Reviews

Great panoramic views of the island. Ethan, our pilot, was very accommodating to our requests for different shots or revisiting a location when time allowed. In a heart beat, I would highly recommend Blue Hawaiian to any visitor to the big island! You will NOT be disappointed.

On the flight there were great views of the island and the volcano peaks and lava flows. Don't expect pyroclastic (explosive) lava all the time as most of the time it runs on the ground or slightly underground. You can see the immense power of the lava flows as you flay over them. We passed over some stunning waterfalls that aren't accessible by the ground as they are on private property. Out pilot was exceptionally knowledgeable and very accommodating to our requests (reposition to take pics etc...) I'm sure he even tried a couple of top-gun style manoeuvres which were quite cool (and maybe made me feel a little nauseous)

My wife and I, we have taken the flight on jan 18 at 11am. Our pilot was Ethan. The dedication and professionalism of all the crew was outstanding. Made you feel safe and welcome, very very professional. As to what you see on then flight ( lava and waterfalls)- there is only so much as much nature can give at any given moment. This can not be predicted. Our pilot Ethan was phenomenal! He did every extra trick in his sleeve to show us as much as possible that particular day, several approaches to different lava vents, from every angle , waterfalls and even spotting the wales in the hilo bay! He took extra time to show us the mother and cub wales from every angle, as both sides of the chopper wanted to see the same view. Overall the crew on ground and air was great and Ethan was a great example of much professional approach can make you choose one company over another one if all the other things are there to see the same,

Awesome experience. Loved the helicopter ride. The pilot was excellent and informative but mostly made us feel at home. Staff on ground were wonderful and efficient. We weren't left to worry about where to go or what was next. Over all a great trip. Lava fields were terrific, waterfalls a little bit underwhelming. All in all a great and memorable trip.

I too had the Center Seat in the A-Star Model Helicopter and was initially disappointed but took solace in my wife having the window seat. She had never been to Hawaii and never been a Helicopter before so it was important she enjoy her trip. However our Pilot, (Tim) took some flight angles that allowed both sides of the Cabin to get good photo angles. Our other passengers had video and Zoom Lens type Video Equipment and we only had Camera Phones but still got the pictures we wanted. As mentioned the Lava is not in "Splash Mode" at the present time and these Helicopter rides are the only ticket in Town to get to see the Summit. I also had questions about the Lave fields and so on while we were in Flight and Tim was able to provide commentary and historical perspective on our Questions. When we got home days later , and watched the DVD we saw things we had not noticed during our Flight that we did not initially see due to having our faces in Camera Viewfinder. Plus you get to be Stars in your own 50 minute Movie of your Tour. Excellent side trip from Volcano for Waterfall Viewing near Hilo as well. Note This tour takes off from Hilo Airport so that explains why the all the facilities are available.

Waterfalls, waterfalls, waterfalls!!!! We were a bit nervous about a helicopter ride, but the staff at Blue Hawaiian Tours was very professional. Although we are a couple, we saw families, children, teens, and seniors enjoying the ride!! Our pilot, Jason was informative, engaging, and very funny!! We loved his D.C. theme music!!!! If you visit Hawaii (we were on the Big Island), be sure to look up Blue Hawaiian Helicopter Tours!!! The prices may "give you pause", but the views will "stop you in your tracks"!!! Don't miss this magnificent way to see Hawaii!!!!

If your budget can afford it take the 2 hour helicopter tour and you will see all the sites the Big Island of Hawaii offers. It is impossible to describe what it is like to fly over an active volcano but it is a sight you will never forget. The company running the helicopter tours could not be more accommodating. When our first tour was cancelled because of rain over part of the island they gave my daughter and I two Blu-ray videos of the island tour free of cost and rescheduled us for a tour two days later. While they do offer a shorter, less expensive tour I think the longer 2 hour ride is a much better buy for the money considering all that you get to see.

