Explore the dynamic landscape of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park with an experienced local guide. This experience goes beyond sightseeing, offering a deeper connection to the land, its history, and the forces shaping the island today. With a background in park service and nature-based facilitation, your guide weaves together natural history, cultural context, and moments of reflection to create a more meaningful experience of place.
This was our second tour with Chris. On our first trip as honeymooners, we hiked into the caldera with him. This time with our family of 7, he adapted it to fit the range in ages 7-70s perfectly and we learned so much Hawaiian history and “story" as we experienced this magical place. Can’t thank him enough for sharing his knowledge with us, I highly recommend having him as your guide.
We had an amazing guided hike with Chris through Volcano National Park. He is incredibly knowledgeable about Hawaiian folk lore, traditions, history, ecology, and volcanology and has an effortless ability to share it all with wisdom, grace, and reverence. Chris began our journey with a lovely reflection and song for Pele, encouraging us to tune into any messages she may be sending us. Along our 5 mile journey, he told many stories about Hawaiian traditions, volcanic activity recent and past, and guided us over the caldera where we looked for peridot and Pele’s tears. We had many guides throughout our trip to the islands, but none of them nourished our souls the way Chris did. He is a wonderful human being to spend the day with.
We had an unforgettable day with Chris as our tour guide, he was phenomenal! Chris is a wealth of information about Hawaii, the National Park, and the history and culture of the Hawaiians. We learned so much from him, and had such a fun time together.
The experience with Chris was incredible. I was looking for a way to unwind and discover the heart of Hawaii, and I got exactly what I was hoping for. Moreover, Chris introduced me to Hawaiian traditions through song, while explaining everything I needed to know about the plants and the volcano. Finally, I gave me some places to do my roadtrip. I highly recommend hiring Chris as your guide if you’re looking for the same thing.
Thank you Chris for an amazing day. Would definitely recommend you connect with Thriving Sun to schedule your tour. Chris took us to see and do everything we asked to see and had some awesome recommendations for us. Shared with us the history and legends of Hawaii, showed us some incredible aspects ot the rainforest and so much more. We will absolutely be going through Thriving sun when we go back. Thank you Chris and Thriving Sun for an unforgettable day full of lasting memories.
Chris is a great story teller and a wonderful guide! We had a full day of park hikes and many tales of the local cultures and lore. Awesome day in the Park!
My 6 year old son and I were lucky enough to have Chris as our guide on our first visit to the Hawaii. We were not disappointed! Chris introduced us to the volcano with a quiet practice of tuning in to the environment around us, and then a song. It was beautiful, and exactly the type of ceremony I wanted my son to participate in, as to understand the importance of the island, the volcano, and all it's inhabitants. Chris was very knowledgeable and knew how to keep my son engaged with story and facts about many things on the island. I learned so much about the volcano and the island in general, and am very pleased with the experience and Chris's expertise. My favorite part of the tour was the lava tube and the vegetation on the volcano. Our tour ended with a beautiful rainbow over the crater. 🌈 At the end of our busy trip on the big island I asked my son what his favorite activity was. His answer was our trip to Mount Kiluaea, which says a lot coming my active curious little boy! I highly recommend Chris as a guide for families and adults alike as he very insightful, engaged, and knowledgeable. Thank you Chris for a wonderful experience!
Chris was such a great guide! Super knowledgeable and positive energy. Easy to get along with and gave great recommendations. Would be interested in getting a custom guided tour! Probably the best guide you could get for a lava volcano tour.
Chris was a thoughtful and knowledgeable guide on our hike through volcano floor. Shared Hawaiian culture as we ventured through the rainforest surrounding the crater. Highly recommend!
Amazing guide. Decades of experience working at Volcano National Park. Very knowledgeable about volcanology and the flora and fauna. Great story. You will love hiking with Chris
Chris is incredible. His understanding of the history, culture and geology are excellent. What makes him so very special is the way in which he connects experience of visiting a place with the meaning it has had and has now in Hawaiian Indigenous culture. Traveling with Chris is like moving from 2D to 3D: he adds an entirely new dimension to what you are seeing.
Our tour of Kilauea was extra special by having Christopher Quiseng as our guide. He is exceptionally knowledgeable of the volcano and the area’s physical and social ecology and freely shares that knowledge and insights with his guests. It was a real pleasure and learning experience to hike through the volcano with Chris
Chris is just extraordinary. I learned so much about the volcanoes, the plants and animals, and about native Hawaiian practices. This was absolutely the highlight of my trip to Hawai'i. I wish I could have spent a whole week with him. I would highly recommend him to anyone wanting to experience the real Hawai'i and not just resort life. He's a seasoned park service researchers, an expert trail runner, and an eco psychologist; and he blends all of this expertise into an unforgettable experience.
