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Hawaii snorkeling and coral recommendations (Kona, Kauai near Poipu)

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richiev

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I'm planning a trip around Thanksgiving. Me, my wife, two almost 9yr old boys. Goal would be do some snorkeling while there. Current plan is to stay in either the Poipu area of Kauai or Kona on the big island.

Does anyone have any advice on if the snorkeling will be interesting in either, particularly in regards to coral? I also might do a day of diving, preferably shore-based to minimize time, and would similarly like any guidance on that.

We went to Maui a year or so ago and I was pleasantly surprised with the coral I saw there. I wasn't expecting any really. The pictures and videos I'm seeing of Kauai seem fantastic on the island, and large amounts of fish, but the coral seems very dismal. I'm not sure if that's because the big-time divers are likely traveling elsewhere or doing the shark/big fish dives so the videos are less good, or if it's overall pretty low. I'm not looking for the barrier reef, but it'd be nice to freedive a couple formations.

Triple bonus points if areas also have beginner friendly spots, since my kids are very much beginners.
 
I’ve dove off of Poipu a few times. They do have shore dives although both times I tried they had had crazy rains which caused the vis to be so bad they canceled. I told them I’m a Monterrey diver so 25’ for me is a great day ;) Not much coral to speak of, although the lava tubes and underwater structures are pretty spectacular. The waters can be a bit rough in Nov, Dec and Jan so any snorkeling you’ll want to be pretty sheltered. The main Poipu beach is pretty fun to go out on.

Given you have 9 year olds, a truly magical spot for snorkeling and diving with an amazing kids program is Jean-Micheal Coustou in Fiji. Really easy to get there from the Bay Area (direct flight to Nadi, leaves 10’pm you wake up, get off the plane at 5:30 am). I’ve been a couple times, my then 11 year old got certified there.
 
Galoot said:
If you go to Kona, you must do the night dive with the manta rays. It’s incredible!
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Seconding this. Even snorkeling is phenomenal; but if you can do the night dive, it's another world.

My wife @Bad Mojo and I were able to do the night dive a few years ago. We had the best seats in the house and multiple manta rays came so close to us that I actually had to move to avoid touching them.
 
IOnceWasLegend said:
Seconding this. Even snorkeling is phenomenal; but if you can do the night dive, it's another world.

My wife @Bad Mojo and I were able to do the night dive a few years ago. We had the best seats in the house and multiple manta rays came so close to us that I actually had to move to avoid touching them.
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Galoot said:
If you go to Kona, you must do the night dive with the manta rays. It’s incredible!
Click to expand...
Can you guys clarify shore snorkeling opinions? Also regarding the night dive, beach accessed or boat?

I'm not 100% adverse to boat, but my main issue is it tends to turn the dive into multiple hours of sitting on a boat making small talk, semi-alone, feeling bad I'm ditching my fam. More of an issue now that I have kids.
 
My fav place for snorkel.

Depending how comfortable your kiddo with water.

Honaunau bay ( place of refuge) - this is by far the best place to snorkel from the beach / without a boat. It’s a little hard to get in the water as it’s rocky and wave do make it a bit tricky. But the corals and fish is well worth it. I have seen dolphins and tuna hang out near the reef boundary. Awesome place. There is a museum(?) aka place of refuge next door. I usually park there and after snorkel , pay the small entrance fees to use the bathroom and walk around.

Beach club next to Mauna lani . This is an awesome place for family. We stayed in one of the Airbnb condo so we have access to the beach club. If you’re not a residence , you can get in (the beach is public and there are limited public parking). The cove is protected , no waves, walk/swim out for 5mins and you’ll see plenty of fish. Not too much corals unlike the first recommendation. The best part is there is a nice restaurant right at the beach. The wife park herself there with Mai tai while I go swim / snorkel with the kiddo. We had a couple memorable dinner there as well. Beautiful sunset, live music and yummy food, it’s not more expensive than comparable restaurants in the Bay Area.

If you rather take a boat out , go to captain cook. It’s as nice as the first recommendation. It’s easier to get in and out of the boat vs dealing with rocky entry.

Have fun!
 
By the way, my kiddo first snorkel at both location when he is around your kid age. It’s not that scary. You just need to help him get out of the water at honaunau bay. However my kiddo is a better swimmer than I am ! He swim competitively since a young age.
 
We went to Kauai back in June. All the dive shops operate on the south side of the island and can take you all over the Poipu area. I was told that they didn't allow any permits along the north side. All I did was snorkling with the kids but I did rent a couple of tanks while I was on the south side and took them up to the Tunnels up north and played around by myself. There are some drop offs around the there that are cool but watch out for low tide as you can get stuck on top of the reefs in certain spots. I chased an octo for a few seconds and my son wanted to do some dredging. Bring some frozen seafood in a zip-lock and everyone will wonder why all the fish are swarming you. Not much left in Hawaii in terms of corals unfortunately due to all the kids like my son destroying everything with their feet and bellies. There are a lot of locals there that fish for reef octo, lobsters, fish and sea urchin. You can do it too if you get the right equipment for it from the local Home Dopot and dive shops. The Big Island has the best Uni.
 
I went to Kauai and Kona this year, went snorkeling and scuba diving in both.

Both are great spots for snorkeling and feature cauliflower corals and smooth mounding corals. Many of the cauliflower corals span yellow to pink and have hawkfish perched on them.

In Kauai there’s an accessible shore snorkel/dive at Kaloa Landing near Poipu where we encountered a massive mounding coral at least 7ft tall! Many aquarium fish there including kole tangs

As some users mentioned Kona offers night snorkeling/diving with manta rays. top underwater experience, imo.
 
I have done the manta ray snorkel twice at the Muana Kea resort. I don’t think you have to be a guest there to sign up for it. It was an awesome experience. If you have kids or anyone that gets sea sick the best part is that you just walk in from shore. You are maybe 100ft from shore. Makes it really easy to get in and out. No long boat ride. The kids loved it. The guides were great. We did a group of 10 without any issues.

I am going again this year for thanksgiving. Also looking to go diving and snorkeling. Haven’t figured out which outfit to do this with yet.

About 4 years ago we did a Captain Cook kayak paddle and snorkel. That was also an amazing experience and I would highly recommend it.

Gerry
 
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