Indispensable!
Just took my first trip to the Hawaiian islands, spending 12 days in Kauai. I was looking for a guide that covered everything - tourist destinations, food, transport, hikes, snorkeling, places to stay, beaches, etc. Hawaii Revealed was it! I also downloaded the audio guide for driving around the island which supplied great local flavor. The recommendations and reviews were solid, up-to-date and saved us so much time, money and anguish deciding what to do and where to eat. It was a once-in-a-lifetime trip and I didn’t want to waste a minute or miss anything essential. Hawaii Revealed made sure I didn’t. Mahalo! Highly recommended.
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Response from developer
Aloha Mahalo for your kind 5 star review! We are so glad that you enjoyed your valuable and precious time on Kauai. We do hope you will return to soon. Aloha
Fantastic app
This is a fantastic app, especially if you are new to Hawaii. My wife and I decided to go to Maui for the first time for our 50th anniversary. We started with their book and loved it so much, we moved on to this app. It is a terrific base to start from. You learn all you need to know and can you use what you find to narrow down any other search you feel you might need. Even with the searched I did do, I found my self coming back to this time after time. Told with a touch of humor, it makes learning fun. They only problem I had was narrowing down all I wanted to to do in the time we had. If you think you know everything, then this is not the book for you. If you want help for your trip then you have to get this book
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Response from developer
Aloha and mahalo for your kind 5 star review. And congrats on your 50th anniversary! We are so glad to have you as a loyal fan of our products. Happy to read that you were able to find all you wanted to do so quickly in our app. We do hope you come back to see the things you missed on your 50th. Mahalo again - a hui ho
The book is better
I’m a bit disappointed by the app. I have purchased the books for the big island, Maui (2nd purchase) and kauai. Every time I tried to use the app, I found it easier to pull over and open the book. I didn’t find it super user friendly (on the go), and although I know all the info that’s in the book is on the app, it’s just not as easy as cracking the book looking at the island and seeing what’s near.
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Great content, but needs to be free of reproducing the book format so much
The “blue book” for Kauai is unquestionably THE resource for travelers. Some suggestions to improve:
1) When you are in the “map” and you see a beach, you should be able to touch that name and be taken to the full description of that beach. Not have to go back to home and go to the list of beaches.
2) For restaurants, the above is especially true!
3) This app needs a much better search. There are open source cognitive search algorithms which would make finding things like “Na Pali coast trail” and give the right result.
With all the above in mind, this is still a must have app. Having integration with GPS when you’re on a trail is invaluable.
1) When you are in the “map” and you see a beach, you should be able to touch that name and be taken to the full description of that beach. Not have to go back to home and go to the list of beaches.
2) For restaurants, the above is especially true!
3) This app needs a much better search. There are open source cognitive search algorithms which would make finding things like “Na Pali coast trail” and give the right result.
With all the above in mind, this is still a must have app. Having integration with GPS when you’re on a trail is invaluable.
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The Savages from TX
Spent nearly a month on the big island. This app was a must have and next time I’ll leave my hard copy of the book by same name, at home. One bug, when I attempt to map directly from ap map to location I have chosen to drive to, I can see myself moving along the route, but would like to hear directions aloud while driving.
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Great app and Great Customer Service
The Hawaii revealed folks were super prompt to answer questions and handle an issue with app access. Everything was resolved quickly via email and without issue. I ordered both the print book and app for an upcoming trip and found both to be extremely useful. Would recommend the app 100% to aid with Hawaii trip planning. It’s updated on the fly and even gives daily current surf conditions for each beach on the island. If you’re a paper person like I am, I loved having the books with their nice paper maps to plan my days. Great resources and great customer service!
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Response from developer
Aloha Joey, Mahalo for your kind review. Glad to help in any way we could! Hope you enjoyed Hawaii and return soon. A Hui ho.
I will use this app again
We are a family blessed with a special needs angel. That being said, much more pre planning is required for vacations. I stumbled across the OahuRevealed guidebook which led to their HawaiiRevealed app and took a chance—reaching out to one of the guidebook’s contributors. They immediately got back to me and actually helped me with insight and suggestions for our unique situation. They were so warm and welcoming that I felt I knew them forever. They are the go to people for any question—& believe me, as a special needs mom and also an RN, I asked them all. They were even kind enough to initiate communicate with Ohana Surfing Project on my son’s behalf so as to start the planning for his special day of surfing.
No question or detail was silly and I even felt as if I had a friend in Hawaii while we were there because I asked them questions while we were vacationing.
