Thanks Captain Lani for a great trip! I'm a little delayed in writing my review but I haven't forgotten the great memories my cousin and I have from our trip in May. It was the highlight of our trip to Kauai! The catamaran was the perfect size to get in close to all the neat little spots for viewing the water caves. The captain spent time providing the passengers with safety guidelines before we headed out. We went on to view some beautiful spots around the island. If a spot was too crowded we went somewhere else and came back later. I was a little hesitant to go snorkeling because I hadn't gone in such a long time, but the captain convinced me to go and went out with me until I felt comfortable being on my own. He went way above and beyond what he had to do but I'm so appreciative he did! It was amazing!!! Thanks again for a wonderful trip! read more

Aloha - Malihini(visitors) and Kama'aina! If you want to check out the Na Pali Coast this is the boat to do it on. Catamaran Kahanu is the only Hawaiian owned and operated Na Pali coast tour. You will get the true Na Pali experience from Captain Lani. No such thing as commercial on this tour, this is truly an island experience that will stay with you in your hearts forever. Breathtaking views of the Na Pali, spinning Porpoises, Hawaiian Humpback Whales, and beautiful scenery of Kauai's coastline.Captain Lani will safely take you places others cannot go and share with you Kauai's stories and history unlike any other tour. A must for all!! read more

I definitely recommend this boat trip. Looking at the other vessels in the water made me feel like I was on the best one. The other boats seemed either too small for the sometimes choppy water with lots of people on it or too big so you cant get close enough to the caves, which also had a ton of people on them. Kahanu's capacity was 25 and we had about 18 including 3 young kids. We sat at the edge of the boat and Captain backed into a water fall so we could get directly under it while filming. We saw dolphins on the way out, snorkeled for 30 minutes and when we boarded back on we were offered a great lunch. I truly enjoyed it all. Total time about 5 hours from 8-1. You can also bring your own food and drinks. Fyi we rented snorkel gear which wasn't necessary because they had some aboard. Bring sunblock! read more

Yet another five star review. The smaller boat was great; not crowded, still rode the waves well, and was able to get very close to the cliffs. The captain was a classic salty dog, and the first mate Jase was very friendly and helpful. All in all, a great experience. read more

Captain Lani is the real deal, native and experienced. The size of the Kahanu gives the advantage of small groups and the ability to see things larger vessels cannot access. We thoroughly enjoyed the wildlife and views. At one point we were eye to eye with a school of porpoises as they seemed to dance around our boat! This was a memory we will hold dear forever. We enjoy supporting locals and small business with experience. This hit all marks. read more

Book with them and you won't regret it! I feel so bad that 3 years later I'm reviewing them (just got into yelping). The reason I feel bad is because the captain really took good care of us. He was very patient and wanted everyone to experience the absolute best. He didn't rush the snorkeling time or any sight seeing. He asked if anyone is celebrating anything- which we said it was our 1yr anniversary so he told us to stand in the corner of the boat and reversed it into a waterfall (he said it was for good luck). On the way back we stood in a section in front of the boat and it felt like we were jet skiing the WHOLE way back! !!! I will never forget it! The captain also made sure a hard wave didn't knock us down. What a wonderful Captain! I know how it is to stop caring over work... but this Captain cares and he hasn't lost that even after so many years in. Highly recommended booking Kahanu with Captain Lani!! read more

What an awesome tour! We loved the smaller boat, so much more personal and flexible. The crew member was very knowledgeable; the Captain seemed gruff, but was actually very kind. Both of them provided great service. The opportunity for my son and husband to stand out on the front in the 'splash zone' was a highlight, for sure. This was the most high value activity we did on Kauai, and incredibly reasonably priced. We would highly recommend you go with Captain Lani. read more

I searched high and low for the best catamaran tour when on Kaua'i. I'd never been to this island, so I wanted to be sure to see ALL of it, so a boat or helicopter tour was necessary. This was so much fun, I'm so happy I chose Kahanu, and I will return for another tour. Aside from feeling like old friends, this company has the knowledge of the ocean, the ocean life and the Hawaiian heritage; talk about having adding a layer of validity, one of the captains is a marine biologist! The other captain is the native Hawaiian who knows these waters like the back of his hand; other boats were turning around due to the conditions but our Capt knew the sky, clouds and wind better, so he knew it was safe for us to proceed, and did we ever! He took us out for an amazing adventure where we saw whales (mamas and calf's & males fighting for dominance)monk seals, manta-rays, bottle nose dolphins and spinner dolphins! Thank you Catamaran Kahanu, I will never forget this day! read more

