From beginning to the end the communication, experience, and professionalism were on point. I was looking for a venue to have a 30th birthday party and Captain Ken responded promptly to my request. Captain Ken was very adaptable to my requests since I was planning a surprise birthday. He understood my situation and really tended to my needs for the party. I reserved a date and had to put a down payment. The services offered on the boat ride were open bar, decorations, food, cake, music, and etc. but of course with an additional expense. I've rented the boat for 3 hours because they only offer 3 hour blocks, but you pay per hour. Between the times of planning Cheryl one of the receptionist or planners had a wonderful attitude and kept in contact with me if I had any questions. She was really helpful through the whole process. The night of the boat ride, it was epic! The captain of the boat was Captain Paul and Wes as the bartender. As for decorations I brought a happy birthday banner and some pictures to post around the boat, but it had to be tied down with zip ties. I believe bringing decorations are limited such as balloons, streamers, but of course the boat does provide a party planner if needed. I've also brought a can koozie for everyone, which was a great idea since people would be holding their drinks. The music was played by one of my friends through his phone since they did have an aux cord and a bluetooth option. I also brought my own food, so that's another option too. Along with motion sickness medicine for people if they needed. The ride was smooth, and the weather was nice and chilly. The view was perfect because I was able to see the city lights, which really peaked my experience for a boat. The Captain and bartender were polite and did not complain about how drunk everyone was. I would highly recommend this charter boat event! And this can be done either during the day or night. Thank you guys for the breathtaking experience! read more

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Our family of 9 recently arranged a charter with Tradewinds Charters for a sailing catamaran experience during our stay on Oahu. We had an excellent crew on the charter. However, we were very disappointed to learn when we arrived at the marina that we were being switched to a powered catamaran that was basically a floating party barge. Although we were booked months in advance, Tradewinds Charters made no prior attempt to notify us of our change in the sailing experience for which we had paid. It should be noted that Tradewinds Charters knew that there was an issue with our reserved boat, the Sea Scape, about a month prior to our reservation date. Although we did have an excellent crew, we would not recommend using Tradewinds Charters for your charter experience in the future. read more

Had an absolute BLAST with Francesco on our charter with Tradewind. Whale watching was unreal, and the ride around the bay on wind power alone was incredible. Great snacks, awesome people. Loved my time on board My Sunshine. Would definitely recommend! read more

Tradewind Charters - Wear your sunscreen and get ready for an EPIC adventure with Tradewind! - Boat Charters Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Tradewind Charters is a top notch, professional outfit. We were lucky to go on two sails with Capt. Wes, a very competent, experienced sailor, who gets an "A" on flexibility, communication and care and concern for his passengers. Capt. Ken arranged both of our sails on the 43' yacht. We went snorkeling in 25' depth off Waikiki, and saw a big turtle and schools of fish. The snorkeling equipment provided was perfect. Spinner dolphins escorted us away from the snorkeling grounds, playing in our bow wave. We turned off the motors and enjoyed a beautiful sail off Waikiki toward international waters. Highly recommended. read more

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we were fortunate enough to take captain ken's maiden voyage of his new 39' catamaran (currently dubbed the sea scape). despite my group's back and forth on deciding which day and how many hours we wanted to book for, ken was always accommodating and patient. he and captain wes were great onboard and they were just as excited to take the new ship out as we were to enjoy the gorgeous weather and scenery. we brought snacks and drinks and they had 3 large ice chests filled w ice for us. there's currently a radio onboard but we brought a speaker w us so we played our tunes, chilled on the front trampolines, snorkeled with turtles, and rode around on these awesome water scooters. my husband even sailed for a bit! it was a really great crew which made the trip that much more enjoyable. plenty of room onboard for 12. our only regret was not booking for the full 6 hours. thanks captain ken! read more

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Whoever the captain of this boat is an absolute joke! They decided to anchor at a spot that had multiple charter boats. Then when he was ready to leave he couldn't back up for whatever reason then decided to make the 40+ people that were in the water enjoying their trip move out of the way so that he could try and maneuver his way out. What a joke! If it was too shallow to back up then you should have thought about that before you dropped anchor! I guess it's okay to inconvenience everyone else so that you can make money! read more

