Out of all the things that a tropical paradise has to offer, the one thing you don't want to miss is the Hawaii sub tours! Hawaii is home to a wonderful submarine environment filled with amazing fish, whales, magnificent reefs, and powerful history. While reef and wreck diving are certainly offered on the various islands, nothing can compare to the experience of seeing it all from the comfort and safety of a real submarine.
Hawaii's Submarine Environment
Beneath the waves, Hawaii is a very busy place. This little patch of the Pacific is home to thousands of species from whales and sharks to delicate reef fish, stars and anemones. In certain seasons, you can even see sea turtles on their endless migration and great schools of hammerhead sharks. But the indigenous sea life is not the only thing to see. Man has been leaving his mark on the islands and in the surrounding waters for centuries. Here you will find wrecks: Ships and aircraft lost or scuttled and the ravages of war. A submarine tour of Pearl Harbor will give you a whole new perspective on what happened that day in December, 1941.
Hawaii Submarine Tours: The Operators
Being the major tourist destination that it is, Hawaii boasts a number of different submarine tour operators. Generally, your experience will last about an hour and a half and you will dive between a hundred and a hundred and fifty feet down into the blue Pacific.
Atlantis Submarines
One of the largest operators of submarine excursions, they operate a fleet of boats and submarines from Oahu, Maui and Kona. Operating 365 days a year, except when the sea itself is too dangerous, Atlantis Submarines features some of the most technologically advanced vessels in the industry.
If you are staying on Oahu, your adventure begins at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. There you will have a chance to learn about some of the fascinating sea life you will see later from the submarine, and even pick up and take a close look at sea stars and other ocean animals. Then it is a trip aboard a motor launch to your waiting submarine. From there it is a fascinating look at the marine world that surrounds Oahu as the submarine dives and you are guided through the dizzying array of animals, the wrecks you will see and the history that is all around you.
Atlantis' Maui sub tours take you to amazing reefs and to the wreck of the Carthaginian. The old sailing vessel was not destroyed when she was deemed beyond repair, she was anchored one hundred and thirty feet to the ocean floor to provide the platform for a new, man-made reef. The Kona sub tours are a great for those who just want to watch fish. The eighteen thousand year old reef is teeming with exotic fish, sea turtles, and sharks.
Rules and Regulations
Of course, there are some rules you will have to abide by when you board the submarines:
- If you have children, they have to be a minimum of thirty-six inches tall to ride the submarine. No infants or toddlers.
- Each guest, regardless of age, must be able to independently descend and climb the almost vertical 7-step ladder that provides access into and out of the submarine.
Precautions
Finally, this is not an adventure for the claustrophobic. Yes, the submarines are roomy, air conditioned, and offer great views from their large windows, but it is still an enclosed space and one hundred feet underwater is not a great a place for a panic attack. So, if you are claustrophobic, before you book one of these excursions you should check with your doctor.
Hawaii Sub Tours: A Final Word
Hawaii has been described as a place of limitless beauty. The Islands have a rich history that goes back before the first Europeans ever saw the Pacific Ocean, they have been the location for countless films and one of them stands as one of the most famous battlefields in human history. Most people see all this but they miss the rest, the wonder and beauty that exists beyond the water's edge. That is what these submarine tours are all about. Check them out!
