Atlantis Submarines Kona

Wasn’t expecting much but this turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip. Tons of fish, a shark and some shipwrecks. The staff were friendly and funny, knew a lot about the fish and the area. My parents enjoyed along with our 3 year old. You boat out to the submarine and boat back. Total time of the activity is an hour. If you get sea sick be prepared for the boat, once you’re on the submarine it isn’t bad. Our son wasn’t feeling too good with the boat rides but loved the submarine.

I was lucky enough to go solely with my group, as nobody else was signed up for our time slot. The staff are all friendly and very knowledgable. I was initially concerned about feeling claustrophobic, but it felt more like getting into a ride at a theme park. It was amazing to see the fish up close, as well as a few shipwrecks! We were also lucky enough to see a shark. You are under water for a substantial amount of time, making it worth your money! Highly suggested as an activity to do in Kona!

This is our second time in the submarine ride. The first time was six years ago when we were visiting the Big Island. We decided to do the submarine ride again for my youngest. This is a low key activity perfect for the littles ones. The total amount of time was about an hour. You start by taking a boat out to the submarine. Then you board it. Every seat has a great view of the ocean. My daughter loved the many fishes and the shark that she saw! The guide was enthusiastic and knows about the many local fishes around. A tip the concierge told me was to Go early in the morning to see the most amount of fish. They tend to hide by afternoon.

Great guides with a sense of humor. Great for kids (and adult kids, like my family!). The shipwreaks were cool, especially since the guides told us the stories behind the boats that sank. We saw a shark, lots of fish, some of them native only to Hawaii. Also, this does not interfere with Scuba diving, which was important because I had a Manta Ray night dive that same night.

First, I must say that the staff is very nice on this tour. And, they are obviously well-​versed and knowledgable about the sea life in the area. However, it was ultra-​expensive for the amount of time you are actually under water and the amount of fish etc that you see (even though I know each tour varies). The two ship wrecks were cool; but, it was an anti-​climactic ride. Kids would like it (I took the tour with my husband– both in our 30s); but, still, it’s super expensive for a family outing. If you could find a really good Groupon etc, it might be ok. But, really, rent a car and go see the volcano (esp. at sunset)!

Nice experience, but I recommend doing something else with your money. Perhaps go on a boat tour. We didn’t see too many fish. You do need to bend over frequently go get a better view. The staff was nice, the submarine was clean, and the tour was informative.

If you are on the big island then do this. If you have kids then they will love this, if you are an adult then you will love this.
Have you been on a submarine? No, well after this you will probably be the only person in your circle of friends that has. Bragging rights alone makes it worth it. Sure if you scuba then a sub isn’t going to be that big of a deal, but if you don’t scuba then this is the easy ticket to see the ocean floor.
The staff are pretty friendly, our guide on the sub was very helpful and funny. He really made this a 5 star trip. Some awful jokes, cheesy soundtrack and did a great photobomb in a picture I took of my wife.
The tour goes down to the bottom of the ocean up to about 110ft and you get to see a whole lot of coral and a couple of wreaks. You’ll see fish of course all through your own porthole on the sub, some will get up close and others will be swimming near the sub. Great for photos, the water was so clear when we went. We even got to see a shark.
They also do combo deals with body glove snorkeling which saves a bit of money.

What a waste of money! I was looking forward to this activity the most and it was such a letdown. The staff was pushy, we hardly saw any fish and you had to bend over in your seat to peer out the small hole. We saw way more fish snorkeling for free at the beach. Just buy some snorkel gear or rent and you can actually swim with sea turtles, all kinds of fish, small sharks, and manta rays (at dusk).

Sub ride was absolutely amazing and Tim, our tour guide, was hilarious and informative! 5+ stars!

The host of the tour we had was Tim! He was awesome! Because our group was small we got to have what was like an extended tour! Great for children! And we felt safe with him and the Atlantis Kona Crew

A really great hour to spend to see the underwater beauty of Hawaii. Our Captain Tim made for an extremely enjoyable and lively trip while remaining extremely informative. I consider myself decently knowledgable and he taught me a great deal. I would definitely recommend it to anybody on the island.

