Great little dive shop & divemasters! Honestly the best dive boat food I've *ever* had, the most attentive & detailed instruction (Kyle) and my favorite boat ladder ever (that's a big deal for old knees). Smaller boat, not crowded, and knowledgeable captain. Definitely recommended. read more

Excellent people and top-notch service a to z. Highly recommend diving with them! They are accommodating, professional, fun & friendly. Will be back read more

I dove with Clay for two days in mid-May 2022. The first day was a full day three-tank nitrox dive out to Nihau. It was fantastic! Clay was funny and informative regarding the dives and the history of the island. Of course, the dives themselves were amazing. Clay takes safety very seriously and I felt great the whole dive. Clay served as divemaster because he loves to dive and Jake was the second divemaster. The second day was a two-tank off the coast of Kauai which was also wonderful. Highly recommended. Special shout-out to Tom who captained the two trips and Blondie who worked the office and helped me book the adventure. Hopefully be back asap. read more

I'm making an account just to review Bubbles. Spent a couple of days with them back in October and I couldn't have been more stoked with the diving experience. Captain Clay, Josh, and Manny were so much fun and know their stuff. They made sure each dive spot was primo and we ended up seeing so much aquatic life. Whenever I go back to Kauai this is the only dive spot to go to -Moose read more

We have been diving with Bubbles Below for several years, but only twice with the new owners, Clay and Blondie. They have carried on the high quality dive experience we expect! When my wife experienced BCD problems at the start of a twighlight shore dive, Clay took her back to shore and insisted on loaning her one of the shop BCDs. It truly saved her dive. As other reviewers said, safety is utmost, and yet their sense of divers' abilities and their sense of humor made for 3 great dive days. Shout out to new DM Jake, who graduated from the high school and university in our home town: what an infectious attitude he has! read more

We dove with Clay in Niihau in September 2023 for our honeymoon. It was fantastic. We saw multiple monk seals which was probably the highlight. The food was great, especially the soup. The equipment we rented was all in great shape. We will definitely come dive with bubbles below again if we return to Kauai. Thanks again! read more

MAGICAL and INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE! I do not have enough amazing things to say about this dive operation! One of my biggest goals during the time I lived in Hawaii was to dive Ni'ihau and Lehua. Clay and Blondy helped to make this a reality for me, and were amazing in doing so. When I got to, it was absolutely MAGICAL. I appreciate their high standards with regard to when they make the call to go or not go, as they look out for the safety and experience of their divers with extreme regard. This was one of my best dive experiences (if not THE best) in the 23 years I have been diving, and I am already wishing to go back again. Clay is an utmost professional, and the work he does with NOAA, UH, etc, in addition to his Captain and Dive skills, is incredible. His team (both times we went out) was top notch - thank you to Captain Tom, Dive Master Jake, Dive Master Manny (from our first trip) and Dive Master Corey (who was along for fun and a pleasure to be with). Blondy (his wife who runs the shop and coordinates the trips) is awesome and also volunteers from shore with monk seals and sea turtle initiatives. They are passionate, kind, professional, and work to ensure you meet your goals. I'd highly recommend going with them if you desire to go to Ni'ihau and Lehua, as well as for the around Kauai dives. They are THE BEST! Thank you, thank you, thank you to the Bubbles Below team - I am excited to come back again down the line! read more

Bubbles Below Scuba Charters, Inc - monk seal on one of our dives - Boating Near Me - Eleele, Hawaii

Outstanding service and instructors. Got PADI certified here and Justin was super informative and upbeat. The dive sites were phenomenal and rental equipment in superb condition. 10/10 recommend this scuba charter read more

This is a first rate outfit. Great equipment, great seaworthy boat and most important great human beings. Clay and Blondie are professional, friendly and have have plenty of corny jokes to tell on the boat ride. DM Jake was terrific, he knows his stuff and led us on a magical adventure throu Ni'ihao for 3 nitrox dives. Clay thank you and Tom for taking such good care of us and the lovely monk seals. We saw it all...not even, but nearly. Tons of cool critters, sharks, seals, manta ray, eels, lobster and a ton of fish I don't even know yet. So much fun guys!!! Thanks! read more

