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8-9 hours
Daily Tour
12 people
English
Online booking coming soon
We are setting up online booking for this tour. In the meantime, please get in touch and we will arrange your reservation.
Mauna Kea rises nearly 14,000 feet out of the Pacific, and the drive to the top takes you from sea level to above the clouds in a single afternoon.
The evening is built around two moments. First, sunset from the summit, where you stand at the highest point in the Pacific and watch the shadow of the mountain stretch out across the ocean. Then the descent to a lower, warmer elevation, where the guides set up two telescopes and the sky takes over.
Because Mauna Kea sits in the middle of the ocean, far from city light and above most of the atmosphere, the clarity here is not like stargazing anywhere else. The guides use an 11-inch Celestron optical telescope alongside a digital deep-space telescope, and they send you home with images of what the sky showed that night.
Warm picnic dinner before the summit ascent, served at a mid-mountain stop while your body adjusts to the altitude.
Sunset at the summit, roughly 13,800 feet, with your guide explaining the volcano, the observatories and the place the mountain holds in Hawaiian tradition.
Stargazing at a lower elevation with hot chocolate and dessert, two telescopes, and an introduction to Hawaiian star navigation.
Images to take home, captured through the digital telescope and sent to you afterwards.
Temperatures at the summit routinely drop below freezing, even in summer. Winter jackets with hoods and wool gloves are provided, so you do not need to pack cold-weather clothing for Hawaii.
Altitude note: if you plan to scuba dive, do not go to the summit within 24 hours of your dive. The tour also has age and health restrictions tied to the elevation; we will confirm these with you when we arrange the booking. Online booking is still being set up; send an inquiry and we will hold your places.
Online booking for this tour is coming soon. Send us the details and we will get back to you.
Or call 808-922-1122
Pickup on the Kona and Waikoloa side of the island, timed so that you reach the mountain before sunset.
Served at a mid-mountain stop. The stop matters as much for letting your body adjust to the altitude as it does for the meal.
The drive continues to roughly 13,800 feet, the highest point in the Pacific, with your guide on the volcano, the observatories and Hawaiian tradition.
Back down to a warmer elevation with hot chocolate and dessert, where the guides set up an 11-inch Celestron and a digital deep-space telescope.
The guides capture images of what the sky showed that night and send them to you afterwards.
Late-evening return to your pickup point.
Below freezing, even in summer. Winter jackets with hoods and wool gloves are provided, so there is no need to pack cold-weather clothing for a Hawaii trip.
Yes. The summit sits near 14,000 feet, and there are age and health restrictions tied to that elevation. If you plan to scuba dive, do not go to the summit within 24 hours of your dive.
The Kona and Waikoloa side of the island. We confirm the pickup point closest to your hotel when we arrange the booking.
Capped at 12 guests, which keeps telescope time and guide attention from being spread too thin.
A warm picnic dinner, hot chocolate and dessert during stargazing, cold-weather gear, round-trip transportation, and guided stargazing with two telescopes.
No. Sunset at the summit and a guided star show at a lower elevation are both part of the same evening.
Not yet. Online booking for this tour is still being set up. Send us an inquiry through the form on this page, or call 808-922-1122, and we will arrange the reservation for you.
Hawi, Hawaii
Hawi, Hawaii
91-1780 Midway St, Kapolei, HI 96707
Kauai, HI, USA
