Smith's Kauai Wailua River Cruise to Fern Grotto with Live Entertainment
Overall Rating
4.46
Wailua River Cruise
Reviewed by: JSchwarcz, 2014/05/18Beautiful trip down the Wailua River with great entertainment! Fern Grotto was spectacular!!! A must see when in Kauai!!
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2014/04/26 |
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Absolutely loved the cruise!
Reviewed by: Deb L, 2014/05/01The cruise up the river on the barge was well narrated and very enjoyable. A great deal of history and general information about the area was shared with us, and various landmarks were pointed out.
Once we reached the Fern Grotto, we were entertained by the Smith family as they played the traditional wedding song, and we were given additional information about the Fern Grotto itself - including it's history and how it was made famous.
The return ride on the barge included the entertainers joining us and continuing the music and dancing. Visitors were encouraged to learn to hula and taught various moves.
As someone who tends to get very seasick, I had no issues at all on the cruise. Not even in the slightest.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2014/04/15 |
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Fern grotto
Reviewed by: ZNmez, 2014/03/08The cruise was not too long, about two hours in total. The Wailua River is beautiful! The crew did a great version of the island "wedding song" while at the Fern Grotto. It was amazing to learn to hula from such talented dancers! Such a beautiful art!
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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Fern Grotto Tour
Reviewed by: Kauai Val, 2014/01/28This is an awesome activity. I love the leisurely cruise up the river, the beautiful tropical foliage, the traditional Hawaiian music and the hula entertainment. This is the best bang for your buck in the islands. Definitely a must do!
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2014/01/25 |
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Good combination of dance, scenery, & river view
Reviewed by: Ann, 2014/01/14I think this trip was reasonably priced and you get a variety of things: river, hula performance, and the fern grotto--not a dull moment for this trip.
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| Attended as: | Solo Travelers |
| Activity Date: | 2014/01/11 |
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Fun Experience
Reviewed by: Chere, 2013/12/28We learned about the island, how to hula, and took some amazing pictures. The Smiths were great
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2013/03/08 |
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Relaxing Afternoon on the River
Reviewed by: JamesD, 2013/09/28Truly enjoyed the smooth ride up river with explanation of the local culture and sites. Musicians and dancers obviously enjoyed their craft and were top notch. Very pleasant way to spend the afternoon.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2013/09/09 |
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Great!
Reviewed by: Rebekah, 2013/06/18free shuttle picking up, great river scenery, live music, magic grotto, great service!
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
| Activity Date: | 2013/06/06 |
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Fern Grotto Tour
Reviewed by: Dave, 2013/06/13The Smith's Fern Grotto tour was a good way to see the fern grotto and understand some of the history. There was a 20 minute boat ride to the fern grotto landing, time to take pictures, presentation of a Hawaiian Wedding song, complete with hula interruption and demonstration of various hula dances on the boat ride back. All in all - recommended tour.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2013/06/03 |
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Beautiful
Reviewed by: Sixto, 2013/06/07A relaxing experience with beautiful views and great entertainment.
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
| Activity Date: | 2013/06/04 |
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Great Job
Reviewed by: Salt Lake City, 2013/02/14Smith tours did a great Job with the boat ride.
The grotto.
The entertainment was a nice touch and very well done.
Would recomment this trip to all
One of the good values exploring Kauai
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| Attended as: | Friends |
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Disappointing
Reviewed by: jcaruthers, 2012/11/05My new husband and I went on this River cruise as recommended by our travel agent as the most romantic thing we could do for our honeymoon.
The only romantic thing about it was the Hawaiian wedding song while we stood on a deck with 100 other people. This would not be my idea of romantic. Maybe it used to be a romantic place to go when you could go inside the cave but now it just looks like a rock wall with some ferns in it.
We didn't get the best start to our boat ride but we were both disappointed when we arrived to our location. The entertainment was fun and were really the only reason the trip was worth it. I wouldn't recomend it to anyone as a place to see on their honeymoon. The only thing that redeemed it was that it was probably the cheapest thing we did while we were there.
