Meet Our Big Island Hawaii Tour Guides

During the pandemic our Big Island Hawaii tour guides that normally spend their seasons on ultra-luxury ships from the Arctic to the Antarctic were out of work. They got together and created an ultra-luxury, daytime experience that combines all the amenities and education of an expedition cruise with a one day, land-based, appeal. The major bonus was our guides happened to have spent their entire lives frequenting and living in the Hawaiian Islands. From college degrees on Oahu to spending years living and working on the Big Island, our tour guides were completely prepared in every sense to lead exceptional day tours. Come experience the Big Island for yourself with one of our expert private tour guides!

Shawn has always had an immense passion for the outdoors. He spent his youth hiking, backpacking, canoeing and surfing. All this time outside gave him a great appreciation for the natural world. Shawn attended San Diego State University as an Ecology and Natural History major. After a few years at SDSU, he felt drawn to a more immersive educational experience and transferred to Humboldt State University on the North Coast of California. There, in the beautiful redwood forest, Shawn found his calling in adventure tourism and graduated with a degree in outdoor adventure education and minored in business administration. With an educational background in both ecology and tourism, guiding guests on adventures became the perfect fit. 

After college, Shawn worked at Humboldt Redwoods State Park as a park aid and naturalist. As he transitioned into the fishing industry as a fishing guide, he decided to relocate to Hawaii. Since living in Hawaii, Shawn has worked as a boat captain guiding guests from around the world.

 Shawn is an extremely experienced mariner and has captained a variety of vessels, from recreational and commercial fishing to day and night time snorkel trips. Highlights from Shawn’s captain career in Hawaii include releasing an estimated 1300lb blue marlin, multiple sailfish releases (some fisherman in Hawaii have yet to catch even one), landing cow size Ahi, and swimming with sperm whales, whale sharks, short-finned pilot whales, a variety of different shark species including tiger sharks, and pods of over 300 spinner dolphins. In his free time, Shawn still loves to do all his favorite outdoor activities: hiking, camping, backpacking, surfing, and diving. He loves exploring and learning about all the beautiful places the Big Island has to offer. He loves to look at maps, find new locations to explore, and then figure out how to get there. The Big Island’s diverse ecosystem is constantly drawing him to learn more about this beautiful island. Shawn’s passion for nature and the environment are evident during his tours by the enthusiasm and joy that the natural world brings to him. He loves to share his passion; leading and teaching guests all about this diverse island he calls home.

Lisa is extremely passionate about the environment and sharing this love with others. Growing up in Southern California and Hawaii made pursuing and sharing that love easy. A competitive ocean swimmer, free diver, naturalist and avid traveler there’s nothing she enjoys more than educating others about the natural world.  

Lisa earned her B.S. in Marine Biology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She’s spent extensive time at sea conducting marine mammal research with NOAA and has worked for Scripps Institute of Oceanography and the U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program. After a 5 year hiatus from the marine field, Lisa left her job in oncology research and closed her homeopathic practice. She put all possessions in storage and began her journey to earn sea time for her captain’s license while diving back into the field she dearly loved and missed. She’s spent the past seven years working in Hawaii, the South Pacific, Antarctica, the Arctic and South East Alaska as a naturalist, hike/kayak guide and dolphin swim guide. 

Lisa’s extensive work as a field biologist combined with a passion for health research and education has given her the unique ability to be open, friendly and relate to guests on all levels. She’s well known for her informative lectures and prides herself in providing guests with memorable field excursions. She is charismatic, easy to talk to, and best known for her high satisfaction rating among guests.  As Lisa likes to say, “It’s all about showing others how they can relate to the natural environment.” And in the words of conservationist Baba Dioum, “In the end we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we are taught.”