Stardust Hawaii

Just finished the Road to Hana tour with Quinn and it was a great time. He had everything:

- great stories and knowledge drops including history, plants, geology, culture, language and even more
- plenty of snacks and ice cold water
- punctual and efficient without feeling rushed
- great recommendations
- friendly and a wholesome attitude
- fantastic driving

I would definitely recommend his tour for anyone who wants to see all of Maui in under a day.

Quinn our tour guide made this trip extra special with interesting facts, enthusiastic recommendations, historical data and local knowledge. The trip was incredible with waterfalls, black sand beaches, rainforest farms and beautiful microclimates of every kind. By far the best bang for my buck on Maui so far!

tbh I was sitting down with my keiki listening to your guide try n explain the culture but in all honesty it was a shame n disrespect wanted to expose him infront of the group but have more class than that so decided to be like everyone else n take to this thing to voice my opinion first off he told a group of 8 that apuaa means- pig but it's actually puaa n can't pronounce majority of the names of places like waihayhay instead of waiheepls educate them first before letting them try n showcase our culture one day wrong person goin slap the mouth that pronounces a word wrong

(Review written while COVID regulations in place.)

We booked through a third party company, Viator, so this review is for Viator and Stardust.)

The tour guide and company's communication of expectations can definitely make or break your Road to Hana trip and that all broke it for me. I've never been on the Road to Hana before and everyone said it's a must! I still do believe it's a must. I hope to do it again someday but just not with Stardust and I'll try to learn more about the tour guide if possible.

The actual Road to Hana is well worth 5 stars, so I hope you can experience it someday!

Company: The description of the tour on Viator's website stated the tour included breakfast and an authentic Hawaiian lunch. Breakfast was store bought poppyseed and chocolate bread. The lunch was store bought sandwiches and small bags of chips (Lays, Fritos, Doritos, Cheetos). Thankfully we did get to experience Maui Gold pineapple which may have been the best tasting pineapple I've ever had! The website's description also stated we would have 8 total stops. A "stop" means you get out of the vehicle and have the option to walk around and take pics, etc. We only "stopped" 6 times and one of those was primarily a bathroom stop with a scenic view. Each stop seemed extremely short including the one with the black sand beach (which is actually listed as two separate stops on Viator's website explanation but in all reality it was only one stop.) the first stop we took was supposed to be at a popular surfing beach, but it was the breakfast stop and bathroom break and we only had 10-15 minutes to stop there. By the time we got food and used the bathroom, we hardly had time to take pictures and no time to go down to the beach.

Tour Guide: Sadly, I don't even remember his name. That may be saying something. :/ Less than desirable personality. Knowledgeable of Maui island history. Struggled to engage with people on the trip. Other than sharing random history facts, he was quiet otherwise. Even though it's Hawaii regulation, he did not require those who were vaccinated to be masked while in the van. He did communicate the reason why some of the stops had to be short was because of the reservation at one of the stops. I appreciated that. At one point, he said we were ahead of schedule and he doesn't do this for every group so we were gonna stop by the red sand beach. Two things: 1) The red sand beach was supposed to be a stop according to Viator's website so it didn't feel "special" to stop. 2) We didn't actually stop. We drove by. In general, he seemed more concerned about people getting back "before their dinner reservations" than actually helping us enjoy taking some time to really enjoy the stops. If you're taking a long day trip that costs around $200, you should expect to have it last all day maybe even up to dinner time.

Constructive feedback: 1) Make sure Viator's website is updated to reflect accurate information about the expectation of the trip (lunch, number of stops, etc.) 2) Hire or work to develop your tour guides to be fun, engaging, and knowledgeable not just knowledgeable. Spending 7+ hours with people in a small compact area, I give props to tour guides who can make you feel like a family coming out of it.

Darren was an awesome "Pirate guide" to lead us, my 5-year-old son, and another family with their 6-year-old boy, on a real Maui Treasure Hunt!!!

We met at a park-&-ride at about 9am, then he drove us 30 minutes up the mountain to our hiking spot. We were provided with small weatherproof backpacks that had water and snacks inside, and where we could keep some of our own personal items as well.

He informed the two boys about the importance of safety on the hike, and how he had found a long lost map that lead to hidden treasure! They had to search for clues along the way, so we knew we were on the right path. There was walking through rocky rivers, climbing up narrow muddy paths, and we even got rained on for a few minutes! But ultimately, the map DID lead us to hidden treasure!

The 2 boys got to split all the goodies found inside. From rare gems, to golden coins and nuggets, rings, compasses, spy glass, hard candy, and even pirate bags to put them in! He had a blast, and I love listening to him retell his adventure to other people! I would highly recommend it to a family with kids his age.

Aloha. The tour was amazing, and black sand beach was my favorite stop. We were there for an hour and had sandwiches on the beach. Quinn was very knowledgeable about everything , and his Dad-jokes were entertaining. I highly recommend this tour.

Quin was a fabulous tour guide on our Hana tour. He is very knowledgeable and made our excursion around Maui fabulous. We couldn't be happier with our experience and highly recommend this company.

Wonderful commentary on Road to Hana tour on Maui. Quinn was a knowledgeable, fun, and kind leader. Great driver too, with an awesome attitude. High commendations!

We went on the Authentic Taste of Maui tour the day after we arrived in Maii. Darren, our tour guide, was professional and likeable from the very beginning, calling to let us know he was on his way, in a luxury Mercedes van. He designed the tour himself, taking us and 10 others, to local spots only. We had everything from Malasadas (Portuguese donuts) to Poke; all fresh from local "Mom and Pop" places totalling 7 stops and 17 flavors of Hawaii. And it didn't stop there. Darren shared history, pointing out historical landmarks, with stories of early years in Hawaii and his "pidgeon" dialect made us feel like welcome and how it must have been back in the day. He has a rapport with every business we went to, often calling the owners, Aunty and Uncle or Cousin. He explained everything clearly so we would know what to expect. He has infectious personality that encourages you to ask him anything.

It was a wonderful experience!

Very rude over the phone hung up on me and then ignored any calls after . Asked if they had a rental for Wednesday day she stated no and hung up immediately. Recalled to see if there was any openings for any other days calls were ignored .