Authenticaly genuine unscripted sharing of a majestic site. Chris was able to provide a true taste of the significance of the site, the role it played in his people history and its current role. His knowlege of the geology of the site combined with his in-depth knowledge his history/mythology complimented by his natural story-telling skills were facsinating. The tour was well described, entertaining and very informative. We spent 3 hours and could use some more. thank you Chris
Fantastic Tours! The guide has so much knowledge, interesting facts, I enjoyed it very much.
Book this now. Right now. This is the best, most comprehensive immersive experience I’ve ever had. You might be thinking, “OK random lady on trip advisor, it sounds like you don’t get out much. Maybe you need less Starbucks lattes and more outdoor time.” I hear you, but here’s a sample of what I experienced: Chris is an amalgamation of an ecological textbook, trail runner, Hawaiian cultural leader, and singer-storyteller. He is astounding as a guide and a human. He took us on a near half-marathon adventure through the little-known trails of the park, and as a cherry on top, across the volcano crater floor itself. He wowed us with ancient knowledge and oral histories (Pele’s tears being my favorite! Ask him about them.), traditions and songs, and animal and plant knowledge that I’ll remember until the day I die (the Kamehameha butterfly and its symbiotic relationship with a species of plant). I left this adventure on an all-time high. Chris hold the bar for the very best national park adventure I’ve ever been on. Book him today.
This exceeded expectations. Chris took me on a lovely trail run. Chris has a fascinating life story. He has spent decades exploring the cultures of indigenous peoples around the world and that perspective informs his sharing of his Hawaiian culture. Our run was at a conversational pace with pauses to appreciate and experience the park. I learned so much about the park, the flora, the fauna and about the cultural practices of the Hawaiin people. And I got a nice run in too. And he shared some delicious local produce at the end.
As an avid traveler, I find it important to immerse myself in the landscape of the places I visit. I find I best understand a destination by connecting with the land and its natural history through the eyes and knowledge of a local. My preferred tours are small, personalized, and unique. My trail run with Chris of Thriving Sun at Kilauea Volcano was all of that and ultimately so much more. Chris was one of the best guides I have ever had. He chose a favorite trail that showcased a wide variety of the ecological zones around the volcano, making the terrain always varied and interesting. I could tell he loved the area because he shared personal stories along the way that made its natural beauty come alive. I learned about the different plants, birds, animals, and traditional uses of the land. He quickly learned my preferred running pace and set a nice rhythm that allowed us to talk but he also created quiet moments of self-reflection and time to appreciate the beautiful views. There is no better way to experience the power of the volcano than while running along its rim and through its forests. This run was truly the right amount of adventure. I recommend this run for any type of runner because Chris is extremely adept at adjusting to the needs and the pace of his guests. For me, this run was a training run for a race I had coming up. It was one of the longest distances I had run yet, and by the time we finished the trail, I felt more confident about my upcoming race. Chris had shown me that I was stronger than I thought and that by appreciating the beauty along the way it makes it easier to keep moving forward.
This guided trail run was a very special experience from the blessing of the land where clouds formed a rainbow-like arc over the crater to the end where we sampled local foods and drank coconut water straight from the coconut. This was so much more than a beautiful run in the forest and around the crater. Chris is a very knowledgeable guide who shared information about the local land, the volcano, plants and animals, Hawaiian culture, eco-psychology, and trail running. If you love running and want to feel more connected to the land that you are visiting, this is the tour for you!
Chris is an amazing guide and held a safe container for me. He led me through a beautiful forested coastal area where I could begin to reflect on my personal life transitions within my family. He was able to reflect back to me my strengths and helped me feel like I can trust myself to move forward. He helped me safely explore and listen to the teachings inherent in a calm tide pool within an encroaching storm. I gained a beautiful vantage point to see my situation more clearly within a relatively short amount of time. I look forward to working more deeply with Thriving Sun’s offerings.
Chris is an engaging guide whose varied experiences over the years at and around the volcano make him uniquely capable to enhance what would otherwise be a solitary enlightening experience into an encyclopedic understanding of the vistas before the observer. His enthusiasm and gentle sharing of his factual and scientific and philosophical as well as spiritual knowledge enhanced exponentially the physical wonders before us, for which we will always remember fondly.
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