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Kauai
Helicopter Tours
The
beauty that unfolds before you on a helicopter tour over Kauai is
breathtaking and awe-inspiring. You haven't seen Kauai's beauty
until you've seen it from the air!
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Air
Kauai 1
Hour Tour:
$200 per person
(25%
off the "rack rate" of $267)
This
is the least expensive published rate available for Air Kauai
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Kauai
is the MOST BEAUTIFUL island to fly over, and AIR KAUAI is
the premium helicopter company to fly with. They are the
"Cadillac" of helicopter tours on Kauai. They have a
perfect safety record, and their 6-seat A-star helicopters have all
been modified with extra plexiglass that provides superior
visibility compared to the same model helicopter flown by other
companies. They are also the only helicopter company that shuts off
the helicopter between tours, so that you are not getting in and out
while the blades are whirling and stirring up dust. They use Bose
noise canceling headsets for maximum comfort and quality of sound.
Air
Kauai is conveniently located at the Lihue Airport. Spend an
hour viewing some of the most spectacular scenery anywhere on earth,
including the Waimea Canyon, the Na Pali coast, the waterfalls made
famous in Jurassic Park and Fantasy Island. The highlight of the
flight is flying back into the "Blue Hole" in the heart of
the crater of Mt. Waiale'ale, where it seems that there are
waterfalls in every direction!
A
credit card number is required to guarantee a reservation with Air
Kauai, but they do not charge you in advance. You pay for your
flight upon check-in on the day of your tour. Please note
that Air Kauai only accepts Visa and Mastercard.
A
word about Air Kauai's "rack rate". If you see a 25% off
coupon or Entertainment Card rate, these discounts apply to an
inflated "rack
rate" ... we give the 25% off deal to everyone and our rate
is the least expensive published rate you will find anywhere.
Air
Kauai's tour is one hour long and costs $200.00pp plus a fuel
surcharge and airport tax of $19.00pp, which makes the total
including including all taxes and fees $219pp.
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Interisland Helicopters
55
Minute Tour:
$200
per person
2
Hour tour:
$300 per person
(80
min. in air, 40 minutes on ground at jungle waterfall)
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Currently Interisland only has 2 helicopters available
... normally they operate 3. The limited availability makes it more
important to plan this tour in advance!!!
Interisland Helicopters is the "Ferrari" of
helicopter tours. They use four-seat Hughes 500 aircraft and they
fly with the doors off! Imagine being strapped into your
seat and moments after takeoff looking 1,000 feet straight down with
nothing between you and the incredible beauty below you. The
stunning views combined with the wind blowing through your hair
gives a thrill not experienced in other helicopter tours. Every seat
in the helicopter is a window seat. If you are a thrill seeker, this
just might be the flight for you! Flying with no doors is great for
aerial photography ... no glare on the window to mar your photos. Interisland
Helicopters is the choice for the county of Kauai for search and rescue
missions. Interisland
offers a 55 minute tour, and a very unique 2 hour tour that includes
a jungle landing at a waterfall site.
This tour is just too amazing for words! Interisland flights depart
from the Port Allen Airstrip on Kauai's south shore. Interisland
Helicopter Tours have a deposit that is charged five days
before you leave for Hawaii. The balance is paid at the time
you check in for your flight. NOTE:
In addition to the base fare published above, Interisland Helicopters adds a
fuel surcharge of $20 per seat on the 55 minute tour and $30
per seat for the 2 hour tour.
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CRUISE
SHIP PASSENGERS |
Both of these helicopter
companies are
available for cruise ship passengers. Air Kauai is a short 5 minute
cab ride from the cruise ship dock. Interisland Helicopters is a 30
minute drive from the dock and you'll need a rental car. We can
arrange a rental car for $38 per day including shuttle pickup at the
dock ... go to our rental
car
page for more information.
We recommend doing
your helicopter tour on the morning of your second day in port if
you are on an NCL ship, but it can be booked for either day 1 or day
2.
These helicopter tours are a MUCH BETTER DEAL than the ones
arranged by the cruise lines. They list their helicopter tours as a
"three hour event" but that includes the transportation to
and from the helicopter company and time spend waiting for other
people to do their tour. The actual flight time you get for the same
amount of money is only 40 minutes or so, compared to a one hour
tour with Air Kauai or a 55 minute tour with Interisland. Both of
these companies have superior visibility out of their helicopters.
