Kauai Waimea Canyon, Wailua River Boat and Fern Grotto Tour
4.5
Kauai Waimea Canyon, Wailua River Boat and Fern Grotto Tour
By Polynesian Adventure
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
About
Those short on time can pack in Kauai’s top natural sights on this full-day tour of Waimea Canyon and the Wailua River. Travel in a comfortable air-conditioned bus as your local guide shares stories of Kauai’s rich history and narrates passing sights. See Waimea Canyon, also known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, and then float down the river that carved the colorful canyon on a Wailua River cruise.
Lowest price guaranteeReserve now & pay laterFree cancellation
Ages 0-99, max of 24 per group
Duration: 10h
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
Live guide: English
More
Highlights
- See Kauai’s natural sights, including Waimea Canyon, on this full-day tour
- Float through the lush Wailua River Valley on a Wailua River cruise
- Hear stories of Kauai’s rich history and colorful past from your local guide
- Enjoy convenient round-trip transport from selected Kauai hotels
- Tour narration by a professional driver/guide
- Wailua River Boat Admission
- Pick-up and drop-off at specific Kauai Hotels
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- Lunch
- Entry/Admission - Wailua River State Park
- Entry/Admission - Fern Grotto
- Entry/Admission - Puakea Golf Course
- Entry/Admission - Waimea Canyon State Park
What's not included- Gratuities
- Port pick-up and drop-off
- Your morning begins with pickup from your Kauai hotel by deluxe air-conditioned bus. As you drive towards Waimea Canyon, your guide shares legends from Kauai’s past and provides narration as you pass such sights as the Old Sugar Mill of Koloa and village of Hanapepe. Stop at the Spouting Horn blowhole, to see bursts of water make their way through lava tubes for an exciting spout that can reach as high as 50 feet (15 meters). The tour follows the Waimea Canyon Scenic drive to the rim of Waimea Canyon stopping for several photo opportunities at scenic viewpoints along the way. From there, hop in a boat and cruise the lush Wailua River Valley on a Wailua River cruise and then finish your sightseeing tour with a stop by Opaekaa Falls and the Fern Grotto, a fern-covered lava rock that at one time was accessible only to Hawaiian royalty. At the end of your full-day adventure tour of Kauai, you are dropped back off at your hotel early in the evening.
- Start:Multiple pickup locations offered.Pickup details
- For guests staying at a North Shore or Princeville hotel, the meeting point is at the Outrigger Waipouli Hotel in Kapa'a. Parking is available at the municipal parking lot near the Outrigger Waipouli Hotel. The tour times provided reflect the start and end of the tour, but not your exact pickup location and pickup time. Whether or not you've provided your hotel/lodging at the time of booking, you are required to contact the tour provider no less than (2) days prior to your tour date to receive your exact pickup time and location. The tour provider will advise you of the specific area at the hotel/lodging you should wait; for example, "at the front entrance." Please be there at least 5 minutes before your pickup time. Please allow a 10-15 minute grace period, as the driver will be picking up other guests in your area. If your hotel/lodging is not included on our pickup schedule, you'll be advised to meet at nearby location. Please note that we are prohibited by certain properties to pick up non-hotel guests and we do not pick-up at private properties such as Airbnb’s and residential areas.
Hotel pickup offeredDuring checkout you will be able to select from the list of included hotels.Airport pickup offeredDuring checkout you will be able to select from the list of included airports.- Kauai Island Airport, 3901 Mokulele Loop, Lihue, Kauai, HI 96766
End:This activity ends back at the meeting point. - Infants must sit on laps
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Service animals allowed
If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 2360KAUAI- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Please contact the tour provider at minimum of 7 days prior to the tour date for ADA and all special requests.