We had a great time! Did a half day with clay who is lovely ( suuuuper likable guy!) blonde was so helpful with booking and logistics, and both on board dive masters were friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful. This is a small business with a loyal following and a good reputation. A couple I was on the boat with goes out with clay yearly and love him and his team. You won't be disappointed :) read more

Clay and his team were absolutely fantastic. For my first salt water and first dive outside of getting certified they really went all out to make it enjoyable, stress free, entertaining, and educational. I loved their conservationist approach to recreational diving and can't wait to book my next dive with them when I come back to the island. Thank you so much for an awesome first experience. read more

Yesterday was the third day I've been diving with Capt. Clay and the Bubbles Below team, so this review is overdue but reflects experiences from two seasons. This dive operator is excellent in all respects and highly focused on diver comfort and safety. Keep in mind that weather conditions, especially in Hawaii, are variable from day to day and hour to hour. This isn't the fault of the dive operator, BTW! My first day with them was in October 2018. Hadn't been in the water for over a year, although experienced diver -- signed up for a local 2 tank dive. They contacted me as a dive for Niihau was planned for that day, and we talked about my comfort level with the dives planned. I opted to schedule the full day trip. Well, a storm came in and that location was cancelled, they offered a local trip instead, which I agreed to. This day was glorious! We went to Amber Arches and Honu Hole - dive master Jordan was a superb guide, pointing out multiple cool sights and species... including Flameback ghost shrimp and Flame Angelfish, as well as 3 large hogfish and a hawksbill turtle. The boat had only two divers due to cancellations, so we had an excellent experience. Fast forward to May 2019, I planned a local 2 tank local dive and the Niihau full day dive. Both were fabulous. There were 10 divers and 2 groups on the local dive and a smaller group [4] to Niihau. Again, I had a wonderful experience. The operation has a larger and a smaller boat, so with the larger group we were comfortable. As mentioned on other reviews, this truly is an effortless boat experience, they prepare all your gear and help get you in the water quickly with FULL tanks so you can have the best diving experience. The dive briefings are informative and cover emergency situations well. The Niihau dives were nitrox for the first two, and air for the third. We were fortunate to land there on a day where the current was minimal, so were able to cover quite a bit of territory during our dives, two sites in some instances. I highly recommend Bubbles Below when you're on Kauai! read more

Highly recommend Bubbles Below for any of your dives on Kauai, Did the full day Niihau dives which I recommend if you're an advanced diver. Blondy & Clay own Bubbles Below as of 2.5 or so years ago. Blondy was super helpful getting everything booked, and Clay is a really good captain and very knowledgeable dive master. He pointed out many things I would've never seen and knew all the names of creatures and where to likely find them. Great vibes all around! Support this mom & pop shop! read more

Amazing amazing amazing experience diving with Jordan, Anthony, and Captain Clay. I came here with my boyfriend and his family (all certified divers) to get my check out dives done for certification. From the get go, everyone was nice and attentive to all of our needs. We had some issues with the dive computers and regulators we brought so they were super nice about helping us switch it out with theirs. All these guys are very knowledgeable and passionate about the marine life. Anthony and Jordan made sure to point out all the cool little critters we probably would have missed because they're so small. For all those looking to do their check out diver here -- Jordan was my trainer and let me tell ya... he's awesome, super knowledgeable, and FUN. I already had previous scuba experience from doing a Discover scuba class so he made sure to take time to further my learning by explaining other things more in depth. We had an awesome time together searching for baby octopi and sleepy sea turtles after completing all our skills. 100000% would recommend booking with these guys. I can't wait to come back for more! read more

Had an amazing time with Clay! Not only was he very knowledgeable, he was hilarious! Would definitely dive with bubbles below again.

