Don't take a Roberts airport shuttle in Kona. Roberts wanted $178 when a taxi was only $30. What a scam. read more

Roberts Hawaii - Kona - Tours Near Me - Kailua Kona, Hawaii

We chose Roberts as a shuttle to take us from the airport to our hotel. One of our family member's first flight was delayed. We called Robert's 24 hours in advance to let them know and ask to push back our reservation. They said they would call us back about a refund and never did. Very inflexible, would not recommend as flights are often delayed in the winter flying from the east coast. read more

This company, unbeknownst to it, made my trip to Hawaii easier. I used Roberts Hawaii as my shuttle to and from the airport. While my driver, Kauila (I hope that I spelled his name correctly) was taking us to town, we started talking story and he told me that he also works for the town trolley. He gave me a schedule for the trolley and explained how to get to some locations using the drop off locations of the trolley. He was a fantastic man! I am so glad I got to meet him. I also used Roberts Hawaii for the Hawaii Grand Circle Island Tour. The tour guide was Cousin Jeff. He was a fantastic guide. He took us on many locations and always had a story to make the tour more memorable. Overall, I strongly recommend this company for airport shuttle or excursion tours. They are reliable, friendly, helpful and punctual! read more

Grand circle island tour Highlights: Macadamia nut company (I enjoyed taste testing) Cats at the beach Sea turtles at black sand beach (although you can't get close enough to see them all and all they do is sit there) Disappointments: Kona coffee-Disappointed we didn't get to tour the coffee plantation. They made it seem like we'd be able to tour the farm, but all we did was sample coffee and buy stuff. Rainbow falls: cool place for pics but other than that it's super small, not sure why we even stopped here. Chocolate factory-we didn't even get a tour to see how they make the candy. Just stop and shop. Volcano national park: we didn't get to hike around or explore at all. Spent half our time here at the visitors center. General: I felt we were mislead as to what exactly we would be doing on this day trip through pictures and the descriptions on the website I booked through. I was under the impression we'd be hiking around a little on the volcano but we spent 20 minutes at the visitors center with a super lame gift shop, 20 minutes at a crater and 20 minutes at another crater where there's nothing to do. I expected a good 30 minutes plus of hiking around on black rock/cooled lava based on the pictures. We spent most of the day in the bus driving. I was so bored. That wasn't how I wanted to see Kona. I thought we'd be doing more active things, especially since they told us to wear tennis shoes and comfortable clothes. Each stop felt like all there was to do was buy stuff. I'm pretty sure our tour guide gets commissioned if we buy. I'd rather go to less places and get to spend more time in each place than 15 minutes at all of them. Also, our tour guide David although extremely nice and SUPER knowledgeable, was SO BORING. Half my group was asleep the entire time! Based on other tours I've done he had no personality and no sense of humor. He gave way too much detail and it reminded me of a college professor who just went on and on. He recited the entire lunch menu by heart and talked it up, but it was terrible. I paid over $200 for this trip with my flight and you won't pay for my crappy "Chinese buffet" lunch? Are you kidding me?! Additionally, I called the company to see if I should book my flight through them or on my own, and they said it would be cheaper to book my own and recommended flights for me to book. I ended up missing my 7pm flight which is the one I thought they recommended to me, and they didn't help me change my flight, so I had to do it myself. My tour guide was nice enough to call the company and ask but they didn't do anything for me. Overall I think they need to be more clear what to expect from this day trip and I think they could pick a better spot for lunch, offer more exploration opportunities and tours during each stop (like at the coffee farm and candy factory) and maybe encourage tour guides to engage guests more and do some quizzes/questions/games or whatever to be more interactive since you spend most of the day in the car. read more

We took the Hawaii Grand Circle Island Tour today. And we are so glad we did. We saw so many wonderful sites and learned so much, it was awesome! It was truly great, but what made it so extra special was our guide, Luke Wong. He is a native to this part of the island, so his insight to what we saw really made what we saw truly special. He also weaved all his information about what we saw n a very entertaining way. You can just feel how connected he is to this island paradise. Also, his use of music to get through some very windy roads is genius. He is also a pretty gifted entertaining read in his own right. I couldn't recommend this tour more highly. And if you are lucky enough to get Luke as your guide, you are in for something special. read more

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Thank you Lincoln for a great day! We enjoyed your tour to Tex drive in, rainbow falls, volcano national park, black sand beach, kona coffee, island candies, sunset view, astronomy center, and the corny jokes! This tour is all day! With 2 young kiddos we had plant of space in the back. Lincoln talked non stop. He told us where to go, where not to go (if it was cheaper or tasted better somewhere else he would mention it) The places we went had free samples of the best products. Overall we had a great time and well worth the cost! read more

