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    Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary

    4.8 (66 reviews)
    Open 8:30 am - 2:00 pm

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    Vanessa H.

    What a special place! I just discovered this beautiful sanctuary and had the opportunity to tour it with a 1.5 hour tour. Our tour guide was Bre and she was absolutely wonderful! She is a beautiful soul and radiates love and peace while encouraging those on the tour to be present and invite gratitude into our hearts. The sanctuary itself is a conservation effort that began over 40 years ago. It is incredible to see the growth of those years! We saw so many beautiful plants, colorful and fragrant flowers and super cool mushrooms. I have grown up coming here to Kona since my grandma lives here -- because of this, I have done many things that the island has to offer. I would add this to the list of really interesting things to do that also serve a deeper purpose. Mahalo nui loa for opening up this amazing cloud forest for us all to enjoy and learn.

    Vanessa L.

    What an honor to be one of the first to experience their launch of offering a forest bathing tour here ar Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary. Went at 7:30 for a forest bathing experience and our tour guide, Bri, was amazing! The experience is only for 1.5 but we ended up going for 2.5 as we were just enjoying nature and immersing ourselves into a quiet, calm, and peaceful environment. It was truly a beautiful experience we wont forget. Thank you!

    On the Pantropical Trail cloud forest tour (1.5 hr)
    Ivonnie S.

    We had a lovely time at the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary this past January. We did the Pantropical Trail Tour (1.5 hr), followed by the Sound Bath Meditation Journey (1 hr) right after. Our trail tour guide, Teryn, was awesome! Her enthusiasm, knowledge, and love for the forest sanctuary shone through. The 1.5 hours passed by in a flash. I was impressed by how Teryn spotted some of the tiniest creatures on leaves as we walked by. It was cool in the cloud forest and started to drizzle lightly at the end, so our rain jackets came in handy. Also note that the the trail can be slippery in places; they provided walking sticks for everyone to bring along/use, and I did find it coming in handy at a few spots. The Sound Bath Meditation Journey was at a covered pavilion a short walk down the street from the tour entrance. Pam, our guide, led a relaxing session with singing bowls. I had done a few sound baths before, but this was J's first time, and we both enjoyed the experience. I recommend both the trail tour and the sound bath!

    Rick P.

    Informative tour of this cloud forest that is the legacy of a botanist and several generations of his family. Our tour guide Daniel provided lots of details and good vibes as we trekked through the lush landscape. A singular diversion away from the touristy hubbub that can only be found in this singular ecosystem.

    Casey M.

    10/10 would recommend !! Big highlight of our trip! I told all our family and friends who asked about our big island trip they have to go to the Kona cloud sanctuary =) This was our first stop off the plane and we felt as though we got lucky to experience it. Forest bathing or going outside and enjoying nature, is something my boyfriend and I do to destress We initially got lost and thought we weren't going to be able to make it, but we lucked out with Anna being our tour guide and being part of a wonderful group. They waited for us and I'm so thankful they did. I cant write a long enough review to express how much we enjoyed the forest walk (1.5hrs). My only wish is that we had more time to join a yoga session and sound bath. Maybe next time. Words cannot express how grateful we are for Norman for creating a sacred space like this where others can learn more about nature and the environment. The Big Island isn't as hot and dry as I remember it to be as a kid, and I want to think that this passion project of his helped cool temperatures down significantly. Thank you to our knowledgeable and fun tour guide Anna! She made the walk and learning about plants enjoyable and fun!! Note : They make you spray your shoes with isopropyl prior to walking around in the forest to prevent any bacteria you may be carrying from spreading to the land and plants. This is not uncommon. We actually became more aware of other sites doing this AFTER visiting the forest and learning about WHY we do it

    Marissa R.

    A very wonderful experience i've never had before. Lots of history to the forest. The tour I took with some coworkers was easy. Theres a couple high steps and a little muddy but was still enjoyable. Had crocs on as well as walking sticks were provided for that extra support. Very special place to share with family and friends. Also, if you're crazy bout mushrooms, there's loads lying around the forest floor and trunks of trees. Really cool!

    Marble tree seeds
    Michael A.

    I believe it's important for each us to understand the value of such a forest and its ecosystem. Also think it's important to understand how each individual can contribute towards restoring our forests and ecosystems, and that was definitely what I walked away from our hike with. Very inspiring, refreshing, interesting.

    Lynn S.

