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Top Rated
Product Reviews
Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Start your morning right with locally-grown and freshly roasted Hawaiian coffee at the famous Hilo Coffee Mill on your way to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Once you arrive at the park, an experienced guide will take your intimate sized group on short leisurely strolls through lush rainforest alive with native birds, incredible foliage and a ‘walk through' lava tube. Explore hidden overlooks off the beaten path and witness the explosive power of Halemaumau Crater. Walk across new lava formations and actually see the rebirth of the native Hawaiian rainforest in its first stages of life. Enjoy a stop at the Jaggar Museum with its real time seismographs, eruption footage and beautiful displays of lava and Hawaiian geology. After a picnic-style specialty lunch, journey to the Volcano Winery for an unforgettable wine tasting that includes award-winning selections and uniquely crafted wines made with exotic fruits from around the island. No gourmet adventure would be complete without a stop at Big Island Candies known for their handmade macadamia nut shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate!
Note: To enjoy this adventure, participants must be at least 8 years of age. Participants must be at least 21 years of age to sample the wine. Natural sulfur gases may affect those with respiratory problems. Closed toe shoes are required. Tour itinerary may change due to weather or volcanic activity.
Average:
(13 Reviews) 13
Rating Snapshot (13 reviews)
5 stars
9
4 stars
0
3 stars
1
2 stars
3
1 star
0
9 of 13(69%)customers would recommend this to a friend.
Customer Reviews for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Review 1 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
5
out of
5
Adventurous:
4
out of
5
Family Oriented:
4
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
4
out of
5
DeniseD
Date:May 9, 2013
lots of fun
We were on the POA leaving Honolulu on 4/27/13. While in Hilo we took the Tastes and Volcano tour. Our guide, Chelsea, was excellent. She had a great,fun personality and was a wealth of information. It was a very nice tour and the lunch at the art gallery was a treat.It was a nice mixture of walking, exploring, eating and learning. Highly recommended.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Review 2 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
5
out of
5
Adventurous:
4
out of
5
Family Oriented:
5
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
5
out of
5
MichaelH
Location:Columbus, OH
Party size:4
I traveled with:Friends
Cruise Date Month:January
Favorite activities:Relaxing
Favorite port:Honolulu, Hawaii
I want to go here next:Caribbean
Date:January 16, 2013
Excellent Tour
Our guide was Kirk and he was extremely good! His knowledge of Hilo was incredible. My favorite part was the valcano park and Kirk knew everything about the valcanos. Loved seeing and learning about the agriculture of the coffee farm as well as seeing/learning about all the flowers. The art gallery trip was also more fun than I thought it would be. I would reccommend this excursion to anyone that wants have a taste of Hilo, My tour was in January 2013. Oh and ask for Kirk...he is the best!
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Review 3 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
5
out of
5
Adventurous:
3
out of
5
Family Oriented:
5
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
5
out of
5
Redbeard
Location:Bakersfield, CA
Date:November 3, 2012
Our guide Kirk was the best guide we have ever had in 20+ cruise excursions. He made the whole day interesting and enjoyable. Volcano and its history really shows Mother's Nature's power and fury. If you can get Kirk as the guide, this is a must excursion!!
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Review 4 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
4
out of
5
Adventurous:
4
out of
5
Family Oriented:
5
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
5
out of
5
Anonymous
Location:Houston, Texas
Date:July 11, 2012
Gourmet volcano.
Excellent tour. Carly was an excellent tour guide. Very knowledgeable and fun. Loved the coffee and the volcano tours. Size of group is small vs a bus size. Turned out to be better than I thought. Good for men and women likes.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Review 5 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
2
out of
5
Adventurous:
1
out of
5
Family Oriented:
2
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
3
out of
5
Bfish
Date:June 24, 2012
Not what was advertised
We went on the Gourmet Volcano Adventure with the intention of visiting the Volcano Winery. Guess what... they changed to tour to some Art Gallery???? Not much to see and lunch was server very, very late on the tour and was not gourmet food. We were held hostage by a crazy tour guide as well. I would NOT recommend this. We complained and were told that the tour was changed 2 weeks prior to our cruise and it is still listed on the website incorrectly. We were offered a free bottle of wine on the ship but no refund.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Review 6 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
2
out of
5
Adventurous:
2
out of
5
Family Oriented:
2
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
3
out of
5
mimi05052012
Location:Central NJ
Party size:2
I traveled with:Family
Cruise Date Month:May
Cruise Date Year:2011
Favorite activities:Educational
Favorite port:Nawiliwili, Kauai
I want to go here next:Caribbean
Date:May 17, 2012
disappointed - May 2012
Our 'intimate sized group' consisted of 12 of us stuffed in a passenger van. The lava was viewed from a look out, there was no walking across lava fields. Lunch was good, but not 'gourmet'. Stop at coffee mill was interesting, but rushed. Winery and Big Island Candies were ok. Felt more like a shopping excursion than a volcano excursion. Guide was knowledgeable, but very impressed with herself. Would not recommend. Would have been better off taking regular tour in full size bus. did not get what we paid extra for.
