Helicopter tours on your own - caution

[Nrknits]

Just a word of advice -when booking a helicopter tour on your own make sure in has a cancellation policy that allows you to cancel in less than 24 hour so that if for some reason you are unable to dock you are not charged for the tour.

I unfortanately learned the hard way, 369.00 later, for a tour I was unable to take because the port would not allow the ship to dock. We booked with Jack Harter helicopters, because of all the goods things we heard on these boards. I didn't think twice about a cancellation policy, after all this is Hawaii, not Alaska. my mistake!!. We reach Kaui in April and the port was closed due to high winds. They would not allow the ship to dock. I called the helicoter company immediately and explained the situation. I asked if I would be charged for the tour. They said their canncellation policy was 24 hours notice and they would have a manager call me back to consider the case. The captain cruised around the island to show us the Nappali coast, By the way, we never saw a single helicopter in the three hours it took to cruise around the island. Needless to say, I did not hear back from them, and since we were then out of cell range I called them the next day from Honolulu. Again, they would call me back. They did and said that their policy was 24 hours and my account would be charged for the tour. She said I could dispute it with my credit card company, but they would be charging me for the tour. I email Jack Harter, again asking them to reconsider as the weather was out of my control and the ship wasn't even allowed to dock, but he did not respond. So, I tried the credit card company and disputed the charge. No luck. The $369.00 is back on my credit card bill.

Please make sure that the helicopter tour you book will allow you to cancel in less than 24 hours if need be.

[AmyinVail]

What great advice. I hope that outfit reads these boards. I was going to book w/ them myself based on what I'd read on here. BUT, I won't do so now. I'm going to go through the ship on the heli tour. Thanks for taking the time to save us all the same hard ship you went through!!

[bankofdad]

Wow, that's really unfortunate. I feel bad because I've constantly recommended their services based upon our positive experience :(. I'm sorry you had to go through that, and you're advise really is great.

 

For POAmerica and POAloha passengers, it'd probobly be best to consider doing this tour on day 2 in Kauai. That way you'll at have a much better understanding of whether the ship will dock or not.

[suziehmkr]

I read Nrknits post back in April while still on the Island. And I valued that post tremendously. Although I had not booked the same tour, I did have plans to book with a different tour company for our Kauai port. After reading Nrknits post, I contacted the tour company, and they too would want 24 hours notice for cancellation if the ship did not dock or was late. We decided that it wasn't worth the risk of over $100 per person to book.... and have made other plans. Some cruisers may think it is worth the risk. With a family of four, we did not.

 

What I don't understand about the helicopter tours, is that if it is that windy then they wouldn't be flying... even if the OP's ship docked and they did make it. They couldn't keep the money then. Is there documentation that they indeed were able to fly that day?

[spleen93]

Rough seas and high winds do not necessarily equate. You can have one or the other or both. So just because the waves were high at Nawiliwili and the ship isn't able to dock doesn't mean that flying conditions were unfavorable.

 

Kauai and Hilo are the two ports that I've heard of problems with cruise ships not being able to dock because of high seas. Something to remember when you're booking your tours.

 

Spleen

[greathusky]

I was considering a non NCL helicopter tour till I read this thread. However, the NCL shore excursion brochere states that the helicopter tours are non refundable. Does NCL refund your money if the boat doesn't dock?

[sherree]

I express this concern not more than 2 weeks ago on this board. Someone replied - "you knew what you were getting when you booked the tour" "don't blame the cruise lines' it says specifically in their contract- no guarantees about stopping at ports" I realize all of that! I just feel bad for you having to pay for something that was not your fault and there was nothing you could do about it- meaning not finding out until the last moment you weren't going to dock. I know if you take the ship's tours you are not charged if they are cancelled, but it is still a bummer. We booked one when we were in Panama, we went to designated area to wait for the tour to leave, and we waited and waited, finally they said the tours were cancelled. We were left to fin for ourselves for the rest of the day- cab drivers knowing the tours were cancelled were overcharging people left and right. Just an unfortunate situation all the way around. I have learned- planning pays off and sometimes it doesn't. Just pray it all comes together when you need it to.

[tbenson81]

Is there any helicoptor company that allow you to cancel within 24 hours? If so - what are they? I havent heard of any

[Beelady]

Wouldn't trip insurance cover your losses if you were unable to dock due to sea/weather conditions? If anybody knows, please let me know. I was kinda hoping it would.

