The Surf Bus North Shore Fun Tour - Snorkel, Bike, Kayak, SUP & Waterfall
Overall Rating
4.65
Surf bus
Reviewed by: Susie, 2017/01/14Sam was our driver and tour guide. He was very informative and we learned a lot about not just The North Shore but also Hawaii.
We were able to change activities if when we checked them out we changed our mind. Sam explained the activities well and made everyone feel comfortable.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2017/01/09 |
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The "non-tour" tour of north shore
Reviewed by: Renee, 2016/09/23The best of tour plusses without the negatives. You spend most of your time at the location you choose and doing the activity you choose. Justin was very knowledgeable and personable. He let us choose our activity on site and even let people customize it by picking 2 morning activites and no afternoon ones. It was awesome.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2016/09/20 |
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The Surf Bus
Reviewed by: Laura, 2016/06/06It was great, i got picked up and he drove out to the northshore, showed us around the town and then the activities started. He was very available to pickup after each activity and drop you off where you wanted to go. Waterfall, snorkeling, shrimp truck, beach time & stand up paddle board, it was great. There are other activities to pick from. He even stopped because he saw a sea turtle was sitting on the beach, so we could see it and take pics, it was great!
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| Attended as: | Solo Travelers |
| Activity Date: | 2016/06/03 |
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Outstanding!
Reviewed by: Angela, 2016/05/29This tour is a great way to see and experience the North Shore from the land and in the water. Our tour guide (HC) knew his way around the island like nobody's business. He went the extra mile to ensure we had a great time. Plenty of time for snorkeling, bike riding, checking out waterfalls, SUP or kayaking AND SHOPPING! I highly recommend!
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2016/05/27 |
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Great Time
Reviewed by: Monty Magnet, 2016/04/25Taking this tour was very helpful in making sure we made the most out of our visit. Our guide gave us a detailed review of the area so that we were able to make an informed decision on our activities. I would definitely recommend this tour.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2016/04/22 |
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Amazing!
Reviewed by: Lauren , 2016/04/07We loved this trip. The guide was super helpful and friendly. We will be booking this trip again.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2015/05/14 |
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Awesome day on the North Shore
Reviewed by: Georgie C, 2016/04/02I think our guides name was AC... he was amazing, had so much interesting information, made the drive to the north shore very entertaining.
First stop was Haleiwa Town on the north shore where we could have a look around and even got to try the famous shave ice. Next a drive along the shore to see all the amazing beaches and even some celebrity houses, then had a stop at the pipeline for some photos, and then he took us to see all the activities so we knew what they all were.
My friend and I chose the waterfall hike/swim, then AC took us the Waimea Bay for a swim, then the kayaking in the afternoon, and a great burger from Haleiwa Town. On the way back to Waikiki we stopped at a beach famous for turtles and we saw one on the beach. AC then dropped us off at the dole plantation - a complete surprise - so we could have a look around and try the dole whip. On the drive back AC played some stand up comedy on the tv so we could all relax and have a laugh.
Overall an incredible day!
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| Attended as: | Friends |
| Activity Date: | 2016/03/12 |
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This is EXACTLY what I was looking for!
Reviewed by: Lani S., 2016/02/17I wanted to head out to the North Shore, but did not want to sit on a stodgy bus all day and listen to someone drone on and on. The Surf Bus was the PERFECT choice since I not only got to experience the highlights of the area, but got to do some fun activities as well.
I decided to do Snorkeling, the Waimea Falls nature walk and SUP. Harry was very accommodating about squeezing in two activities for the morning section, and I am so happy that he did. The snorkeling was AMAZING! It was literally like swimming in an aquarium. I got to be in the water for a little over an hour and then I was picked up to go to Waimea Falls Park. The walk was quite easy, and if you have a hard time walking, shuttles are available for $10 round-trip at the park. I didn't go into the water since I just wanted to sit and relax, but the walk to and from the waterfall was about 45 minutes total. REALLY beautiful.
For my afternoon, I chose SUP and even though I had never done it before, I figured it out pretty quickly after the briefing from the guys at the surf store. I never quite made it to the "stand up" part of "stand up paddling", but my "sit up" paddle was just as fun and I made it all the way down the river.