Amazing shop for diving. They cater to advanced and new divers. We had a great instructor, Justin who taught us to dive and got us through scuba certification. Wonderful experience with Clay and Blondy, can't recommend highly enough- they know what they're doing! read more

Awesome Captain & Dive Master!!! If you ever got a chance to go dive in Kauai, don't hesitate to book it from Bubbles Below Scuba Charters, Inc. You will have a blast and see a lot of living sea creatures that you never see in your diving experience. Mahalo!!! read more

This update pertains to the customer service/charter booking side of the business. I went diving with bubbles in may/june of 2011, their DMs are very friendly, nice, attentive, knowledgeable, and super patient. dive sites are amazing. The captain, Mike, was a great guy also. The owner, Linda, is very black and white, and I can see how she might be hit and miss, you will either get along with her or you wont, she's the type who tells it like it is...and that's fine by me. First off, some of you reading this may have stumbled upon other reviews on yelp or tripadvisor that were daunting...such as cancelled trips, inhospitable service, etc. While this did not exactly happen to us, I do not think that the other reviewers were exaggerating (at least not that much) when it came to some of the not so glamorous reviews. As a matter of fact, I can actually start to imagine these situations now. Just a bit of background, bubbles does come highly recommended (second only to Fathom Five) in the Discover Kauai book, some people in the online community have expressed dismay that they are receiving ill-deserved publicity...you can be the judge of that This review, concerns the phone service I received when attempting to book multiple dive charters. If I were a business owner, who runs a small business, relying primarily on tourist dollars, and I have a prospective customer who would quite possibly be spending $1000 on two days worth of dives, i would hope that the office staff I hired to take the inbound calls and whom is responsible for making and "closing" these bookings, would have the patience to entertain what may seem to be redundant and pointless questions. Do a better job at hiding your sarcasm, try not to sound so impatient, and follow through with customer's requests for information. Keep in mind that if you were on the other end, you'd probably want your questions answered and concerns addressed before forking over a grand worth of your hard earned money. Recently, with what seems (and with what I can recall relative to last year) to be an increase in pricing...to match what the competitors (fathom five and seasport) are charging, I do not see much reason to go with bubbles. smaller and older boat, actually malfunctioned on one of our dives...lack of physical store/dive shop, and most importantly RUDE office staff (maybe not all, im just referring to one specifically) I was stoked at the prospect of returning to kauai and diving with bubbles...not anymore...will be writing a review of fathom five real soon read more

Great dive experience! I've gone diving in several different locations/countries and the Dive Masters here were some of the best and most knowledgeable. Well informed on marine life and provided some cool insight on what we expect to see and the habits of these fish. The currents were rough at the first dive sights we went to by they we persistent in looking for one with good conditions that morning. Would highly recommend! read more

My first time visiting this island - while husband is working I'm on vacation. DM and Boat Capt. are gems, really appreciated their help since it's been a minute since I was able to dive. Love the couple and have booked additional dives this week. They've set the bar pretty high! read more

The moment you make your first contact with the shop, you know you've chosen correctly. Blonde listens to what your expectations are and provides an excellent description of what they offer. She then pairs you with a match. She is professional and super friendly plus knowledgeable! She went out of her way to accommodate us with our plans to relax on our anniversary as well. Clay, Manny & Chris kept us extremely happy and fully entertained while we were on both of our dive adventures. Clay is safe and efficient and quite hilarious when he is not concentrating on divers below. Case in point, I tried to ask him a question and he not for a moment took his eyes off the water and said, "give me a moment, I've got someone in the water now." They fed us very well on the long trip out to Niihau with delicious scones, soup, sandwiches, chips and a huge Tupperware of various bars and snacks! The boys handled all of our equipment during surface intervals so we could just hang out and enjoy the swaying of the boat. This is a top notch crew and highly recommended by someone who has visited many dive locations and have been on many different boats! Manny will tell you he has the best DM's and follow up with, "It's a small island." But I say his DM's were pretty awesome. Manny made sure all of us were enjoying ourselves down below and he paced us in order to see all the things he promised up top on his thorough dive brief! Chris made sure to stay behind for any stragglers. The one wish I could have would be a bit of a nicer boat. It wasn't the best on my knees getting out of the water. Thanks again for a fabulous time ~ if we return, we will definitely dive with you again and you will get my recommendation to anyone I know coming to visit! read more