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Review 7 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
5
out of
5
Adventurous:
4
out of
5
Family Oriented:
5
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
5
out of
5
kmjn
Party size:3
I traveled with:Family
Cruise Date Month:January
Date:January 13, 2012
Loved this tour. Traveling with a small group has its advantages. The tour guide was excellent and provided information about the area, culture, etc. He even had raincoats and umbrellas for the light rain. The lunch itself was gourmet. It was the best 'excursion lunch' we had (without a doubt!). Highly recommend this tour.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Review 8 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
5
out of
5
Adventurous:
4
out of
5
Family Oriented:
5
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
5
out of
5
DNRduo
Location:Wisconsin
Party size:2
I traveled with:Family
Cruise Date Month:January
Favorite activities:Educational
I want to go here next:Canada and New England
Date:January 10, 2012
Worth the time and investment
This is what a shore excursion should be like. Small intimate group. Tour guide, Po, who likes what he does and it shows. Very personable; makes a big difference! Good food. Excellent commentary and experience. Unbeatable personality and overall tour. Very fun! Tour taken January 2012
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Review 9 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
3
out of
5
Adventurous:
2
out of
5
Family Oriented:
2
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
4
out of
5
KJD469
Location:Puebla, Mexico
Party size:1
I traveled with:Family
Cruise Date Month:December
Cruise Date Year:2011
Favorite activities:Adventure
Favorite port:Nawiliwili, Kauai
Date:January 9, 2012
Not gourmet
We were really looking forward to this excursion after reading all of the positive reviews on this site. However, in reality, this was a somewhat disappointing and overpriced excursion. We were stuffed into a van with no room to spare, there were 12 of us. The coffee stop was quick but interesting, but tiny samples were given - not even a full cup of coffee. The volcano was interesting, but we did not walk over any lava beds, as stated in the description and only viewed it from the lookout. The winery stop was not a favorite from anyone in our group, the consensus being that the wines were not that great, and when we arrived at the chocolate factory it was so crowded with tourist busses, there was not a sample to be found and you could barely move in the shop. While the provided lunch was ok, I'm not sure I would classify it as "gourmet". Perhaps if they change the title of this excursion, expectations would be lower and thus met. Overall, felt the volcano was interesting, but the other stops felt rushed and only felt as if we were there to shop, rather than learn about their processes.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Review 10 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
3
out of
5
Adventurous:
1
out of
5
Family Oriented:
3
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
1
out of
5
TimIndiana
Location:Bloomington, IN
Party size:1
I traveled with:Family
Cruise Date Month:September
Cruise Date Year:2011
Favorite activities:Educational
I want to go here next:South America
Date:September 12, 2011
Not a gourmet excursion, more of a shopping trip.
Images for this Review
(click to see full-size image)
My partner and I thought this excursion would be a great way to experience Hilo and their culture, but we were not that impressed. They do take you to Hilo Coffee, Volcano National Park, the Volcano Winery, and Big Island Candies, but they are nothing more than gift shops. We were under the impression we would get to see and experience more of these places, but we did not see any coffee, wine, or candy being made. The only close thing was photos of the process they had on the walls. It also seemed like we were rushed at each stop, and our operator was somewhat distant between me and my partner. Unfortunately, this excursion was somewhat of a let down and disappointment, and seemed more of a shopping trip to tourist traps, rather than anything educational. The lunch was great, and we had 3 different kinds of wraps (Pork, veggie, and chicken), home grown pineapple and mango, fruit juice, and some cookies, but lunch seemed to be the only thing that was gourmet on this excursion. The lava tube and Volcano National Park were the most informative places in this excursion. I would only recommend this excursion to people who want to buy any gifts that you might not find closer to the ship.
Would I take this excursion again? No! Would my partner take this excursion again? No!
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Review 11 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
4
out of
5
Adventurous:
3
out of
5
Family Oriented:
3
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
5
out of
5
Kym561
Location:Palm Beach Gardens, Fl
Party size:7
I traveled with:Family
Cruise Date Month:July
Cruise Date Year:2011
Favorite activities:Family oriented
Favorite port:Kona, Hawaii
I want to go here next:Alaska
Date:July 27, 2011
Great excursion
This was a great excursion. I went with my 21 year old daughter and 77 year old mother. It was good for all ages. We got to see an overview of the area.
Our Guide, Kahea (Cassandra) was
Fabulous ! She was quite knowledgeable, we learned so much.
Fabulous ! She was quite knowledgeable, we learned so much.
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Review 12 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
5
out of
5
Adventurous:
4
out of
5
Family Oriented:
5
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
5
out of
5
WorldTravelers
Date:July 23, 2011
Fun times with Po
Excellent tour...you will have a small group and will receive special attention. We had Po as our driver and guide for the day. We had enough time at each location and the day was very fun and educational on the volcano history. The food was good and you will get the opportunity to buy local produced coffee, wine, or chocolate at the stops along the way. I would recommend this tour in Hilo, so you see everything Hilo has to offer and you will get a leg up on the other guests on the ship for the next port stop in Kona as Po will fill you in on Kona as well.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Review 13 for Gourmet Volcano Adventure
Overall:
Fun:
5
out of
5
Adventurous:
5
out of
5
Family Oriented:
5
out of
5
Cultural/Educational:
5
out of
5
susanRI
Party size:3
I traveled with:Family
Cruise Date Month:July
Cruise Date Year:2011
Date:July 17, 2011
Awesome!
This tour was excellent. We all really enjoyed ourselves, including my 14 year old daughter. The guide, Kahea, gave us an insiders view of Hilo and the Volcano Park. The lunch was homemade and delicious. I would hightly recommend this tour.
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