friend whose son took lessons from Mr. Wong. And Mr. Wong definitely did not disappoint. My son first attended the required 6 weeks of classroom instruction with Mr. Wong. Then followed up with 3 (2 hour sessions) behind the wheel sessions with Mr. Wong. These behind the wheel sessions were definitely most helpful with my son gaining the confidence he needed to start driving. I know Mr. Wong was able to answer any questions my son would have had and Mr. Wong is definitely better equipped to teach my son the rules of the road more than I am. I know that it's because of Mr. Wong's instruction that my son was able to pass his road test on his first attempt. And even more so, he got as perfect score! Thank you Mr. Wong!

Brian was my instructor and he was AMAZING. He was very patient and his instructions were clear and…read morethorough. Thanks to him I was able to finally pass my road test. In 2 lessons he helped me adjust my driving habits to be ready for the test and it worked! I'd previously had friends and family work with me but I failed each test I took and their advice didn't seem to help me, so I decided to try Akamai Driving School. I 100% recommend to anyone looking for a teacher or wanting to improve their driving for any reason. Thank you Brian!

He is the best !!! I inquired about the youth driver's license. Although he did not have this…read morecourse, he still patiently explained the entire course in detail on the phone.

I got my license after sessions!!! Super helpful and prepared me well! Thank you so muchread more

My son took this course drivers ed 101 as a requirement to get a drivers license. Jeff was his…read moreinstructor. It was a tiring 6 weeks and getting him to the driving one on one lessons. However my son passed his road test on the first try. Thanks Jeff for doing an awesome job. Ill definitely recommend people to you.

I was looking for a driving instructor for my teen and saw all the positive Yelp reviews for Hawaii…read moreDriving Academy. Jay was a wonderful teacher! He has a "can do" positive attitude. He was extremely responsive and answered all my questions over the phone before the first lesson. He is very patient, always came on time and had a face mask on for every lesson. After each lesson, he would message me on my teens progress. Jay was very easy to work with and I felt he and I were able to work together to achieve our goals. It was also very easy and convenient to pay for our lessons via payment app. Our teen passed on the first try!!!

Jay is an amazing instructor for both beginners and experienced drivers…read more I had to take the drivers road test after having a drivers license in the US for 26 yrs in 3 States (NJ HI CA ) , during COVID my CA license expired so the quickest way to get a HI license was to retake both written and practical tests all over again I was shocked I failed the 1st time I took the driving test in Kapolei . Since I was desperate to get a drivers license ASAP since I needed a 2nd form of govt issued ID for passport renewal so I was referred to to Jay and only spent 1 (90min) session with him to give me tips on how to pass and took me to the exact route where I was testing in Sheridan (2021) and passed ! I actually learned a lot from him despite being a licensed driver since I was 16yo (took HI drivers test at age 49) My daughter recently passed her drivers test as well and Jay made her drive confidently having had a PTSD/ fear of driving due to a car accident we had years ago when she was in 3rd grade which stopped her from wanting to learn how to drive and Jay was very patient in teaching her and now drives safely, confidently and very courteous driver on the road ! Awesome job Jay! You're very good and patient instructor ! I have highly recommended you to all my friends!

Hands down amazing company to work with from start to finish. She passed - first test…read more Travis was very accommodating with our very tight schedule for driving time. Class times worked for us as my daughter has multiple weekday practices and meetings. Would recommend Drivers Education Academy to anyone looking! I'm confident my daughter is ready to be on the road!

From the owner: Driver's Education Academy's instructors are licensed and certified. We have successfully graduated…read morethousands of students and have over 20 years of experience.

Long due review! My apologies Jacob. By far, above and beyond the best instructor/ teacher out…read morethere. With all the choices we have for driving school, what made us decide to go with Driver Education Alliance/ JW driving school, after researching and reading reviews from yelp and google, one thing stood out. Jacob is young! And students (teenagers) can relate to him. So, communication was a BIG PLUS in my opinion when it comes to teenagers. To some parents out there, Don't be dissuade of Jacob's age (being young) he is old enough to teach our teenagers, and he is an actual teacher by career. JW driving is something extra he does aside from his teaching job. This alone tells me how much he enjoys teaching, and it really shows. My kids were able to endure 5-6 hour classes on the weekend. I heard them laughing and very engaging, and that's because Jacob makes it fun for them to learn. He makes them do presentations, hence the students are really taking the time to learn and understand. Jacob is very dedicated to our children. He has a classroom full of teenagers, but I feel like my kids were getting private lessons from him because that's how dedicated he is to each student (We're not just a number of faces that he sees daily). He made sure that the kids were really prepared for written and driving exam. He took the time to take them in different routes, whether it's in Wahiawa or Kapolei. He made sure to find each of our kids comfort level. Now that's dedication ensuring to see his students succeed! Honestly, i cannot thank Jacob enough. He is so patient with the kids that he was able to ease our stress and anxiety. We live in town and I will drive all the way in Mililani because I know Jacob will take away all the anxiety we have when the kids were learning to drive But it doesn't end there. He truly cares about the students and the parents too. He is very accommodating and will always try to make scheduling work for the entire family. He is prompt. He is also good at sending reminders which is a big plus for busy parents. And at the end of each lesson, he gave us tips/ feedbacks, which helped us a lot during the kids own driving hours. There's a lot more I can say, but if you're looking for a driving instructor for your teen, look no further than JW Driving School or in IG, Drivers Education Alliance / Jacob Wong

