LOVED our tour with Blue Hawaiian. Get Nate as your pilot if possible. Take the 4pm tour if you can. We loved this combo (Nate and 4pm, lol) because the sun was just setting, beautiful views, and he was a very adept pilot (used to be in the military). Don't eat before if you don't want to get motion sickness! Absolutely beautiful, scenic views - covers everything you would want to see on the island, in my opinion.
Rode over Kauai with Darryl. I can not put into words how wonderful this trip was. The scenery was indescribable and Darryl made our trip so enjoyable. Also, thanks to Brian who took such good care of us and thanks again for serving our country.
This was an exceptionally great experience - well worth the cost and well worth the time. We booked through the Grand Hyatt for the last flight of the day (4pm). Check in was about 45 minutes before the flight and went smoothly. The helicopters appeared to be the newest on the field and had the most glass to afford good views from all seats. I was surprised that there wasn't more of a security check - no metal detectors or xray machines at all. Not anything like what you encounter at airports. We were encouraged to wear dark tops so that there wouldn't be a reflection in the glass windows (especially when photos were taken). Vincent was our capable pilot and put us at ease immediately. The ride was at least an hour long and we saw magnificent places that we never would have seen any other way. The entire island is the most beautiful place I have seen yet in my travels, especially the canyon and the Na'Pali coast. We were even able to see the mountain peak which is usually covered in clouds and shadows of whales in the water. Some of the whales even flapped their tail fins at us - just like they were waving hello. This helicopter tour was one of the high points of our trip to Hawaii. I wouldn't have missed this for the world.
Went on a Sunday morning flight at 8 a.m. They were professional and on time. Our pilot, Brandon, narrated the sights but didn't talk nonstop which was nice. It was a little cloudy/hazy during our flight but we still saw everything. Views of Na Pali coast and Waimea Canyon were highlights. Brandon would swing around so both sides of the chopper could see. Even saw whales in the ocean. Very cool experience and well worth the money.
This was the highlight of our tour on Kauai. Our pilot, Vince, was outstanding! He was very engaging, and very knowledgeable of the island. Well worth the price for the experience. The helicopters look brand new. I read many reviews on other companies, and am happy that I choose Blue Hawaiian.
This was my first time on a helicopter and it was great. The weather was on our side when we went up early in the morning with our pilot Nathan. For some of the other passengers, it was their 2nd time back due to weather, but we got lucky. The Blue Hawaiian experience was very well-run, from check-in and the safety video, to getting you into the air. The flight itself was fun - you definitely see parts of Kauai that would otherwise be imposible to see - the natural beauty and waterfalls were amazing. It was a smooth flight and Nathan provided commentary that was balanced well between information and trivia. The helicopters I saw seat 6 people not including the pilot. Most of us seemed to be groups of either 4 or 2 so it worked out well. It might seem like an expensive activity, but on Kauai, it was very well worth it, just given the amount of areas we saw that we otherwise would have no way of seeing.
Blue Hawaiian Helicopter tours completely exceeded our expectations! Brian, our driver, couldn't have been more friendly. He calmed our nerves and got us really excited to see the island of Kaua'i. Nate, our pilot, was extremely informative, funny and very safe. He taught us about the island and got up close to the amazing sights the island has to offer. He tilted the helicopter to the perfect angles so that everyone on the helicopter could capture the perfect pictures. We would definitely fly with Blue Hawaiian again! - Matt & Jenn
Excellent tour, definitely a great way to see the beauties of the island! It was a little rainy when we went and there was a lot of reflection in the windows, so unfortunately the pics didn't turn out all that good. Other than that, a smooth ride and I would highly recommend doing a helicopter tour!
This is a must do when going to Kauai. You will get the most stunning views from the helicopter flight that you just won't get from the ground. We had Geoffrey as our pilot, and he was awesome and very informative throughout the flight. We found the staff to be very friendly and helpful as well.
After our flight was canceled twice due to weather we were successful on our third attempt during the week we spent on Kauai in late March 2013. Likes. The flight was incredible. Although this was rather costly, I felt it was well worth the cost. The staffs were all courteous and professional. The copter itself was roomy. I was in one of the middle seats in the back, but still had a very good view, and was able to take some nice photos. Our pilot did a great job of interacting with the passengers, calling us by name and keeping us engaged. He also seemed knowledgeable. He spoke enough so we had a good description of what we were seeing but he was not overly chatty. If you can afford it, I would definitely take this flight. Dislike: My major disappointment and the reason I can only give 4 stars, and was tempted to give three, is the DVD. They have several cameras on the copter and take a video of your flight. At the end you can buy a DVD for $25 a copy. I purchased one of these hoping to have a lasting memento of our flight. This was probably the worst video I have ever seen. The camera sensor had stripes and other images burned into them. For example, if there was a shot of a green mountain, part of it looked pink, other parts yellow and some bluish. Everything was washed out as well. Terrible! I showed this to friends and was almost consider a sucker for paying for it. Unfortunately I had returned to the states before I viewed it otherwise I would have taken it back and demanded a refund. I’m not sure if the cameras on every copter are like this. If I were Blue Hawaiian, I’d be embarrassed to even offer this. Suggestions: If our experience is typical, there is a good chance of the flight being canceled. I would book a helicopter flight early in your stay, so if you need to reschedule you have time. If the company sells a souvenir DVD, ask to see it at their location, before shelling out the cash. Wear a very dark shirt. Light colors or colorful prints will reflect in the window and appear in your pictures. If you are a photographer, a circular polarizer will help with the glare on the windows.
