The BEST Family Friendly Personal Manta Ray Night - Captain Ko and Joe were amazing! We just did the manta sunrise snorkel with them last night. We were hesitant to go out with a big group with our kids (ages 10-15). But then we found Aloha Kona on a small private boat for 6 people which was the perfect personal attention we needed for our family and make the kids comfortable. And since we were going to have to buy six tickets with one of the bigger outfits anyway, it was only a little bit more to have a private boat and a personal experience. The boat was so nice and comfortable! Captain Ko got us all fitted in wetsuits (which were helpful to keep us warm in the water, even in August). He also had snorkels provided but we brought our own. He was so welcoming and kind to the kids, even let my youngest try driving the boat (with help of course 😉). Joe was so friendly and knowledgeable about Hawaii history and all things in the water! He took several photos for us and even made us a mini go-pro video of our trip…totally unexpected and a great surprise. Ko and Joe are masters at hunting the manta rays if they aren’t coming to you. The benefits of being a small group and a small boat…they go where the mantas are, not waiting for them to come to you. Captain Ko took us straight out with a beautiful sunrise set, making sure to pause that we got the perfect sunset pictures. And when we arrive to the Manta Ray spot with many of the other boats, we were immediately greeted with one manta ray who swam right up to the boat. They quickly launch the modified surfboard with rails to hang onto and bright lights underneath. And Joe jumped in the water as the lead with his huge flippers and his job as swimmer to take us to the rays. He towed us around this area, swimming like a pro with 6 people in tow, for about 30 or 40 minutes and we saw a few Mantas, but they were all hanging out down low and a little further away. Still very impressive though! They just weren’t getting close. Captain Ko noticed a better spot where people were seeing the rays closer. So he flagged Joe down, picked us all back up on the boat, and drove to the other side. He wanted to be sure we got the up close experience. So we all jumped back in the water with Joe and within a couple minutes of getting back in the water. We had two rays barrel rolling right under us! We enjoyed this view for another 15–20 minutes before we headed back. Their dedication to creating memories and doing the extra work to make sure everybody was happy it was incredible. 100% recommend!

Incredible experience, very friendly and knowledgeable staff - t off the bat we saw a baby seal in the harbor hanging out right next to our boat. He was so cute. Then we start to drive out and the amazing staff told us to keep an eye out for dolphins. We kept our eyes peeled and yelled “dolphins!!!!” and the captain stopped the boat and we were able to see the dolphins doing some amazing tricks. They rode alongside our boat for awhile and we got so many amazing videos of the dolphins at sunset. The captain was also extremely flexible for us as we wanted a family photo at sunset, and he made sure we had the perfect view for our photo. When we finally got to the manta ray site, we put on our wet suits and our staff Carmela explained we’d be attracting plankton with our light that the manta rays will eat. Surely enough, almost as soon as we got into the water, 2 huge manta rays swam underneath us. The staff was extremely knowledgeable about the area and the sea life, and we had an unbelievable time on this cruise. Definitely recommend for anyone coming to the big island, a must!!!

Amazing Experience - I cannot recommend this highly enough! We did night snorkeling with the manta rays as a family with a four year old. The experience was just incredible, and they were so accommodating to our daughter! Captain Co and Cameron were the best guides and got us up close to the manta rays. It was so nice having the entire boat to ourselves (and the boat is very nice).

Experience of a Lifetime! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!! - Our family of five, including grandparents, sons, and 10-year-old granddaughter, had an unforgettable experience with Aloha Kona Tour’s Manta Ray Night Tour. Captain Ko was incredibly kind, gentle and helpful. His boat was meticulous, extremely comfortable and well equipped. Our guide Joe was absolutely fantastic—super friendly and very knowledgeable. They both were a perfect team and you just felt that they loved the ocean and were passionate about what did! We saw several manta rays up close, which was amazing, but the true highlight of the trip was encountering several pods of dolphins. They were fun and playful coming up to our boat that we could have touched them if we wanted to but we were "educated" not to do so out of respect to their environment. It was truly a magical experience and beyond anything we could ever imagine! Captain Ko and Joe took great care of us. They attended to our every need, and even took lots of pictures of us all. We loved every minute of our truly once in a lifetime experience. If you are ever in Kona, don’t miss this tour as it is perfect for families and anyone who loves the ocean! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!!

Bucket List Experience! - Captain Ko and Cameron are the best! I booked this tour for our family of four and we had the best time. We have two young children ages 6 and 8 and we couldn't be more pleased with how well they accommodated us. They were knowledgeable, friendly, and very accommodating. We had an amazing bucket list experience. Thank you for an amazing time! We highly recommended this private charter! Well worth the price!

Mantas are Amazing. Ko and Cameron are the he best guides. - We did the night time manta ray trip. It was amazing. Ko and Cameron were great guides and made us comfortable on the trip and in the water. Seeing the mantas so close up (touching us as they swam by) was exhilarating and transformative. Thanks Aloha Kona Tours!

A life time experience - Great experience!! Captain Ko and Joe did an amazing job with the tour and we got to see not just Manta rays but, dolphins and whales on our way! Unbelievable experience! Highly recommended

Great time! - We saw many spinner dolphins and several manta rays! The boat was cozy with 6 of us aboard including Joe and Ko, our trusty hosts. I preferred it over a larger boat with lots of strangers. Overall a great night!

Great experience!!! - Captain Koichiro and Cameron gave my family an experience we will never forget! Aside from seeing tons of Mantas, they were professional, kind and completely thorough. We had three kids and a nervous mom and they were very helpful. I can’t recommend them enough!!!! If there were more than 5 stars I would give it.

Manta Ray Must Do Tour - This is an absolute must do experience and with Aloha Kona Tours. With this company you have a private tour guide that can take you around in the water and go where the manta ray are located instead of just hoping they will come to you. It was simply amazing.