Aloha Hannah and to everyone reading this. I want to start with this. We specialize in custom and private adventures on Oahu. We work around the conditions and always choose to go adventure at the best places that the day has to offer.
In this case, this group asked to book a Half Day Adventure with snorkeling. Before they booked, we went back and forth via email. I wrote “With the conditions we have this week, over on the west side of the island will have the best snorkeling. We can meet you there on Wednesday on your way up to Turtle Bay, or if you need a ride there we can pick you up once you’re at Turtle Bay. We have all the equipment you need, and your guide will be taking photos and videos with his GoPro, and will airdrop you everything after for no extra charge. You can also call us if that is easier to discuss over the phone.”
She never called, but did write this. “Thanks so much for the quick response. I think Friday would be our best bet… and we have a car rented, so meeting on the west side is no problem.”
She booked a week before Friday. The day after she booked, our guide Chace reached out to them and dropped them a pin of where to meet to go snorkel. Late the night before the adventure, she texts our guide saying she wants to snorkel on the North Shore and not go to the west side. He made it clear that other than the Sharks Cove kiddie tide pool, there is no snorkeling on the North Shore because of the large and rough surf. They responded saying “When I booked, it wasn’t made clear we’d need to be prepared for meeting anywhere on the island.” That's where we caught them in their first lie.
I then reached out to her personally. She didn’t answer or call back, but replied to my text. “Hi Ryan, I totally understand the tough situation this puts you in. However, it was not made clear that snorkeling on the North Shore wasn’t an option. We don’t need a ride, we just would not have planned an adventure that required us to drive at least an hour each way.”
I responded to that with screenshots of our emails, and she seemed quickly embarrassed and replied “Thanks for the reminder of our conversation. Clearly I should have clarified how far on the west side we would need to travel.”
I informed her before she booked that is where we would go, and our guide dropped her a pin right when she booked of the location to meet.
She decided to go, and asked if she could bring some other friends along, and I said of course. Her friends arrived on time, but they arrived 25 minutes late. The friends seemed excited, but when they finally arrived, the first thing she says is “Where’s the boat?” My guide was very confused because we don’t operate on boats, and no where on our webpage does it say anything about going on a boat. He let them know that they would be snorkeling here where they met, but she refused and said “We will cut our losses. This is nothing like how they do it in Miami.” They rudely left and my guide was in disbelief.
He decided since it’s beautiful here and he came all this way, that he will go snorkel on his own. In just the 25 minutes he was out there, he had crystal clear water, saw turtles, huge schools of fish, and even saw a rare endangered Monk Seal. It was a once in a lifetime snorkel day, and its so unfortunate that they didn’t trust us to take them out.
You can go to our instagram page @mahinahawaii on the March 11th, 2024 post to see the shots he captured in that short time snorkeling.
We do charge a flat rate of $585 for 1-3 people for a half day, and an additional $195 per person after 3 people. You can absolutely rent your own gear and go on your own to save money. In her case, she mentioned that her husband wasn’t a strong swimmer and would need a lifejacket. When you book with us, you’re getting a knowledgeable local guide who is Lifeguard, First Aid, and CPR certified. We are not only going to use our local knowledge to pick the best and safest spots to go to, but we will keep you safe, while getting amazing pictures and videos of you at no additional cost.
In their case, had they done this on their own, they would have stayed on the North Shore where it would be rough, dangerous, and also terrible snorkeling. They would have wasted their time because they wouldn’t have known where is best and safest spot to go that day. There was large North and East swells, with strong winds, which is everything you don’t want when snorkeling the North Shore. Even the Boat tours on the North Shore don’t go snorkeling this time of year. The summer months are the only time the snorkeling is good up North. People like this put our Lifeguards lives at risk because they read somewhere how the North Shore has amazing snorkeling, but go the wrong time of year and need to be rescued or worse, lose their lives. It happens so often, and we know because we all live on the North Shore and are good friends with many of the Lifeguards.
We will learn what we can about this experience with Hannah, and hopefully avoid any miscommunications in the future. We take great pride in showing people epic adventure days and our favorite spots on the island, and hope this review doesn’t deter you from having an amazing experience with us in the future!