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Highly recommend the late night trolley. Not only do you meet new cousins from other continents, if you're a little early you can get free leftovers from Jamba Juice. It doesn't have to make sense, it's a trolley. Our driver was the embodiment of aloha, I dare say the great-great niece of Kamehameha V himself. Highly recommend the late night trolley. read more

Roberts Hawaii - Highly recommend the late night trolley. - Tours Near Me - Kailua Kona, Hawaii

Happened again. The shuttle missed my drop off point and taking around the hotels for more than an hour. Driver did not listen and refused to turn around even after notifying him that he missed the stop. Highly unprofessional. Pathetic customer service. read more

We really enjoyed the Circle Island Tour on The Big Island of Hawaii. It was a long day, pick up was 7:30AM at our hotel and we didn't return until 6 P.M. But it saved me from looking for directions and the BF got a break from driving, since he usually commutes an hour to work and the same back daily...remember, we are on vacation. We got to see a lot of sights and had enough stops to make it interesting. I did ask if we could stop at Tex's for Malasadas...his reply was "that will be our first stop!". So, he was already a thumbs up for me. Our tour driver was "Lincoln" and he made the tour interesting and informative. It was an fun and easy way to see the island without having the pay for our gas. I would actually take the tour again if friends went along. Mahalo to Lincoln and to Roberts' Tours for showing me the island in an AC bus, relaxing and with an Aloha Spirit. read more

A very enjoyable experience. I chose to do the grand circle island tour, and I was pleased with the driver, the activities, and overall experience. Our driver was super nice and funny too. I was never bored listening to his commentary as he drove. Speaking of driving, he was a very safe driver. I never felt like he was endangering us, which from what I heard from other vacationers often happens with tour drivers. I had a really fun time at all of our stops. I was picked up at my hotel and off we went starting our drive across the island. The driver was so kind as to stop at a Starbucks for a bathroom and coffee break. My favorite stop was at a candy factory in Hilo I believe. We got to taste so many yummy treats! While in the Hilo area we stopped at the beautiful Rainbow Falls. Our next stop was Volcanoes National Park. The drive there was a little long, but we had a movie about the volcano playing which passed some time. First we stopped at the Thurston Lava Tube and then at the Jaggar Museum. I felt like we didn't have much time there. It was pretty busy so I had to rush taking some photos and buying some gifts at the gift shop. Our last stop was the Black Sand Beach. Like most Hawaiian beaches, it too was beautiful. I was the last person to be dropped off and got back to the hotel around 8pm. We left around 9am so it was a very long day. For $82 I definitely think this tour was worth the price. read more