Since this site won't let me pick wouldn't recommend it to anyone. I chose families.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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Beautiful
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2012/10/12The Grotto is beautiful. A must see for all visitors.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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Okay not great
Reviewed by: Peggy - Global Traveler, 2012/08/0620 years ago this was a really great trip as you were able to go inside the cave and the water fall there was more than a trickle. Since the Iniki Hurricane in the 90's that is no longer possible. The landslide that happened ended the cave tour part and ended the waterfall being as it was.
I would recommend this to any one who has just landed in Kauai, older couples perhaps, who have never seen a fern grotto of any kind. For kids it is boring. Heard that a few times :)
As for a wedding... I would honestly not recommend this particular trip as it is average or just okay. The boat trip up and back in the boat was the best part. For wedding parties I would honestly recommend arranging something with the Smith Family or one of the local Resorts and doing it as part of a Luau. That would be better. Hawaii Activities can help you find many other events that would be better for a wedding. They rock!
This is a nice easy trip and okay to see. But if you have limited
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
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Great fun
Reviewed by: Carl O, 2012/07/21We thoroughly enjoyed this informative and beautiful cruise. The Captain shared much information and was very entertaining. On the way back, the entertainment was excellent. Good time!
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
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Fern Grotto - June 2012
Reviewed by: ANDRA, 2012/07/01Loved the staff, they were great, fun, and informative. However, was not what I expected. I am not sure what would have made it a better experience. The Fern Grotto itself was beautiful, but there were too many people on the deck to enjoy it. Made it crowded and uncomfortable.
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| Attended as: | Friends |
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WE HAD A GREAT TIME !!!
Reviewed by: BETH, 2012/02/27Six of us just returned from Oahu and Kauai!! Had a WONDERFUL time!!! And the Fern Grotto boat ride was just really nice!! The staff was WONDERFUL, and they made us all feel so welcomed!!! We just really had a GREAT TIME!!! I would recommend this to anyone!!!! The walk to the fern grotto was EASY, and the photo ops were priceless!!! Just alot of fun with my friends!!
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| Attended as: | Families |
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Fern Grotto
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2011/09/20Enjoyed the cruise ... Thank you
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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cruise
Reviewed by: Scott, 2011/05/21Thanks.
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| Attended as: | Families |
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River Tour
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2011/04/07Great for kids.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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River Ride
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2011/04/07Good for families with small children.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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Fern Grotto
Reviewed by: Karen S, 2011/02/15We loved the pace, entertainment and narration. Our entire family had a good time. Thank you!
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
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very enjoyable
Reviewed by: connie, 2011/02/15We totally enjoyed the river cruise and the fern grotto. We were a little disappointed we could not actually go into the grotto but totally understand. It will be good to come back and see it again after a few years and some more fern growth.
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
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Slow paced enjoyment
Reviewed by: Mike B, 2011/02/08The wailua river cruise is very unique, we saw a lot of Kauai we didnt know was there, and learned a lot from our guide. The pace of the tour is slow and relaxed.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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Even less than I expected
Reviewed by: Barry, 2011/01/14The staff was very nice and the boat ride was relaxing but the Fern Grotto itself was less than I expected, and I wasn't expecting much.
You don't go inside the cave. You just look at it from a distance.
You can see ferns growing from the face of a rock cliff where the cave is located. You view it from a platform where weddings are performed these days. You can't go inside to see the area where 100 people can gather.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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Perfect for first timers!
Reviewed by: The Anchondo's, 2010/08/23Our first time to Kauai and we decided to try the Wailua River Cruise to Fern Grotto and we absolutely loved it! it was kinda slow but very relaxing, and such beauty surrounding you how could you not like it..
I know its got some bad reviews and I cant understand why, if you appreciate the beauty of Kauai then you will love this short and sweet experience and you can get some really great pictures too.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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Great time!
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2010/06/04Our group enjoyed the music as we cruised the river. The scenery was outstanding and the staff provided good service.
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
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no comment
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2010/02/11no comment
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| Attended as: | Families |
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Author
Reviewed by: Marilyn, 2010/01/24This was my second trip and I loved it as much the second time as I did the first. I will highly recommend it to anyone who is coming to Kauai.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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Fern Grotto is beautiful!
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2009/11/22We thought the Fern Grotto was beautiful and the river cruise scenery was spectacular. Entertainment on board was so so.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
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