Our Team

During peak season, Holo Holo employs over sixty people of all different ages and backgrounds. Of course, we all have our own backstories, motivations, and dreams, but one thing is safe to say we all share a passion for the island; for one reason or another, we’re all choosing Kauai.

A person’s job/career situation greatly impacts their quality of life, and we believe that happy people do good work. Therefore, it’s part of our company’s mission to foster a work environment that’s fulfilling and empowering. If our employees are satisfied in their work lives, we believe they’ll best serve our customers and be constructive neighbors and community members.

Boats and landscapes are finite; people are dynamic. Our team is the heart and soul of our business, and we strive to acknowledge, appreciate, and support all our talented team members. We recognize that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts and that each of these departments is equally indispensable when it comes to Holo Holo Charters being the most professional boat tour company on Kauai:

First off, there’s our management and administrative staff, taking care of unglamorous tasks like keeping our permits, insurance, and certifications up to date, maintaining financials, crafting policy and procedures, long-term planning, hiring, and payroll. These guys and gals dot the i’s and cross the t’s so that we can legally conduct business and, we are grateful for their diligence and attention to detail.

Then there’s our friendly reservations team, answering phones, taking reservations, and checking in passengers. First impressions are everything, and we give big kudos to our front desk for representing our company with aloha and for treating our customers with patience and kindness.

Of course, there are our highly skilled and capable boat captains. These men and women take on a major responsibility and are constantly alert, adjusting their routes for varying weather and ocean conditions. They do all this while narrating the trips with their unique knowledge of Kauai’s fascinating landscape and history. We say mahalo nui loa to our captains for always, always, always prioritizing our customers’ safety and for imparting their own style and personality into each tour.

We must give it up for our energetic crewmembers that wear many different hats every day. They’re safety officers, lifeguards, eyes-in-the-back-of-your-head, sailors, deckhands, photographers, servers, bartenders, counselors, janitors, and more. All hats off to our crewmembers for anticipating people’s needs, having our guests’ backs on the water, and making each tour unique, fun, and personable.

Last but certainly not least, there’s our strong and capable shop and operations department, working diligently behind the scenes. These guys and gals are changing the oil, fixing the toilets, ordering parts and supplies, sanding, painting, building, doing the heavy lifting. Boat maintenance never ends, and we thank them wholeheartedly for all the blood, sweat and tears they expend to keep our fleet looking and running its best.

For years, we referred to ourselves collectively as the Holo Holo ʻOhana—the Hawaiian word for family. It was nice, and in some ways, we really are like family. (In some cases, we actually are family!) But words matter, and over time, we decided that the word team better captures the environment we’re striving for. Teams you choose and teams you grow in. Team members bring their strengths and work together to achieve common goals. In our case, those goals are taking people out for epic days on the water while respecting Kauai’s natural and cultural resources while being part of an equitable, supportive work environment that allows each of us to be the best versions of ourselves here on Kauai.

So, when we launched our new uniforms in 2024, we didn’t want to wear a general label of “Staff” or each specific position like “Captain” or “Crew,” we are united as one TEAM, and that’s what we wear to identify our amazing employees. We literally have each other’s backs and wear our team jersey proudly!

Teamwork makes the dream work!