Manta Rays from the Shore: Copper Bar at Mauna Kea Beach Hotel

We had originally planned to do one of the night manta ray adventures where you take a boat out, get in the water, and watch the manta rays swim below while lights attract plankton. We did a good amount of research and had settled on SeaQuest because they seemed like one of the better operations.

In the end, though, our 10-year-old was a little nervous about it, so we decided to cancel.

That ended up leading us to a great alternative.

Some local friends pointed us to Copper Bar at Mauna Kea Beach Hotel and told us to valet at the hotel, get drinks at the bar, and then walk down to the water where there is a lit viewing area.

First off, the hotel itself is gorgeous. It has a strong indoor-outdoor feel and feels upscale without being stuffy. One heads-up from our perspective: there is a large Buddha statue there, which is not really our thing. But beyond that, the property is beautiful.

From the bar, you walk down a series of steps to the viewing area where lights draw in plankton. Sure enough, when we got there, there was a huge manta ray circling below. There were also snorkelers from a private tour getting the close-up version of the experience.

It was honestly very cool. Watching such a large sea creature move that gracefully in the dark water felt special, and it let us experience the magic of manta rays without forcing a nervous kid into a boat-and-snorkel situation.

Final Take

If your family wants to see manta rays but the full water tour feels like too much, this is a fantastic backup plan—and maybe for some families, it will end up being the better plan.

Pair this with Hapuna Beach and then circle back to our full Big Island guide.