I highly recommend instructor Travis Gomez and Drivers Education Alliance! Travis made classroom…read morecourses engaging and fun for the kids. It was easy scheduling appointments for behind the wheel instruction with Travis. He gave helpful feedback and tips to improve my child's driving. With Travis' support, my daughter passed her driver's road test on the 1st attempt! Thank you, Travis!!

Very disappointing. The driving portion was never done with my child. After notifying Mr. York over…read morea month in advance the date of the scheduled driving test he failed to reply with his available dates. He didn't want to schedule driving dates until we scheduled the driving test and after my child texted him with the date he said he was off island. Then my child texted him after the date he said he'd be back on-island with no reply. Very unreliable, do not recommend.

Rod York is the best. My son finished his classroom session last week. He had a blast and learned a…read morelot. Still needs to finish his btw (behind the wheel) instruction with him. His price was affordable, $400. Classes were from Monday thru Friday.

I'm a nervous mother with a new-ish driver and decided to finally hand over the reigns to a…read moreprofessional... and happy I did! My daughter came home happy to have learned so much and extremely more confident after her 2-hour lessons with Lenard. She decided to keep practicing with her permit and call for another 2-hour lesson before her driving test. Living in east Oahu costed an extra $20 which was no problem because we're limited on good driving instructors over here! $80/hour with 2-hour min + $20 travel fee. Excellent driving school with prompt replies and reliable instructor. Highly recommend!

I should have look at the reviews In yelp before taking the adult program. This is my first time…read moregoing on yelp to review. Not recommended for beginners. I took the adult driving program with instructor Lenard Wong. While he might be a good driver himself, he is not a good instructor for beginners. I would only recommend him to people who already know how to drive and just need a refresher. For first-time and nervous drivers like me, I highly discourage choosing him. Every time I made a mistake, he would scold, yell, or sigh. This made me incredibly anxious and unable to focus. To make matters worse, he barely explained the rules or how to use the car's mirrors, mechanisms, and other essential functions, nor did he give detailed tips on how to drive well. By the second lesson, he made me drive on the main streets without proper, detailed preparation. Yes I made a lot of mistakes but everyone makes mistake and has different pace. I am trying to learn and that is what I am paying for but with him I am barely learning to drive. If you have zero driving experience, I strongly advise looking for a different driving school or instructor who is patient and thorough.

I took both the classroom lessons as well as the adult behind the wheel lessons. In the classroom,…read moreMrs. Beals is very proficient in teaching and going through the lessons, it's easy to understand and it goes by pretty quick. The behind the wheel, my instructor was very very laidback and easy to work with. He never got mad when mistakes were made and he made sure to correct the little things that would've docked points off of the driving test. I'd definitely reccomend taking both lessons as both teachers are very effective and knowledgeable when learning how to drive.

We chose this driving school for my daughter, and she attended class every Sunday until completion…read more The place is on the second floor. Parking is limited in the front and can feel a bit sketchy, so I definitely recommend picking up your kids on time. The classroom was really cold for my daughter, which was her main complaint. Other than that, she said the class itself was fine and easy to follow. One important thing to know: the behind-the-wheel (BTW) driving slots are very limited, so students need to sign up as early as their 3rd week of class. We didn't realize how backed up it was--my daughter's BTW ended up being scheduled about 3 months after the classroom portion ended. They do provide some snacks in the classroom, which was a nice touch. (I think it's for sale -- need to clarify that). One important thing to know: if your child misses even one class, they can't make it up individually. They have to stop and wait to join the next batch because the classes have to be taken continuously. So make sure your schedule is solid before enrolling. Overall, it gets the job done, but definitely plan ahead for parking and behind-the-wheel scheduling.