Enjoyed the Submarine Tour. Saw several species of fish. The crew were informative and shared safety precautions that were in place in case of an emergency. Great seats. Everyone had an unobstructed view. Went down 107 ft.

Manager Doug Fry and his disgusting treatment of people with service dogs, denied my friend a bucket list trip because he would not allow her service dog on board, and that is against the law!

This was great, the staff were very helpful and friendly. We took the first (10:00am) tour, and I was surprised at how much we saw. My impression was that they take you by boat to the sub, and then it just goes down and up again, but in fact it tours for 45 minutes at a depth of around 100 feet. We saw loads of shoals of tropical fish, eels, sharks, divers, wrecks. I felt like a kid again! I was very disappointed when it ended, and intend to treat myself again one day…

Took our kids on the Atlantis Submarine and they loved it. Crew was friendly and did a great job. Recommended for a family. They have good deals on their website also. Tip don’t use Apple Maps for directions it will get you lost. Just to to the pier or the Courtyard Marriot. The pier is right there.

Friendly staff and clean boat and sub although this tour is not for those who are claustrophobic– even just a little. I’m not but when they close the hatch, I had a sudden rush of fear and anxiety. I thought there would be more fish and sea life to view but there really wasn’t much. Neither was there much color– the reef was really brown. The sea life was so lacking that we resorted to viewing rubbish like ropes, tires, chains and anchors. They also took us past a wrecked sailboat which was pretty cool, but that was pretty much the highlights. After 15 minutes I started wondering when it will all end. Fortunately for me I was on a church field trip and didn’t have to pay for it. I would of been disappointed if I had to pay out of pocket.

We truly enjoyed this adventure. After reading a few critical reviews, I will say the team was attentive. The submarine was well maintained. I particularly enjoyed the music played as the sub toured the shipwrecks. It was fun. When the captain actually put the sub on the ocean floor, there was a thud. I immediately noted we were at a depth of 109ft! Definitely a good time.

. This is most certainly a touristy thing to do! Its expensive but how else are you going to see the shift in the ocean floor if you’re not. SCUBA certified?
The staff was warm and friendly, Jasmine, our guide was quite knowledgable as she let us in on the different schools of fis that were congregating on the reef. We even caught a spawning of some delicate little fish that looked like watermellon seeds. Watching them swim aroind and then spiral upward to the surface was interesting and entertaining.
The two ship wrecks we got to see were also both exciting to view.
I think however, when there are less than !% people on the sub they should space floks out and not necessarily put everyone on the same side. I get that it makes it easier for them to focus the viewing, but we were all close quartered and probably didn’t have to be.
Over all, I’m glad we did this, it was a lor of fun.

I’m not much of a snorkeler or a swimmer for that matter so I thought this would be a cool way to see fish! You can also see sunken ships if there are no cruise ships docked. If I knew this before hand I would have waited for the cruise ship to leave before scheduling.
The ride to and from the submarine isn’t for people who get sea sick easily. I almost threw up but was fine on the submarine. I was thinking that the ocean floor was going to be vibrant with color like on the Discovery Channel but it’s mostly all blue. You can make out some of the bright yellow fish but you can’t even see the true colors of the coral. The guide said it has to do with us not being deep enough (102 ft) and about the light filtering through the water. He said if you were to take a piece of the coral to the surface you can see the actual color.
I did find the experience to be very cool even though it wasn’t what I was expecting. I can actually say I was on a real submarine which makes me feel like I’m an adventurer even though I’m not.

Since this wasn’t my first experience with Atlantis, I wasn’t too impressed. As for my husband and his dad, they loved it!
The staff are very friendly and helpful. They kept close to the schedule and made the experience fun. The guy (forgot his name) that did the narrating during the ride was informative yet funny. He made the experience more fun than just stating facts.
I suggest doing it when there are no clouds in the sky. They tend to make it hard to see.
This is fun for all ages. If you have someone that has a hard time climbing steps, it will be difficult to get them in and out of the submarine.