With about an hour left before I had to meet the bus, I had a delicious burger and fries at Teddy's Bigger Burger and washed that all down with some shave ice from Matsumotos (lychee and strawberry YUM!). All in all, a great experience and wonderful way to see the best of the North Shore in a day :)
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| Attended as: | Solo Travelers |
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Great day with AC as tour guide
Reviewed by: McDougalls, 2015/12/23We had a wonderful day with AC as our guide. He was very knowledgeable, pointing out local sites and giving history along the way. He bent over backwards to accommodate everyone on the tour, taking each group to their favorite locations, running back and forth moving us around from hot spot to hotspot as we each finished our excursions. He was very professional at all times. We would hIghly recommend him as a tour guide. We had a blast! He even went out of his way to go back and find a lost article for us- which fell out of the van at a previous stop.
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2015/12/21 |
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North beach tour
Reviewed by: Laura, 2015/09/26Great day at the north beach. We chose the waterfall hike as our activity in the morning. You could have done snorkelling or bike rides if preferred. We then had free time on waimea bay beach. In the afternoon we had a free lunch instead of doing another activity such as kayaking. Saw sea turtles at a beach on the way home
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2015/09/25 |
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Perfect setup if you want to do North Shore, but Not sure what activities
Reviewed by: John A, 2015/04/29My wife and I were staying in Waikiki for a week and everyone said we need to make a trip to the North Shore when on Oahu. We scoured Trip Advisor, Yelp and other Hawaii Adventure sites and this one looked appealing. Turns out to be a great deal if you are looking for transportation to the North Shore and a variety of options to choose from once you get there. We chose to snorkel in the mornng at Sharks Cove then spend an hour at Waimea Bay, then in the afternoon we did the SUP down the river in Halewia.
The tour is setup where they pick you up on a ~20 person bus from multiple Waikiki hotels, then up a narrated drive up to the North Shore which took about 1 1/2 hours all together. Sam was our host for the day and is awesome at his job. Very knowledgable, humourous and makes the tour a good time. Once you are there, you get to see the options for the day such as hanging at the beach of Waimea Bay, surfing, snorkeling, beach bike cruise, Waimea Botanical Gardens, stand up paddle boarding and probably a few others options that I am missing. There is no additional cost to do these unless you want to do more than two. If there was one draw back for the day, it was that we could have enjoyed a few more hours on the beach and shopping at the local surf shops there.
Overall, great trip and glad we did it!
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2015/04/24 |
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The surf bus
Reviewed by: R Studley, 2015/03/23The concept is great. Transport is reliable, clean and on time. The tour guide, Harry, was entertaining and very friendly. The only thing we would suggest is that surfing be offered as one of the activities - it is after all what the area is best known for!
I would recommend this for anyone who wants an active day.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2015/03/20 |
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North Shore Beaches Surf Bus Tour with Driver Sam
Reviewed by: The Lyons Lot, 2015/03/21Our family of 6 adults from Brisbane Australia loved this whole day tour. Our driver / tour guide Sam picked us up from our hotel on time, & drove safely. He was so friendly and knowledgeable about Oahu, and explained all the sights on the way to the North Shore - he make the entire trip an awesome experience. He gave us a drive by & quick stop at each of the available activities before we chose them, then dropped us all to our chosen areas. 3 of us chose bike riding along the famous surfing beaches where we could stop and have beach time as we liked; the other 3 the walk through the beautiful gardens to the waterfall. Though a lovely walk, it is quite a long one, for anyone older. If you want a swim at the Falls, take cash for a compulsory life jacket hire! From there we walked back to Waimea Bay beach for a swim until our bus pick up. Our next activity for 4 of us was SUP (stand up paddle boarding) and 2 did kayaking. We LOVED this time on the water and would have liked to have a bit less time on the morning activities and more time for the afternoon ones! After, we walked through the town and sampled the Shaved Ice and some delicious lunch before boarding the bus completely satisfied with our day. We did several different tours while in Waikiki, and this was BY FAR the very best for the sightseeing, and activities on offer, plus the freedom to have our own time was fantastic. We were REALLY impressed with Sam the driver & happy to tip him well for his outstanding service - he contributed in a big way to making it the best tour during our time in Hawaii. Thank you Sam! I would highly recommend this tour, well worth it and we have great memories of our day.
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2015/02/26 |
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Awesome time
Reviewed by: Grace S, 2014/12/12This was a truly awesome experience. We had Sam as a driver and he was totally great. He navigated traffic well and all of his narrating was necessary, funny and enjoyable.
