America · FARMS
The good farms tours fill up early and the best go first. Below: the 12 to book ahead, what each includes and how they differ.
Walk a working Maui pineapple operation in Haliimaile, taste Maui Gold at different ripeness stages, and take home an airport-ready pineapple.
“We learned a lot about pineapples. Good guide. Nice views and photo ops. Frankly, a bit overpriced for the overall experience but you do get to taste a freshly picked pineapple and walk away with your own fruit to enjoy (or even grow) at home.”
Small-group Kentucky Bluegrass tour with Keeneland looks and thoroughbred farm visits, including horse interaction and racing history.
“It was great. Our guide was very knowledgeable. We had a great time seeing all the farms and horses.”
Walk Kona’s oceanfront salt farm, learn how ocean water becomes hand-harvested salt, and finish with a guided tasting of multiple varieties.
“It’s very well done! It’s about an hour long, and you learn all about the process of making deep sea salt! And you get to taste different kinds! Wear sunscreen and hats. They have umbrellas available to block the sun. Totally recommend!”
Kauai cacao tour at Lydgate Farms: botanical garden walk, honey and vanilla tasting, rare fruit, and seed-to-bar chocolate in 3 hours.
“Excellent knowledge and tastes from a working cacao farm. It was great to see the trees and learn about the whole process. Jenna did a great job!!”
Walk a Kona-area coffee and cacao farm at 1,200 feet, taste chocolate and coffee on site, and tour natural soap making for $50.
“Try to go on a Thursday because those are the days with longer tours and it was wonderful. So much fun and great information wonderful coffee and chocolate well worth it. Greg was so good to listen to in fact everybody was.”
Mine for crystals and fossils, then meet goats and tour an aviary at Elijah Mountain Gem Mine in Hendersonville.
“This was such a great experience; even better than expected. We mined 3 large buckets between my son (9), my husband and myself. My kid LOVED it (and so did we). The place is big, has beautiful rocks, gifts, a fun obstacle course for kids, dinosaur statues, shaded tables, a bar, chickens and goats. The workers were kind and professional. Highly recommend this excursion.”
Bozeman alpaca and llama farm tour with hands-on feeding, walking and bathing, plus guard dogs and farm wildlife. Free entry.
“A must do if you're in Bozeman! We'll visit Sarah and her farm every time we come to Montana. The alpacas, lamas, and Marley, the Antolian Sheppard, were super sweet and very photogenic 😀 loved walking Billy, the Alpaca.”
A full-day Big Island loop with Waipio and waterfalls, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, black-sand turtles, and Kona coffee tasting for $264.
“Our family had a great day riding on the bus around the Big Island. The bus was comfortable to ride in and had big windows to look out. Our bus driver was full of knowledge about the island and was engaging with the people on the bus. We would have missed out on all of the history, if we had driven around the island ourselves. We didn't have to worry about directions to the next stop, missing a turn, or finding a place to park. The amount of time spent at each location was enough to soak in all the beauty Hawaii has to offer. I would highly recommend the…”
Narrated 3.5-hour van tour of Lexington’s thoroughbred farms and Keeneland, with movie filming sites and up-close horse time for $45.
“Our driver was very knowledgeable about the area, about thoroughbreds, and about horse racing. The scenery was amazing, and loved seeing the mares with their foals at one of the farms.”
Kona to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park with Kona coffee, black-sand turtles, lava tube, crater views, and included meals on a small group tour.
“We enjoyed the entire trip. Katie was knowledgeable, kind, funny and sweet. This was the best excursion of our trip. There were only four of us touring with our guide. Good food and good company!”
Small-bus Amish Country tour in Lancaster: countryside drive, historic farmhouse tour with 17-language translations, then a 15-acre farm visit.
“Definitely enjoy the scenery of Amish lives…their way of life!..would like to stop at least one of the fresh fruit/vegetable stands.”
Homestead Everglades Alligator Farm airboat ride plus shows, feeding demos, and hundreds of alligators in about 2 hours for $41.
“GO AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE, IT GETS CROWDED. I got a entry plus airboat tour and the value for money is great. I watched a gator show, saw gator feeding, did 360 spins on an airboat and saw a bunch of unexpected exotic animals. I held a baby gator too. All this for a very fair price. I was there right as it opened, wen't on the first airboat ride of the day and saw everything. When leaving around noon it got Packed, the experience would have definitely been worse if i had gotten there later.”
Every kind of day out, and the best of each.