    This afternoon we were lucky to be able to visit the U.S.'s only Cloud Forest. Cloud forests only make up 1% of forest area in the entire world so this was a very special experience where we got to learn and reconnect with nature in a unique way. Our guide Bree was amazing. She was so gracious and knowledgable. I would highly recommend taking the time to visit and take in all this one of a kind sanctuary has to offer.

    One of the many trees you will learn about!
    Min N.

    Such a fun experience!!! Anna the guide teaches you all about the plants and trees and what makes a cloud forest. She is super knowledgeable and even throws in a few jokes. The hike was super fun!! A walking stick is provided and helps with some of the downhills. This was a nice change of scenery. Bug spray is provided since there are mosquitoes.

    Entrance
    Kelly C.

    This is a special place and it was a great experience learning about it from Bri. We did the 1.5 hr guided tour and I left feeling refreshed after our "forest bathing" experience. I left with a newfound appreciation for nature thanks to Bri. It was a great way to get up close and personal with Hawai'i. At the entrance they have a small gift shop where they sell water, a few snacks and apparel. There is a port-a-potty at the entrance as well. They provide walking sticks which are helpful so you do not have to keep your eyes glued to the ground while walking. I also did the sound bath on a separate occasion which I would highly recommend. There were 7 of us and they lay out yoga mats with blankets for you to get comfortable. The meditation and sound vibrations along with the sounds of the forest were very relaxing.

    Cloud forest 3000 feet above Kailua-Kona - so much cooler!

    We had the best bird watching experience at the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary! Got a great introduction to native and introduced birds in Hawaii, and spent time in a wonderful forest environment 3000 feet above Kona. Our guide Anna was super knowledgeable, not only about birds but the forest ecology as well - definitely recommend this activity!

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    Ask the Community - Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary

    How far are you from the Kona Airport?

    We are 15 minutes from the Kona Airport and 20 minutes from the Kona pier

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    Review Highlights - Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary

    I ended up doing the sound bath and it was just absolutely amazing, and it was really amazing right after the hike.

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    Monarch Coffee Farm

    Monarch Coffee Farm

    4.8
    (19 reviews)
    2.5 mi

    THEY DONT DO RETAIL OR TOURS ANYMORE…read more I love monarch. But their coffee online, support them however you want but don't drive, text or call them. They are closed to the public Again, love them but don't go here thinking you're going to be able to buy coffee or do a tour. Their website goes into more detail.

    On our recent visit to the Big Island, coffee was at the top of our list. We looked through tourist…read moreguides and travel blogs to find 1 or 2 since our time was limited on Kona. My friend found Monarch and off we went. It's located in an area with quite a few other coffee plantations. It was quite a trek to find it. But when we did, it was worth the trip. Upon entering the plantation you drive through coffee trees and emerge into a clearing with a circular driveway and a main building. As soon as we parked, we were greeted by Abby. She asked where we were from and we told her Northern California. She asked where in NorCal and we told her Sacramento. It turns out they're also from the area (specifically Woodland.) What a small world! Abby showed us around their tasting room and retail area. It was very small, but very cozy. She told us a bit about the plantation and how they came to be on the Big Island. She told us about the coffees available for tasting and the beans in their retail shop. Another gentleman, Greg, stopped by to tell us more about the plantation and it's operations. Since we didn't have the time to do the complete tour, he gave us an explanation of coffee from tree to cup. I'm not very knowledgeable about coffee, but my friend is and he was a fountain of information. The farm was so homey and cozy. It was like I was invited to a friend's home and enjoyed a leisurely chat on their patio. I highly recommend a tour of Monarch coffee plantation. You will get award winning coffee and an unforgettable experience.

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    Monarch Coffee Farm
    View from the top
    View from the top
    Monarch Coffee Farm

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    Hawaii Forest & Trail

    Hawaii Forest & Trail

    4.8
    (373 reviews)
    4.8 mi

    We had a great time on the Hawaii Forest & Trail Secret Waterfalls of Kona Excursion! Our guide,…read moreMark, was incredible--he kept everyone talking and he was genuinely interested in hearing everyone's travel stories. He was very knowledgeable and provided us with a wealth of fascinating information about the island. After a comfortable van ride, we hiked a beautiful trail that led us to a series of truly stunning, pristine waterfalls. We were treated to a delicious lunch from a local deli, and we loved that it was served in eco-friendly, completely reusable containers. On the way back, we made a perfect final stop at a local macadamia nut store. It was a fantastic experience from start to finish, and we recommend it!

