Hawaii

The best Molokini Crater and Turtle Town snorkeling adventures

by Paul Stafford  |  Published July 28, 2020

If you have ever dreamed of swimming or snorkeling with green turtles, Maui in Hawaii might well have the destination for you. It has been touted as Maui’s best-kept secret, which we all know means that in a decade it’ll be overrun with day trippers and every visitor to this corner of Hawaii under the sun. So, it’s time to see what all the fuss is about before that happens. The area known as Turtle Town (an unofficial name) can be found between Makena Landing and Makena Cove, south of Wailea. For an even remoter marine bounty, the Molokini Crater offshore can only be reached by boat on a snorkeling tour.

The underwater world around the shores of Maui is famed for its remarkable marine life, particularly turtles and coral gardens, teeming with tropical fish. The best way to experience both Turtle Town and Molokini Crater is on a snorkeling tour from Maalaea Harbor. The sheer number of options available can be quite daunting, so we have filtered out the best snorkeling tours based on various factors, including the price, itinerary, duration of the trip and environmental awareness of the operators, while taking previous customer reviews into account as well. Here are the best three.