We took the Grand Circle Island Tour. My goal for this review is to be as constructive as possible and provide actionable feedback that Robert's can take steps, if they choose, to improve their tour for future patrons. TOUR ADMINISTRATION: Extremely Poor - 1 Star Other than the original confirmation that we received from Costco Travel Services, we never received anything from Robert's in advance of the tour; no phone call, no email, and no confirmation. I called the number listed for the tour the day before its scheduled date and left a message on Robert's voicemail stating that I wanted to confirm our tour and inquire where we should meet the tour bus. I left my cell number and requested a callback but never did receive a call. The morning of the tour, I called again and spoke to someone in the administration offices. The representative was nice enough but didn't offer an apology for not responding to my voice message. She told me that the tour bus would pick us up at a nearby hotel. It would have been good to know this in advance. We had to leave our car in the hotel's lot for the day and this cost another $18 for parking. Again, another detail that would have been nice to know with a little bit of notice. TOUR MATERIALS: Extremely Poor - 1 Star The tour has approximately 7 stops. The places are all interesting and significant but other than our tour guide's verbal and thorough overview of each place, the relevance of the place and its history, the only stop we received any kind of printed materials was the free brochure that was put together by the National Park Service for the Volcanoes National Park; it was excellent and while some of the stops don't warrant a pamphlet of this caliber, most stops (and the history of the island gods) should be accompanied by something written. We were told that tour guides are put through an extensive training program. Robert's should formalize some of that training by putting it into print and pictures. LUNCH: Below Average - 2 Stars The place that we stopped for lunch was sub-par. We were strongly discouraged from ordering off of the menu in the interest of time. The alternative was to choose the buffet for $17. We are not really buffet lovers but we decided on this option to ensure that the tour group remained on schedule. The food was just okay; cafeteria-standard at best. The place, which I believe is an observatory or science center, seemed to be closed except for the dining area. There wasn't a view to speak of and there really wasn't any compelling reason that we could understand for choosing this place for lunch other than maybe the convenience and speed of the buffet. Is there some place in Hilo with a view of the bay that Robert's could partner with to provide lunch on a regular basis. Or maybe there is a destination like a food court where people on the tour could choose from a variety of options? THE TOUR (Stops, Accommodations, Logistics, etc.): Very Good - 4 Stars The bus was nice, clean and relatively new. It did unexpectedly stop a couple of times but the tour guide assured us that it was a normal occurrence and that it had something to do with electronic frequencies on that particular location of the island. The route and timing of stops was good as well. We really did hit most of the highlights on the island (Coffee plantation, nut factory, Hilo, falls, lava tube, National Park, Black Sand beach and shopping stops). It is a long day and the hum of the engine, length of the drive and soothing slack-key guitar put most of us to sleep after lunch. The time we spent at each stop was appropriate. We never felt rushed or like we over-stayed at any one stop. The whole family enjoyed the circumnavigation of the island. THE GUIDE: Excellent - 5 Stars We were lucky enough to get Luke Wong as our guide. Luke's attitude, demeanor, friendliness, and knowledge were all fantastic. He played music, sang, shared stories about his family and childhood growing up on the island. He recounted the history of the island and landmarks that left us doubting whether other tour guides would have covered the same material. Luke is a honest to goodness local born and raised Hawaiian. Some of the advice, tips, must-see places to visit, etc. that Luke shared with us were things that we carried with us during our stay and we found his opinions to be spot-on with our experience. The Original Big Island Shave Ice really is the best on the Island! Overall, we were glad we did the tour but there is much room for improvement with a little bit of effort on the part of Robert's. read more

I did the big circle island tour. It was okay. We had enough time at all the spots they took us too. The tour is just so long!! By the end you just want to go home. There are so many bathroom break stops it's crazy. The place we stopped for lunch was not very good, they should definitely find a different place. I was on yelp and found a 4 star reviewed restaurant so close by! Wish they let us choose where to go. The lunch restaurant was an old place where you choose either buffet or the special they have for the day. Didn't seem too clean to me, there was only one waitress so it took forever to get our order in and get water. We ordered the black bean burger which was okay, pretty dry. But it was the only other thing to order if you don't want the buffet. Definitely not good enough for the price (I think it was around $14), the buffet was the same price or a little more, but it didn't look great to me. Our tour guide was nice, funny, and kept us entertained, forgot his name though. Here's the stops listed on the website, I noted the spots we hit and ones we didn't: Kailua-Kona Coffee plantations: Didn't go here. Kealeakekua Bay Overlook: Not sure what this is either. Punaluu Black Sand Beach: This was a nice black sand beach. We got lucky enough to see a sea turtle laying on the beach which everyone was taking pictures of. You can't get too close though. Volcanoes National Park: You go through here to get to the crater I guess, I didn't feel like we were at the park long, just to see the crater and museum. Kilauea Iki Crater: Not sure what this is. We saw the Halema'uma'u Crater at the stop where the museum is. Thurston Lava Tube: Probably the coolest part of the tour. It's a huge tube and you have plenty of time to go through it. Fern Tree Jungle: You go through this to get the the Lava Tube. Very cool, nice scenery and walk. They provided us with ponchos since it was raining on and off. Steam Bluffs and Crater Rim Drive: I'm guessing this is where you see the steam coming out of the ground as we were driving. You don't stop, just drive by. Jaggar Museum and Hawaii Volcano Observatory: Museum was cool, had stuff about volcanoes. It's a small building at the look out where you see the crater. Big Island Candies: Just a big store full of candies and cookies. Good for gifts, has samples throughout the store. Came here after lunch, so definitely wait to use the restroom here rather than going at the restaurant, much cleaner. Rainbow Falls: Nice view of the falls, about 15 minutes here. Orchid Nursery: Didn't stop here. Hamakua Coast: Not sure what this is either, I guess we just drove by. Parker Ranch: First restroom stop, just a shop area. Looking at all these stops reminds me that he didn't really explain the spots they say on here that we just drive by, which is why I have no idea what they are. And he didn't address the stops we didn't make that it says we should have. We went on a Monday and he said some places were closed so maybe it was because of that?? Not sure. Overall it was nice to see everything, but be ready for a long trip. Oh ya, I was worried about what to wear when I did this. I just wore capris, a shirt, and tennis shoes, and brought a jacket for when we hit Hilo which was colder than Waikoloa. read more