We had a slight problem in that we missed our pick up (oops!) but the company was helpful and told us where to go to get another pick up.
We did some bike riding in the morning, saw Pipeline and had a great time. In the afternoon we tried SUP and saw turtles! It was a fully awesome experience. So good getting out and SEEING the North Shore, not just taking pictures of it.
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2014/12/09 |
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North Shore Beach Adventure
Reviewed by: Betty, 2014/09/09This was a great tour. Our tour guy, I believe his name is Sam was very helpful and funny. Sam was also very knowledgeable and he made the tour a memorable experience for us. We like the fact that we get to plan out our activities and get to see couple places at North Shore. The only suggestion that we think can improve for the tour is the activities in the afternoon. There wasn't a lot of options in the afternoon activities like in the morning. Overall, we enjoyed the tour very much.
Aloha Betty,
Mahalo for your review and to make suggestions on how we can improve. This is essential to make guest's experience even better. We will think about ways to try to incorporate more activities to the pm break. Alooooha!
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2014/08/28 |
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Shore buss
Reviewed by: Robin, 2014/06/28Our driver AC was great recommend excursion learned a lot great views
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2014/06/23 |
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Awesome!!!
Reviewed by: Lisa, 2014/06/28I so so so recommend the Surf Bus!! It was one of the best ways to see and experience North Shore! The driver was the best! He have great information and was so funny!! The paddle board was amazing, waterfall beautiful and the beach with snorkeling just awesome!! I recommend wearing water shoes as the rocks can be a little hard on your feet...(waterfall and snorkeling areas) Hands down best your we took!
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2014/06/13 |
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North Shore Surf Bus
Reviewed by: Eileen, 2014/05/26We had a great time! We chose snorkeling and free lunch. Tip: Make sure you have cash!
who was your driver? thank you
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2014/05/16 |
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North Shore
Reviewed by: Jen, 2014/04/19We did several tours and the North Shore was our favorite. The North Shore was gorgeous. There were a bunch of awesome little shops and art galleries. We rode bikes and went snorkeling. It was awesome!
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2014/03/24 |
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The Surf Bus North Shore Honolulu
Reviewed by: Geoff & Jayne , 2014/03/24Wow! what an entertainer Harry was & related so well to us being Aussies & accustomed to the surfing fraternity. We're recently retired & I was on crutches after an operation & nothing was too much trouble. He made special trip in between activities to come & pick me up from Waimea Falls to save me walking. We couldn't praise him enough. Go Harry!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you for a wonderful insight into life on the North Shore of Oahu.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2014/03/21 |
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North Shore Surf Bus
Reviewed by: Angie, 2014/03/08Good Time. Had a wonderful day. The tour guide was friendly and provided a lot of interesting facts and trivia about Oahu on the drive up, as well as the trip back. Once at the North Shore the choice activities and the loosely organized agenda made for an enjoyable day. Would definitely recommend. Great value.
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| Attended as: | Solo Travelers |
| Activity Date: | 2014/02/11 |
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The best way to see the North Shore
Reviewed by: Gerry, 2014/02/18We were looking for a tour to see the North Shore but have the freedom to do what we want to do....we couldn't have picked a better tour. This is the perfect tour for people looking for freedom to do/go where they want. We had Sam as our tour guide, a native from Hawaii. He was informative and very the perfect style of guide for this tour. Knew what he was talking about, laid back but still detail oriented enough to handle everyone's activities and where they were. We went there the day of the Volcom Pipe Pro at the Pipeline. We rented bikes at the North Shore Surf Shop (an included activity with the tour - no extra charge) and that allowed us to go freely around. We rode up to the surf competition to watch live. The nice part was with the bikes, you were stuck in one spot the whole time. Watched the competition, then rode down the coast to Sharks Cove and Waimea Bay. It was great to have no schedule or "planned activities" when we got there. We had 3 hours to do what we want. Some wanted nothing to do with the surf competition and they could do what they want. Everyone had their own agenda and this tour worked great with it. (For a quick bite to eat, hit up Pupukea Grill. Its a food truck in Sharks Cove with a heavenly flatbread.) Met back next to Sharks Cove for the bus and rode to Haleiwa for the afternoon. Again, free time through the town to experience the city itself or do water activities at Surf N Sea. We wanted to experience the town, so we went into the surf shops, stores and walked around the town itself. (For a great sandwich, hit up Waialua Bakery and Juice Bar next to the grocery store...phenomenal.) For being a smaller town, Haleiwa is a very cool town to experience. After the town, we were to a beach to view the sea turtles that come on shore. It was amazing to see the turtles that close.
