Sail/snorkel tours in Kauai?

kaesha

Any recommendations for seeing the Na Pali coast? The helicopter ride is just too pricey, but we really want to see it one way or another!

sparklegirl84

We went with napali coast hanalei tours because we stayed in kapaa and didn't wanna drive all the way south to catch the boat. I highly recommend buying some natural motion sickness tablets because some people do get sea sick I hear. Our boat was fine, we must have had good conditions, but I took it anyway and it didn't make me drowsy like dumb Dramamine! We didn't see any spinner dolphins  (i hear if you catch a boat from the south you might see them though). We snorkeled with a couple sea turtles and our boat was small enough to go into the caves which were soo awesome! On the way to the coast sit on the left side of the boat so you get a better view. Our boat was small and only held like 12 people which was nice. The food was good too! The captain and his deck hand were really nice, super chill guys & easy on the eyes , they didn't really talk a lot about the history or any educational stuff though. They asked us if we wanted to stop along the way a few times to jump in and swim in the caves and asked if we wanted to get wet under the cave waterfall. It did get a little chilly on the way back because we were all wet and the boat was goin pretty fast (which was fun, we were bouncing around a bit!) The boat tour was the highlight of our trip, I'd do it again in a heartbeat! 

kaesha

Hm. We're staying in the south... do you think it's worth it to drive north or should we just get one of the tours from the south?

aliblu

When I was in Kauai, we used Captain Andy's for a sunset cruise that saw the Na'Pali coast. That was a blast, and the coast looks brilliant with the sun going down. Also, sneaky tiki's and dinner was really good!!

Also, concerning the helicopter tours. We wanted to see the coast from the sky, but couldnt afford a helicopter tour, but we used Wings Over Kauai and had a blast. Our pilot was so nice and gave us so much information about the island while we were flying. He even let me open the windows to take pictures, and flew by the same place twice to make sure I got the shot.

http://www.wingsoverkauai.com/

carrieoz_76

We went out on the Napali Makai, which is a smallish boat that's owned and operated by a local Kauaian.  We had a fantastic trip, and recommend it to our friends.  The only hiccup is that because it's a smaller boat, it can hit the swells a little hard, which could be hard on a person with a bad back.  But if that's not an issue for you, it's a fantastic way to see the coast and all the gorgeousness it has to show you.

Other reviews on TripAdvisor - http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60619-d1729041-Reviews-Na_Pali_Makai-Kekaha_Kauai_Hawaii.html

The boat owner's site - http://www.napalimakai.com/

maui2011

We too will be going with Napali Makai. I did go on one of the big catamarans but was pretty disappointed as they didn't sail the whole coast...not even half of it and the snorkeling was not that great either. HTH! J. :-)