HawaiiRevealed app is excellent. Easily usable while on vacation by me and also my son loved that we had a “friend” helping us.
If we are blessed enough, we certainly intend to return to Hawaii. I hope HawaiiRevealed has a guidebook and app for us to use then. You should seen how worn the pages are from the book accompanying us everywhere!
Evette Hitscher
No question or detail was silly and I even felt as if I had a friend in Hawaii while we were there because I asked them questions while we were vacationing.
HawaiiRevealed app is excellent. Easily usable while on vacation by me and also my son loved that we had a “friend” helping us.
If we are blessed enough, we certainly intend to return to Hawaii. I hope HawaiiRevealed has a guidebook and app for us to use then. You should seen how worn the pages are from the book accompanying us everywhere!
Evette Hitscher
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Response from developer
Aloha Evette! So happy to read your review and so kind of you to leave such a lovely one - Mahalo. Our whole company was so excited to read of your adventures on the island and with Ohana Surf Project. You really warmed our hearts seeing your son up on his surfboard. We do hope you all return soon. Aloha and a hui ho from the Revealed Guides Team
A Must Have for your dream Hawaii vacation
This app is the BEST.I don’t think I have ever written a review for an app, or anything else, before. But everything about this app made our trip so amazing. We also love the travel books and the driving guide app. Combined together they arm you with all you need to have the vacation of your dreams!
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Must have if traveling or live here!
I have read through the Big island book and bought the app after because it is so helpful to search something in the moment. The book was great for sitting down to plan and the app is so great for on-the-go. The updates and surf reports built in are so helpful. We have been here for two months traveling and everything has been accurate so far. I let them know about a regulation change at a beach they reviewed, and they got back to me immediately and said they would go back and check it out. Love it!
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Response from developer
Aloha Sydney, Mahalo for your super kind review of our app! We are so glad that you are having a great extended stay in Hawaii and that our app could help make it that much better. Please keep feeding us those details you may find. We love hearing from our users. Aloha
Awesome Driving Tour
We just visited The Big Island for the first time and found the gps driving tour invaluable. We would have never seen, or truly appreciated, half the sites we got to see by simply driving our jeep around the island and following the suggestions provided by the guide. The detailed history of the island was also addictive to listen to as we drove. So worth the money and highly recommended. Mahalo for a great product! God Bless.
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A guidebook made exponentially better
I’ve loved the Hawaii Revealed Books, though after a couple years they can be outdated with business changing and closing, not to mention the changing culture and laws in the islands. This app will give you some history, island etiquette ( we can all use these lessons to be better tourists), and perhaps coolest of all are the surf reports and beach conditions that are updated daily. Worth every penny. I’ve been to different islands in Hawaii multiple times and I still learned a ton from the app.
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An essential, all-in-one
We’re finishing up our first trip to Kauai and so glad we bought this and the driving app. We used this in our planning over the last several months. Everything has been spot on from the detailed instructions for hikes to the food reviews. It’s a wealth of knowledge, easy to use, updated daily, and well written!
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Learn & laugh with this great guide “book”
The depth of detail, delivered with a great sense of humor, was great in the 2018 edition book I found in the condo while in Hawai’i. Downloaded the app and bought the full online edition since I couldn’t take the book with me for the second part of the trip. Beach reports, volcano updates, reality checks on hyped places, activities, etc. And it’s funny!! Totally worth the purchase (in app) and download means it works no matter how remote.
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Disappointing
I love the guide in book form and was hoping this was a step up for easy on the road use. Still prefer the book: the wealth of information is still here but feels harder and counter intuitive to use. For example I wish you could just go to a map (in your area) and easily plug in beaches, restaurants, activities near you. But the map keeps changing size on its own as I try to zoom in or out and the requesting of specific info doesn’t seem possible. At best it’s counter intuitive design, at worst poor functionality.
I signed up for one year and will cancel right now and go back to buying the latest hard copy edition. They still got a long way to go to work out the kinks and make it easy to use.
I signed up for one year and will cancel right now and go back to buying the latest hard copy edition. They still got a long way to go to work out the kinks and make it easy to use.