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This review is overdue. We dove with them 2x in the first week of September 2013. The first day of diving was off the coast of Kauai and my in-laws joined us on the boat for snorkeling. Everything was professional, they had nice equipment, and they accommodated my in-laws who had never snorkeled before. The diving in Kauai was just OK compared to the Big Island or Mauai/Lanai (this is not a reflection of the dive shop, just Kauai as a dive location). The second day we did the Niihau dive, which was AMAZING. We were on the fence about doing it because of the price, but we were so glad we did. It was one of the best days of diving we've ever had. Huge numbers of tropical fish, really cool underwater volcanic rock formations, and monk seals were some of the highlights. Visibility was crystal clear. I highly recommend this dive and would definitely book with this dive shop again. read more

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My husband and I are already PADI certified divers and our daughter needed to do her skills dives to complete her certification. We signed on to do 4 dives with this crew where we could accomplish both completing the certification AND dive as a family AND enjoy Kauai's reefs. We could not have had a better experience. The crew is professional, prompt, answered all our questions. The gear is in top condition. They talked to us about dive spot options where we could evaluate together the tradeoffs of visibility, marine life, currents, distance, et al so that everyone might be able to meet their dive objectives. We felt properly briefed prior to each dive so that everyone was safe and had a great time. and it helps that the variety of marine life (turtles everywhere!) meant the entire experience was wonderful. AND their dive masters are so skilled that my teen daughter easily and calmly completed her certification. I highly recommend Bubbles Below read more

Bubbles Below Scuba Charters, Inc - Boating Near Me - Eleele, Hawaii

It's hard for any business to have many reviews and still have a five star average, but it's no surprise that Bubbles Below does. They are an excellent crew and took care of everyone on the trip. Clay, Blondie, Manny, and Tom all had a key role to take care of and did an excellent job. Seeing sealife on any dive is by chance anywhere in the world but Clay and Manny knew where to go to have the best chance and we were lucky to see several kinds of shark, monk seals, and a manta ray, as well as many other kinds of sea life. When I'm back in Kauai again, I will not hesitate to book another trip with them and recommend them to my other diving friends. read more

We found this company in 2018. We finally got the chance to visit again this year. We also got the chance to enjoy their Ni'iHau trip. It's a long one but incredibly worth it. Captain Clay and Blondie are friendly and helpful. This year they had different crew so we met Manny and Tom. My favorite part is that even though they have made 1000's of dives they still are excited to find things and show them to their clients. We saw Monk Seals, Sharks, and Eagle Rays, as well as a lot of macro life. Great dives, and definitely recommend. read more

I had originally booked dives with another shop that will not be mentioned. After bad weather canceled my dream of diving at Ni'ihau, that shop suggested I call Bubbles Below to see if they were planning any dives still. While Ni'ihau was also canceled for them, I was glad they were still doing a 3 dive trip to Mana Crack. Our dive sites for that day were Drop Zone, Sectional, and McCrack. Linda ran a Nitrox special for this boat and all passengers on board took advantage of 3 Nitrox dives. If you are not certified, you can take a $10 intro to Nitrox course. The boat can hold 8 passengers and we had 3 crew members (Linda, Amber, and Howard.) There is an area to hold your dry items for the ride, and you should utilize it. Our ride back (due to the swells) was rather rough and wet. All three crew members were friendly and helpful throughout the trip. Their shop is located in Port Allen/Eleele and the boat dock is a short walk from there. When I have the opportunity to visit Kauai again and hopefully dive Ni'ihau, I will head straight to Bubbles Below without hesitation! read more

Great day. We went to Ni'ihau. We did three dives with nitrox. The boat crew was wonderful. Jordan was our dive master was very safety conscious and did an excellent job preparing us for the divesand leading the dives. CAPT Clay piloted the boat. The ride home was a little bumpy due to the winds but overall a great day. Monk seals, turtles, dolphins and a plethora of fishes were seen. Great company with excellent service. read more

Fantastic dive experience on two tank dive to two different coral reefs. Lots of tropical fish, cool coral n two moray eels. The dive masters Manny n Dave are very helpful and knowledgeable. Very safe with one dive master leading four divers and pointing out things of special interest. Clay, the Captain & owner is a very gracious host, tells good stories and knows all the best places to dive off Kauai. I plan to dive the Mauna Crack & Nalpali coast on next vacation to Kauai. I highly recommend Bubbles Below for fun and safe diving off Kauai. Bruce S. Portland, OR. 10/10/19 read more

