Attractions in Maui and Ohau (Whale Watching,Atlantis Submarines,Dole Plantation and Heli USA (1/08)
Our top picks for attractions in Hawaii
Maui
Want to see some whales? We did! We took a cruise with Maui Adventure Cruises on a 2 hour whale watching excursion. Featuring the fastest and largest ocean rafts of any company in the islands and a very professional, knowledgeable and friendly staff, we learned a lot about these amazing sea creatures while aboard. We boarded the boat in Lahaina and were quickly whisked out to a canal know to inhabit whales. Within minutes we spotted the tell tale spray and then the tail. We saw several mothers and babies and male “escorts”. This was a sight to be seen. Don’t miss this opportunity! Whale watching season is best from February until March but the season is officially December 15- April. We recommend Maui Adventure for your excursion for a number of reasons: their Explorer Super Rafts get guests to the whale watch areas fast for longer viewing opportunities, every seat is a “front row seat” with great viewing, since you are on a raft not a large boat you get an ocean level view of the whales, not 15 feet above the water, these rafts hold fewer passengers so you can avoid the crowds of the larger boats, it is more fun to view the whales with a few friends, their staff are experienced marine naturalists who narrate the viewing and they supply unlimited sodas, juices and water. There are certain limits how close the boat can get to the whale but sometimes the whale gets closer to the boat on its own. Make sure to bring your camera on this awesome experience. This company also offers day excursions and snorkeling adventures, dolphin adventures and charters check them out! (808) 661-5550 www.mauiadventurecruises.com
O’ahu
Interested in experiencing the deep sea without donning scuba gear? We have a great option! Check out Atlantis Submarines. A short boat ride takes you out to meet the submarine which goes down 100 feet to view real marine life up-close. On our trip we saw sea turtles, sharks, stingrays, eels, many varieties of fish, a shipwreck, a sunken airplane, artificial reef, and coral. This is a great adventure for children or the elderly who may not be able to experience the ocean floor otherwise. Atlantis Submarines is located in Kona, Maui and O’ahu as well as in Guam and the Caribbean. They are open 365 days of the year weather permitting and they have English tours starting at 9 am on the hour until 3pm. Their Japanese tours are at 9, 10 and 11am. The total adventure including the boat ride out to the sub is about 1 ½ hours. The tour we took was in Waikiki at the back of the Hilton Hawaiian Village. For more information please call (808) 949-7827 or visit www.Atlantissubmarines.com
Another adventure is the Dole Pineapple Plantation which is about a 40 minute drive north of Waikiki heading towards the North Shore. This pineapple-lover’s heaven features the Pineapple Express, an informative mini train ride around the plantation, the Plantation Garden Tour, a guided walking tour to learn about the history of the plantation, a huge gift shop and The Pineapple Garden Maze, the world’s largest maze! Visiting the plantation you will learn about plantation life, flowers, plants, and pineapples from around the world. You could spend hours in the large gift shop. Be sure to eat some of the famous Dole Whip ice cream along with many other delectable pineapple treats from their cafeteria. The highlight of the plantation however is Dole’s 3.ll mile maze. Covering 3 acres and made up of over 11,000 colorful Hawaiian plants including the beautiful hibiscus this maze is considered by Guinness Book of World Records the World’s Largest Maze. Find hidden points within the maze and you win 15% off retail items in the gift shop! A great place to spend a few hours with your children! Better yet, drop them off in the maze, head to the gift shop and check back later. They will be sure to have a great time occupying themselves with this giant sized puzzle. www.doleplantation.com
The highlight adventure of our trip was the Heli USA helicopter ride. We took the Oahu Deluxe Island Helicopter Tour which is a 45 minute ride around the island of O’ahu. Heli USA has many different rides at different times ranging from a 15 minute ride over Waikiki to a 60 minute tour of the entire island. They even have a romantic City Lights, evening flight. Heli USA offers a free shuttle ride to and from your hotel. Some of the incredible sights we saw from above included Diamond Head, the North shore, an incredibly up close view of many waterfalls, Waikiki, beaches of O’ahu, Pearl Harbor (picture below), Dole Pineapple Plantation, lush grounds where Jurassic Park was filmed. You will be in awe with the visions and incredible experience you’ll have. The helicopter holds up to 6 guests plus the pilot and is balanced out by the weight of the passengers. Be sure to take your camera and/or video camera to capture these great moments and lasting memories. We were lucky enough to have a beautiful day as it rained earlier creating beautiful scenery and several full circle rainbows. Our pilot was very entertaining and informative answering any questions we had during the flight. Heli USA’s professional photographer took posed and candid shots of everyone getting ready for the adventure and leading up to our flight. After our adventure our pictures were put into a montage DVD with background music of everyone taking the tour and stock video of what we just saw on the flight. This is a great keepsake to commemorate the flight. Heli USA O’ahu is truly spectacular and not to miss! To book your O’ahu flight contact Heli USA at (866)936.1234 or (808)826.6591 www.heliusa.com/select-oahu-hawaii-helicopter-tours.htm
Our flight was as good if not better than the Kaui HeliUSA flight we took 5 years ago. To read more check out (https://ccnewspaper.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=225&Itemid=45)
