Live Aloha |March 31, 2025

Which Greenwell Farms Coffee Tour Is Right For Me?

With over a thousand 5-star reviews on Tripadvisor and over 600 on Yelp, Hawaii Magazine’s Best of Hawaii Award, and a host of other accolades, our complimentary coffee farm tour has grown in popularity tremendously over the years.

In 2018, we began to develop a new tour course that expanded what you could see on the tour, and worked diligently to get all the guides to a place where we are consistently giving accurate information.

We also wanted to retain the character and personality of the individual guides who present the story of our farm. So instead of creating a script where guides regurgitate a pre-determined set of information, we created a culture of learning and sharing, where guides could digest information and then present it in their own unique style.

Many repeat guests have said they love that they can do the tour multiple times and each time they get something new based on how the guide chooses to prioritize information.

Additionally, on a working farm, every day is unique. Sometimes it is crazy busy, other times slow and mellow, sometimes the trees are cut down and other times in full bloom with fragrant white blossoms. You may get the rare glimpse of actual harvesting (coffee picking), or see a staff member picking avocados. As such, we strive for our tours to be fluid, allowing guides to highlight and accentuate the moment in time, while still painting the overall picture.

Depending on the time of the year, you may have a small tour (2-15 people) or a tour may swell to over 60 guests. You never know until you get there and we do our best to make sure everyone has a great time. The Greenwell Farms Kona Coffee Farm tour has something for everyone.

so…which Greenwell Farms Coffee Tour is right for you?

1. The Complimentary Guided Tour

With no reservations required, enjoy a 45-60 minute walk around the farm (grass, gravel, pavement, upslope, downslope and weather dependent) and learn how coffee is made from seed to cup. We typically present an overview of Kona Coffee in general, see part of the farm, the wet mill and a glimpse of the nursery. We talk about the various other plants and trees that you see and always leave space for questions. We try to keep it light while still educating on the intricacies of coffee production.

In our gift shop you will find a coffee sampling station, and guests may “try before they buy” and taste 8-10 different roasts/varieties.

Proximity to Kailua-Kona is 15-20 minutes by car. There is free parking around the gift shop area, convenience to the main highway (on the way to the volcano) and clean restrooms make this a must do experience for both the novice coffee drinker and the serious coffee nerd. Come with a smile and leave with a bigger (caffeinated) smile!

Greenwell Farms Coffee Tour times:
9:00AM, 10:00AM, 10:30AM, 11:00AM, 11:30AM, 12:00 PM, 12:30 PM, 1:00 PM, 1:30 PM, 2:00 PM, 2:30 PM, 3:00PM

Coffee sampling between 8:30AM and 4:30PM

Please arrive 10-15 minutes before your desired tour time. Hats, sunglasses, tumblers of water, help to keep you comfortable during the tour.

Is the Greenwell Farms Complimentary Guided Tour Good for Kids?

We are asked this often, and it is hard to answer not knowing the kids. We have had well-behaved 7-year-olds that ask insightful questions and love the experience and we have had 12-year-olds that are here under protest, get bored quickly and get near melt down stage toward the end of the tour.

All of the guides here love kids, try to include them where they can, but must relay a lot of information in a short amount of time. We ask parents to respect the flow and sanctity of the tour by managing their children conscientiously.

What are the Physical Demands of the Greenwell Farms Complimentary Guided Tour?

Greenwell Farms is a real working coffee farm with roots that date back to the 1850’s. As such, guests will have to navigate grass, gravel, dirt, (sometimes mud) and pavement, with significant upslope and downslope. You are on a farm!

That said, expect to be walking in the sun (occasionally light rain) outside for about an hour. (Longer on the paid tours) With walking, standing and few chances to sit make this tour moderately physical.

If you have an off-road wheel chair and a least 2 helpers, we have had guests make the course. If not, it can be tough in a wheel chair.

2. The Private Group Tour

Although groups of up to 14 can join our regular free tour as they like, many large families and groups want that deeper more intimate experience. The Private Group Tour is an extended guided tour of the farm and goes many places the free tour cannot go.

Guests will be able to sample many different types of coffee at our sample station. This tour does not come with the cupping experience. This tour wanders up to the roasting room to learn about coffee roasting, then meanders through the farm, seeing the wet mill, the nursery and the dry mill. It is a true seed to cup perspective visiting each department that contributes to the quality of the coffee. Plenty of time for pictures, questions and seasonal diversions.

This tour can accommodate up to 48 people, but can be also be arranged for small parties.

The Private Group Tour is customizable to your group’s needs so please discuss scheduling and the needs of your specific group by email matt@greenwellfarms.com

Private Group Tour Cost:
1-10 Guests – $120 per group + tax
11-30 Guests – $11 per person + tax
31-48 Guest – $9 per person + tax

3. The Deluxe Tour & Tasting

Limited to just 6 guests maximum, we take a deep dive into the world of 100% Kona Coffee. We have a dedicated outdoor coffee classroom where we start with a brief overview of what makes Kona Coffee unique.

Then, we stroll up to the roasting room to learn about coffee roasting. If not occupied we can also visit the cupping room, where the quality of the coffee is evaluated professionally in multiple ways.

Walking down hill now, we move through part of the farm, learn about in-taking the coffee, wet processing and drying. At the nursery we see grafted trees, and hear about how coffee comes into this world. Next, we stop at the dry mill where machines clean, size sort and manage defects. This is a fascinating world of engineering, legal standards and fine quality control.

After you have seen the process from beginning to end, we go back to our outdoor classroom and learn to “cup” coffee. Like a wine tasting for coffee, we will explore the subtleties and nuance of aroma, taste, flavor and all of the other components used to judge a coffee. We hope you come away from this experience seeing coffee in a new light, never thinking of coffee in the same way again. We have been told many times this tour was an absolute highlight of time spent in Hawaii.

The Greenwell Farms Deluxe Tour & Tasting* is offered at 9:30AM or 1:30PM (Monday – Friday)
$49.95 per person plus tax. (minimum 2 people)
*Please note, this tour is not appropriate for children under 12.

4. The Art of Coffee: Manual Brewing Class

The turning point for many coffee geeks is the moment they learned to really make their coffee well. What’s the point of buying really amazing coffee and not having the skills to get the best flavors from it?

By popular demand we created our manual brewing class to guide you in ways to get the best flavors from your coffee. We focus on general best practices, with a manual and recipes, and then together we do a pour over, a French Press, an AeroPress, and a Moka pot. Using the same coffee for each, you will be astounded at how different the final result is.

Our barista will give you an understanding of the detailed variables, weight ratios and water temperatures, grind size and extraction time to get the best flavors from your coffee. Now that you are on vacation, take a breath and learn how to make your coffee really, really well. This experience will live with you for the rest of your life!

This class is limited to 6 participants and cannot accommodate children under 12.

The class takes approximately 1-1.5 hours, and we will cover four methods of manual brewing.

The Art of Coffee: Manual Brewing Class is offered at 9:30AM and 1:30PM Tuesday through Saturday by pre-reservation only.

$39.95 per person plus tax.
(minimum 2 people)

**Note: We are sometimes asked to book the Deluxe Tour and the Brewing class back-to-back. Please trust us when we tell you this is way too much coffee for such a short period and we never book these two experiences on the same day.

So, whatever you are planning and whichever tour style suits you best, take a Greenwell Farms Coffee Farm tour and we will make sure you can check the Kona Coffee Farm box on your Hawaii bucket list.