Wild Side Eco-Adventures, Waianae

We took the 'Best of the West' excursion on January 20th, 2009. It was totally amazing. I looked at all the sites, and they all have amazing pictures, and I wondered if these were 'once in a lifetime' or every day pictures. With Tori at the helm and Melissa keeping an eye on the 6 passengers, we sped out to wherever the humpbacks were. We saw many more whales, up close, doing all the behaviors we had read about and more. Pictures don't even come close to the feeling you get seeing the massive, intelligent creatures at play in their natural environment. We also got to see many spinner dolphins, although they were too active to swim with. This tour may seem a little pricey, but let me assure you that you will get more than your money's worth. Tori and Melissa were wonderful (as are Tori's chicken salad sandwiches). Many thanks for making this our best vacation ever.

We had a brief stop in Honolulu on our return from Asia and wanted to do some whalewatching. We chose Wild Side based on the many recommendations we found - we did the Best of the West cruise. It was definitely a highlight of our trip. There were only 5 total passengers, and Tori and Melissa made the day great. Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to swim with any dolphins, but we did see humpbacks, spotted and spinner dolphins, and some turtles during a brief snorkel. Definitely recommended if you are on Oahu!

This is an awesome tour. Worth every penny! Personal touch was great and we really enjoyed the eco experience. Thrilling and educational.

We had an awesome time on this tour. The staff was very professional and more than willing to assist us when we discovered that we forgot our camera (DUHHHH). They offered to take any and all pictures that we wanted and email them to us. Tori and Melissa were fantastic!! As they were genuinely concerned that everyone had a great experience. They were very informative and more then happy to answer any questions we had. We will definately go on this tour again the next time we are in O'ahu

Great experience whale watching, dolphins and snorkeling were all terrific! Friendly and knowledgeable staff. Lots of fun. Would recommend to anyone!

What a super experience! The most important thing is to pay attention to what you’re being told by the crew. We were told that when you swim with the dolphins that your would need to merge and swim parallel with them. At one point I was just swimming along. Armin the captain yelled at me that the dolphins were on the other side of the ship and if I wanted to see them I needed to go. I started to paddle along and he then yelled at me to HAUL! I put my head down, started to really kick and did my best Australian crawl. I can see all of the dolphins below me. The next thing I know is I'm in the middle of the pod! I'm freaking out with excitement, but I remember that I needed to stay calm. I can see a family below me in 30 feet of water and then one breaks off and heads to the surface of the water. I got my head out just as the dolphin broke the surfaced and I just the watched most incredible thing in my life as the spinner dolphins leaped out in front of me! What I loved besides swimming with the dolphins was how friendly everyone was. Melissa was a pleasure to talk with and Tori had so much information about the Humpback whales and the Pilot whales. Arim was a great captain and did a super job with ever one! All I can say is do it! You get about 3 hours out on a wonderful boat, with great people. It's about $108.00. This was the best money that I sent and plan on going back again! Stacey Rockwood, Woodland Hills, CA

Took the Best of the West snorkling tour with Wild Side Specialty Tours & Wild Dolphin Foundation and it was one of the very best things that was done during the time in Oahu. Got up close to both some bottle nose dolphins and green sea turtles. The small size of the group allow a more personal type of tour. The Staff were extremely helpfull and lunch was great. Got some great pictures ourselves and the staff shared their pictures. Would highly recommend this tour to anyone looking for this type of adventure. Rory

The Best Of The West morning cruise was amazing. We snorkeled a reef, then went farther out and swam with Spinner Dolphins. This cruise is definitely worth the money, the Captain and crew were very safety conscious and knew the good spots for seeing the sealife. I highly recommend this trip for anyone traveling to Oahu. Many Thanks to the gang at Wild-Side.

Now that we have returned to the UK, Chris and I wanted to say a massive thank you to Steve and Melissa for a fantastic experience out on the Morning Wildlife Charter on the 28th February. The trip could only have been surpassed by the sighting of a whale breach but hey, we're certainly not complaining! The swims with the spinner dolphins and the green sea turtle were out of this world and something most people will only dream about. And of course you were right, there was more chance of us choking on a peanut than coming face to face with a shark. That said, because the whole dolphin experience was so magical I don't think a small shark would even have bothered us (maybe I should only be speaking for myself here). The time that you guys took to follow the whales and use the detection equipment showed that the trips are not just a money making exercise and your guidance and expertise shows that you really do care about the conservation of all that we saw. There was no hesitation in taking the trip over the allotted time, just to get the most out of it and for this we are so grateful. I'm almost ashamed to admit we took another whale watching trip that week (with a more commercial outfit) - because we had travelled so far and this was our main reason for coming - but I can unreservedly say that your trip was by far the better experience. The intimacy of the small group, the knowledge that you shared with us and the experience of getting in the water was far more than we could have imagined and put the other trip to shame. We have talked endlessly about our experience (and made many people jealous) and if I can give anyone any advice for future trips it would be to take an underwater camera - its my only regret. Well thanks again to you both and if we ever make it out to Hawaii again you can be sure that you'll see us! With kind regards Sarah York, UK

We just wanted to take a moment to thank you for making our visit to Hawaii absolutely the best! We went on the Morning Wildlife Adventure the 1st Sunday in May & all we can say is "Wow!" The crew (Karen & Denise) were so professional & knowledgeable. We have not stopped talking about it. We loved how small & intimate the group is kept & so appreciate your effort to maintain 'zero impact' on the environment. The entire experience had a profound impact on us. Without a doubt the best money spent on our vacation--so worth the drive, so worth the extra expense of renting a car (which we did just to make the drive out to your boat dock). While on our adventure, my husband spotted a beaked whale! Sincerely, John & Patty Hoskins Fresno, California