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What is the best Hawaiian Island for helicopter sightseeing?

dizzy lizzy

By dizzy lizzy,
in Hawaii

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2cruiseagain

2cruiseagain

Posted
Posted

OK. I just received the DVD from Safari Helicopters in Kauai, and I feel even more assured of a strong recommendation for them. Instead of getting a “best of” video for the flight with your “wave to the camera” insert at the front, you get the real footage of your flight with your entire party saying aloha to the camera and loading into the chopper. Even though the weather wasn’t perfect, the DVD showed exactly what we saw with multiple camera angles that seemed to change with the narration of our pilot. It’s fun to hear the same music we heard and the dialog between each other and the pilot. A full hour DVD that I think will be even more fun to watch in the years to follow. I don’t think a helicopter ride in Houston would be the same…

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gsquaredstwins

gsquaredstwins

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Definitely without a single Doubt it is Kauai !!!

 

We just went in December and my family is a group of travel agents and we have been to hawaii several times and without a doubt, kauai is the most beautiful island to see from a helicopter.

 

One of the reasons is the large majority of the island is not reachable by a car - so the only way to see it is helicopter or boat.

 

The helicopter tour we took was with Blue Hawaiian and they were superb. The pilot had the entire flight set to specific music that fit the "mood" perfectly. They also have helicopters with the most viewing windows (even under my feet were clear windows so I could see what was under me).

 

It was incredible to fly into canyons and close up to waterfalls. Napali coast was incredibly beautiful.

 

Out of everything we did this past trip to hawaii, we do not regret the monry we spent on that tour. It was by far one of the best things we did on the islands.

 

Good Luck !!!

 

Gina

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babs275

babs275

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I second the recommendation for Blue Hawaiian on Kauai - did this tour just last Sunday and it was probably the best money ever spent on an excursion - the soundtrack totally set the mood and the views were breathtaking.

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tomluvsaida

tomluvsaida

Posted
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I had the same question. I was undecided on Kawai or The Big Island. From what everyone here just told me Kawai is it! Now I just have to decide which company. I got a whole thread going on this already:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=383543

It also has links to most of the helicopter companies. I also read in Kauai Revealed that you can save money with Island Helicopters http://www.islandhelicopters.com/ if you are willing to listen to a time share lecture they push.

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vega

vega

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Go Kauai! We did a heli tour in Kauai and in Hilo and loved both but were much more impressed with the Kauai tour and the Blue Hawaiian tour operator. My husband videotaped the whole flight and when we got home, we downloaded Hawaiian songs from Elvis Presley and Beach Boys and used them as background music for the heli tour to remind us of the great time we had up there.

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hawaiivacation

hawaiivacation

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If you get just one chance to fly in a helicopter while in Hawaii, what Island would you choose?

 

The best island would be Kauai. This is the only island that have unaccessible areas that can only be seen by air. Being I just got off the cruise a couple of weeks ago, I found an airplane tour that was half the cost of helicopters plus this airplane had large windows like helicopters. Being I'm from Oahu, the owner/pilot was our guide and I was very impressed of his knowledge and love of the island plus knowing his hawaiian and a native too. He also flies for a major airline too. Check it out www.airventureshawaii.com I highly recommend and I will look forward to doing all again with them! Have fun on your cruise!:)

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beachchick

beachchick

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Well, we've not done a helicopter on Kauai or the BI (that's next year I think), but we have done one on Maui. So, let me throw that into the mix as "what an amazing ride!" We used Blue Hawaiian and splurged the extra bit for the EcoStar. We also chose the longer flight, so I will say right off it wasn't cheap.

 

We took a morning flight that encompassed the whole island. It was whale season, so we flew over several pods as well (what a different perspective). The views were breathtaking. There is so much of Maui that you cannot see except by air. Every kind of terrain imaginable, from Haleakala to flying right into the deep green valleys to the road to Hana, as well as the beaches and everything else.

 

I believe that Maui is an often overlooked treasure when it comes to helicopter rides.

 

beachchick

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spleen93

spleen93

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This is the only island that have unaccessible areas that can only be seen by air.

 

OK, everybody tosses this phrase around in respect to Kauai, but in reality, all the Hawaiian islands have areas that are inaccessible to ground travel (read, roads to drive on). This is true on Kauai, Maui, the Big Island, and even on Oahu (mostly the central portion). Not all these places are scenic or places that you want to go to but still, the statement is incorrect.

 

Having said this, I'd probably agree that Kauai is still your best bet for a helicopter ride in Hawaii if you could only pick one. Frankly, any helicopter ride on any of the islands is better than not doing a helicopter ride at all. :D

 

Spleen

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Callandre

Callandre

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I too am interested in booking the Kuai helitour, can anyone suggest what time of day would be better? Is a morning vs. an evening flight better? Here on the East Coast, our winds are generally lighter earlier in the day (from a sailor's perspective, anyway.)

Can someone advise how to get from the ship to the Blue Hawaii location?

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Grego

Grego

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After reading around I am really inclined to book the Blue Hawaiian ECO Adventure right now.

 

Only question is, what do we do for transportation to/from the heli ride? rental? cab?

 

Excellent question and one that hasn't been asked before that I have seen. Some do offer pick up such as Kauai Helicopter Tours and Safari from what I have read on this thread. But what about the others?

 

I also need to know what the best strategy is to get from the ship to the site of the helicopter departure. Looking forward to hearing from others.

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hncg57c

hncg57c

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The office for Blue Hawaiian in Kauai is located in Harbor Mall, which was roughly a ten minute walk from the pier where the Pride of Hawaii was docked. Also, they had a free shuttle from the pier to the mall. We just took the Kauai Eco-Adventure tour last Saturday and it was just amazing.

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