Absolutely amazing dive operation. Blondie keeps everything organized, Clay emphasizes safety and efficiency in between great stories and corny jokes, and Manny is a great divemaster. Jake joined the second day of my three, and is also a good divemaster, learning the ropes of this operation. The "standard" dive day was great, 3 dive adventure was better, and there's not comparison to Niihau. I appreciated the extra help getting back on the boat, as an old lady. Catering was superb, and there was a plethora of snacks and drinks. read more

***Linda and Earl sold the company and retired, they are no longer there and this company is under new management*** I know the original Bubbles Below was amazing, but the new owners are running the business into the ground. I'll preface by saying my bf and I had the misfortune to come between two big storms, and we we're lucky to go out at all - but there's no refund if it's a weather cancellation so of course we were going. However, after letting the captain know that I'm especially prone to seasickness (even with meds), he proceeded to make 3 of his 4 divers extremely seasick trying to find a second dive spot, with all of us vomiting off the side of the boat. We were told we'd be refunded for our 2nd dive (we paid $800 for two days of diving, they only refunded us $80 back). We were told we could try for another day for better dive conditions, so we called and called, only to be told to call back or to keep waiting. After wasting an entire morning, 30 minutes before the actual dive time at noon, did they finally get back to us and tell us we were going. 5 other people were on the boat. I requested a new dive site since we had already done Amber's Canyon. Guess where we go? Amber's Canyon. Oh, but this time my regulator was leaking, so we had to cut the dive short. Just perfect. We finally do a second dive, and have the scariest, roughest boat ride of my life back to shore. The divemasters were wearing scuba masks to avoid getting dumped on, and I wish I had done the same!! When I told the business how terrible our experience was, they didn't care, saying they only had a few charters that month, like WE were lucky to when go with them. I seriously thought I was going to die the way they were using that boat's windshield to break the waves, with water coming up and dumping from the roof onto the passengers. Clay and Blondie are not going to last in this business if they can't handle basic customer service. I will not dive with them again, and neither should you. read more

My husband and I were very happy with our experience with Bubbles Below. They were able to accommodate our dive on a Tuesday out of Port Allen to Hale O Honu which is known as a turtle cleaning station. I am not certified but my husband is so my day started out early (9am local time) with a preliminary pool dive with the Dive Master Wayne. The pool dive was conveniently located in Koloa. He went over the basics very clearly and made me feel very confident about the impending boat dive later that afternoon. After my pool dive my husband and I were able to have a small break before our boat dive, we elected to have brunch before our adventure to Hale O Honu. At 12:30pm we met up with Captain Earl and Dive Master Wayne at Port Allen where we were greeted warmly and Captain Earl went over the rules and safety precautions of the boat. The boat ride to the dive site took about 15 min., on our way out there Wayne went over the gear and what to expect and asked us what we were most interested in seeing so he would keep his eyes peeled specifically for those animals. When we arrived at the site I felt extremely confident, excited, and anxious to get in the water. Our package included 2 tank dives. Each dive is approximately 40 min long. As a non-certified diver I had to hold on to Wayne's arm in the beggining of the dive, once Wayne was confident that I would be okay in the water I could let go of Wayne but I had to stay close to Wayne at all times. It was reassuring to know that he was pretty much an arms length away or two at all times. (Diving is not a sport you want to risk your safety) My husband had much more leeway because of his dive experience. The dive itself was amazing. We saw so many different animals! Eels, Shark, Turtles, Frog Fish, Lion Fish, Octopus, Nudibranch, and more. We even heard whale song! The few pictures I am posting do not do the dive justice. Overall, for beginners and intermediate divers, I would HIGHLY recommend this dive. If you are more advanced I would recommend this charter but I would look into the more advanced dives to accommodate your skills. Wayne and Earl were extremely accommodating and easy to talk to. The boat did provide snacks and non-alcoholic drinks between the dives which was nice. We will definitely use them again in the future. I highly recommend Bubbles Below for all your diving charters in Kauai. read more

