Native Ocean Tours

A beautiful day swimming with spinner dolphins!
This excursion was fantastic from the beginning. We met Kelii and his friend Ramsey at the Honokohau Boat Harbor at about 7:30 and we were off in a matter of minutes. A great advantage of a private tour is that you don’t have to wait on anyone!
As we were leaving the harbor we spotted a small pod of spinner dolphins. Kelii stopped for us to take pictures, but cautioned us against jumping in since a tiger shark was recently seen in that bay. It was great being on the water with two people who knew the area so well. As we cruised along the coast Kelii and Ramsey would tell us interesting tidbits about the area. Kelii would also tell us the Hawaiian names for various things.
Boating with Kelii is a lot like having a friend proudly showing you around their hometown. He slows down whenever you find something interesting and lets you decide where to spend your time. We snorkeled for a while, but when Kelii spotted dolphins in the distance he called us back so we could see them too!
When we first spotted the dolphins there were several boats, kayaks and snorkelers in the area. We swam for a little while, but the dolphins moved to another area. The other tourists were stuck in the same spot, but Kelii helped us aboard and took us to where the dolphins were playing. We were able to swim along the coast with the dolphins for a long time — and Kelii picked us up at the end of our swim. It was great being able to swim freely and not worry about finding our way back to a big boat.
During the swim, Ramsey stayed with us, which was great because he would frequently see the dolphins before I would. He also helped me spot my husband, who would zoom ahead and end up yards away from me.
Before we headed back Kelii helped us rinse off with a huge jug of water he kept on the boat. It was great to be able to enjoy the long ride back without the salt water drying my skin.
The boat was really clean and we were able to comfortable sit under the shade. (Of course shade may not be available depending on the time of day and direction you travel.)
I highly recommend boating with Kelii — it doesn’t compare to one of the larger tours.