Why Choose an Experienced, Small, Locally-Owned and Operated Company for your Hawaii Private Catamaran Tour?
- Sail Hawaiian Style
- Apr 26
- 6 min read
Updated: Apr 27
Why Choose Us For Your Hawaii Private Catamaran Tour?
What makes Sail Hawaiian Style Catamaran different? Why choose us out of all the charter options out there? For us, it is all about our crew, our catamaran, and our guests. This may seem like a cheesy or generic answer, but these passions are what have sailed us through the past 9 years that we have been operating our catamaran tours in Waikiki.
Our Crew
Something that sets us apart is our crew. We aren't just co-workers here. We are 'ohana, and we are a team working together and always improving. Our company consists of five total people.
We have Captain Stephen- owner, captain, surfer, sailor- the reason all of us are here (but he will never take the credit). Captain Stephen has been sailing since he was a kid, and he began sailing across oceans in his teenage years. He has a lifetime of experience on the ocean, and he loves sharing that knowledge and passion with his crew and his guests. Stephen lives in Haleiwa on Oahu's North Shore. He has a big passion for surfing, and charging bigger waves is the reason he moved to Hawai'i in his teenage years. He also used to shape surfboards, and you can always find him looking for an excuse to go surfing. He is a very experienced sailor as he has sailed from Hawai'i to California, to Tahiti, from Fiji to Hawai'i, throughout all of the Hawaiian
Islands, and more. The ocean is where Stephen feels most at home and is the reason he started Sail Hawaiian Style Catamaran in the first place. He wanted people to have an experience where they could feel like they were at home right when they stepped onboard, a more personable experience- which is why we offer private charters and keep our passenger numbers low. It's not about how many people we can fit on our boat to us- it's about providing a genuine experience for our guests.
You can now also find his 10 year old daughter Keana following into the passion of sailing as she has joined the local keiki sailing club. You might catch her sailing by as you're exiting the marina on your charter, and she is in her sailing class.
Captain Tom
Captain Tom comes from a background of sailing as his father crossed oceans sailing from California to Japan, Japan to Hawaii, and captained the support ship for the Hōkūleʻa. Captain Tom was Sail Hawaiian Style Catamaran's very first employee nine years ago. Captain Stephen and Tom worked together the first four years working charters, sailing between the Hawaiian Islands, and also working on upgrades to Hawaiian Style, installing new engines, installing the shade canopy, varnishing, working charters, etc. Tom started training to be captain under Captain Stephen once First Mate Savannah was hired on as crew. Tom then went on to take his captain's course and achieved his USCG Commercial Captain's license (we were all so proud). Captain Stephen said it was hard for him to take a step back and send Captain Tom and First Mate Savannah off on their own, but that he couldn't be more proud of watching their growth over the years. You will now find Captain Tom captaining Hawaiian Style most days sharing his passion of sailing with guests.
Savannah comes from a background of growing up being on the ocean. Spending her summer days out on the ocean offshore with her dad and brother, diving and spearfishing, the ocean has always been her passion. She began working on boats in the Florida Keys where she spent three years there crewing on a catamaran. She began working at Sail Hawaiian Style Catamaran just as things were beginning to get busy and Captain Stephen and Tom began to need help with all the charters coming in. Savannah seamlessly joined the team, and she jokes that her biggest accomplishment was getting rid of Captain Stephen's paper calendar for charter scheduling. On top of crewing, Savannah now handles all of our bookings, scheduling, our website, and our social media putting her Graphic Design Degree to use.
Whitney
Whitney joined our team in 2023, bringing with her almost a decade of experience working on boats and a deep passion for the ocean. With a Master’s in Sustainability, she is dedicated to protecting marine ecosystems and promoting environmentally responsible practices. Most days you can find her working on the parasail boats, but we are always lucky when we have her onboard with us. Whitney first came onboard as a charter guest during a visit to the island—and that's how she ended up joining our crew!
Bella
Bella grew up in San Diego and has spent her life in the water. A lifelong surfer, she moved to Hawaii to study Marine Biology at the University of Hawaii, earning her Bachelor's Degree. Before joining our crew in 2024, she worked as a surf instructor, helping others build confidence in the ocean. Now, she brings that same experience and passion to our private catamaran charters, whether she's guiding snorkeling excursions or sharing her knowledge of Hawaii marine life.
Our Catamaran -
Hawaiian Style
Working here is like being a part of a team that is all working towards a common goal. We all learn from each other and continue to gain valuable skills each and every day. We are constantly doing maintenance on Hawaiian Style to keep her in the best shape that we can. Between de-rusting, oiling the teak wood, varnishing, oil changes, cleaning- there is always something to do. We are constantly replacing parts with better parts. If anything breaks, we are all coming up with a plan and fixing it together.
Over the years, we have gained invaluable skills from Stephen and his background as a contractor. We do our own repair work- fiberglass, epoxy, sanding, priming, painting, etc. We have all learned to do it all. One may not realize the amount of constant upkeep that a boat takes, especially a sailing catamaran, but doing that upkeep gives you a sense of pride in your work and your vessel. We are extremely proud of Hawaiian Style. She is a custom built catamaran that was built for smooth sailing and speed. She was originally built to be a racing catamaran and half way through the build they decided to add more space and decided to add the cabin. This is why Hawaiian Style cuts through the seas so smoothly, she was built for it with her sleek, low-profile design.
Our Guests
As a small company, our guests truly mean so much to us. We are not kidding when we say our repeat guests and guest referrals have gotten us through some of our slowest times in the beginning years, and our repeat guests are a huge chunk of our clients every year that keep us going. You guys keep our dream alive. Your referrals mean the world to us. We know that recommending an activity like ours, a Hawaii private catamaran tour, comes with a lot of trust and that is not something we take lightly. It is an absolute honor to sail with all of our guests. We know you have so many options, but the fact that you chose us means everything to us. It's what keeps us going each and every day. We always want our guests to feel at home on Hawaiian Style, whether you are a one-time guest, repeat guests, or repeat repeat repeat guests, we look forward to sailing with you and are always honored that you chose us.
Exciting News
This year was even more exciting with the achievement of our COI permit. We never would have thought we would be in a position to be a USCG inspected COI vessel in Hawaii. That kind of permit always seemed like a dream that only the corporate companies could attain. The day we received our permit (this allowed us to increase our passenger maximum to 15 guests) seemed like an absolute dream.
We couldn't believe it was real. Even though we put in countless hours of blood, sweat, and tears, we also know we would not be where we are today without all of our guests from the past 9 years, so as we enter into our upcoming busy season, we wanted to send out a heartfelt mahalo to all of those that have contributed to getting us here and to the constant support you all have shown us through the years.
With us, you get a crew that seamlessly works together, knows the boat inside and out, has a genuine passion for the ocean, and cares about sharing that passion with you all to make sure you have a great time onboard.
Mahalo nui loa, and we hope to sail with you this summer!
Captain Stephen, Captain Tom
Crew- Savannah, Whitney, & Bella
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