Great local company with a fantastic crew! They're all about safety so don't be frustrated if they have to cancel your tour. We happened to have great weather the day we went out but it was still super choppy out on the waters until we pulled into a cove for snorkeling and lunch. If you get even the littlest bit seasick, take something before you sail. If they don't think the weather or ocean will accommodate a pleasant tour, they won't sail and ultimately, you'll be glad they rescheduled. Be sure to bring your own towel and water along with something dry. It can be really windy and unless you're sitting in the very middle, front of the boat, you will probably get pretty wet at times. They provide a fresh sandwich lunch but only had sodas, so if you want something else to drink after getting out of the ocean from snorkeling, you'll want to bring your own fresh water. They provided snorkeling masks and fins and had plenty to choose from to make sure you got the right size. Because they have a smaller boat and don't take more than 20 people per tour, we were able to stop in a small cove to snorkel where we saw tons of fish and large sea turtles. On the way up the coast, we were able to stop among a huge pod of porpoises. If you don't mind getting soaked, opt for the 'first class' seating up front and enjoy the view and sea spray. But beware - you WILL get completely soaked! My husband had a great time up there and pretty much stayed up in the spray the entire way back down the coastline. Captain Lani and Christian were knowledgeable about the area and had great suggestions about other things to do on the island. I love that they're a local company and Debbie, who took our reservations, was friendly and sweet. We had a great time and would definitely sail with them again! read more

Great family-run tour of the Napali coast. We look to patronize the small family run businesses when on vacation. Kahanu was the perfect fit. Working with native Kawains was a treat. The captain took us to all the places the big boats couldn't go. The service was very family-oriented in the Aloha spirit. We saw wildlife inches from the water and our fingertips. Highly recommended. Hidden Pearl. read more

This was a gem - I got a deal (I thought) through the website for $110/ adult, and the boat was able to get really close to the lava caves, and other sites, because it was small - definitely an advantage over the larger boats. The only con is because it was smaller, it didn't provide a lot of support for a novice snorkeller (no child masks, minimal floats- not an issue if you are an experienced snorkeller, or don't care for this. read more

The captain was gruff and insensitive to the clients's needs on the boat. I felt nauseous for a while and they told me that if needed to throw up to please do it outside the boat! The promised snorkeling close to the Na Pali coast was a lie (was supposed to be the difference between snorkeling with them and other companies). We ended up snorkeling on our way back where everybody else was snorkeling. We also didn't see turtles or whales as promised. Simply do not waste your money here and go with a more friendly and professional company. read more

Just got back from a 10 day April vacation with my wife and 3 daughters ages 12, 11, and 8. One of our day trips was on Catamaran Kahanu with Captain Lani Swain. I would highly recommend them to anyone traveling to Kaua'i. Check them out at http://catamarankahanu.com. For those of you wishing a more intimate trip and hoping to support a local business, this is a must. From the start, you could tell Captain Lani was all about safety as well as making sure you saw the sights you would hope to see. At one point he even jumped off at a snorkelling point to teach my 11 year old how to dive deep and manage changes in pressures at lower depths (while the first mate Christian was aboard of course). Definitely a highlight of our trip! read more

Just got back from the Napili coast with the Kahanu folks. And it was a GREAT trip. If you want authentic and family this is the trip. Every thing was just perfect the care and goRod time they provided was spectacular. This is a family run operation and the Captain is not only a wealth of information but extremely entertaining,safe,and so knowledgeable. His passion for the ocean and Hawaian folklore are a memory I will never forget. Debbie at the phone is fantastic. Beyond a doubt all my Kauai boat trips will be with them. Small size and quaint. Goes out of his way to see wildlife. Highly recommended. read more

If you want to take less than 5 hr whale watching tour, this is the one. The price was well worth the trip. The Captain and Erin were great. The May Family read more

This is from Bill Roberts. Our three families went on your Catamaran trip on 8/15/20013. Captain Lani provided my family and friends the best experience ever! I was very glad to hear and witness that his #1 priority was safety. Alison was there to help him out too and she was a wonderful guide as we cruised along the Napli coast line. Captain Lani surprised all of the kids with a very unique trip with stops in caves along the way. This was something that no one expected and everyone loved it. Captain Lani also backed into a fresh water fall for the kids and got them wet on the back of the catamaran. The snorkeling spot was absolutely epic! Tons of fish and plenty of time with no rushing for your snorkeling adventure. Lunch was included and they had very fresh fruit (of course pineapple too). I would rate the over all trip a solid 5/5 stars because of Captain Lani and Alison. They were the best hosts, kept everyone safe, talked about the history of Napali, had really good food, and made the trip memorable for everyone! PS. Captain Lani also knows where to find the dolphins and turtles so don't waste your time on any other Catamaran trip except his. Plus his catamaran is a little smaller than the more expensive one and he's able to get close to the coast line as well as go into the caves while the occupant of the larger catamarans watch us. :) Photo of captain with our kids: http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7288/9572298870_c6f17806aa_c.jpg Thanks Alison and Captain Lani!!! You guys are awesome and are Ohana to us. read more