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Response from developer
Aloha, Mahalo for your comments and great feedback! We have a handy user guide for the app. For example, finding what's near you on the map means simply touching the map and selecting what you want from the menu - say beaches - then save and all the nearby beaches will show up on the map as well as the descriptions (and ratings) of the beaches and how far they are from you. Same goes for hikes, restaurants, activities, etc. Filters can also help you find beaches, restaurants, hikes, etc. on the map within their chapters. Feel free to reach out to us at anytime at app@hawaiirevealed.com. We are always here to help. Aloha
Well Done
I’ve been coming to Kauai for years. I always used the most recent version of the ultimate Kauai guidebook. The info is always spot on. I simply downloaded the app out of curiosity. What an awesome surprise. The driving tour goes into so many things we never knew about the island. My parents live on the island and after day 2 they were asking if I would turn on the driving tour!
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Best and most valued resource one can imagine!
I have been trusting Hawaii Revealed as my “go-to” Hawaii guide with absolute confidence for decades and I am always amazed how plugged in these folks are… they share everything to know from the local restaurants to the best beaches to the most desirable accommodations all the way down to where to find a parking spot in the busy areas. You truly feel like you are traveling with the benefit of a local friend at your side. They will bring your vacation experience to a whole new level. I cannot say enough about the value of this gem! Keep up the good work!
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Response from developer
Aloha! Mahalo for your 5 star review! We are so happy that you have trusted us over the years to help you have your best vacations on the islands. We truly appreciate your support all these years. A hui ho
Poor map integration
I really have enjoyed the “Revealed” series of books and apps in the past. We use them exclusively while visiting Hawaii. This version has some glitchy-ness. Any time I used the app to launch the directions to a place Apple Maps would freeze and no voice or real time movement worked. Both the app, and my phone are current with updates. The work around- open maps and get the directions separately was an adequate work around but was annoying.
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A ‘Must Have’ app for first time visitors to the islands!
I say it’s a ‘must have’ for first time visitors, but I used to live on O’ahu and have visited the Big Island many times and I still used the app constantly on my trip to both those islands. The searchable restaurant and beach reviews alone are worth the price of the subscription. We actually own the Big Island book as well, but the app is better updated and more convenient to have in ones pocket.
If you’re planning a trip to Hawai’i, I’d suggest using the app as one of your planning tools and then having the app available to help make decisions when those plans change or when you just don’t have a plan (the best way to visit the islands really, except you’ll probably want advanced reservations for a few things to make sure that you can do them on the day and time that you want)
If I had any gripes, it would be that the app and the reviews/descriptions aren't so regularly updated that it takes into consideration all variations that come from COVID restrictions (not the developer’s fault really), so you may want to call ahead on things that involve people and crowds, just like you’re probably already doing at home. I’d also agree with at least one other reviewer that the ‘page jump’ scrolling functionality can be glitchy and frustrating. You’ll get trained to it after a while, but I think it would be a better user experience without that functionality.
Overall, a great app for anyone visiting the islands.
If you’re planning a trip to Hawai’i, I’d suggest using the app as one of your planning tools and then having the app available to help make decisions when those plans change or when you just don’t have a plan (the best way to visit the islands really, except you’ll probably want advanced reservations for a few things to make sure that you can do them on the day and time that you want)
If I had any gripes, it would be that the app and the reviews/descriptions aren't so regularly updated that it takes into consideration all variations that come from COVID restrictions (not the developer’s fault really), so you may want to call ahead on things that involve people and crowds, just like you’re probably already doing at home. I’d also agree with at least one other reviewer that the ‘page jump’ scrolling functionality can be glitchy and frustrating. You’ll get trained to it after a while, but I think it would be a better user experience without that functionality.
Overall, a great app for anyone visiting the islands.
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Response from developer
Aloha and Mahalo for your warm review. So glad we were able to help you make the most of your time in the islands. Thanks for the suggestion on the page scroll. Also, a great suggestion on calling ahead on places, we also suggest that on our blog about travelling to Hawaii. We actively update the app for COVID changes, which occur a lot (as they probably do everywhere). But we are doing our very best to keep up! Hope you will recommend this to your friends and family who visit. Mahalo and aloha from us
Wealth of information
We relied heavily on the books and this app for restaurants and activities, and for up-to-date info on COVID-19. We learned about the Revealed books from our son; the comments were always fun to read and spot on! The app was an added bonus! We’ve also recommended these to our friends who will travel to Hawaii later this year.
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Good information but somewhat lacking.
Good well researched information. But to someone who doesn’t know anything about Hawaii, I had a hard time figuring out where the places were that I was reading about. I had to have another phone open to Google maps to see where they were. It would be great if there were tours like Rick Steve’s app has that talked to you and told you where to stop and what you would see there.
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