This is worth price. Kauai is beautiful from any view but from the air it is special. Yes I almost cried a couple of times. This was also my first helicopter ride so that added to the excitement. There were 6 passengers plus pilot which is the usual. My husband and I were lucky to sit in front. This is definitely the best view. The pilot turned in several situations so those on the left side of the copter had a better view. Our pilot was interesting. At first I was wondering if we had done something to tick him off, if he had an bad aditude about tourists in general or maybe about his employers. He encouraged us to ask questions then his answers were snide. He seemed to warm up to us when I asked if he put together the music that we heard as we flew along. I did like the music very much and he said he made the playlist. I guess these guys can have a bad day. He said he loved the work. A funny thing was that the company had listed our friend Dan as Don. We tried to correct it a couple of times but gave up. We got the impression that the pilots are really coached to use the passengers names. Our pilot was doing it all the time as he would describe the view for so and so on the left and so and so on the right. I bet he said our names a 100 times during the flight and every time Dan was Don. We laughed and called him that the rest of the trip. We didn't buy the DVD. I would have liked to have the music playlist. All the best to our pilot from Montana. Thanks for a beautiful flight.
We received a recommendation from a very qualified family member about Blue Hawaiian. (former USMC pilot) We booked the tour on Kauai, while our cruise ship was docked there. My wife does not like heights, but decided to take the tour with me, based on the recommendation from the family member. Nathan was our pilot (former US Army pilot). The helicopters and operations staff were very organized efficient. The tour itself was breathtaking. Nathan took us over the many valleys of Kauai. Soothing music came through the noise canceling headphones. The flight was very quiet with the headphones on. Countless waterfalls were shown to us. A highlight was when Nathan hovered over the ocean on the west side of the island and we saw whales breaching. Nathan pointed out the many movies that were filmed on Kauai. We cannot recommend Blue Hawaiian, more highly.
Great pilot (Nathan); great bus driver (Brian); if you ask the pilot to circle around so you can get a better shot, he will if it's safe to do so; saw humpback whales and the pilot did not rush us as we captured photos of these rarely seen beauties; pilot was very knowledgable about Kauai and its history; pilot engaged everyone in the helicopter; helicopter was clean and spacious; pilot was experienced, relaxed, happy and informative; DVD quality was better than we expected....overall, the pilot made the entire experience enjoyable and memorable. Ask for Nathan!!! :)
This was my second helicopter tour of Kauai. A few years ago, I took one of the "Doors Off" helicopters. That was truly a fantastic tour. If you really want to experience Kauai from a helicopter, try one of the doors-off flights. On this occasion, we were with a 4 year old family member, and decided that a doors-off flight might be a bit too scary, so we went with Blue Hawaiian. The whole point of the flight is to go see Kauai from the air. That's the really great part of the experience, and any decent helicopter tour operator will deliver that. It's a really beautiful island, and an hour-long (or 55 minutes or whatever) is plenty of time to see all the highlights from the air. As a helicopter tour operator, I found Blue Hawaiian to be well organized, polished, and professional (with one exception, detailed below). Our pilot was an ex-army helicopter flight instructor. He was very smooth with the aircraft. The ground personnel did their jobs efficiently, but were a bit annoying. I can sort-of understand - this is a very busy helicopter operation, and they move a lot of people through their system - but I did get the feeling we were being handled like cattle. Our bus-driver / ground crew guy really raised my hackles when we were trying to work out swapping seats. They had put the 4 year old next to my wife, rather than her mother. The stuffed-shirt idiot declared (loudly, so that other people on our 3-pm flight could hear) that we couldn't do that since an "unbalanced aircraft is a death trap!". Excuse me? (1) My wife and I are both pilots. We know a bit about loading aircraft. (2) My wife and the child's mother are pretty close to the same weight. (3) Is this the sort of loud statement that the ground crew should be exclaiming in front of customers. The operations manager at the flight-line approved the seat-swap. Perhaps he actually knows something about aircraft weight & balance calculations, or he called it in so that their computer could re-calculate it. Aside from the idiot bus driver and the cattle-herding ground crew, the flight itself was very pleasant. The Eco-Star helicopter is comfortable and has good visibility for all the passengers. The pilot was friendly and kept up a running commentary about the sights. We enjoyed the ride.
been on a helicopter ride in alaska, this tour is definately worth it. the waterfalls and scenery are out of this world such beauty. The driver gives you a ride for your money and tells you alot about the island