I've taken several guided tours through my travels. I can't say that I am an 'expert', but I've experienced great, good, kinda good, to downright terrible guided tours. I can say with 100% confidence that Wade provided above and beyond what I expected for a guided tour and is the best I've experienced so far. There is a list of reasons on why I am giving such rave review for Wade... his knowledge, his passion, his consideration, I can go on and on. All those 'ingredients' must be present to make an excellent tour. For example, I once went on a guided tour where the tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and passionate... but has no consideration of who her audiences were. She bored me to tears after the first 30 min of the 5 hour tour....
Our trip to Maui was a part of a good friend's birthday trip. She actually was the one that found No Ka Oi Adventures and told me she wants to sign up for the all day tour. When she told me how long and how much it would be, I kinda did a...
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I was a bit skeptical. So I started reading all the reviews about No Ka Oi Adventures and about Wade. I was very impressed by the rave reviews from various travel sites. So my husband and I went along with it. However, being a natural skeptic, I still had my doubts. I had done larger tours and felt they were very 'generic'. I had done customized private tours and had the tour guides kept asking "where do you want to go next?"... which I responded with, "dude, you are the expert, tell me where we should go next!" So spending ALL day with a tour guide to me was a big risk for our precious time in Maui.
Here is what made our all day tour so freakin' awesome. Our party of six ranged from early 30s to 60s... yea, so it's not like we all have the same physical strength etc. But, Wade took the time to ask before hand (via email) what the party make up is and preferences so he can prepare for an itinerary. The day started early and our first destination was a what I considered 'medium' hike. He was very attentive and even said that this particular hike helps him determine what kind of activities are appropriate for our party.
Throughout the day, I can tell he has a cache of places and BACK UPs in case some places didn't work out. There were times when he would ask our preferences so he can present options and customize based on that, and then there were times (when much needed) he would let us know HIS preferences. I can't stress what a fine line it is as a tour guide to dance between customize for your customers vs. use your own expertise to 'push and nudge' so your customers can enjoy what they might not even know existed. Wade handled it with flying colors.
We had a great time that my original concern of having a 12 hour long day with a tour guide felt like it was too short. He not only came well prepared (again, a cache of BACK UP places, all the gears you might need to snorkel, towels, sun screen etc), he was personable and fun to chat with. His picks of destinations is a combination of scenic routes and look outs, adventurous places and activities, local establishments to try various treats, and paths less known and traveled. We learned a great deal because he was knowledgeable and personable and can pretty much strike up a conversation on a wide variety of topics.
I think everyone can enjoy a tour with Wade. I do caution that it is no "luxury" tour (i.e. you have to work to be rewarded in some areas). But if you have an open mind, communicate your preferences, and let him take the lead, you will be rewarded with many pleasant surprises, fun activities, and just overall a great experience. read more