- Most travelers can participate
- This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
- This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 24 travelers
- For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
- If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 2360KAUAI
From
₱13,430.29
per adult
Select date and travelers
Similar experiences
Itinerary
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6Pass byHanapepe Valley Lookout
- 7
About the operator
Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator:
- Dafluke240 contributionsAwesome experience and tour.Kaleo was our guide, and he did a great job telling stories about the sites we visited. He was very engaging and kept us entertained the entire trip. It was an awesome trip and experience. Highly recommend!Written December 7, 2024
- J2200MDmelanied0 contributionsPolynesian Adventures! With KaleoThis was an amazing way to spend the day. Kaleo was so much fun. Very entertaining and super knowledgeable. We highly recommend this tour and hope you are lucky enough to be on Kaleo’s bus it will be a fun day for sure!Written December 7, 2024
- shellye8080 contributionsLoved it!!!Larry was great. Amazing tour. Able to see so much! Loved seeing all the movie spots. Highly recommend. Must see. Worth the price.Written November 29, 2024
- Rick T0 contributionsMovie tripLarry was a great professional driver and guide. Very knowledgeable and attentive to our needs. Price was a little steep for what was provided. Maybe a drink or snack would have been nice.Written November 27, 2024
- Judi W0 contributionsMovie Tour KauaiCousin Larry was fun and well informed. We thoroughly enjoyed our time on Kauai and looking forward to returning soon. MahaloWritten November 27, 2024
- L391BJjordana0 contributionsGreat day!Kaleo was incredible. He was very knowledgeable and kept us all entertained. He was funny, interactive, and connected with us all really well. Best tour guide we have ever had. Highly recommend.Written November 22, 2024
- N2067AMphilipk0 contributionsGreat tourGreat informative tour with wonderful guide. Lunch and shopping stop was enjoyable. Bus was very roomy and comfortableWritten November 21, 2024
- Tourist6815480 contributionsGreatest guide of all time.Our guide was the best tour guide I have ever experienced. He entertained us for 7 hours non stop. Our tour was Halloween Morning so please make sure Kaleo (sp) gets a huge “shout out” from us.Written November 21, 2024
- msD6870XY0 contributionsMagical experience in beautiful KauaiWhat a great day in beautiful Kauai. Everything was perfectly organised end-to-end. Our tour guide Rosario welcomed us at Lihue airport and took us on a movie tour in Kauai. He put this together with all his love and enthusiasm for Kauai and the movies that have been filmed there over the past decades. He blended in his extensive knowledge of the island with wit and humour. The big list of movies will get us through the cold winter months and will bring back the great memories. The highlight of the tour was a helicopter ride with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. Captain Robert took us over Waimea Canyon, waterfalls, Napali Coast and into the crater, which was an experience out of this world. The stunning beauty of Kauai is breathtaking. He made us feel at ease straight away and we really enjoyed our first ever helicopter ride. We thank him, and Rosario very much for making our day so special.Written November 20, 2024
- S1210UVdannyj0 contributionsWell worth the time and money investedThe views were fantastic, very organized and Cousin Larry very knowledgeable full of humor and information. Everything on time and there were no issues!!!!!!Written November 19, 2024
- TucsonHotelie0 contributionsGreat way to see east side of KauaiCousin Larry provided a thoughtful tour from near Lihue to the Hanalei area. Bring binoculars for an extra look at waterfalls and birds.Written November 19, 2024
- Conne L0 contributionsKaleo was a great guide. Loved the jokes and his hospitality of driving us to see Waimea and Fern Grotto. A must see!Great tour of Waimea Canyon and Fern Grotto. Stunning views of the island of Kauai! Highly recommended tour. Must see! AWritten November 18, 2024
- susandY7320XS0 contributionsFive stars for KALEO!!Five BIG stars to our guide, Kaleo. He was absolutely amazing. Not only did he drive us expertly to all of the beautiful Hawaiian sites, but he taught us an unbelievable amount of Hawaiian history, legends, current Hawaiian issues, & beautiful Hawaiian culture. We even loved his dad jokes! What a master..Kaleo is certainly doing what was made to do. What a privilege to have Kaleo s our guide. Now I love Hawaii even more than I I did before. Thank you, Kaleo.Written November 15, 2024
- 793lent0 contributionsNo ka ‘oi!Kaleo is the most informative and entertaining tour guide you’ll ever encounter. 10 hours you’ll never believed have passes.Written November 15, 2024
- Theresa F0 contributionsBest Tour for short staysRosario was a fantastic tour guide including sharing with us some of the history of the island. The lunch was great as well as all of the activities.Written November 14, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinions of Tripadvisor members and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
168 reviews
Excellent
141
Very good
13
Average
7
Poor
6
Terrible
1
stowjo1974
Las Vegas, NV2 contributions
Jul 2023 • Couples
This was a fabulous tour! :)
I loved the fact that they picked us up directly from our resort in a comfortable air-conditioned shuttle.
Our tour guide, Rosario was both amusing with his "dad jokes" & very informative about the history & legends of the area & the places we were visiting that day.
The sites we visited were stunning! Also, the Smith Family did a fantastic job hosting on the riverboat tour to Fern Grotto & the hula dancing was a lot of fun.
The only drawback on the tour was that it took a little while to get our food even though Rosario placed the order early but that wasn't his fault at all. I think the restaurant was just really busy that day.
The Waimea Canyon was my favorite site of the day as it is breathtaking in its vastness & beauty.
We had a great tour group too so it made for a really fun day! Would highly recommend this tour. :)
I loved the fact that they picked us up directly from our resort in a comfortable air-conditioned shuttle.
Our tour guide, Rosario was both amusing with his "dad jokes" & very informative about the history & legends of the area & the places we were visiting that day.
The sites we visited were stunning! Also, the Smith Family did a fantastic job hosting on the riverboat tour to Fern Grotto & the hula dancing was a lot of fun.
The only drawback on the tour was that it took a little while to get our food even though Rosario placed the order early but that wasn't his fault at all. I think the restaurant was just really busy that day.
The Waimea Canyon was my favorite site of the day as it is breathtaking in its vastness & beauty.