I have contacted Island Helicopters in Kauai and they told me that they would not hold me to the 24 hour cancellation policy in the event that our ship did not dock. (And I saved the email as proof) Jack Harter helicopters told me in no uncertain terms that I would still be charged if the ship was unable to dock and they were not able to resell my seats.

Still not sure if I will book through the cruise line or with Island Helicopters. I feel a little more secure going through the cruise line, but it is $50 more pp and is only a 45 minute flight, as opposed to 55-60 mins with IH. Any thoughts????

[lhall85917]

I can't help you with your questions about trip insurance coverage, but we did a trip with Island Helicopters a couple of years ago based on recommendations on these boards and it was wonderful. The four of us were all able to see everything clearly and had a great time.

[Lando]

I'm booked for a heli tour with Safari Air on the big island October 2005. When I read this thread I got curious so emailed the company. I was pleased when I got the response:

 

Question: "I will be arriving via cruise ship the morning of this reservation date. If the cruise ship is unable to dock at the pier and I'm simply unable to provide 24 hours cancellation notice -- will I still be charged the 100% cancellation fee?"

 

Answer: "The policy doesn't apply to anything beyond your control. So, for instance, if your ship does not come to Hilo you would not be responsible and a refund would be given."

[spleen93]

Sounds like Jack Harter's going to be losing a lot of business.

 

Spleen

[vacationman]

Like Lando, I too had a good experience with Safari. On the June 12-19 POA, the ship lost power for about two hours off of the Na'Pali coast so we were over an hour late getting in to Hilo where we had scheduled a tour with Safari. I was able to call them as we approached Hilo and they rearranged their schedule (pilot's lunch time) and got us out a few hours after our scheduled flight.

[bankofdad]

I'm still very disapointed over whats happened with others with this operator. I have just sent an email to Jack Harter, and here is what I wrote in it:

 

Hi Jack Harter,

 

I believe it is worth your time to read this in it's entirety.

 

I'm sure you can verify that we used your services this past October, and really enjoyed it. We were cruising on the NCL Pride of Aloha, and I posted a review of our trip at CruiseCritic.com, which you can link to here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=4139523#post4139523.

 

I said about your company:

The second day in Kauai, we took a helicopter tour on Jack Harter Helicopters. We took the recommendation of many others, and booked the 90-95 minute tour. This was spectacular, and in comparison to the 60 minute tours, allowed the pilot to spend more time at the scenic sights, and to position the aircraft so that all six passengers got the best view of each beautiful sight. Jack Harter also operates a shuttle to/form the pier. We chose an 8AM flight, and they picked us up at 7:30AM. The staff was fantastic, and our pilot, "Mr. Bill Smooth Operator" was very skilled. Having worked on helicopter electrical systems years ago, and having logged a lot of crew hours, I could easily see what a good pilot this guy was, and how well maintained the aircraft appeared to be. I would highly recommend this particular morning excursion.

 

This review reached ALMOST 3,000 NCL CRUISERS ALONE in my initial review. Follow on comments to other travelers on other discussion threads certainly compounded this total reader count immensely.

 

Now, I've read about lot of frustration from others that I've personally recommended your services. The discontent is regarding your cancellation policy, that, while I may understand it, is NOT CRUISER FRIENDLY, and as such is a risk for all cruise ship passengers to consider. If you value the business brought to you by cruise ship passengers, you may wish to consider an alternative approach to your policy. If not, then I'm sure you will continue as you have.

 

Before you comment or reply to me, you may want to take a look at this link http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=196949 to see what cruisers are saying now, me included. I promise to share your unedited reply with other CruiseCritic.com members.

 

Just Mine, and THOUSANDS of other opinions.

 

Sincerely,

 

Tom McCaughn

Butler, WI

262-781-7589

 

I'll be sure to post their unedited reply if they provide one. In the interim, If they do link to this thread, this is your opportunity to be heard if you've either had a bad experience or have aprehension about them!

 

 

[AmyinVail]

Well, I've already posted my reaction. But to take it a step further, I cruise about twice a year and I rely on these boards for about 99.9% of my cruise planning. We are cruising NCL Po America on 11/5 and I had actually jotted down Jack Harter as our heli tour company based on a review I had read. Since this latest post, I have now decided to go through the cruise ship. Ultimately $50.00 more is worth it in the event our ship cannot dock and I lose all my money. I don't believe many companies realize how powerful these message boards are. I read over on the NCL board that NCL offered someone a free cruise to compile a daily diary of customer comments solely based on how much ruckus she stirred up over a terrible cruise experience.

