Hilo Shark's Hawaii

“My buddy actually laughed when I told him I booked a cacao farm tour. "You? A farm tour?" Yeah, me. Worth every second of the ribbing. Sharky's been doing this since before I was born, and it shows — not in a "let me recite my script" kind of way, but in the way he just talks to you. We ended up in this whole conversation about Hawaiian geology that somehow connected back to why the chocolate tastes the way it does. I didn't see that coming. The group was small, nobody was rushing anywhere. At some point I realized I'd been standing in the middle of a vanilla plant for like 20 minutes just asking questions, and nobody seemed to mind. We tasted stuff I genuinely can't find back home. Brought some chocolate back, it didn't survive the flight — meaning we ate it before we even landed. I'm not writing this because it was "nice." I'm writing it because a week later I'm still thinking about it, which almost never happens with tourist stuff. If you're on the fence, just go.”

“Shark and Anna were absolutely amazing! They were so good to our kids, they provided amazing Hawaiian treats like Taro slushie, chocolate tea (yes it’s real), an herbal tea that Anna mixes up that is so good, Kona coffee, and of course world class chocolate and don’t forget the one-of-a-kind tour. Shark is the chocolate professor. He will take you through how it’s all made, let you taste fresh ripe cocao from the pod, then teach you how all the steps that take the pod’s fruit to delicious chocolate. He shows you each step and lets you taste the results at that stage. I’ve never learned so much about chocolate. Additionally I learned a ton about vanilla which they also grow in addition to learning about coffee growing and how challenging Hawai’i can be to grow in. You’ll love their sweet dog Bliss and you’ll cherish your visit to their home and farm.”

“Amazing experience and one of the highlights of our trip. Shark is incredibly knowledgeable and passionate, with over thirty years of experience. He explained the full process of cacao, vanilla, and coffee from planting and growing to harvesting, processing, and the final product. It was extremely educational and easy to understand, even without any prior knowledge. He also shared a lot about the island and the land, which added so much context to the experience. His wife is just as amazing and welcoming, and together they make everything feel genuine and personal. The property and farm are beautiful and well cared for. We bought coffee, cacao tea, and cacao to bring back home to Texas, and it made us appreciate them even more knowing the work behind them. Highly recommend this experience to anyone visiting the Big Island.”

“I couldn’t find many reviews for this tour, but decided to take a chance after reading a recommendation for it on Reddit, and I’m so glad I did. My family and I had a blast. It was a very interactive and informative experience where we got to learn about chocolate, coffee, and vanilla farming all in one place! Mr. Shark was super knowledgeable not just about his farm but also about the island in general! He also offered us some great suggestions for other things to do while we were on the big island! We also really enjoyed getting to make our own chocolate at the end of the tour and were provided snack and drinks throughout the tour (coffee, chocolate tea, hibiscus tea, ice cream, taro, and passion fruit drinks, and cacao fruit) all of which were delicious! If you’re looking for a farm tour don’t pass this one up!”

“This was one of those "meant to be" sort of experiences. In my original searching around for a great agriculture tour I somehow missed Sharky's pin on maps and had gone with someone else. That other tour called and cancelled on us morning of, letting us know they didn't have the numbers to run it. So searching I go and this time I find Sharky's listing... and I couldn't have been happier with the experience. He was incredibly informative, the tour was fun, the dog is adorable, and the chocolate, vanilla, coffee, and tea are all fantastic. He's made a fan out of me and I've been telling me friends since.”

“We had a fantastic time with Sharky for his tour!! It felt so personal and welcoming as we talked about the history, geology, and biology that surround the chocolate making in the area. We loved to see the whole journey of the plant from pod until chocolate bar, and even getting to make our own chocolate bar! Not only did we get to see the journey, we got to taste it as well. We tried the fruit of the cacao plant, the nibs as they were dried and then roasted, and then the chocolate itself. We absolutely loved our time and will definitely be back. I recommend this to anyone who is a chocolate lover!”

“We had the most beautiful and peaceful time. Going to sleep and waking up to a symphony of nature sounds was like nothing I’ve ever experienced. The treehouse was perfect. Clean and nicely stocked. The outdoor washroom was very nice. The hot water was fabulous and the cold water for drinking was delicious. Especially when brewed with Hilo Shark’s Coffee in the French press! The bed was very comfortable. The lighting was gorgeous. So dreamy. Hope to be back for sure. Out of the 3 places we stayed on the island, this was definitely our favourite!”

“This was incredible! Highly recommend. If you love to learn you are in for a treat. Family friendly, relaxed, small group tours. Got to make so many chocolates to take home with us.”