Index
About this Dive Tour
We invite you to spend a morning exploring two different dive sites. Kona diving covers 40 unique dive sites within a 20 minute boat ride. Explore the Kona’s rugged underwater coast on our 46ft Newton Dive Special, the Honu One. Our boat is the most spacious and well-appointed dive boat in Hawaii, and Kona Honu Divers offers the highest quality diving experience available in Hawaii. On this 5 hour Kona scuba diving charter, you can expect to spot many of our colorful endemic fish, swim through old lava formations, spot the hard-to-find octopus, see a resting white-tip reef shark, or encounter many other creatures that call Kona’s clear, warm, waters their home.
Looking for a more exclusive experience? We also offer a 2 Tank Local Morning Charter on our other boat, the Honu Lele. With a capacity of only 6 divers, it is a fantastic way to spend your morning! You can view availability for the 2 Tank Local Morning on the Honu Lele here.
*If there are certain dive sites you have your heart set on we recommend private chartering the Honu Lele for the most exclusive Kona diving experience available.
Why Divers Choose Kona Honu Divers
- High standards to join our tours
- Experienced guides
- Small dive groups – 6:1 ratio
- Free Nitrox for those that hold the certification
- Neutral buoyancy 80cuft tanks
- Dive as long as your tank lasts
- Thorough educational briefing of dive sites
- A variety of snacks during your surface interval
- Marine head (bathroom)
- Hot water shower – a divers favorite!
- 46 Passenger dive boat with a maximum of 18 divers aboard
- Our high-quality rental gear is serviced and replaced very frequently
- Camera Tables & Rinse Buckets
Diver Requirements
- Proof of open water certification and higher
- Been diving within the past 2 years. If you have been dry for over 2 years you must opt for a refresher or perform a checkout dive on your own prior to joining us.
- You must be in good health with NO heart conditions
- You must be able to converse in English
- You must dive with a computer
- You must be able to dive in a group and not need more attention than what is normally provided on a guided dive
- You must remember there are other guests onboard that are looking for a premium experience so our standards MUST be met. Kindly be a responsible and considerate diver
- We require divers 12 – 17 years old to dive with a parent or guardian
- Junior Open Water divers ages 10-11 require a private guide, please call for availability
When or Why would a private guide benefit me?
- When you want to creep along and photograph your favorite critters
- When you have equalization issues and need extra time to descend
- When you are a new diver and aren’t quite ready to be in a dive group
- When you are anxious or nervous, or just want more personalized one on one attention
- When you have a group of more than six divers and want to all dive together
A Private Guide is an additional $349 and there is limited availability – call to inquire.
Directions to The Honu One
Kona Diving with Kona Honu Divers
Kona Diving is the best diving in Hawaii. Our reefs are plentiful with loads of hard corals in a variety of colors. Butterflyfish, Moorish idols, eels, and schools of goatfish are common sightings. Octopus are a very common sight when scuba diving on the big island. We see them as often as every other dive often with multiple sightings per dive! Occasionally we’ll see larger critters while diving like whale sharks, mantas, turtles, white tip reef sharks and even humpback whales! Most of the best dive sights are just minutes from Honokohau Marina, where our boats are waiting, offering a great variety of Kona scuba diving in the area. All in there are over 40 sites within a 25 minute ride from the harbor. Our reef scape is often diverse with lots of swim-throughs, caves, overhangs, pinnacles, and walls. Often times we will find interesting things like nudibranchs hanging out inside arches. Our experienced and highly trained dive guides have been scuba diving Kona’s reefs a long time. Some of them more than 17 years! Additionally, we offer wonderful amenities top side. Valet diving, free nitrox, plenty to eat and drink and superior rental equipment are among a few of the things that keep divers coming back year after year. Our spacious 49 passenger boat is roomy and offers loads of room for only 18 divers. Kona scuba diving with us is a whole different level of quality.
Kona diving has it’s benefits. Clear warm water, and little current make for ideal easy diving conditions. Visibility can range between 30ft(10m) on a bad day to 100+ft(30m+) on the better days with the average usually falling around 40-80ft. Kona’s varied coastline and protection from ocean swells makes for an even better time on the surface. We have the ability to tuck away from open ocean swells using bays and points for shelter. Our dive boat the Honu One is large and comfortable with plenty of viewing platforms for watching whales and dolphins on the way to and from the dive sites. We take a spacious maximum of 18 divers while our boat is technically capable of accommodating up to 30. The Honu One has a main deck, a spacious bow and an upper deck for lounging that accommodates 8-10 comfortably. Our knowledgable dive guides will brief and debrief you on all of the critters we see when Kona scuba diving answering any questions you may have about them. We relish in getting to know our guests. Less experienced divers love Kona diving because it’s so accessible. Most of the best Kona diving ranges between 15-50ft. This means you will see tons of great stuff regardless of your scuba diving skill level. This doesn’t mean the diving in Kona is shallow. Most sites offer access to nearly unlimited depths with reef slopes unusually close to shore. This allows access to a variety of depth profiles for all divers! Truly exceptional diving is Big Island diving.