 

To sum it up, Jack Harter has lost our business and we have already pre-booked our excursion through the ship.

[spleen93]

BOD - I'll be interested in seeing what their reaction will be.

 

Spleen

[lhall85917]

BOD - I'll be interested in seeing what their reaction will be.

 

Spleen

 

Me too! If nothing else, we now know that another question to ask when booking any excursion independently is the tour operator's policy if the ship doesn't make it to port. This isn't enough to scare me from booking on my own, but it is enough for me to be more cautious about becoming informed about policies.

[bankofdad]

Me too! If nothing else, we now know that another question to ask when booking any excursion independently is the tour operator's policy if the ship doesn't make it to port. This isn't enough to scare me from booking on my own, but it is enough for me to be more cautious about becoming informed about policies.

 

Hi Sharon,

 

I agree with you 100%. I won't be scared to book on my own (i.e. outside the cruise line), but I'm with you, I'll be sure to understand the cancellation policies!

 

By the time you and I cruise on POAmerica in June they're going to be THREE full time seven-day NCL ships cruising only inter-island 52-weeks/year - I'm not a math major (BTW Jack Harter - I majored in Aviation Management ironically enough:D ), but that means about 6,500 cruise ship passengers a week coming to Kauai for two day stays! That doesn't even count CCL, HAL, RCCL or any other cruise line!

 

Let's hope they listen!

[bankofdad]

BOD - I'll be interested in seeing what their reaction will be.

 

Spleen

 

Me too, Spleen!

 

My review and comments are one thing. I frequent the Hawaii board and look for advise from experts like you when I'm coming up on or have recently completed a precious vacation in Hawaii.

 

But, even more so, you and several other contibutors to these boards are constantly kind enough to offer advise to us novices on tours/experiences, etc. 365 days per year. I don't know how concerned operators like Jack Harter would be with the advice you provide when the questions about them come up in the future, but if I were part of their marketing group, I'd sure want to know!

[ngwc1]

In May I booked a 90 minute tour with Jack Harter for our August cruise...all 6 of us. I will be calling to cancel tomorrow. We will book with the ship. I understand the cancellation fee if WE change our mind and just don't show up, but to punish the customer when they have NO control is not good business!

If our ship misses the port, we will be out over $1,500.00! I re-read the email that Jack Harter sent, and it does disclose the cancellation policy...I just assumed if the ship could not make the port they would not charge us....as long as we notified them. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Thank you for this information. :mad:

[Nrknits]

I hope there is a reply from Jack Harter, but I'll be surprised. When I emailed asking them to reconsider their policy since the circumstances were out of our control, I mentioned that I had chosen them because of the good things I had heard on the message boards, hoping he'd get the hint, but he did not even respond to my email.

I take responsibility for this. We had a helicopter tour canceled in Alaska, but it was by the helicopter compant becasue it was raining so hard you couldn't see 3 ft in front of you. But it never occured to me that weather would be an issue on Hawaii, now I know. But I do think the policy could have been bent for the ship not docking, they knew we were coming on cruise ship and it was something we had no control over. Just from a public relations stand point, it could have been done just for good will. When I go back, my helicopter tour will not be with Jack Harter.

[Nimbus]

I can't afford to risk losing hundreds of dollars if the ship can't make port. It looks like I will be booking with Safari.

 

Many thanks to those of you that have contributed to this thread! :)

[bankofdad]

I hope there is a reply from Jack Harter, but I'll be surprised. When I emailed asking them to reconsider their policy since the circumstances were out of our control, I mentioned that I had chosen them because of the good things I had heard on the message boards, hoping he'd get the hint, but he did not even respond to my email.

 

No reply from Jack Harter as yet..........

[dennbr9]

I would reccommend Blue Hawaiin, who it's said, has the best safety record. We used them in 2003 and they were great. Not sure of their cancellation policy though.

 

Dennis G

[Quincella]

This is really disappointing news. I've already booked with Jack Harter, but I really don't want to lose several hundred dollars if the ship doesn't make it, either.

 

Looks like I'll be going with another company, too.