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On a girl's trip to Maui, a close friend and I went on a snorkeling trip aboard the Calypso to Molokini (an ancient volcanic caldera) and Turtle Town. The caldera serves as a prime snorkeling location just off the shore of Maui and has a wide variety of sea life. The journey starts early in the morning at Ma'alaea Harbor, one of the world's windiest harbors, and ends in the same spot a few hours later. For two adult tickets, we paid $359.90, which included a light breakfast, buffet-style lunch, a sweet treat, and (non-alcoholic) drinks. We spent an additional $11 on parking at the harbor.
The Experience:
This activity does not offer hotel pickup and drop-off. We drove to the meeting point and found a paid parking lot nearby. We made the mistake of parking in one of the furthest parking spaces possible from the meeting point! When you pull into the provided address there are spaces, but if you keep following the road you can drive and park way closer to the Calypso Docking! If you go past Buzz’s Wharf restaurant there is more parking down the pier, closer to where the activity starts!
We arrived early and checked in with a crew member waiting at the end of the pier. When others arrived a small line formed to create a boarding order for the boat. We waited a while for everyone to show up, and once everyone checked in with the crew we boarded the boat. The tour starts at about 7:30 am, and the suggested arrival time is 6:45 am. We boarded early and secured a nice spot at the front of the boat. We had two chairs and a small table attached. While waiting for others to board, we enjoyed a light breakfast of muffins, pastries, coffee, juice, and fruit. It was nice to have breakfast and watch the sunrise from the front of the boat!
Once everyone was boarded onto the boat, there was a quick safety demonstration and then we were off for Molokini. It took us a little while to reach Molokini; this time allowed us to finish our breakfast and enjoy the view. When we finally reached the crater the crew instructed us on procedures for using the gear and getting into the water. They also covered signals to do if we needed help in the water, and how to let the crew know we were ok.
The staff then handed out gear to everyone and offered additional instructions to those who might not know how to snorkel. Along with a snorkel mask and spout, they had fins and flotation devices available. The staff were very knowledgeable and helpful! A few people on our tour did not know how to swim and asked staff how they should go about enjoying the tour. They were given a waist flotation device and pool noodles to help keep them afloat.
To get into the water there is a large staircase at the end of the boat. There are four staircases with handrails allowing multiple people to enter at once. It took a while for everyone to get into the water, but the staff helped direct “traffic.”
You can see the remainder of the Molokini Crater from the boat sticking out of the ocean. It is in a crescent moon shape and looks like a small island. It is now used as a bird sanctuary, and you can see many flying around as you approach. We were told by a few people we talked to before booking the tour that often around Molokini you can see reef sharks, turtles, stingrays, and lots of fish.
Unfortunately for us on our visit, we did not see any turtles, sharks, or stingrays! We did see lots of fish though! They were mostly Black Triggerfish (Humuhumu'ele'ele) and Yellow Tang (lau'ipala). We snorkeled in this area for about 45 minutes before being called back to the boat. During this time you were also allowed to jump off the boat or go down the slide into the water from the upper deck.
From Molokini, we headed towards Turtle Town, and we enjoyed a lunch buffet on our journey. They had ingredients to make sandwiches and various chips and drinks available. The chairs on the boat have small tables attached to them making it easy to eat lunch as the boat was moving!
When we got to Turtle Town we followed the same procedure to get into the water as before. Turtle Town is different from Molokini Crater, it was like snorkeling in the open ocean as opposed to snorkeling within the borders of the caldera.
There was a large reef system at Turtle Town along the ocean floor, and the water had good visibility. We could see down to the reef and see fish darting about between the coral.
However, in a place called Turtle Town, we only saw one solitary turtle! We must have come when all the turtles were out of town! The crew did a great job of trying to help everyone see the turtle, but it was hard with so many people trying to see it and trying to keep a safe distance from it. The staff informed us to keep a distance as touching/harassing sea turtles in Hawaii can result in upwards of a $100,000 fine!!
We spent less time at Turtle Town than at Molokini, but there was not a whole bunch of sea life action going on when we were in Turtle Town. We all got back onto the boat returned our gear to the staff and found our seats for the boat ride back to the harbor.
During the ride back to the harbor, the staff brought everyone an ice cream and a billfold with a comment card inside. We were all asked to review our experience on the comment card, and on the form in big highlighted letters was a recommendation for every couple to tip at least $20! It is normal for the captain and crew to make a small announcement about gratuity, but normally they approach it as a joke. This was the first time that I had ever been handed a piece of paper recommending in big highlighted letters to tip $20!
What to bring to Molokini Crater:
Sunscreen (reef-safe)
Towels
Flip-flops, or other water shoes
Hair ties
Jacket (the harbor is one of the windiest in the world!!)
Cash for tipping or buying drinks onboard
Summary:
Snorkeling at Molokini Crater was a fun and unique experience! In total, for two adults we paid $390.90, this includes the ticket price, parking fee at the harbor, and gratuities.
We had an excellent time aboard the Calypso and enjoyed the experience. We did not see as many sea creatures as we hoped, but they cannot control nature! Everything they could control was great, the staff were friendly, knowledgeable, and always willing to help. One thing I wish had been approached differently was the comment cards and recommended tip at the end, I felt like it came off a little aggressive! Other than that the tour went well and we had an exciting and safe snorkeling adventure aboard the Calypso while we visited Molokini Crater and Turtle Town!
Do you think a trip abroad to the Calypso to see Molokini Crater and Turtle Town is worth your wallet? Let us know below!
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