First off, this cost almost $500 per person, so definitely not cheap! We did the grand tour, which included both the volcano tour and also the valleys/waterfalls tour, on an Eco-Star helicopter (an upgrade from the "standard" A-Star helicopter). The visibility was excellent even from the middle back seats (where I was), and the ride was generally smooth. Not having been in a helicopter before, I was pleasantly surprised by that. Our pilot, Noah, was excellent. Honestly, the first few minutes of our tour were fascinating. However, once the novelty wore off, the ride became somewhat boring despite Noah's best efforts to keep us informed with factoids about what we were seeing. Things picked up again as we approached the volcano-- only to find the volcano itself rather disappointing, with almost no flowing lava visible. It was interesting to see the spots at the edge of the forest where the crusted lava was still hot enough to start fires, though. The ride then got relatively boring again as we made our way to the valleys and waterfalls. This portion of the tour was spectacular, and we sincerely wished that it lasted longer.

The 2 hour tour was outstanding! Our pilot was very well trained and helpful. We brought our 16 month old son and he loved it. The views are unreal. 5- Stars!

We booked our tour over the volcanoes, but on the day we had to return due to unclear visibility, and therefore unsafe conditions. However, the staff booked us in for a flight the next day, and the weather was perfect. Seeing lava was amazing, and then the pilot took us over amazing lush hillsides, and cascading waterfalls, which were just as amazing as the lava and volcano. Definitely recommend this experience.

We took the two hour round island tour in a 7 seater. John our pilot was first class, and kept up a good commentary for the whole trip. Even his corny jokes were tolerable. We were able to see most things, and John went out of his way to ensure that people on both sides could see. While not cheap - well worth it. However, the DVD that was purchased afterwards is pretty poor quality. Looks like it was shot by 1970's cheap video camera.

Actually, the helicopter tour we took back in '91 was better than this one that was taken in July of 2011--it was foggy and a little rainy, and there wasn't much lava to be seen at Kilauea. When we toured during our honeymoon we were amazed to see lava lapping in the open crater. This time there was no lava flowing and you could just see a little bit of it. This is, of course, no fault of the company or pilot, but this experience was not as good as our prior one. Our pilot seemed bored as well. It was interesting to see the red roof house still standing among old lava flows and we were glad to hear that when the lava overtook that house a couple of months later that the owner was able to get out. We had also taken a helicopter tour a week before in Kauai which was absolutely spectacular, so this was a bit of a disappointment by comparison. I still think a helicopter ride on the Big Island is worthwhile, however. It is extraordinary to see an active volcano, and if you are lucky you may get a chance to see lava flowing.

Mark was our pilot and he did a great job, professional yet cordial and informative. This was our 2nd helo ride with Blue H and enjoyed both thoroughly. If you visit Hawaii you must see it from the air...if you see it from the air, you must use Blue Hawaian Helicopter!

Loved watching the volcano erupting. Pilot was very good in getting us very close. Was able to take photos of the molten lava.

Me and my wife did the circle of fire tour. The tour itself is worth 5 start because - - it's amazing to see lava flow right from bird's eye view - our pilot Ethan was very knowledgeable and made sure that we are able to see the volcano n lava flow properly - the tour is professionally managed and worth the price - I will highly recommend this tour to anyone who wants to see volcano and lava activity The only reason I did not give 5 star to this tour was because: Our first tour was canceled because of rain and we switched it to a day after tour as we were in hilo for 2 more days. We were given the option of next day 11 am also which we declined at the time of rescheduling. Later we decided to take the tour next day and they said the tour was sold out. We suspected that as our was the last one and the chances of next dat 11am getting filled right at that moment were low. So we called them again pretending that we are booking a new reservation n they gave the 11 am option. Clearly these guys were trying to get extra slots booked in as they knew that we are coming in the day after. The moment I told the agent 'Oh I want to reschedule, I was told that the 11 am slot just sold out'!! Seriously!!! I would have been really mad if our rescheduled tour would have been canceled but thanks to the weather we were able to go on the tour day after. Given the scale of operations these guys run in Hawaii, lying for 2 seats seemed very greedy to me.