Longer flight and you'll see better ... book your helicopter tour
with us!
ACTIVITY
TIPS
It never ceases to
amaze me that people spend thousands of dollars to come to Hawaii,
but think it is too expensive to spend another $200 to REALLY see
the islands from a helicopter. There is so much beauty that you
cannot see any other way. Do yourself a favor and SPLURGE! You will
thank me.
I have flown with
many helicopter companies and done flights over all the islands of
Hawaii (except Niihau and Oahu). In my opinion the island of Kauai
is the most beautiful island to fly over. And in my opinion Air
Kauai is over-all the best company to fly with in all of Hawaii.
They are truly a first-class operation in every way. They aren't the
biggest helicopter company, they aren't the cheapest or the most
expensive. They are just the best.
The things that set
them apart ... ALL of their A-star helicopters have been modified
with oversized plexiglas windows for superior visibility. They also
have customized the seating configuration to maximize viewing for
everyone. They do a "cold start" which means you are
getting in and out of the helicopter while the engine is not running
and the blades are not turning. This adds a measure of safety and
comfort when getting in and out of the helicopter.
When we flew with Air
Kauai, our pilot was Chuck. He did the best job narrating the
tour of any pilot I have ever flown with. He was more than a
competent pilot and informative tour leader. He was an artist
skillfully enhancing our appreciation of the beauty we were
seeing as it unfolded around us. His love for his job and for the
island of Kauai was obvious.
High adventure
seekers should also
consider Interisland ... their tour is completely unique. Flying
with the doors off is certainly thrilling ... but it isn't for
everyone. Air Kauai's tour is luxurious ... Interisland's
tour is an adrenaline rush. What kind of an experience are you
after?
With Air Kauai
you get polished narration, climate control, and an on-board sound
system that sets the mood for your tour. Interisland is a
wind-blown experience, and the temperature varies throughout the
tour depending on your current altitude. No mood music with Interisland
... you do wear headphones to listen to the pilot's narration
and there is an intercom system so you can ask the pilot questions.
This intercom doesn't work well in the back seat though ... it is
windier back there.
If you decide that
the helicopter with no doors is for you, I'd highly recommend you
splurge and go for the longer tour that includes the landing.
Landing in the jungle was one of the highlights of this tour for me.
As we were approaching the remote landing site the pilot kept asking
us, "Do you see it yet?"
Best time of day to
fly? I think mid-morning provides the best lighting and least cloud
cover. Kauai gets LOTS of rain ... the summit of Mt. Waiale'ale is
the WETTEST place on the face of the earth. That's why this island
is so beautifully carved and has so many waterfalls. Days that there
are NO clouds are very rare. Typically the helicopters are able to
fly back into the valleys while remaining safely below the cloud
layer.
Wear dark shirts when
you fly in a helicopter. It cuts down on glare on the windows and
improves the quality of pictures that you might take. GET YOURSELF A
POLARIZING FILTER ... it will help remove those little ghostly
glares on the windows so your camera can focus on the waterfall. One
of these filters will also improve pictures that you take of the
ocean and sky. You'll see a lot more blue.
A word about body
weights ... almost all helicopter companies in Hawaii have a 250
pound weight limit per seat. For larger passengers who exceed the
weight limit it is necessary for the helicopter companies to leave a
seat vacant so that there is adequate room for the larger passenger
(and adjacent passengers). Some companies charge 50% extra for this
"comfort seat" and others charge a full rate for the extra
seat (which doubles the cost of the fare for a passenger over 250
pounds). Air Kauai charges a full rate for this extra seat.
They also charge extra in cases where the combined weight of 2
passengers exceeds 450 pounds. For 3 the limit is 600 pounds, 4 is
800 pounds, 5 is 900 pounds, and parties of 6 over 1100 pounds will
need to split into separate flights. Interisland
Helicopters on the other hand is one of the very very few that
does not have this weight restriction. Because their helicopter only
holds two people per row it is not necessary to leave a vacant seat.
If anyone in your party is over 250 pounds (or very close to that)
we recommend flying with Interisland.
Air Kauai has a minimum
age of 2 and Interisland has a minimum age of 5. If you've
got an infant you'd like to fly, we can accommodate you with a third
helicopter company that offers free lap children under the age of 2.
Call us for details.
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