Mauna Kea sits above the Big Island of Hawaii and tells a deeper story about the world and Hawaii’s creation. 🌋 Getting to view the world from up there, is a magical experience that you won’t soon forget. But, you may be asking yourself if taking a Mauna Kea tour is truly worth it.
This mountain is the tallest in the world, it’s over 31,000 feet from the base to the summit. However, much of that lies beneath the ocean floor, so the summit sits at 13,800 feet.
It’s both the most sacred mountain to Hawaiians and the most important mountain to astronomers and scientists. From the summit, you get the best stargazing 💫 in the world and it’s where most of our discoveries about our universe and beyond have been made.
My husband and I had the pleasure of going on a Mauna Kea tour this past spring and it was my favorite thing we did on the Big Island. I will truly never forget the night that we spent there.
So, I’ve written this guide to help you decide if taking a Mauna Kea tour is worth it for your vacation.
Disclaimer: There are affiliate links in this blog post. I may get a small commission at no extra charge to you.
Full Guide to the Mauna Kea Summit Tour
Things to Know Before You Go
💵 Tours to Mauna Kea on the Big Island cost anywhere from $250-$300 a person. It really depends on the tour and what is included. Tours last 4.5-8 hours usually.
🗻 Mauna Kea is at 13,800 feet of elevation. There is less oxygen at this high of altitude, so you will need to acclimate. You can expect to feel like you have less breathing capacity and some people do get altitude sickness.
🪧 Because of the change in altitude, you are required to stay at the Visitor Center at 9300 feet for 30 minutes to get used to the elevation.
💧 In order to avoid altitude sickness, I recommend drinking plenty of water and avoiding alcohol before you go. If you start to experience nausea, headaches, or dizziness let your tour guide know.
☀️ Even if it’s raining down on the Big Island, the sun is usually shining up at Mauna Kea. They see 300 days of sunshine a year on the summit.
❄️ Despite the frequent sunshine, tours can get cancelled for weather and road conditions. They do get icy conditions at the top occasionally.
🚫 Children under 13, people with heart conditions, and pregnant women are not allowed at the Mauna Kea summit for health concerns.
🍃 Remember to follow the Leave No Trace Principles. As always, you want to leave nature looking better than you found it.
Visiting Mauna Kea Respectfully
Mauna Kea is the most sacred mountain to native Hawaiians and it holds a lot of cultural significance, as it’s connected to the creation of the islands.
Because of this, there have been many debates between Hawaiians and scientists on how to utilize the mountain. There are ongoing protests and locals and scientists are working to come to solutions.
That being said, you should be a respectful visitor, stay on all trails, and acknowledge that you are on sacred land.
Best Time to Visit & Booking Tips
Although you can visit the Mauna Kea summit year round, the best time to go is typically in the summer.
During that time, you will get less snow at the summit, fewer cancellations, and more sunshine. We went in May and we had impeccable conditions on our tour.
Also while you can visit during the day, I believe that watching the sunset 🌅 and seeing the stars is the ultimate time to go. There’s nowhere else in the world that you can experience stars as amazing as these.
If you do want to go on a Mauna Kea tour then I recommend booking it weeks/months in advance. During the peak season, these tours can fill up.
We actually used our Chase credit card points to book the tour on Viator, which was a great way to save money.
What to Expect on a Mauna Kea Tour
There are a number of tours that take people to the Mauna Kea summit. Many of them will pick you up at a central location in Kona or Waikoloa before heading to the saddle road.
From there, they will take you up to the Mauna Kea summit in a 4WD vehicle. But, first, they will stop at the visitor center at 9300 feet so that you get a chance to acclimate.
From there, you will get taken to see the observatories at the summit. If you are going for the sunset, they will take you down from the summit when the sun goes down. No one is allowed at the top so that the observatories can work without interference.
If you are doing a stargazing tour, they will allow you to observe the sky at a place lower down the mountain. It is one of the clearest places that I have ever seen the stars and the sky is absolutely full of them.
My Recommended Mauna Kea Tour
We had an amazing time on our summit & stars tour with Super Vacation Hawaii and I highly recommend it!
They picked us up from Kona, drove us 1.5 hours up to the Mauna Kea Summit road, before we hopped into 4WD vans. Then from there, they gave us a bag full of delicious snacks including goldfish, cookies, and candy.
Also, they gave us a fun large puffy jacket to wear up at the summit. I would have bought it from them but they cost $135.
Once we got to the summit, we watched the sunset by the observatories before going down a little ways to stargaze. They had incredible telescopes to look through and gave us hot chocolate to warm up.
Our guides were incredibly friendly and knowledgeable. They pointed out things in the night sky and told us about the Hawaiian astrological signs.
It was an amazing night up at Mauna Kea. I highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting!
👉 Book the exact summit & stargazing Mauna Kea tour we did here!
Can you go to Mauna Kea without a tour?
Yes, you can go up to Mauna Kea on your own. However, if you want to go past the Visitor Center and up to the observatories you will need a 4WD vehicle.
If you are driving on your own, you should know the road to the summit is steep, rough, and can get icy 🥶. So, it is not for inexperienced drivers. You can look at the road status here!
Visitors without 4WD vehicles can still go to the visitor center, they just can’t go past it because the road to the summit is rough!
Once you are up at the observatories you must go down to the visitor center by 10 minutes after the sun goes down. From there, you can go star gazing, but you cannot go past the visitor center.
Pros of Going on Your Own:
- Cheaper
- Private
- Flexibility
Cons of Going On Your Own:
- No telescope viewing
- You don’t learn about Mauna Kea
- No after hours summit access
What to Pack for your Mauna Kea Summit Adventure
Because Mauna Kea is so tall, it gets very cold at the summit, especially when the sun goes down.
So, the most important thing to pack on your trip to the summit is layers. Luckily, our tour provided us with the sickest jackets and gloves. So, we just needed to bring a few extra things to stay warm underneath.
Here’s what you should bring if your tour doesn’t provide clothing or you’re going on your own:
- A Warm Down Jacket
- Gloves
- Beanie
- Base Layer or Sweatshirt
- Long Pants
- Water Bottle
- Warm Socks
- Camera
- Tripod for Astrophotography (if you’re into that)
- Wide Angle Lens (for photography)
Is the Mauna Kea Summit Tour Worth It?
Yes, 100% booking a tour to see Mauna Kea is worth it!
The tour will give you peace of mind and you’ll learn so many things about the mountain and the stars that you might not have known before. Plus, you’ll get to look through a high powered telescope to see the stars.
That being said, if you go on your own it will still be an experience that you remember forever. It’s truly magical.
Final Tips for Your Mauna Kea Summit Experience
I hope I’ve convinced you to visit this beautiful mountain on your trip to the Big Island. Mauna Kea is really a special place.
If you are going, just make sure that you realize tours are fairly long, so you need to block off most of the day to go there.
Also, if you like doing astrophotography make sure to figure out your settings before you get to the top of the mountain! It may be overwhelming if you try to get up there to figure them out.
Have a wonderful adventure here.
Let me know if you enjoyed this guide in the comments!
👇 Dive into more of my Big Island posts here 👇
- Itinerary for the Ultimate Week on the Big Island Hawaii
- Where to Stay on the Big Island Hawaii for the Perfect Vacation
- The Perfect One Day Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Itinerary!
📍Is Taking a Mauna Kea Tour Worth It? Full Guide to Pinterest
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