When I was writing my bucketlist, I didn’t actually think that it would be possible to ride a submarine. The more practical side of me knew that the options are limited and very expensive. Still, it didn’t stop me from including it in my bucketlist. It’s a wishlist anyway, so, sensible or not, all ideas are allowed! 😉 To my surprise (and absolute happiness), I could finally cross the “ride a submarine” off my bucketlist in Hawaii!
Ride a submarine, check!
Thanks to Atlantis Submarines, my dream of exploring the deep sea in the comfort and safety of a submarine has been fulfilled! It operates at several locations in Hawaii, Caribbean and the Pacific. Our undersea experience was in Maui.
The Submarine
Unlike other marine tours, we had to ride a Holokai shuttle boat to get to the submarine. It was a quick boat ride that offered beautiful views of Maui. When we came to a stop, the submarine was nowhere in sight. After a few minutes, it slowly surfaced on the water. Amazing! Once the submarine was ready for boarding, the guests were called by groups and assigned to enter on either ends of the boat. Despite its wide exterior, the submarine was narrow inside. It has a long bench of individual back-to-back seats. There’s no need to worry about the space or getting a good view. All guests are accounted for in the 48-passenger submarine, each with their own window/view! 🙂
Ok, maybe not all seats are the same because we were the last ones to be called, which was actually a good thing. We were left with the seats beside the captain and the guide! Aside from our individual windows, we were able to see from the captain’s huge window. It was also fascinating to watch him use the controls even though we had no idea which buttons actually work! The captain also controlled the sound effects and lights using some of the buttons. 😉
Exploring the Deep Sea
As the submarine slowly descends into the water, you will notice that the colors start to disappear. When we finally got to the bottom, my red fingernails were dark violet!
Our submarine tour took us to 5 locations with different depths, reaching the deepest at 130 feet below surface!
First stop was a coral reef with flat structure where, we saw a wide range of little fish. Second stop was the remnants of anchors which are said to be 150-250 years old, back when Lahaina was a very large whaling port. Third stop was another reef but with more diverse marine life. We found some eels, spotted eagle rays, giant porcupine puffer, and a funny-looking fish called the trumpet fish! We even spotted a shark hiding in the cave.
Fourth stop was a sunken ship called Carthaginian. It is a replica of a whaling ship! Atlantis Submarines bought this aged ship for $1 to sink it in the part of the ocean that lacks coral reef. Thanks to Atlantis Submarines and their ecotourism effort, it is now an artificial reef and home to lots of marine life! 🙂
Fifth stop was at the algae field at 127 feet! Here we saw some spotted eagle rays again.
Finally, we landed at the bottom of the ocean! If you’re lucky enough, you might see some whales and dolphins here!
Rates:
Adult – $119
Free ticket for a child with purchase of a full price adult
Additional child – $38
*Check the ticket prices online. Online discounts are sometimes offered in their official website. For more details, click here.
Educational Undersea Tour
We encountered many different kinds of marine life in this tour but we wouldn’t have noticed the uniqueness of each creature without our tour guide. His real-time narration as we explored the deep sea made it a fun, educational undersea tour.
Disclaimer: This post is written in partnership with Atlantis Submarines. As always, all opinions on Business Traveler’s Wife are my own.
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Looking for more activities in Maui? Check my posts on our kayak AND snorkel tour experience in Olowalu Turtle Garden, whale watching, and the evening we spent in a traditional luau! 🙂
Doing something like this would be ticking off 2 things at one time! I can imagine how magical it must be underwater, and seeing all those fish, and shipwrecked boats too! So cool that the colours disappear the lower you submerge. This is definitely a bucket list item for me!
This is absolutely cool. To be honest, I didnt even know that this possible for “regular people”. I would love to do this, since I can imagine the experience is absolutely unique since you are so close to everything underwater. The ship wreck looks so impressive, I love the idea that it was put there as an artifical coral reef for just $1.
$119 is maybe not that cheap, but on the other hand – i mean its a ride with a submarine 🙂
Wow what a dream come true…I mean not only for you but for everyone because I didnt know about such a tour where anybody could dive down in a submarine! I thought one needed to be a full-trained specialist etc. A really cool experience but as the biggest fan of scuba diving I would problably feel a frustration not being able to swim with all the sea creatures outside.
I must admit I have never thought of riding a submarine but it seems that tourism activities extend a lot in these days. Although a bit expensive, so definitely for budget travelers, I think it’s a great idea to have the chance to explore the under waters of the oceans and seas, especially if you’re not into diving. Good tip to keep in mind, thanks for sharing your unique and genuine experience.
Ride in a submarine sounds very interesting and dreamy to me. Getting sunk into deep ocean and watch all marine species with sunken ship must be so knowledgeable journey. To observe the functions of control panels and controlling switches in captain’s room must be exciting. 119 $ with free child ticket is not very expensive though slightly on higher side, but also within this range, we are getting lifetime experience.
Woot! for crossing off something so fun on your bucket list. And you’re right bucket lists are meant to be wish lists of amazing things you would like to do. Wow, riding in a submarine. It looks so cool and your photos are amazing. It must have really been awesome getting to watch the captain control the ship.
Literally had no idea this was even an option! Now I DEFINITELY am adding this to my bucket list! What a fun adventure!!
Wow. I’m a little claustrophobic, but this looks absolutely incredible. Had no idea that submarine tourism was so affordable! Big ups for using wrecks to build reefs!
This is an absolutely thrilling experience. I did a submarine in Mauritius and loved it. The wreck that you saw was quite interesting and for me, that is something that I would have liked to scuba dive to. Hopefully sometime! Cheers
Your pictures are amazing
I honestly never thought about going in a submarine before, but now the thought is in my head and I wanna so badly! I’m so happy you got to check something off your bucket list!
Wow! Riding a submarine seems like an exceptional idea and an unforgettable experience. Thanks to your informative post, I am adding this to my bucket list!
Wow, this looks amazing! Seems that you had a great time and your pictures are so good! I had always wanted to do scuba diving to explore the underwater world. But a submarine ride seems even more interesting. Hopefully, I would get to do it someday! Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience!