Reviews

This was definitely the highlight of my time spent in Hawaii. For anyone visiting this is a once in a lifetime experience, everyone should do it. They had a very knowledgeable and friendly staff. I was able to take great pictures and see Hawaii in a never before seen way!

The helicopter tour with Makani Kai was definitely a highlight of my vacation. It was a gorgeous sunny day and some of my best pictures of the island came from the flight! It was a great way to see many different attractions, and get an aerial view of the whole island all in one afternoon. The staff was friendly and knowledgable, and our pilot was a hoot. We were lucky enough to see several waterfalls, which is something I really enjoyed. Simply put, it was breathtaking. To top it all off we got a DVD of the tour to enjoy for years to come. I strongly recommend taking this tour with Makani Kai if you get a chance during your stay in Hawaii!

Let me start by saying that I do not like heights and I am not too keen on flying either, but I was talked into a helicopter flight and I must admit that this was one of the best experiences of the entire holiday and well worth the money. We chose the Hidden O’ahu trip and paid extra for first class (front) seats, this was easily worth the extra expense. The flight lasted 45 minutes and took us around the key sights on the island with an up-to-date commentary from our pilot. Although I videoed the entire flight, mainly to take my mind off of the height, we bought the in-flight DVD which arrived all the way to the UK within seven days and this will give our family and friends a taste of this amazing experience. Besides the flight I also liked the fact that Makani Kai picked us up in a high spec bus immediately before our flight and dropped us off straight after it, which saved us having to waste any of our holiday sitting around waiting for transport. As this was the only flight that we took I cannot compare it to other companies, but we were more than satisfied with our experience and can highly recommend Makani Kai Helicopters

The helicopter tour with Makani Kai was definitely a highlight of our vacation - we did the 45 minute flight and were collected and dropped back at the Hotel. It was a sunny day and we got some of our best pictures of the island from the flight. It was a great way to see many different sights and get an aerial view of the whole island especially as we had driven around the previous day. The staff was friendly and knowledgable, and our pilot was very informative with commentary all the way. We were lucky enough to see several waterfalls. It was a breathtaking tour. We strongly recommend taking this tour with Makani Kai if you get a chance during your stay in Hawaii! Do not take any bags with you as you cannot take them on the chopper. They have lockers for hire if you have to take them but this is an extra cost.

To: The staff and ownership of Makani Kai. Re: Christopher and Spencer Gray 4/23/11 flight. I am on the way back to Waikiki after an amazing experience. I sat next to my 12 year old son as we did the 45 min tour. This was an indescribable flight. I thank you so much. The views of the island were breathtaking. But you can't take credit for that! What you CAN take credit for is a 100% completely professionally run organization from start to finish. From the pickup at Waikiki Sunset until now, everyone was friendly, extremely well-informed, and a real pro. I cannot thank you enough. I want to reserve a special thank you to Jeff, our pilot. Not only did he go out of his way to put my son at ease, but he included him throughout the narration. Jeff's knowledge of his homeland was very impressive. What was more impressive was his awareness that a lifetime memory for a child was being created. I cannot put into words how much I appreciated Jeff's work and thoughtfulness today. I was also impressed with Jeff's service in the U.S. Army, and I find the overall patriotism of Hawaii very refreshing. My father was in the U.S. Navy in the 60s, so I have great respect for our Armed Forces. I am forever indebted to Makani Kai for today's adventure. Thank you for an unforgettable afternoon, and especially thank you to Jeff for his professionalism, knowledge, humor, and most of all, his kindness to my son Spencer. I will definitely be returning, and will tell everyone I know about today, and about the excellence that is Makani Kai! Sincerely, Christopher Gray Briarwood, Queens, NYC 4/23/2011

I took this helicopter flight with my husband in June this year as a treat without the rest of the family with whom we had done all our other attractions during our visit to Honolulu. We had an early start and the first trip of the day. The bus picked us up at our hotel and took us straight to the airport from where the flights left. We were given a safety check and then took our seats on the helicopter shortly after. There were five seats on the copter - two in the front and three in the back plus the pilot. I was initially disappointed not be be in the front seat but soon realised that my seat which was in the middle at the back was better and I had a great view of everything. The trip was recorded but my husband also filmed it too. The views were spectacular, the trip smooth and exciting for one who has never been in a helicopter previously and we had a great time with the 45 minute + trip. I just loved the view of all the beaches and it was special to fly between the mountains so close to the tops you could reach out and touch them. Would do it again.

Took the 45 min flight around Oahu on 25th Aug and THOROUGHLY loved it! Very well run business, even down to the Makani Kai President emailing me to thank me for sending them a photo taken on the flight! Thanks, Richard. Thrills, views, knowledgeable commentary, safe and professional. I would recommend this flight to EVERYONE! Mahalo from Australia, Dick Bridge

Wow, what a wonderful memorable experience I had with Richard and staff. From the moment I walked on the plane, I felt extremely comfortable, safe and relaxed. I couldn't have asked for a better pilot, PJ Orielly. I was able to gain a better perspective of the island and the pilot pointed out the extraordinary beauty of the island and was extremely informative. The helicopter ride was very smooth and the experience is a must if you are traveling in Oahu! I can't wait for my next Hawaii trip! I will be back soon for another tour with this stellar crew!