Absolutely a wonderful time! The captain was so friendly and comical. I was the only one out of 16 of us that stood at the front of the boat the whole trip. When the dolphins came I was able to come face to face with them thanks to Captain. Awesome 5 hour trip! read more

We had 3 adults and 3 tweens in our "California" group as Captain Lani called us. As we gathered to board we saw huge groups loading onto the boats of the larger outfits. Kahanu carries about 20. This is a family run operation- Captain Lani and his crew can tell you anything and everything about the island. Pods of porpoises came right up to the boat. We saw turtles and flying fish, sea caves, waterfalls, and of course the stunning coast. You can stay perfectly dry through the trip or stand at the front of the boat and get soaked like we did! It was nice not to lug our snorkel gear with us. The kids were not initially excited about going-at the end of it they all said it was the highlight of our trip! We had three prone to motion sickness- all took a Bonine and had a great day. I will go again when I come back to the island and highly recommend it! read more

This tour was AWESOME. The check in process was friendly and easy, The Captain and first mate Jayce were funny,personable, informative and gave us the best experience. We rode with a pod of dolphins,saw sea turtles,got history of the island for the tour, and great snorkeling. The captain backed up underneath a waterfall and shared his own history of growing up on Hawaii for generations. We spent about 5 hours in total on this tour and had a lunch of sandwiches and snacks and the captain gave us fresh mango and mountain apples to try. This was the best tour I would say I had in Kauai. I can't wait to go back and do it again. read more

I booked them last minute as all the other bigger companies were booked. And I am SOOO glad they were because this was the BEST experience for my children and me. Right when we got on the boat the captain made sure we were safe. He took great care of us. Since I just had my three girls by myself, the captain made sure we were well taken care of. He made sure to get the best photos of us at every great spot. He made sure my children got to see all the sea life when they were visible. He was always cautious about safety which was great. Since it was a smaller boat, we were able to get to know the other passengers and really be able to chat with everyone. Jayce (the other captain on the boat) was great as well and was very knowledgeable on teaching us things about the island. This was not a "touristy" company. It was a family owned company that really wanted to make sure you were taken good care of. I would HIGHLY recommend this company over all the rest. Don't waste your money on the bigger companies. Go with this more down to earth, more attention based company, Catamaran Kahanu! read more

While on Kauai, My wife and I used local stores, restaurants, and frequented the places where the locals hang out. Staying true to searching out " local", we used this charter service and were very pleasantly surprised by the captains love of the island, both his and the crew's emphasis on safety, the great food on our sunset whale watching tour, and the overall great time we had. This is not to be missed. One can just as easily use one of the bigger catamarans in port. But when you really have plenty of space and a small ten to twelve amount of whale watchers on board with you, you get much more personal service for your money and boy does captain know his whales! He heritage is all local and he knows how to follow the pods To get you as close as possible to see. We got great stills and video. The seas were almost flat and we saw whales all around the boat. If you have trouble with Diesel engines, don't worry. The boat has twin four stroke Gasoline powered Yamaha 250's so no diesel and very green for an ocean going vessel. Next time out with these folks, we are going on the longer coastal cruise to see the cliffs, caves and do some snorkeling. read more

Wow - a friend recommended Catamaran Kahanu to us for our family consisting of children from 8-17. We were hesitant to spend the money on the whole family as we my wife and I had just an ok experience with another company on a larger catamaran last December. From the start, this trip was a much better experience. The small boat, the knowledge of the captain, the family feel all made for a better experience. Having the ability to get much closer to the coast line than the larger boats was a big plus too. As far as the size of the boat, it provided sufficient stability and no body on tour became sea sick. One note, if you happen to go with this outfit for a tour, the "office" is not in the strip mall. It is a very small wood building (large enough for one or two people) on the Northeast portion of the gravel parking lot that all of the outfits use. Don't be scared away, by the perceived size, however. This is the real deal and worth the money. read more

Came highly recommended by my family and I am so glad I listened! I had sailed on a couple of larger newer cats with their 75 passengers and was fed up with the crowds. Not much fun swimming in a floating mass of fellow snorklers not to mention the cramped feeling ride and the long lines to get your equipment and get into or out of the water. That's probably why booze is so important on their cruises. Enough on them! Catamaran Kahanu carries 18 passengers max and, while it is not a big state of the art boat, it delivers a much better experience. Gets you in close to the caves and even backs you under a waterfall for a fresh water shower! Very kid friendly. Snorkeling also a lot nicer from a smaller boat and the best part is that they are a local family business. Captain's family has been on the island since the 1600s so he really knows Kauai. After booking, if you get a call from one of the big corporate boats trying to convince you to change your reservation, please don't do it no matter what sort of discount they offer. They are trying their best to put the Kahanu out of business! Shameful! Please support this family business. read more