    We went on an almost 100% full (flower) moon. It was special to see the terminator line on the…read moreCelestron telescope - it had such great definition! The color of Mauna Kea with the moon shining on it was so magical all around us. There were some clouds that cleared pretty well by the end of our star gazing. We were the last ones up there so it got dark enough to see more than you'd expect with the moon. Jeff, our awesome tour guide, used a laser pointer to help us see the constellations we usually can't back at home. The images on the digital telescope like nebulas, the moon & star clusters were an amazing addition to have as keepsakes. My husband and I felt he made the tour a great balance of learning and fun. He had the group feeling like family before we even left from the pickup lot. Things to consider: I do recommend following the moons cycles booking this tour/your trip if this is especially important for you to see as many stars as possible. The sunset and views of the observatory's make it awesome anyways :) I struggled with altitude sickness around 12,000 ft. Jeff had made sure to let us know beforehand if we experienced any issues to speak up. I was hesitant as I know it would mean turning the whole tour around, but some tingling turned to dizziness and then a brief fainting. He immediately stopped the bus and helped ground me and make sure I was completely okay & coherent before letting me know our options for the tour. We made it up to the top with 2 more (included in tour) stops and I felt better with each one having more time to acclimate :) Thank you Jeff!! You handled this so professionally and I appreciate your check-ins for the rest of the trip. It's cold even with parka and gloves. It's so worth packing warm shoes and layers. The bus had ac and heat so that was great! Do it if you can! Awe-inspiring! Such an unreal environment that makes you wonder about so many things. Just take the precautions seriously, move slow and breathe deep.

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    Take a dip in a private waterfall on our Hilo Tropical Waterfall Tour.
    Take a dip in a private waterfall on our Hilo Tropical Waterfall Tour.
    Explore pristine lava tubes when you venture with Hawaii Forest & Trail.
    Explore pristine lava tubes when you venture with Hawaii Forest & Trail.
    Hawaii Forest & Trail

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    Honoka'a Chocolate

    Honoka'a Chocolate

    4.8
    (74 reviews)
    40.3 mi

    I highly recommend this as one of the best chocolate tours!…read moreWe took the two hour tour with our family - it was a nice small group of six in total. Mike was not only an expert in all things chocolate, but he is easy to understand, he takes time to teach you and answer any questions and he has a great personality! It was pouring down rain the day we went, yet the tour was still a great success. We started out at the farm and then concluded down at the shop. You get to taste fresh cacao, nibs, cacao tea and kakao brew - of course at the shop are the full chocolate bars. Mike clearly loves what he does and enjoys sharing that love with his customers. The only down side is that after listening to Mike you will be ruined forever on eating any other general retail chocolate. So long Hershey and friends!

    Experienced the VIP cacao tasting tour and enjoyed every last second of it! Mike was an amazing…read moretour guide. He built his cacao farm from the bottom up and it was amazing to witness his progress ever since 2017. He walked us through the seed germination process, the growing process, the fermentation process and everything before, in between and after that.. from seed all the way to chocolate bar. This tour is meant to expand your knowledge and change your perspective on how you think about, taste, and experience chocolate. At the end of the farm tour, you drive down to the gift shop (about a 3 min drive from the farm) to make any potential purchases as well as taste even more chocolate! What an amazing and unique experience in Honaka'a and 100% recommend adding this tour to your Big Island itinerary. P.S. my favorite chocolate bar is the barrel aged bourbon bar!! Notes of dark cherry with a bourbon finish :)

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    Honoka'a Chocolate
    Honoka'a Chocolate
    Honoka'a Chocolate

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    Hawaii Geo Tours

    Hawaii Geo Tours

    4.8
    (21 reviews)
    8.6 mi

    Loved our tour guide, Grant. An amazing tour and an amazing day of stories and information.read more

