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Mauna Kea Summit: Small-Group Stars Adventure at Hawaii's Tallest Peak
4.8
1,348 Ratings
Kailua-Kona
Embark on a small-group adventure to the Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawaii’s tallest peak. Explore the mysteries of space and time while enjoying breathtaking views from 13,796 feet above sea level.
Embark on a small-group adventure to the Mauna Kea Observatory, Hawaii’s tallest peak. Explore the mysteries of space and time while enjoying breathtaking views from 13,796 feet above sea level.
Duration:
8 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Courtyard by Marriott King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel - Travelers staying in Kailua Kona will meet the guide here. Your guide will meet you at the benches closest to the hotel’s parking lot entrance at the curbside. There may be additional meeting location stops along the way to Maunakea. - Maunakea Visitor Information Station - Enjoy a…
- Courtyard by Marriott King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel - Travelers staying in Kailua Kona will meet the guide here. Your guide will meet you at the benches closest to the hotel’s parking lot entrance at the curbside. There may be additional meeting location stops along the way to Maunakea. - Maunakea Visitor Information Station - Enjoy a warm picnic dinner while you acclimate to a higher elevation and learn about Hawaiian star navigation before you head to the summit. - Mauna Kea Summit - Enjoy a sunset from above the clouds while overlooking the Pacific Ocean atop Maunakea. After the sunset, travel to a more comfortable elevation and let our guides reveal the night sky with our 11” Celestron telescopes. - Maunakea Visitor Information Station - Descend to a lower elevation after the sun sets and sip hot chocolate during a private star show with our 11” Celestron telescope. View deep space objects with our Stellina digital telescope and share captured images of the Hawaiian night sky with your friends & family
What's Included
- Private star show with telescope
- Hooded parkas and gloves
- Central meeting locations for pick-up & drop-off
- Hot cocoa and cookies
- Included local taxes
- Expert guidance
- Hot picnic dinner
- Private star show with telescope
- Hooded parkas and gloves
- Central meeting locations for pick-up & drop-off
- Hot cocoa and cookies
- Included local taxes
- Expert guidance
- Hot picnic dinner
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Gratuities
Additional Information
Embark on a fascinating voyage through space and time at the Mauna Kea Observatory, perched high atop the peaks of Hawaii’s Big Island. The view from Mauna Kea, Hawaii’s loftiest pinnacle affectionately dubbed ‘White Mountain,’ situated 13,796 feet (4,200 meters) above sea level, offers a distinct perspective of the island. With our small-group…
Embark on a fascinating voyage through space and time at the Mauna Kea Observatory, perched high atop the peaks of Hawaii’s Big Island. The view from Mauna Kea, Hawaii’s loftiest pinnacle affectionately dubbed ‘White Mountain,’ situated 13,796 feet (4,200 meters) above sea level, offers a distinct perspective of the island. With our small-group astronomy tour, you are guaranteed a unique and intimate encounter on the mesmerizing summit of Mauna Kea.
- Minimum age is 13 years
- Due to the high altitude; this tour is not suitable for those with respiratory, heart or circulatory conditions, poor health, or pregnancy
- Scuba divers should be aware of altitude dangers
- IMPORTANT - Please note, guests meeting at the Courtyard by Marriott King Kamehameha Kona Beach Hotel must meet at least 15 MINUTES PRIOR to the tour’s departure time.
- Guests are required to wear closed-toe walking shoes or hiking boots, long pants. We recommend bringing a light sweatshirt or jacket
- Guests must bring their own water bottles. Tour operator will provide filtered water refills.
- Please advise your parka size (small, medium, large, x-large or xx-large) and choice of meal at time of booking. If you do not indicate this at the time of booking, you will be required to call and advise them of this information directly.
- There is minimal walking on this tour, the maximum being about 150 yards
- The access road to Mauna Kea is four-wheel drive only, so it can be bumpy. The custom off-road transit vans will get you to the top and back in safety and comfort. The transit vans can carry a maximum of 12 passengers
- Snow is seasonal at Mauna Kea, with the heaviest snowfall occurring during the winter months
Location
Courtyard by Marriott King Kamehameha's Kona Beach Hotel
Palani Road
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.8
(1348 Ratings)
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Andrew_p
Feb 21, 2025
Jason and this tour was absolutely worth every penny! - I previously drove up Mauna Kea by myself in 2014 but opted for a tour this time traveling with others. Highly recommend this trip with Jason who explained Hawaiian culture and history on the way up, and kept us very entertained with stories and history. He went in-depth on astronomy and the stars and planets, such an incredible transfer of knowledge!! The soup and cookies and hot chocolates were greatly appreciated and there were several opportunities for acclimation. Some of the older passengers were worried about oxygen and acclimation and Jason walked them through breathing exercises and they all did very well and the trip was such an incredible success. Viewing the stars through his telescope afterwards was the BEST!! You could see Jupiter mars and Venus, other galaxies, and all of the history and science of astronomy from Jason while viewing in real time. It was otherworldly and I cannot recommend this tour enough. To top it off, there was snow at the top and they provided parkas and gloves and to play with snow in Hawaii was just magical.