We had a fabulous sunset sail with Captain Ken and crew. It was a magical evening with 10 friends, to celebrate a special occasion. We had been on other catamarans in our 26 years in Hawaii but this was the first one with just our close friends, and it was tops. Beautiful, clean boat, professional, courteous and kind crew, and we were fortunate to see whales before the end of their season in local waters. A perfect time we will always remember. Thanks Captain Ken, Highly recommended. read more

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Lovely evening, beautiful sail, whales and sunset. Captain Ken will deliver the best experience while you are either visiting Oahu or you are a long time resident who wants to reconnect with the beauty of the sea. read more

Tradewind Charters is extremely responsive and reliable. My friends and I wanted to visit Hawaii for a bachelorette but unfortunately had to cancel due to the fires & issues with flights. Tradewind fully reimbursed us and made the process easy and smooth. When I eventually visit, I will 100% be using them for any boating excursions. read more

Wes is the worst captain on the island. Loved to yell at guests about the rules and is generally the least interesting person I've ever met sailing a boat. He goes out of his way to make you and your guests feel uncomfortable and demonstrates his years-efforts to keep his personality from allowing anyone in your party to have fun. Wes should be running a morgue or Pearl Harbor tour, not a fu sunset cruise. read more

Captain Ken is someone I've had a tough time discussing a private charter with due to his inability to be flexible with either timing or pricing of a charter. As a negotiator he will not meet you from a comparable price point, it's either his way or nothing. While I recognize everyone has been on hard times in this island, telling me that he's been doing this for 30 years is no reason to not be empathetic. read more

We booked the 50 ft Catamaran for a party of 19 for my husband's birthday. Captain Nate and Ashley were amazing. They were so accommodating and are professionals and what they do. You can tell they love their job. Ashley was amazing with our girls in the water, she swam with them while they were on a paddle board. Overall great customer service and i would definitely recommend this company. Thanks again for the unforgettable experience. read more

Booked a half-day sailboat in Honolulu. Captain was great. Pros: Boats are nicely equipped with plenty of upper deck and lower cabin space, they also have a bathroom. Tour was easy to book and very reasonable. There were great views of turtles, dolphins, and Waikiki Beach. Cons: Sail was a little lacking with where we docked for snorkeling. I do not recommend the reef fishing - it distracted from the other activities and wasn't executed well. The boat was also dated in terms of the interior. Overall: We had a good time. read more

A very awesome experience. The yacht was lovely and spacious for our group of five. The captain was friendly and helpful. We sailed out across Waikiki and anchored for snorkeling (which was only so so as the water was too deep and the reef rather uninhabited). However, who cares! We were on a yacht with an amazing view and able to jump into the warm water and swim around! Along the way, we say spinner dolphins who swam with us for some time and sea turtles. All in all, a highlight of our trip. read more

Such a great experience, went out with Captain Wes and had a great time, everyone in my group enjoyed themselves. 10/10 recommend. Try to find the whale tail. read more

What a great experience during our visit to Honolulu! We booked the charter the day before and had a fantastic time. Captain Wes greeted us when we arrived and took us out to the snorkeling area right off the coast of Waikiki Beach. We saw tropical fish, sea turtles and scuba divers! Our group booked the 11am time slot so we brought our own lunch and ate on the boat after snorkeling. We sailed around the ocean and even saw dolphins! I would definitely recommend this to others traveling to Oahu and wanting to rent a private boat ride for some snorkeling. read more

Captain Nate is the best hands down! Super welcoming and even had my fiancé and I laughing the whole time! He took the time to chat with us and even took pictures of us during the sunset! Definitely recommend read more

What a blast! Captain Nate made our adventure GREAT! He was awesome with our kids, ages 7 and 10, and showed us a perfectly tailored afternoon. Don't over think it, book with these guys!! read more

