Snorkeling: Molokini or Kealakekua Bay or...

[bleuseas]

We can only afford to do one snorkeling excursion. (renting a car; on our own)

 

I am trying to decide between Molokini, in Maui which looks beautiful in pictures, but seems unpredictable as far as the amount of fish you can see. It would be with a charter company highly recommended by the Revealed books (on the Four Winds II).

 

or

 

Kealakekua Bay on Hawaii with Captain Zodiac, which looks like a wild ride, but from what I've read seems to have a lot more fish present at that site. People on these boards have described it as "like snorkeling in an aquarium" there are so many fish.

 

 

I'm leaning toward the first choice, but don't want to get out there and not see many fish. I've snorkeled in the Caribbean, but this will the be first time with the kids (good swimmers 7&11) and want them to be "wow-ed"

 

Anyone have any experience with either or both of these sites...or another recommendation (to add to my confusion;) )??????

[CruisinMK]

Captain zodiac on kona is the best, you and your kids will totally love it

[ERAMP76]

Can't comment on the Molokini snorkel, but we did the Captain Zodiac. I would highly recommend it. The water was calm & we saw lots & lots of fish. We also got close up with some spinner dolphins on the way back from the bay.

[vega]

We snorkeled at Molokini in late June. While it was nice and the water was very clear, we didn't see as many varieties of fish as we'd hoped or seen at other beaches (Turtle Beach in Kona). If you have to make a choice, go for Zodiac.

[Planer's Edge]

I would second that the best snorkling would be in Kona. Except of course the snorkling at Haunama Bay is pretty spectacular. But, that is on Oahu and was not in your choices.

 

PE<---like offering alternatives that some people may not have thought about...

[beachchick]

Hanauma Bay is nice, but not even close to being our favorite.

 

Molokini can be excellent or only pretty good, depending on the water conditions. Several of the ships have a second stop at one of the numerous "turtle towns" as well. We will be doing K-Bay for the first time next year, so I have no first-hand experience there. From all accounts, the zodiac is a fun ride, but do be aware that there is no shade (and I hear no bathroom facility either). It's not good for anyone with back problems, but other that should be good. Whatever you do, go in the morning--especially if you choose Molokini. The afternoon wind and waves kick up and often the boats cannot get out there. They go to "alternate" spots, which are fine, but often accessible on your own and not nearly as fun as actually boating out to Molokini.

 

For "get there yourself, no excursion needed" snorkeling spots (assuming you have a car), we like Honolua and Slaughterhouse (marine preserve; no facilities), Kapalua (okay snorkeling, but fabulous beach overall), Airport beach (good facilities, easy entry to good snorkeling), and Black Rock (at Ka'anapali) on Maui. On the BI, we've not had as much experience, but found Honaunau to be excellent. I've heard that some of the beaches on the north Kohala coast are very good (we're planning on spending time there next year). I know Kahalu'u (sometimes referred to as Turtle Beach, but Kahalu'u is the regular name) is very good and accessible by shuttle from the tender pier (or close by at least). On Kauai, Poipu is good, as is Lydgate. There's a little cove by The Beach House restaurant that's good too (that's close to Poipu). I don't know the north beaches at all for snorkeling (we were there in December and the weather made them unsafe for swimming).

 

I think you can't go wrong either way with the excursion. Both are good choices. For an exciting ride, the zodiac would fill the bill, and K-Bay is reported to be the best snorkeling in the islands--clear water, tons of fish, coral, and even turtles. For more "stuff" (like water slide, glass bottom viewing, etc.), the Four Winds to Molokini will be good. It's a large boat with a "party" (not wild, just fun) feel. If the water is good, Molokini will be beautiful.

 

beachchick

[cmjaffe]

Think snorkeling on Zodiak might be "rough" in December?

Trying to figure out where to snorkel on BI and Kauaii then, but know that the waters can be wavy (DD isn't a strong swimmer).

Thanks

[beachchick]

The waters are likely to be rougher in December, but not necessarily. The thing is that the zodiak (is it zodiac or zodiak? I'm never quite sure) is, by all accounts, a pretty "exciting" (read: fast and bouncy) ride no matter what. As for the snorkeling, I believe that getting into and out of the zodiak is a bit more difficult than on the bigger boats, but I don't know for sure. I do know that numerous people have reported that you kind of need to "hang on" when taking the zodiak. It could be perfectly wonderful. At K-Bay (no matter how you get there), there is no beach and the water is not shallow enough to stand up in. However, most boats have floaties and such for the timid or not so strong swimmers. You'll need to check with the excursion company.

 

For Kauai, you can snorkel on your own easily. You will need to stick to the south beaches for the most part in the winter as the north beaches are often unsafe at that time of year. Poipu is in the south and would be perfect for an inexperienced snorkeler who is not a confident swimmer because there are some good shallow areas and you can stay together. The beach entry is very easy, IMO.

 

But yes, throughout the islands the water will probably be more wavy than in the summer. As an example, the Oahu North shore is famous for the huge winter waves, but when DH and I went there in September one year, it was just these tiny little so-called waves that were 2 feet.

 

beachchick

[piper28]

I've done the Four Winds II to molokini, and done K-bay (can't remember who it was, wasn't the zodiacs though, but was a well recommended company), and I have to say I thought that K-bay was a better spot for snorkeling. Now, don't get me wrong, both are very good spots (and for doing molokini, I wouldn't hesitate recommending four winds ii), just that I felt that k-bay had a better collection of fish to see. We did have a dolphin playing the bow wave of the boat when we left molokini though (and poor me, was out of film by that point).

 

Real answer? Either place is a great snorkeling location. You're not really going to go wrong picking between the two.

[Splinter]

If you will have a car on Maui, and are an experienced snorkeler, and have your own gear (or want to rent from a hotel) I would recommend Black Rock near the Sheraton on the western shore (near the airport). There is also an inexpensive shuttle you can catch there from Lahaina.

 

Personally I think Molokini is vastly overrated. It tends to be crowded (you spend more time trying not to run into other snorkeler or boats rather than watching fish) and the fish just were not that great. The water drops off so quickly that you don't really have much of an areas where you can see bottom (really just the inside of the crater), and they don't allow you go go outside the crater on the outer rim as it is too rough. If you want to take a boat, I would go with the Kona trip.

[bleuseas]

Thanks for all the great advice!

 

We've booked Captain Zodiac through the ship and will do some surfing on Maui instead of Molokini.