Go with KAHANU!!! This is the ONLY Hawaiian owned Na Pali coast tour. Small groups (18 max) means personal service and lots of opportunities to chat with captain and crew. The deck hands were incredibly knowledgeable and great at discussing all of the points of interest along the coastline. We saw so much marine life! The highlight had to be the whale mother and baby who allowed Captain Lani to float so close that we could hear them breathing! We encountered a pod of dolphins that swam right alongside the boat, jumped out of the water and spun horizontally in the air (spinner dolphins). They looked like they were putting on a show for us! Last but not least we saw sea turtles. Not from a distance, but right up next to the boat. We got amazing photos. We snorkeled, had a delicious lunch and enjoyed the superb stability of this vessel. No one got seasick on our trip. Catamaran Kahanu is the premier Na Pali experience. The best way to see it is with a Hawaiian who grew up there! Thank you Captain Lani and Debbie! You gave us the trip of a lifetime! read more

I lived on Oahu for 6 years and my family has had many opportunities to do activities on many of the islands during that time and on trips we have taken back. We always try to use local businesses for our activities and have had many wonderful outings with Hawaiian guides that have been informative, pleasant and helpful. They truly love their heritage and love to share that with the guests. I wish I could say this was one of those times. We read about the gruff captain on the Catamaran Kahanu, but knew that gruff is not always bad and we wanted to be on a smaller boat. What we got was a smaller boat filled over capacity and a captain who was not very nice in how he approached anyone. The brochure says they take 18 people and we counted 17 at check-in; however, we found that did not include the five family members who rode with us, boarded the boat first and did not have to obey the many rules given to use by the wife, crew and captain. We had booked this tour mostly for the whale watching as this is the season for whales and the company's web site says the tour we took is for whale watching. Neither the captain or the crew member spent any time on the trip out to the Na Pali coast looking for whales. Only our party was looking for them and we saw a few out in the distance, but the boat did not head out to meet them. The captain did stop the boat once for some porpoises and gave all the guests a verbal lashing for not holding on while standing. Once done with that, he proceeded to quiz us on the difference between dolphins and porpoises, all the while the porpoises were passing us by. Once he finally stopped talking, they were too far away to see anymore. The Na Pali coast part of the trip was good even though it took a long time to get there due to the small boat. The coast was too rough for snorkeling, so after awhile we headed back. On the way back we kept looking for whales since the crew was not doing it. Again we saw a few in the distance and at one point saw one whale doing consistent flipper slaps. The captain stopped the boat and told us we were all looking the wrong way and there were whales by the boat. We only saw a couple of small spouts but no other activity. We started moving again towards the snorkeling spot. The snorkeling was not bad, but was in a spot crowded with all the other boats and the process for getting gear was poorly handled and not recommended for anyone that did not know how to snorkel. The lunch was okay, but the family members ate first and the kids ate up all the cookies (we did get one). After lunch, we were back to port and the 5 hour tour was 4.5 hours with very few whales spotted and none of them by the crew or captain. I really wanted to give a better rating to this company since there were so many good reviews, but there were too many times that I felt that the customers were more of a bother and the fun things we could have experienced were taken away by the captain's attitude. Would not go on this tour again. read more

We specifically asked for a whale-watching tour when we called and were told this would be one. Well, we did see whales in the distance, but the main purpose of the cruise (the 5-hr one that was really 4.5 hours) was to get up to Na'Pali coast and the snorkeling area. The captain did not seek out whales like other whale-watching tours we've been on, but did stop to show us a few that were a half-mile away or so - just saw the blows, nothing else. He also stopped when he came upon a small group of 10-12 porpoises. We saw breeching whales on the horizon but he didn't go for them. There was no commentary except 3-4 times when he stopped the boat and talked a bit. Most of the passengers seemed to be bored. The captain (owner) was gruff at times. This particular trip appeared to have family or friends of the captain on board - they had different rules and seemed to have preference. While it was a small boat, he didn't get as close to the coast as the smaller boats did. Snorkeling was OK in a group with about 6 other boats. Lunch was good. If you want to see whales go for a dedicated whale-watching tour. Bathroom is a chemical toilet behind a curtain. Check-in place is hard to find in the parking lot past all the bigger tour companies. read more