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If there were 10 stars I'd give it. Capt. Clay and Dive Master Dave were awesome. I have dived all the islands many times and this was one of the top experiences. We did a 3 tank dive at Niihau .... it was myself and my two boys and one other Diver. Most other charters wouldn't have gone with such a small group but Clay had committed and we went. The trip was epic: spinner dolphins, large pod of pilot whales .... Each dive location was very, very unique ..... 150+ viability, walls, caves, huge swim throughs, sharks, giant barracuda, Monk Seals, etc., etc. If you're going to dive Kauai I strongly recommend you go with Bubbles Below, they love what they do and it translates to a phenomenal Experience! read more

Just got back from a fantastic 3-tank adventure dive with Captain Clay. Our dive masters were dreamboats, both easy on the eyes and easy on the deyeves (they were consummate professionals from start to finish.) They tried hard to let us dive for as long as possible and get the most out of every dive, which is rare, and the sign of someone who truly loves the ocean and is passionate about diving, not just out for the money. I was especially impressed with the service; we hardly had to do anything, they did tanks, helped us into and out of BCDs, and provided good, healthy food like chili, fresh fruit and sandwiches. Seriously can't recommend this place enough! read more

I was fortunate enough to get dive certified with bubbles below last week. I am so happy with my experience and I will gladly recommend bubbles to anyone interested in diving or getting certified to dive. My dive instructor, Josh, is great and helped me feel confident in the water. Captain Clay is well educated on Kauai marine life and it was great to listen and learn about the symbiotic relationships he's come to understand in the waters. It is evident how passionate Barbie, Captain Clay, and Josh are about Kauai's waters and the island. They are all very knowledgeable and radiate excitement for diving that is truly contagious! All in all, it was a great experience I will never forget. I am dive certified!! and I feel confident to dive in other waters, thank you bubbles below. read more

I had a great time diving with Bubbles Below! Blondie went above and beyond to get me booked last minute, Clay and Manny were professional and fun. I would surely dive with them again! read more

Friendly supportive crew in shop and on boats taking divers to amazing spots! I did some local dives and an advanced trip to Niihau this week with Bubbles Below and was so pleased! They've had a long reputation for being focused on safety and sharing their appreciation of Kauai unique biodiversity since at least the first time I dove with them in 2014, and they continue to earn it! These days of course, safety includes both diving safety and COVID safety. read more

Bubbles Below Scuba Charters, Inc - Dive boat with amazing lead divemaster Manny - Boating Near Me - Eleele, Hawaii

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My husband and I haven't dove in maybe 20 yrs. Our 18 yr old son and nephew wanted to try out scuba during our vacation, so we booked a non-certification lesson for all four of us with Mike. Mike was young, friendly, super chill and a great guy for all four of us. Excellent sense of humor and really good energy. Scuba seems to be a hit for our son. Although not as popular for our nephew, kudos to him for trying something new and overcoming his fear of open water. Mike handled the varied skill and enthusiasm levels with ease. Booking was also a really good experience! Crystal answered all my questions over the phone, was patient and knowledgeable, and super friendly. We are heading out on a boat dive this weekend to continue the fun! Highly recommend these folks for beginners as well as scuba enthusiasts with experience! read more

Love this place! They were super cool.. even though we did a last minute booking and only had 4 people they gave a "private boat charter" at the regular price, then discounted 15% for the 3/4 of us who were military. We had the owner for our boat captain and his wife was at the shop. We had Anthony as a dive guide, and he was cool too. We really enjoyed our dive and the sharks we saw were amazing. I would highly recommend these guys. They don't waste time with long and lengthy briefings. We did it on the way out... for certified divers go with this company. read more

As a PADI Instructor on staff at a popular dive shop in the SF Bay Area, I have high standards for SCUBA teams and their operations. Bubbles Below has a great team with excellent dive masters and a friendly, fun captain and shop team. Sometimes you see in guide books and reviews online that you can choose between a SCUBA shop that caters to beginners OR to advanced, certified divers. Although Bubbles Below excels with the latter, I would find it hard to not recommend them to the former... after all, don't you want more experienced people who are excellent with experts helping you if you're a beginner? You're in good hands here regardless of your experience level. I'm excited to return and dive with them again. read more

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The Bubbles below staff is the most fun and knowledgeable staff I have ever dove with. I highly recommend them for any dive in Kauai!