In addition to great diving, comfy boats, and experienced divemasters we strive to provide the complete Kona scuba diving experience. Valet diving means we handle your gear for you so all you have to do is show up and dive. Our experienced dive staff will set up your scuba gear and test its function. We will help you put your gear on so all you have to do is stand up, hop in, and start breathing! We will also rinse and store your gear for you so you don’t have to worry about it until it’s time to head home. You’re going to love diving with Kona Honu Divers. Kona diving like it should be! If you’d like to take advantage of our beautiful diving please give us a call so we can talk about the many packages we have available for you. There’s so much to see and do here underwater in Kona so let’s talk about what might be right for you. The ocean therapy awaits!
Frequently Asked Questions
Hawaii Island (Known as the Big Island) has some of the best diving among all of the Hawaiian Islands. Kona (west side) has clear warm water that is calm most of the year and filled with lava features. There is an abundance of marine life including lots of large animals.
Kona has the best diving in Hawaii and exceptional diving when it comes to large animals, and dramatic underwater lava formations.
September is the best month to dive in Kona because the ocean conditions are best and there are fewer divers on the island.
The Big Island of Hawaii has the best diving among the Hawaiian Islands.
If you did one dive you will need to wait 12 hours before driving to Hilo from Kona because all routes exceed the recommended 2000ft ceiling recommended by DAN, if you did 2 dives of more you will need minimum of 18 hours before driving from Kona to Hilo.
You are permitted to bring handheld cameras of any kind. Our boat can accommodate large camera rigs as we have camera tables and rinse buckets on board. Drones are not permitted.
The effects of scuba diving while pregnant are not well studied. Doctors currently do not approve of scuba diving while pregnant.
Our 46′ custom Newton, The Honu One, can accommodate up to 18 divers comfortably. If you hire it for a private charter it can accommodate up to 30 snorkelers.
The Honu Lele is able to accommodate 6 passengers.
We take a maximum of 6 divers per guide
To book a private charter on the Lele, or to book as a guest on any charter, check availability below.
It’s difficult to say without knowing more. Please contact us regarding your situation so we can provide more personalized accommodation options.
Every diver should have dive insurance. Regular health insurance does not cover decompression illness and the required evacuation costs. We highly recommend as it is the best available.
We donate quarterly to Ocean Defenders Alliance based on the number of divers on each charter. They are a national non-profit that runs local underwater cleanup efforts from our boat, the Honu One. To see who we have donated to in the past and how much check out our eco friendly page.
Snuba is diving while connected to a tether. We offer Discover Scuba Diving which allows more freedom of movement without the need for certification. Follow the buttons below to learn more about no-certification-required dives and check availability of the Scuba Discovery Course!
Divers must provide their own transportation. Unless scheduled ahead, Taxi’s and Uber’s are not reliable forms of transportation at this time.
Late summer and early fall give us the warmest water temperature of about 80°F (27°C), sometimes higher! Winter temps run about 74-76°F (23-24°C). We have quality 5 mm wetsuits in our rental, but if you are cold-blooded, bring your hood!
Typically the diving is shallow in Kona with the best marine life being between 15 – 45 feet. Diving beyond 60 feet is uncommon since there is often less marine life at those depths. Looking to dive deeper and see more unique dive sites? Check out our Premium Advanced Long-range Charter.
We need to see proof of your certification. If you are certified through SSI, SDI, or NAUI you can look yourself up and screenshot the diver verification screen. If you were certified through PADI, get a replacement card. Get an ecard so you always have it on you! Sometimes we’ll be able to verify you ourselves from your reservation information, but not always, so be sure to still bring your card or screenshot.
Any tip for the crew is greatly appreciated, most divers leave $10 per tank. If you feel you have received exceptional service don’t be afraid to show the crew more love.
Kona Honu Divers offers the best diving experience available in the Pacific. Our owner Byron, founded a snorkel company that offers the best snorkel experience in Hawaii and is located right next to the dive boat. Check out their snorkel tours here.