There is no other way to experience the incredible landscape and attractions of the island of Oahu than by helicopter. very much worthwhile the cost for the experience and for the proffessional way in which this particular company looks after you from the pickup in their modern shuttle to the pre flight presentation and safety briefing. The pilot was extremely friendly, as were all the staff and you have the option to purchase a personalised DVD of your actual flight. Thank you for an amazing experience!

Whenever I have special friends visit from around the world Makani Kai Helicopters are on the "must do" list! There's no other way to show off this beautiful island of ours. Each time I've taken this circle island tour I fall deeper and deeper in love with the most amazing place in the world. Thank you P.J. O'Reilly and Crew, you guys run a top notch experience that never gets old.

We had great service from start to finish. The tour was the highlight of our vacation and will be talked about for years to come. If you have never done it or are thinking about it you have got to to it!

The very best way to see the island! The crew and staff are excellent, friendly, professional and so fun! It was my first time to fly. I didn't have a chance to be nervous because the take off was so smooth I didn't notice we had left the ground! We saw so many places we didn't have time to see otherwise. This is a must do! Not to mention this is the helicopter choice for Hawaii 50! Great job guys!

The first thing my new husband and I did while on our honeymoon in Honolulu was take a helicopter tour of the city on Makani Kai. This was our first time in a helicopter and the experience was AMAZING! Our pilot did an excellent job narrating the various sites of Honolulu and the entire staff at Makani Kai was extremely nice. If you want a great overview of the city, I would recommend taking a tour with Makani Kai. This was one of the best experiences of my life (aside from my wedding day, of course!)

We loved this ride!  It was windy that day we were out, so it was the choppiest helicopter ride I've ever been on.  This was #4 for me and the second one for my spouse. I was actually in danger of becoming sick from the combination of the winds, and not-so-smooth ride, the rounded glass windows, and the spinning of the chopper pilot to allow everyone to enjoy all the views while he narrated.  Yet, despite feeling a little sick, I loved the views.  These were angles of view you were not going to get from anywhere else! We were picked up from hotel promptly and given our safety video and talk enroute to the site.  When that finished, we were shown a video of attractions in Hawaii.  No soliciting, just information on interesting areas to visit, which we appreciated. The Makani Kai helicopter is actually the one that they use in the modern day Hawaii Five-0 tv series.  We were happy to play tourists and get a photo of the signboard they have in the indoors waiting area, as well, as a photo of us standing in front of the helicopter with the call letters proving it is the same Hawaii Five-0 helicopter.  :-)  They were very professional and efficient in showing us where to wait, stand, and sit in the helicopter to adhere to all safety procedures.  There were only four of us that day for a 30 minute ride, so we all got a window seat.  Our actual ride was just under 30 minutes, but when you include the boarding, deboarding, and the photos they take afterwards, it was exactly 30 minutes.  The next tour took off at exactly 12:30. My spouse was a little disappointed that it was over so soon and wished we had gone for the full hour tour to see the entire island of Oahu.  But since it was so windy that day, I was rather glad to be done in 30 minutes.  However, it was a gorgeous, clear day, so the views were spectacular.  You don't really get an appreciation for how large Koko Head crater is until you're up there and realize it can swallow up whole both Hanauma Bay (itself a former volcano crator 170,000 years ago before water levels reahced its peak) and Diamond Head crater, with room for more! I loved the views of Diamond Head, the Koko Marina, Waikiki Beach, the eastern coastline, the interior of Koko Head crater, the tall waterfalls on the interior mountains-side of Koko Head crater, the city views, and the view of Pearl Harbour and the Arizona.  Our pilot was nice enough, but I don't think English was his first language, it was difficult to understand him at some points, but between my husband and i, we were able to sort out what was what after the ride. We definitely enjoyed the tour and found all staff to be polite and helpful in taking our photos.  They offer a video of the tour, with all narration and 3 camera angles which we didn't buy.  When we return to Honolulu, we'll take the full island helicopter ride and buy the video for that. Definitely would recommend this tour.  Try to book for a calm day if you get any kind of motion sickness. TIP:  we booked the combo helicopter ride with sunset dinner cruise as it saved us about $50 from posted prices.  We booked with the GO Card concierge services to save another $32 off the advertised prices.  There are options to upgrade, which we declined partially to diet restrictions and time time-constraints.  We had almost10 tours and excursions planned for this trip, so we needed some travel and down time in between.  Richard, Cristel, and Tai from the GO Card concierge desk took great care of us for all the out of card excursions that we booked.

The tour we booked with Makani Kani Helicopters was the "The Hidden Oahu Special" for 45 minutes and it was the smoothest ride I've ever taken in a helicopter. My husband said that you got the chance to see so many attractions you would never see from the ground which gave this trip an extra special memory. Oahu is a beautiful island and if you book this trip, you'll get the chance to see those attractions such as the Coco Crater, Sacred Falls, Diamond Head and many others. Our pilot was very informative and was delicate with flight. It was like floating on air - just overall smooth! My husband said it was a great first helicopter ride of him. (This was my second helicopter ride and it was amazing!) A must see and do on Oahu! Great staff all around!