Frommer's Travel Guides

Blue Hawaiian as been honored since 1996 to receive the coveted  "Recommended" rating from Frommer's Hawaii. The current endorsement from the Frommer's Hawaii guide reads:

"Blue Hawaiian is the Cadillac of helicopter tour companies."

 Frommer's Travel Guides are renowned for delivering the most candid and reliable travel information available. Since the 1957 publication of Arthur Frommer's revolutionary Europe on $5 a Day, the Frommer's collection of travel products has expanded to include over 300 guidebooks as well as the popular Frommers.com Web site, reaffirming Frommer's as the most trusted name in travel today.

The airlines, cruise lines, tour operators, consolidators, national tourist boards, activity companies and other travel firms mentioned in the Frommers.com Newsletter and the popular Frommer's Travel Guides series have not paid a single penny for such mention. All establishment listings and reviews in Frommer's Guidebooks and online at Frommers.com are based on their author's individual experiences—their listings and reviews are not advertisements. In this regard, Frommer’s is totally different from other travel sites and travel guides, which do maintain a commercial relationship with the entities or programs they recommend.

The following excerpt re-printed from the 2006 Frommer's Travel Guide

Flying High: Helicopter Rides

Only a helicopter can bring you face-to-face with volcanoes, waterfalls, and remote sites like Maui's little-known Wall of Tears, up near the summit of Pu'u Kukui in the West Maui Mountains. Today's pilots are part Hawaiian historian, part DJ, part amusement-ride operator, and part tour guide, telling you about Hawaii's flora, fauna, history, and culture.  Blue Hawaiian Helicopters is the Cadillac of helicopter-tour companies. They have the latest, high-tech, environmentally friendly (and quiet) Eco-Star helicopters, specially designed for air-tour operators. Flight times range from 30 minutes to 100 minutes.

The first chopper pilots in Hawaii were good ol' boys on their way back from Vietnam--hard-flying, hard-drinking cowboys who cared more about the ride than the scenery. But not anymore. Today, pilots, like the ones at Blue Hawaiian, are an interesting hybrid: part Hawaiian historian, part DJ, part tour guide, and part amusement-ride operator. As you soar through the clouds, absorbing Maui's scenic terrain, you'll learn about the island's flora, fauna, history, and culture.

The best way to see the volcano is from on high, in a helicopter. This bird's-eye view puts the enormity of it all into perspective. No two ways about it--this is an extraordinary way to see the red. The best helicopter firm is * Blue Hawaiian Helicopters (tel. 800/745-BLUE or 808/886-1768; www.bluehawaiian.com), the Cadillac of helicopter tour companies. This professionally run, locally based company has an excellent safety record, comfortable, top-of-the-line 'copters, and pilots who are extremely knowledgeable about everything from vulcanology to Hawaii lore. The company flies out of both Hilo and Waikoloa (Hilo is cheaper because it's closer). The Circle of Fire/Waterfalls 50-minute flight from Hilo takes you to the volcano and past waterfalls, valleys, and remote beaches for $165 per person. From Waikoloa, there's the Kohala Coast Adventure, a 50-minute flight over the Kohala Mountains and remote valleys for $175 per person (volcano not included); or--my favorite--the 2-hour Big Island Spectacular, starring the volcano, tropical valleys, Hamakua Coast waterfalls, and the Kohala Mountains, for $340 (worth every penny).