I would love to give this company 5 stars but if it hadn't been for the "Bad News Assistant" I would have love to put 5. The caption for our boat was new but he was a pleasure from start to finish and not to mention he was very satisfied, grateful and appreciated his tip . Unlike "The Helper" who was very ungrateful and said "is that all" yes that's all after you gave us a piss poor attitude and just a Debbie Downer" . Not to mention when he saw we brought our on refreshments his comment was " I didn't know this was a BYOB" like WTF dude. But other than these few bumps in the road it was an enjoyable experience for my "35 Birthday " I may suggest this place in the future but be skeptical just because the assistant thought he was more than what he was. Next time if your not such an ass you would get a bigger tip, but I shouldn't have to explain that. read more

Tradewind Charters - View from the boat - Boat Charters Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Highly recommend. Charter to go snorkeling with sea turtles. They provided the snorkeling equipment, life vests, and other toys. Saw many sea trutles and other fishes. After snorkeling adventure, we shut off the motor and went sailing. While sailing, the Captain offerred us the opportunity to sail the boat. Awesome day! Captain Ken and his first mate, Harrison, did a great job. Friendly and courteous. read more

Tradewind Charters - Snorkeling and sailing from Ala Moana to Diamond Head - Boat Charters Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Paul was our captain and he was super accompanying. We were able to enjoy Honolulu views privately. Great atmosphere for our honeymoon and might be one of the best parts of our trip. If you plan on enjoying a 5 star dinner you may want to look somewhere else. We had a great time and would do it again. read more

We chartered a boat to snorkel. Captain found a great spot to snorkel. Downside was when we crashed into rocks because we lost power and there was no wind to maneuver the sail boat. Instead of just waiting on someone to tow us in, the captain decided to sail into the channel with no boat power and no wind.The company did not seem to care. They never called to apologize for the experience. I emailed them and left my phone number. they did not care. Have not heard from them. They do not care about your safety, only getting the boat ready for the next charter. read more

We just used Tradewind Charters for a party to celebrate my best friend's birthday. Nate was an AWESOME captain (really nailed those boomerang pictures!) and did an overall great job making sure the whole boat had fun. Definitely recommend and would definitely request again! read more

I couldn't say enough great things about our day with CAPTAIN NATE. Whether you are in a celebratory, quiet and peaceful, or solemn mood, he reads the room and makes your experience unforgettable. We planned a memorial in honor of my grandmother who recently passed, and it was the most beautiful and perfect way to pay tribute to her. Captain Nate was amazing. He had the best attitude and spirit about him and gave us our space to pay our respects, play music, etc (while filming at a distance for family members who were unable to attend). We didn't want the whole day to be sad, so we celebrated my grandmother for the rest of our sail and Nate was a welcomed and positive addition. Nate was happy to do whatever he could to make our time on his boat wonderful--and it was. He was full of laughs and positive energy, and had some great stories. He also took some of the best pictures of my family (I'm talking professional-looking, IG worthy!) which we will look back on fondly forever. In short, Captain Nate went above and beyond--and my family and I are forever grateful for the perfect day we had sailing with the best Captain in Oahu! read more

I think my favorite part of my trip to Honolulu was my time with Tradewind Charters. The service that my group and I received exceeded my expectations. Prior to booking, I had a few questions that I emailed in and Captain Ken was very quick to respond, even with the time difference. He was great at answering my questions via email and phone. I had originally booked a Sail & Snorkel activity for December 3 but I wasn't paying enough attention and paid for the same activity but a week in advance. Captain Ken called me the same morning of the booked date, but was very accommodating when I realized I booked the wrong date and changed it to the correct date with no additional fee. Once I arrived on the correct date, we met our captain for the day, Paul. Paul was very knowledgeable about the surrounding area and gave us some tips for other activities we could do on our trip. Three hours seemed like a good amount of time but I could have done with an additional hour or two since it took us about 45 minutes to find a good spot for snorkeling, but even then my group only saw a few fish and two turtles. Paul was a great communicator and even let some of my friends steer the ship. I would definitely, absolutely look into Tradewind Charters again if I make my way back to Honolulu. Thanks for everything! read more