We had a great tour group too so it made for a really fun day! Would highly recommend this tour. :)
Written July 17, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
equine_dvm
Lafayette, Louisiana8 contributions
Oct 2023 • Solo
Our bus driver, Miss K, was excellent from beginning to end. She was very professional and knowledgeable about the island and made the whole thing very enjoyable even though Mother Nature did not let us see Waimea Canyon due to rain and heavy cloud cover. The cruise down the river was also enjoyable with the songs and hula dancing. Would definitely recommend!
Written October 6, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Andrew M
1 contribution
Apr 2023 • Friends
Our tour guide, Rosario, was very friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. We enjoyed the trip, although the river boat segment (Fern Grotto) wasn’t quite as interesting or extensive as the advertisement or cost suggested. If you have a rental car, a self-guided tour might be the cost efficient way to go.
Written April 27, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Inspire45478639749
2 contributions
Sep 2024 • Family
Kaleo was our driver on an NCL excursion. He was funny and very entertaining with his clips of songs that fit in with his descriptions. He used to be a DJ and you can tell by his selections. The Waimea canyon is not to be missed. If motion sickness is an issue for you, take medication and bring a barf bag just in case. The fern grotto was lovely as were the singers. This tour cuts it close to reboarding time, so take the cruise sponsored excursion.
Written October 19, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Cliff C
1 contribution
Great way to see the highlights of the island with a local guide who knows the history and the island very well. Our guide/driver Kaleo was very entertaining and engaging. I’d recommend to all travelers who want to see some do the main attractions and leave the driving to someone else.
Written July 24, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Karl R
Margate City, NJ28 contributions
Kaleo was the perfect guide and he made the day special. The river cruise to the Fern Grotto was beautiful and the local family guides were fun with music, information and of course a hula lesson.😂. Lunch was great and the coffee plantation information was interesting with great coffee. For me, the highlight of the trip, besides Kaleo’s dad jokes was the Waimea Canyon. Words can’t even express the beauty of this place. Kaleo taught us Hawaiian phrases which we struggled through laughing the whole time. For our first day this was a perfect introduction to this gorgeous island. Thank you Kaleo.
Written January 31, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
tinals69
Plymouth, WI17 contributions
Oct 2024 • Couples
This tour is not worth money. Very dated. The captain of the boat was informative but the Fern Grotto is not what it was. The performers that explained things at Grotto and on the boat for entertainment looked miserable. The tour to canyon was okay but bus driver talked more about personal life and not about island. Did a private tour next day with Private Waimea Canyon Tour and learned so much. Felt like we were on the bus and had to listen to more personal conversation with driver and other people then learning about what we were looking at. Strongly advise you don’t waste your money here.
Written October 16, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for the feedback on your tour. We appreciate you taking the time. Mahalo.
Written October 18, 2024
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Richard D
Vienna, WV1 contribution
Jun 2024 • Couples
Kaleo did an amazing job, he was funny, entertaining, and engaging. The pace was great, the stops were great, the lunch was great. 10/10 would recommend any trip with Kaleo as a driver. This trip was a great value for the price and the sights are unforgettable
Written June 6, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
A S
Florence, Italy14 contributions
This tour was amazing!! Our first full day in Kauai and Rosario, our tour guide, made it extra special. He was so knowledgeable, friendly and made every effort to personalize the experience as much as possible. We drove to see the canyon, took the boat tour to the fern grotto, drove through beautiful neighborhoods, enjoyed coffee at the Kauai Coffee Company and learned so much about the island along the way. Will definitely look to Polynesian Adventure Activities for our next visit to Kauai. Highly recommend this tour company and their great team!
Written August 12, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
WojtekJH
New York City, NY2 contributions
Aug 2023 • Family
Our tour was incredible! The canyon is spectacular and the other stops were great as well (including the coffee stop!). Each one was unique and they were spaced out perfectly to not spend too much time on the bus itself. Our guide Kaleo was engaging, funny and informative. I would recommend this tour to anyone who wants to see the many thunks Kauai has to offer.
As an added bonus, the family also learned how to say humuhumunukunukuapua’a!
As an added bonus, the family also learned how to say humuhumunukunukuapua’a!
Written August 23, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ticktock1504
Hoover, Alabama
hello, we are cruising to Kauai. Do you offer pick up from the cruise terminal? Our ship docks at 8a - will this arrival time work for the tour? thank you
Written October 1, 2019
cjojo48
Mokena, Illinois
The driving can be independently done but Was the river tour worth it?
Written September 28, 2018
What size is the Wailua River float boat?
Written August 19, 2018
I have a trip planned for later this month. I have seen on the news that there has been a lot of flooding on the island. Will the roads to Waimea still be drivable?
Written April 25, 2018
Yes, my husband and I just did the drvie today in a basic 4/5 passenger vehicle.
Written April 27, 2018
Showing results 1-6 of 6
Buy it with
Top rated
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.