Maunakea Stellar Explorer HILO

Unfortunately there was a brush fire that prevented us from doing some of the activities. You do not go up to the top of the mountain. We pulled off on a highway side street. Guide was good. Food at the restaurant was good.

I’ve never seen so many stars in my life. What an experience. Definitely heed the warning for warm clothes, it’s a bit chilly - but totally worth it. The other parts of the tour were great as well - particularly the lava tube - but the star gazing was the highlight. Crystal (our guide) was very knowledgeable, energetic and thoughtful. Wonderful experience all around!

Krystal was so knowledgeable about everything Hawaiian in addition to teaching us so much about astronomy. It was a wonderful evening!

Amazing! Our guide, Krystal, was so knowledgeable and shared great stories. We enjoyed a fantastic tour, sunset and a view of the stars!

Great guide and spectacular star gazing! Rich was very knowledgeable and shared tons of information about Hawaiian culture, and how the Hawaiian people of the past and present use the stars to navigate the world.

Rained the entire time, so the stargazing was not possible. Other stops, waterfalls, boiling pots and lava tubes we great, even in the rain. Guide was very knowledgeable and entertaining. Food was lackluster, seemed to be sandwiches from a supply company, bag of chips and granola bar. Overall seemed a little pricey for the experience. Guide was prepared with umbrellas and flashlights. Again it was raining so we never were able to do the stargazing.

Due to unexpected circumstances we were unable to participate in the tour. However the service, communication and understanding was outstanding. In addition we did the helicopter tour which was also amazing. I highly recommend booking a tour with Viator! Great service and great tours!

Rich was amazing! So informative and knowledgeable! Since it was a sunny we were able to use the solar telescope and even saw a solar filament! And the sky that night was so starry! We watching the Elon amuse satellites go by in the telescope which was awesome!

This tour is not worth the money. To start with the first three stops (rainbow falls, boiling pots and the lava tube) are spots that are easy to get to with a car. Parking is free and plentiful at all the locations and at that time of day they were all empty. Admission is also free for all three. It was nice to have the guide for the lava tube but if you research the history of it you will know basically everything they are telling you. Now the stargazing is the misleading part in my opinion. They put Mauna Kea in the title which to me meant we would at minimum be going to the VIS. In reality they don't even have a permit to go up the road (the access road had reopened when we were there) you will NOT be going up the volcano with this tour. They drive closer to the Kona side and set up the telescope on the side of the road and you stargaze from there. Anyone with a rental car can drive to the VIS and look through the telescopes that they set up there and basically have a similar experience. In conclusion save your money, you most likely have a rental car already just drive to the sites and the VIS yourself. The guide Krystal was very knowledgeable about the sites and the stargazing. I contacted viator about receiving a partial refund which they said I would hear back withing seven business days but it has been weeks with no reply.

Our guide was making our trip so great! His enthusiasm was really great and he knows so much about the stars. He did not mind answering all our questions. I had a great tour!