Excellent Saturday spent sailing with Capt Nate and some friends. Our departure was on time and we headed straight out for some swimming. We initially booked for whale sighting, but we had no luck. This wasn't disappointing at all, as Nate recommended a popular turtle snorkeling spot. We hopped off the boat and had the experience of a lifetime. We saw maybe 10 turtles, hundreds of fish, and lucked out and saw some dolphins as we sailed back into port. Beautiful day and Nate was great at recommending activities to keep us having fun. We did the 11-2 cruise and brought lunch. Excited to book a sunset cruise with this company. read more

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Dishonest company - misleading advertising. Wanted to take family on a fishing trip. Read reviews on yelp which looked promising. Then went to see if there were any deals on groupon. Their groupon clearly states that the coupon is for a family reef and snorkeling trip. When called to speak to Captain Ken, he said that they don't offer the deal anymore and that groupon was supposed to update the ad two months ago. Very dishonest. Then I asked if they have any fishing trips then he offered something that was much more $$$. Very dishonest. read more

Ok, I never post a negative review without addressing the owner first, but they failed to acknowledge my 5/9/19 email, so I am posting this review. We booked a four hour cruise with a catered lunch. We were sent to C dock, slip 30. Got there and nobody was there. Called the office and was told they were now at B dock. Ok, off to B dock. We were introduced to Capitan Nate. I asked him if he had our $25 per person deli lunch and he thought I was kidding. I assured him that I was not kidding. We searched the internet for a local deli and we ordered sandwiches, chips, and cookies from Whole Foods. Off Captain Nate went to get our lunch and we sat on the boat for a hour waiting for him to return. Meanwhile, Chris from the company came over and asked us what we were doing. He said they don't arrange for lunch. I offered to show him we the invoice were we were charged for it. Understandably he was upset but it certainly wasn't our fault. Chris said they checked their schedule and they could extend our charter to make up for the hour delay. We said no as we had other plans for the evening and we would need to cut an hour off the bill. Captain Nate came back with our three sandwiches, chips, and cookies. Off we sailed at 12:00pm. Mix ups happen and that is ok but the more I thought about the trip the more dissatisfied I have become. We were never showed where the life vests were located or familiarized with where the restroom, etc. was located. We arranged for a snorkel trip and the captain was unable to anchor at Turtle Canyon as he could not leave the boat to dive approximately 15 meters to latch on to the underwater anchors. We are not physically able to do that so we sailed on. Good thing we had a shortened trip. read more

My now fiancée thought the entire time on the sailboat was wonderful. The captain and crew were aware I was planning to propose and did a great job of giving us space while also being close by to capture the moment. I asked for a bottle of champagne to be ready and they had it out very quickly. They captured every moment for us and air dropped the photos before we left. We were able to spot a pod of whales and follow them for quite awhile at the closest safe legal distance. It was amazing! I may have paid for the trip but the 2 guys onboard are what made the trip. Thank you all so much for giving me the perfect venue to propose! read more

Tradewind Charters - Our engagement - Boat Charters Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

If I could give this review 10 stars I would. Captain Nate and Cheryl are beyond fantastic. We did the private sail and fireworks and it was worth every penny. From day one of planning for a very special event and birthday Cheryl had excellent communication and ensured everything was perfect. Lais, food, guava birthday cake!!!! Delicious. Captain Nate - AMAZING! Chef, Photographer and Captain. YOU ARE ALL AMAZING. Thank you so much for a phenomenal time. read more

What a great trip! We had the best time on our catamaran in Waikiki! Very well organized, clean and safe! Would do it again and again! Thank you for a memorable day! read more