Used for them shuttle service between Kona Airport & Waikaloa Resort area. They made three claims about their service that were false (at least for us:) 1) A greeter would be at the airport to direct us to the shuttle bus. We arrived, no greeter anywhere. No bus or van anywhere. 2) They would monitor the flights, and adjust their pickup time based on actual flight arrival. Our flight arrived 35 minutes early. No shuttle. They actually showed up 15 minutes LATER than our originally requested time. 3) If there were any issues, just call us. Well, they run their business like the worlds worst banking call center - AWFUL! I set on hold for literally 7 minutes, until someone picked up, and they asked what Island I was on, only to place me on hold without asking anything else, & transferring to the local office. I had to hold another 4 minutes, and then, they literally complained I was interrupting their schedule because our flight was early. Try someone else, because these guys have some serious attitude - not what you want when you think about a stress free vacation travel. read more

We signed up for a tide pools and reef exploration tour in Kona for $35 a piece (6 of us in total). The driver took us for maybe a 10 minute drive and dropped us off. Then she picked us up 2 hours later. She did not offer any conversation/information on the drive, and a cab wouldn't have cost us $35 total for both directions. We bought snorkel gear ahead of time, since we knew the tour didn't include it. There were some bright colored fish and turtles that were cool, but not worth $210! The tide pools only had some sea urchins, and that was about it. The best thing about it was the shaved ice truck! Very disappointing! read more

Highly recommend the grand island tour. At just under 12 hours, there wasn't a moment's bordedom. Our fantastic driver/tour guide Luke was so informative and entertaining. His knowledge of the history, geography, mythology and ecology of the island was highly impressive. Luke made our tour unforgettable! read more

This company sucks! I booked a ride a month in advance. And needed to cancel more than a week in advance! They wouldn't give me a full refund! Not very nice! Most reputable businesses give a 100% at 24 hours before on cancelation! Pick a business that will!! read more

Would not recommend if you want to get to your hotel in a timely manner. Waited at airport for almost an hour before we left airport. They keep waiting for new flights to arrive to fill up the shuttle. Unfortunately I was the first arrival. The driver mentioned that they were short drivers. read more

We did the grand circle tour, loved it. Our tour guide Luca was phenomenal. Bus was comfortable, all stops were interesting. Highly recommend for those looking to see the high points of the Big Island. We stayed on Oahu but took the day trip to Kona for the tour. Loved it!! read more

Trip was FANTASTIC! Our guide Luke was great .The island knowledge and experiences he shared with us was amazing. It was great actually learning and just not simple sight seeing. I highly recommend starting your trip with this company and BE SURE TO ASK FOR LUKE! read more

NOTE: This was sent on 7/6/10 from san Diego, CA. As of 7/28/10 they have not responded. Notes on Roberts Travel Circle Island Tour 6/25/2010 Hilton Waikoloa Hotel on the Big Island, Hawaii Pick up time was between 8:45 to 8:50 at the Hilton Waikoloa Resort. At 9AM I called the activities desk, Phone number XXXX, and they said he will be there within ten minutes. At 9:15, the bus still did not come and I called again. Again, they said he would be there within ten minutes. I asked the person if he actually spoke to the driver and he said the bus was on its way. At 9:30PM, I went to the activities desk at the hotel and asked them to check. They called Roberts while I was there, I heard her say the name was Suzy. The bus just arrived at Queens Marketplace. No apology was offered by the hotel for the lateness of the bus. At about 9:45AM the bus arrived. The bus driver, Bobby, got off the bus and asked for our tickets. He did not apologize for being late or offer an explanation. I had to ask the bus driver why he was so late. He said one of the passengers had paid for four people but the dispatcher only told him two. Does this situation really delay the bus an hour? Even after telling me this, there was still no apology. The bus driver's English was not very good. Often times we had no idea what he was saying. Also, he said things that were very unprofessional. For instance, on the drive through the twisty turns on the south side of the island, he kept telling us to put our seat belts on. He drove fast and many people were holding on tight to their seats and he sped around the turns. He also asked more than once if anybody needed to throw up. Also, my wife and I got left behind at the Kiluea Crater. People had to tell the bus driver that he forgot us. Otherwise, we would have been stuck there. As he was dropping people off to their hotel in Kona, he said there were spirits in that area. He also related a story of his brothers and uncle seeing the spirits (ghosts). There were four of us and we were the last ones to be dropped off. We were suppose to get to our hotel at 6:30PM and instead arrived at 8:30PM. We missed having dinner and were very hungry. No apology was given to anybody on the bus for their late arrival to the hotel. Hopefully this letter does not just get filed away. I await your response to our problems. read more

Sue, our tour guide was the best. She was very enthusiastic and helpful in explaining everything and making sure we had a great time. The only bad thing about the tour was that we couldn't drive around the volcano (therefore no lava to see) because it had erupted about a month ago and the fumes were all over the road. Also, no lava was reaching the ocean so there was nothing to see there either. So my recommendation is: if you don't want to be disappointed make sure the volcano has been quiet for a while so that you can get closer to it and see inside or make sure it has recently erupted so that you can see how the lava reaches the ocean. Also, they are very organized. One of them picked us up at the hotel, another one was waiting at the airport, then when we returned there was some of them waiting for us at the airport and guided us to the bus which was driven by another one of them. read more

My family and I chose this tour to see the whole big island. the driver/guide, Dean, was phenomenal. He was very nice, funny and knowledgeable about what he was talking about. How he was able to drive and give excellent tour guide service I'll never understand. Seems like a really hard job but he made it look easy. Was a very pleasant experience and will definitely recommend this tour to anyone visiting this island. Thank you Dean! read more

We visited the Big Island about a month ago for our honeymoon, and had the fortune of meeting George Mills and Lincoln (hope I have their names right). In the short time we spent with Mr. Mills, he shared several aspects of Hawaiian culture and even treated us to a few songs while we waited for our next bus as part of our Volcano and Rainbow Falls tour. It was one of the highlights of our trip. Lincoln was very informative and helpful, and he was always available for questions and advice. We also got to spend a few more minutes in his company, since we were the last ones being dropped off at the Orchid. During that time he shared a Hawaiian perspective on everything we had seen on our tour. Our most sincere thanks to them for making our trip extra special. read more

Our family took the Hawaii Grand Circle Island Tour in March 2015. The tour was the most enjoyable part of our Hawaii vacation. It was nice to just sit back and relax and enjoy the sights without having to worry about directions, getting lost and so on. The tour buses are spacious and air conditioned. Our guide/driver was Harvey and he went above and beyond to provide us with great hospitality and we learned a lot about Hawaiian history and culture from him. He was funny, friendly and provided us with more information like what foods you must try, sights to see, etc. If you take the Grand Circle Island Tour, you must go through the Thurston Lava Tube. It's a bit of a walk to get down there but it's worth it and it's a one of a kind experience! The black sand beach is unique and beautiful too. I highly recommend this particular tour and agency. Thank you so much again Harvey!! You're the best. read more

We took the Grand Circle Tour and had the great fortune to have Luke Wong as our guide. Although we spent a full day on the bus moving from stop to stop, Luke made the trip enjoyable. A native of the island, you can feel the passion he has for his home island as he mixed his own personal stories in with the legends of the isle. If you are looking for a tour to learn about Hawaii and for what the locals know, take this tour! I highly recommend it! read more

The circle tour was fantastic, Luke was the best tour guide ever. He told stories, he was enthusiastic, made extra stops, and just gave us a great experience. If you visit the big island must do this tour and ask for Luke. read more

Did the big island tour it was long but our driver Dean was great learned a lot about the local history and interesting facts and also gave us a sample of some local fruit He picked us up on time and dropped us off when he said he would read more

We are in Kona on the big island of Hawaii. We had already booked this tour before we left home scheduled for Thursday 28 at 7:30 in the morning . We are travel as a group of 4 two couples.We had also made several requests for medical reasons to have a bathroom on the bus. Also because of motion sickness in one of our party suffers from that if she could be accommodated to sit in the front seat. We had to prepare very early to be at the gate house of our condo that we are staying. It was bus 8021 the driver wouldn't pull across the street to accommodate 1 in our party who has mobility problems and is on oxygen. When we did arrive at the bus he was extremely rude and down right obnoxious. He had made no accommodation s as per our request. And said that to have a bathroom bus would be 2000. Dollars which doesn't make any difference to us. Then he says that he can't make any bathroom breaks. Needless to say we canceled with him and took his advice and drove our own car to a couple of the places that he would have taken us! We got our money back and put I toward a a really great tour to the volcano! With a different company and it couldn't have been nicer! Do not use Roberts tours. read more