    We are on a cruise ship at the moment and the ship's excursions were full for this port so we…read morestarted doing some research and another cruiser mentioned this to our company. We are so glad that we signed up for a private excursion at this port! It was just a short walk after we got off the tender to get to the courtyard hotel, where we would meet Erik. There were four of us in our group off the ship and we were first to be picked up, we had arrived early and so did he. We had 10 other individuals to pick up at two additional stops so there were 14 of us in the van. The van was one of his New retrofit so it was absolutely gorgeous and comfortable and even had charging ports Our first stop was about a half hour up to the heavenly Hawaiian coffee Company- I will do a separate review for them, but it was a fantastic coffee tasting, and the views were incredible as well as we learned about how they grow and harvest the coffee beans Our next stop was Punalu'u black sand beach- Sea turtles included- what an amazing view!!! We were then onto the main event which was volcanoes national Park - Erik had actually made a reservation at the volcanoes restaurant at the visitor center and I am so glad he did! We actually had a real sitdown lunch, I had a tasty chicken sandwich that had coleslaw and some pickled vegetables and my husband had a Hawaiian pizza, the food was very good! we saw some friends on the cruise ship tour that we're eating cold bento box lunches out on benches in the parking lot, so I think this was truly a win for us! With the volcano as active as it is right now, the group all voted to make the 1 mile hike so we could get as close to the volcano as possible. It was incredible being able to see all the gases spewing from the volcano at this point. We didn't actually get to see interruption, but there have been almost 30 of them over the past weeks so it's very active. We then went to the next parking area, which allows you to walk through one of the lava tubes so very cool to get to do this ! Lastly, we made a quick stop at rainbow Falls in Hilo before our 2 Hour drive back over to the other side of the island to Kona to reboard the ship. One of the best things about the trip is that Erik is a geologist so he provided an incredible course on everything rock that you would ever want to know! He also follows all of the stats on the volcano so he was able to show us so many charts and data points says to What is happening inside the volcano, it was really an incredible day If you find yourself staying on the island or if you are stopping here with a long cruise stop, would highly recommend you check this one out Cost was about $250 per person.

    Photos
    Hawaii Geo Tours
    Hawaii Geo Tours
    Black sand beach

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    Black sand beach
    Wasabi Tours Hawaii

    Wasabi Tours Hawaii

    4.9
    (623 reviews)
    4.7 mi

    Our family of 6 decided to tour the big island in Hawai'i also called Hawai'i. After checking out…read moresome touring companies we decided on Wasabi Tours. We did a 2 day package encompassing the islands most beautiful waterfalls, nature reserves, botanical gardens, volcanoes, beaches coffee farms on old town Hilo. On our first day with Jason our driver and guide picked us up on time and with a smile. He shared his knowledge along the way wearing a microphone in the van so everyone could hear comfortably. At the attractions he was with us giving us history of all the waterfalls. Whiles driving he told us about the sites inbetween. At lunch time he provided us a delicious meal from a local restaurant. Day 2 with our driver Derek was in another new van that was also comfortable and roomy. Derek took us to a working coffee plantation to see, smell and walk through the farm. At Kīlauea volcano national park where we got to see upclose and personal the caldera in all its majesty. All the time telling the history and recent activity of the volcano. We saw and walked on a beautiful black sand beach with segregated sea turtle nesting area where we saw a turtle swimming ashore and resting at waters edge before digging a hole in the black sand to lay her eggs in preparation for the next generation of turtle, we walked down and into a 30 meter lava tube and got to visualize the path of a whole lotta molten rock traveling through centuries before. Culminating the day's trip by stopping on a mountain top in almost complete darkness, the moon was in a waxing crescent and producing very little nighttime light. We bundled up to stay warm in the 50 degree Fahrenheit temperature to stargaze. It was refreshing in the cold air, outside the van huddled in a group while Derek pointed out, planets, stars, constellations and galaxies as we stood in awe of the majesty above us. Wasabi Tours, Jason and Derek were on-time, safe, informative and most of all fun to spend our time with. I highly recommend taking a Wasabi tour to REALLY see the big island. Thank you all!

    It's a wonderful tour to experience the beautiful nature of Big Island! The pick up time at Kona…read moreAirport was 7:30am at the tour bus parking lot. Huge shout out to Mia, born and raised on the Big Island! Her Mana was shining! Her voice and English were clear and beautiful, so it was easy to understand. Lunch was catered from L&L with a canned drink. I recommend to bring some snacks for a long tour like this. Although the 2/3 of tour was in bad weather, but I still enjoyed it a lot. Good I brought a poncho and umbrella. Luckily, Kilauea was erupted in the morning of that day, so we saw the eruption! AM: Kona Coffee Farm, Black Sand Beach, Volcanoes National Park (1.5h) PM: Akaka Falls, Rainbow Falls, Waipio Valley Look Out

    Photos
    Wasabi Tours Hawaii
    The volcano tube.
    The volcano tube.
    The coffee I'm drinking came from this tree - partially

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    The coffee I'm drinking came from this tree - partially

    Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary - walkingtours - Updated July 2026

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