My husband and I wanted to have something to do after our wedding for our guests. We checked with many different charters and let me tell you, we were more than happy with Tradewind Charters. First of all, the price for a private rental for a sunset view and fireworks was totally worth it for our guests to enjoy. This was truly worth ending our wedding day as well. The fireworks show was unbelievable and our view was amazing. Captain Ken was very helpful and friendly. His Staff was professional and fun to be with as well. We were also able to bring our own drinks and food on board, even alcohol. The boat also had a iPod hookup so we were able to use that too. For the price, professionalism, and service. I recommend this company for anyone who wants to entertain family or friends. read more

Captain Nate was great! We had a seasick group and had to cut the cruise short, but he was very accommodating and understanding. Took lots of great photos of all of us :) Would charter a boat with them again! read more

Incredible. Josh came to let us into the dock gate right on time for our reservation. Brought us on the boat, did a quick safety brief and immediately hit the water. They took us to a beautiful spot to snorkel where we saw a number of turtles as well as fish (they tossed fish food in so we could see plenty!) and even stopped along the way when they spotted a pod of spinner dolphins!! they let us snorkel as long as we wanted with the provided gear and then when we re-boarded took us out for a beautiful sail. The boat itself was AWESOME. Plenty of seating/nets out in the sun to lay in and covered padded benches and bar seats with a counter under the shade. Bathroom on board. They provided a big cooler with ice and water as well as music for the ride, but when we wanted to play our own they happily obliged. Literally could not have been a better trip; not sure where these negative reviews are coming from. Not only that, but they brought us out ON CHRISTMAS! Amazing company, will contact again in the future and HIGHLY recommend to anyone. Big shoutout to Captain Wes and Josh for making our day amazing. read more

Aloha, My Family and I did a 8am-11am Charter for a little fishing trip of 6. We arrived 15mins early and right when we approached the boat we were greeted by Paul with such a warm welcome of Aloha spirit and a smile. Drinks were provided by them we also was able to bring our own food and drinks as well. Because we were early we did get a head start. On our 3hr trip we were able to see a group of about 30 dolphins Paul quickly took us to were the dolphins were for about 15-20 mins we watched the dolphins swim and follow our boat we also seen a stingray and 2 huge turtles, it was such a beautiful day. My mom caught a total of 4 fish, my dad 2, and my brother in law 5. We were also able to swim and snorkel. I highly recommend this trip you won't be disappointed. We look forward to another great experience! See you soon read more

Cant say enough positive praises for Tradewind Charters! Booked a two-hour private sunset dinner cruise and it did not disappoint. Captain Chris was great and professional. We had a beautiful boat and it was a great night for sailing! Captain took us out to see some whales and we saw quite a few. And then we sailed around Waikiki. Highly recommend! Pricing was just right. My only negative comment is that dinner is a bit of a misnomer, as it was really just snack food. But otherwise, cruise was top notch! read more

I had the most magical day out sailing with Captain Wes, such a thrill to be back sailing and even given the opportunity to stand at the helm and guide the boat thru the swells. Saw three sea turtles mating (a once in a life time experience). If I could afford it I would go out everyday with Tradewind Charters and of course ask for Captain Wes, he is the best! read more

I've worked with Ken and his crew several times and they have always been great to work with. Easy, accommodating, and service oriented is how I would describe their work. Tradewind has taken care of all the odds and ends of our charters and made the experiences truly memorable. Thank you Captain Ken! Already looking forward to the next excursion. read more

Tradewinds Charter was amazing. The crew Wes and Miles were super personable and awesome. I had the private charter on the Seascape and would purchase through them again in Honolulu. read more

Our family arrived in Honolulu to find out that our plans for a memorial service for my brother needed to be completely reorganized. We called Tradewind Charters, and with less than 24 hours notice they managed to put together a very memorable cruise and traditional Hawaiian service with Kahu Kimo. They also helped us with all the details we didn't think about (flowers, beverages, etc.) It was the perfect way to honor my brother, and we couldn't have done it without Capt. Ken's and Tradewind Charters' help. And I should mention the price was much better and included more "extras" than some of the other services we called. read more

Tradewind Charters - Ash-scattering cruise off Waikiki. - Boat Charters Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii