We are tolerant travelers and rarely let bumps in the road bother us. During a big island trip last summer we took two Arnott's Lodge tours: Volcano National Park and Mauna Kea. On the first tour the guide was 45 minutes late meeting us he was not exactly an expert, reading directly from signage and explaining to us rudimentary concepts... More

We thought this worked well and were pleased to have an option to make it to the top of the mountain from the Hilo side of the island. Even though the top is reachable with a 4 WD vehicle we would not have had the clothes with us for the extreme cold nor would I have felt comfortable coming off... More

Arnott's Lodge offers great tours to the Hawai'i Volacanoes National Park and Mauna Kea, which aren't as expensive as comparable tours. The guides are very friendly and nice, know a lot and can tell you much about the history, landscape and what's going on in the region. They will teach you a little bit of Hawaiian language. You will have... More

After reading all the reviews, we decided to take Arnott tour only to disappoint ourselves. The trip is definitely not worth $135. No food or drinks were provided. anyone can drive up the summit with a good AWD car. One thing I liked is the driver always drove within the speed limits and practiced safe driving. Though our driver was... More

Brandon was an amazing guide! He knows the area well since he grew up there and is friendly and has great stories. He took us to the black sand beach on our way to Kiluea and we reached in the afternoon before the other tours came. Brandon took us within feet of the lava flows and kept us safe. We... More

-Guide was funny -I had a panic attack at the summit of Mauna Kea and the guide knew what to do, seems to understand and was very kind - Great activity. wonderfull view More

It is the best value, and only company, on the Hilo side, if your most important interest is Mauna Kea itself. A 4-wheel drive vehicle is essential, and then only to the 9,000 foot level (Visitor's Center). To reach the 13,795 foot moonscape summit requires arranging a park tour at the Visitor's center or expensive ($200 +) tours from Kona,... More

Arnott's is a bargain joint (barely one step above a hostel), so I wasn't expecting much from their Mauna Kea Sunset Tour. I was happily surprised. A mixed bag of people (Japanese, French Canadian, mainland U.S.) piled into a van that was well-suited to the trip - solid diesel engine, four-wheel drive, Jake brakes for the trip down. (I'd be... More

We stayed one night at Arnott's Lodge to get the discount on the Mauna Kea Summit Tour, and it was truly the highlight of our visit. Robert, our tour guide, was funny, informative, and charming, and although the weather at the summit precluded our seeing many stars, he made the best of it, and showed us many special things on... More