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| Attended as: | Couples |
| Activity Date: | 2014/02/03 |
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oyamajeo@comcast.net
Reviewed by: oyamajeo@comcast.net, 2013/11/20This was an awesome tour. The driver was local and gave lots of information about the area...what it used to be and what it is now. Many changes in 45 years. There was plenty of free time to explore. That was the best!
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| Attended as: | Solo Travelers |
| Activity Date: | 2013/11/17 |
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Tasting the tricks and treats of Oahu
Reviewed by: Dan from Denver, 2013/10/27The "Surf Bus" Rocked my world, got timed out and lost my heartfelt compliments. I can't rewrite my praises. It does not do justice. Going to try:
Sam was an amazing guide, the playing, eating, and listening on the North Shore, my taste of heaven. Just visualize; Sea Turtles, tidal pools and an eye to eye with an Eagle Ray, food to die for, and 1000 reasons to keep coming back. An awesome "build your own burger". Surprise yourself and go for it! Not a sit and stare tour, unless your waiting for a set, or focused on sea turtles. You still get to do your driving. Came back exhausted and completed. 50 years in and now I figure out happy. Better late than never.
Mesmerized by the bright smiles, and sense of community that emerged as we talked through our day. 20 people, 5 countries and a bevy of dialects. It was right Kraky, but no worries mate.
@Sam, the Tiki was truly over that rainbow.
Mahalo nui loa!!!
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| Attended as: | Solo Travelers |
| Activity Date: | 2013/10/23 |
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fantastic experience of the north shore
Reviewed by: susan, 2013/05/13Sam was a wonderful friendly tour guide. I liked the flexibility of the tour, being able to do various activities and see many different things. The sea turtles were a highlight. I also enjoyed the history and personal anecdotes of the tour. It was the best part of my trip to Oahu.
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| Attended as: | Solo Travelers |
| Activity Date: | 2013/05/06 |
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Harry is the man!
Reviewed by: Dallas John, 2013/04/12Had a great time. We go to Hawaii once a year, and have gone on almost every tour. The best thing about this was the tremendous flexibility to do and swap activities. Not a "tourist" tour. Little fubar on scheduling, but the drive Harry made up for that. Time with Harry was as good or better than seeing the falls!!
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| Attended as: | Families |
| Activity Date: | 2013/03/14 |
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Surf's up
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2012/09/30Great time, great guide, lots to see and a ton of information!
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
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Best Time!!
Reviewed by: Dianna, 2012/08/31I chose to go to the Waimea Falls and Botanical Garden and on the Kayak ride...also got to lay around on Waimea Beach and jump off the rock! I had a total blast. The driver/guide was knowledgable and friendly and made sure we all had a great time. I would recommend this to anyone.
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| Attended as: | Friends |
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Surf Bus great!
Reviewed by: Lisa H, 2012/06/14First time on surf bus, me(45), niece(25), son(9), daughter(4). Only paid for 1 activity each because we didnt know the time schedule or what would work best. Pick up 8:15am. Nice tour of different beaches at north shore. Finally arrived at 1st activity spot at 10:30 me/daughter went to waimea beach, niece/son waimea falls and walked to us. Others did snorkeling. Picked up at 1pm. Next stop haleiwa where we got 1 paddle board and 1 double kayak. Son loved padded boarding by himself! We switched off and met back at 3. Others walked through town and ate. We did great with just one activity eac (2 waimea waterfall entrance, 1 paddle board, 1 kayak). Others did th snorkel then th paddle board the 2nd half. The falls walk was hot and long but my son still enjoyed. Beach was nice for me and my 4 year old to float in the calmer waves. Definitely enjoyed our trip! Nice ending was a couple days later I realized I had left my daughter's life jacket (brought a good one for my entir vaca
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
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Way Fun
Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2012/06/04This was a great acivity. We learned all about the island on the drive to the North Shore. Saw all the great surfing beaches, did some snorkeling and kyaking....a very fun day.
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| Attended as: | Families with Young Children |
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Thank you for the great review, surfing is offered to those with prior experience with our basic package.For the unexperienced folks we require they book the package which includes the "SURF LESSON". We are sorry if that wasn't explained thoroughly by Harry and will have to talk to him about that.
Mahalo Justin