Body Glove snorkel cruise in Kona Hawaii

It was an early morning start for the two kids and myself, but fortunately the fun adventure ahead with Body Glove cruise on the Big Island would be worth the early start. It’s a little harder with my niece and nephew who are more night people to wake up at 5:30 in the morning. Fortunately it was just a short drive to the boat launch and parking is pretty easy in the morning.

Morning at Kona Pier

Check in at pier and boarding

It seemed like the Body Glove cruises are the first to load up on the pier with the rest of the fishing and outdoor boating tours at the Kona town pier. Walking towards the pier where the ship was docked fronts a wonderful panoramic view of Kailua Kona town and the coastline with the sun starting to peak out behind the hills of Holualoa. The views were beautiful and a perfect setting for taking a wonderful photo of the town and coastline.

Once we boarded, we immediately found a nice seating area and headed directly to the breakfast food buffet. The food service was nice with an array of fresh tropical fruits and juices, pastries and breads, yogurt, cheese and eggs. The bar tender also offer to make some complimentary smoothie drinks which was a perfect way to start the morning. We took our drinks out to the front of the ship and spotted a large green turtle floating close by, what a great start we were already having even prior to the ship sailing.

Morning at Kona Pier and views

Heading out of Kona town

After all the safety checks and instructions from the crew, we headed out slowly from the pier and happened upon a pod of spinner dolphins that live just outside of the harbor area. It was nice to already see wildlife from the start with the green turtle and dolphins right from the start.

Cruising the Kona coastline

The Body Glove was heading south along the Kailua Kona coast and passing the many small beaches and strings of hotels and condos dotting the scenic landscape. This opens up to more rugged terrain with lava rock outcrops, caves and more secret coves that look beyond reach from the shoreline. Since it was whale season, we kept our eyes open around different parts of the ocean and bays to see if we could spot any of the famous humpback and other whales, but we weren’t so fortunate this time around. After a wonderful morning cruise sailing towards the Red Rocks, we finally get to these curved red lava rock formations resembling and native female. The crew secure the ship and one of the life guards does a showy dive off the stern and free dives below to secure the ship to a permanent anchor in the solid rocks below.

I love that the crew of the Body Glove is very meticulous about all the details for snorkeling the area and even offering a beginner’s snorkeling session with newbies on how to use the snorkel set with mask and fins. They also give detailed instructions of the swimming parameter and areas to avoid around the coast – which is great along with the lifeguards from the ship patrolling the waters for any issues. The kids go ahead and attend the class while gather up all the floating and water gear that they will be using and head out to the water. The Pacific Ocean is surprisingly cold during winter, but not bad after you are swimming around, so I adapt and assemble all the floats while waiting for the kids to finally come down from the stairs.

Snorkeling by the Red Rocks in South Kona

You enter a completely fascinating world once you put your head in the water, you can easily see from a depth of 20 feet in clear water and gorgeous coral reefs that look healthy and in a range of colors and sizes. Bringing the best underwater camera to this snorkeling experience really adds to taking home some fantastic captures of the gorgeous reefs, coral and tropical fish we found in the area.  Schools of tropical fish swarm around the protected corals and staying close to their home turf while more giant sea turtles swim close by oblivious to our presence. We are given about two hours to float around, grab a hamburger lunch or even jump from the high deck or slide from the ship’s side which was exciting for the kids to do. Lunch ended up being salads and burgers with healthy taro chips for that salty crunch factor.

 

Returning back to Kona Harbor

After indulging in a leisurely two hours of snorkeling, eating and jumping off the sides of the ship, it was time to head back to Kona pier. The slight breeze and beautiful coastline and views made the return trip even more pleasant and the hot sun really added to the wonderful cruise back in. And in no time, we arrived back to Kona Pier past lunch time and said goodbye to the attentive staff. It really turned out to be a wonderful day cruising the Kona coastline, snorkeling at Red Rocks and an enjoyable return trip to Kona town and pier, the Body Glove tour experience with kids was the perfect way to enjoy a snorkel experience on Hawaii Island.

Enjoying the sun while cruising the Kona coastline

Check out this short Kona coast video highlights below

Details on taking a coastal cruise with Body Glove

Free parking is available a few blocks away in a designated parking area

You should bring your own towels

Sunscreen is provided if you forget to bring some

There is a bar service on board so you can order alcohol and mixed drinks which is extra

Also, you can rent Go Pros, go scuba diving and buy souvenirs on board.

For prices and calendar of daily sailing or specialty events, you can check out their website here for more details.

Thanks for visiting today and checking out this post with Body Glove snorkel cruise in Kona Hawaii, hopefully you will be able visit and experience this fun snorkel and cruise experience on the Big Island. If you enjoyed the images and post, could you please share it with any of the social media buttons located around the post.

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Conclusion to the Kona coast cruise with Body Glove Cruises

Thanks to Body Glove for the sailing/snorkeling experience along the Kona coastline on the Big Island, all thoughts and opinions are my own and I think this is a fantastic adventure for the entire family to do while visiting the area.

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