04/30/08

Take Your Next Vacation On The Wild Side

by JoyHunter

Have you visited Hawaii, or encountered marine wildlife, where they live - in the wild? Wild Side Specialty Tours is located on Oahu, they offer personalized dolphin excursions, sea turtle encounters, and sunset cruises. They take you out on their 42 foot catamaran for up-close and personal encounters with Hawaiian Spinner dolphins, maybe even a chance to get into the water and swim with them. The dolphins, turtles and tropical fish are not caged in an enclosure, you are actually with them in their own environment! If you are worried about disturbing their environment (like me) don't worry, WSST follows strict environmental business practices and rules to minimize disturbance to marine wildlife and habitats. While having your vacation with WSST you can also be contributing to the environment because s portion of your fees are donated to the Wild Dolphin Foundation for marine conservation and research. If a nature connection is what you seek, let Wild Side Specialty Tours take you on that journey.

• Pros: the whole experience! Knowledgeable crew who cared, giving back through active contributions. Rural area away from the city
• Cons: Rural area about an hour away from Waikiki (but near Ko Olina), need a rental car to get there.

10/09/06

Best whale. dolphin watching, and snorkel adventure on Oahu

by ocean_gurl

Marine biologists who care about the wildlife and the rural host community make this an adventure that gives you a Hawaiian sense of place. They have chosen to keep the passenger numbers down on the catamaran creating a setting for immediate friendships among strangers, and to ensure the best experience possible for both people and the wildlife encountered. Wildlife encounters? Magnificent, surreal, safe.

The crew was friendly and professional. The tour was, for us, an enriching and educational

experience. There were only 8 passengers on the boat for our tour.

The highlight of our tour was seeing the dolphins at play, of course, but snorkeling with the beautiful sea turtles, fish and coral reef was certainly a highlight of activities that we have experienced in Hawaii. That turtle cleaning station on the reef was absolutely amazing! At one point, we saw six adult sea turtles and one youngster on the rock, all at the same time!

"Breathtaking" just doesn't fully describe the experience. We would recommend this company to anyone looking for an eco-friendly, wildlife-friendly, and research-oriented tour company.

• Pros: High standards, marine experts, safety and comfort
• Cons: Hour drive from Waikiki, no transportation, book well in advance !!!