Review provided by Viator
Tracy_d
Feb 21, 2025
Must Do! - This is an amazing experience that includes sunset at the summit and star gazing. Best part of our trip to the big island and we had a great guide with Jason!
Review provided by Viator
Nancy
Feb 20, 2025
A+++ Unique experience with fantastic guide - SO many companies offer the summit sunset experience, but the stargazing is the gem. At the top of the summit, there were more people than I expected and it was pretty clear not all tour guides and companies offer the same quality of experience. The coats and gloves were better (you overhear others talking). Minor disappointment in the picnic lunch (hearty chicken soup and a roll - a half sandwich would have been nice too). We had excellent commentary on the drive up. As for the stargazing, it was longer and better than any we've done. John's passion for astronomy shined through and we learned a lot. Great telescope. Loved this.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
W4146kganitam
Feb 19, 2025
Just the best! - Once in a lifetime adventure. Sunset on Mauna Kea - more stars in the dark skies than you could ever imagine. Jeff was the absolute best guide. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tomspencer
Feb 19, 2025
An incredible time, even for a solo guest - An absolutely fantastic experience. John may well have been the best guide I've had on any tour of anything I've ever done in my life.
Given that the tour was "Driving up a mountain, then coming back down a few thousand feet and having the guide show us astronomical entities on his telescope" Having a guide that was personable, knowledgeable, and pleasant was incredibly important. He was clear in his instructions, thorough in his explanations, efficient in his execution and just incredibly pleasant.
The picnic was good, the mountain was spectacular, and the stars and bonus deep sky pictures were incredible
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Magicalearth
Feb 17, 2025
There is no better place in earth to see the stars. - I have truly never experienced the sheer quantity and quality of stars than on the Big Island. And this would have been such an amazing experience had in it taken this tour.
Although you can drive yourself until 9000 feet (or more if you have a four wheel drive), the tour gives you a richer understanding of what Mauna Kea means to the people of Hawai’i, and personally I loved it.
We were part of two 14-seater vans that went up there. Very comfortable. Melanie and Heraldo were our guides and they were brilliant. They took care of the littlest of details and explained both cultural and scientific information re: Mauna Kea and the stars.
Through their telescopes I saw the craters on the moon and the lines across Jupiter and even three of its moons! We even saw shooting stars. The sunset from the summit is a spiritual experience.
It was the highlight of my trip to The Big Island. Thanks Mel!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gregory
Feb 17, 2025
Pricy but nice - This was a good tour that offered a little bit of everything. And everything good. A clean, efficient and comfortable vehicle to reach the summit. Jackets provided although on our day not needed. A tasty bite to eat and some good cookies. Our driver offered a lot of insight into history and the science of the mountain and the telescopes thereon. Following the ascent and after watching a beautiful sunset. The tour headed to a stargazing location at about the 10,000 ft of elevation level. The guide set up several telescopes. We were able to look at a number of planets, including the moons around Jupiter, as well as other celestial bodies.
It's interesting that a big deal is made about the types of vehicles allowed to the top of the mountain. We saw any number of standard passenger all-wheel drive vehicles including ones made by Subaru and Toyota. There may be a less expensive way to experience sunset on top of the tallest mountain in the Pacific.
The value added by our tour guide to me, mostly justified the price. An interesting note: A reduced parking rate at the pickup in Kona did not work. Currently I'm working with the tour operator to try to adjust that discount. I suspect the problem was with the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in Kona.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Journey46709910162
Feb 14, 2025
Amazing, one of kind trip - We thought this would be similar to the summit of Haleakalā in Maui tour just picture taking at the summit but it was way better. Watching sunset above the cloud was one of kind experience. The weather, timing was perfect that we got to see the colorful cloud from the Kīlauea volcano eruption. Bret's stories was so interesting that we did not notice the long drive up. Bret's knowledge of the stars made the star gazing experience very wonderful. And, the chicken stew was delicious. On the scale of 1 to 10, this is 11+
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jennysays
Feb 14, 2025
Amazing Experience! - Highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting the Big Island. Our guide John was great - fun and informative. The mountain is beautiful and worth seeing at sunset. We were also treated to a telescope tour of the sky - truly amazing. Got to see Saturn's rings, a nebula, and Jupiter and 4 of its moons! Really really a wonderful day.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Grove911
Feb 13, 2025
Great Trip To Mauna Kea - This trip was a highlight and our guide Jeff made it amazing. His knowledge of astronomy came across well. The dinner provided was good along with the hot chocolate and cookies while we did star gazing.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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