Helicopter tours in Hilo versus Kauai

[cruiser123cba]

Trying to decide whether to book one in Hilo or Kauai. Which do you recommend? Both are the same length...about 45 minutes and about the same price. Thanks in advance!:)

[Wants2cruise]

It depends on want you want to see and/or what your tour options are for each island. In Hilo you can see the volcano with the lava flow along with Rainbow and Akaka Falls. On the island of Kaui you can see the Na Pali coast, and a canyon with waterfalls. The canyon is suppose to be a form of Eden that many on this site have raved about.

 

These may not be the only options that you can choose from, so what do you want to see? That should be the deciding factor.

[sceptic]

IMO the decision should be based upon one thing - how important is it to see active lava flows and the astonishing geology of Kilauea? That is the prime attraction from the Hilo copter flight. To some people it's the most important thing to see on the entire cruise, and for these people it will be more than worthwhile.

 

But if it's only of mild interest, I would strongly suggest Kauai. Copter rides there are exquisitely gorgeous and literally breathtaking, time and time again.

 

Personally, I think I'd prefer the volcano, but I'm just a nut about it, having taken my first copter flight therein 1987 (when you could take off from the Volcano Golf Course). For the vast majority of visitors I think Kauai will be the better selection.

[vjmatty]

We had the same dilemma, so I chose the helicopter for Kauai and a fixed wing plane for viewing the volcano on the Big Island. Saved a bit on the cost because the planes are cheaper and it changes things up a bit between the two islands.

[born2cruize]

One one thing that hasn't been mentioned is the time of year you are cruising. Some waterfalls in Hawaii dry-up in the late dry season. I know that the waterfalls in the Na Pali coast dry-up. During our cruise in December 06 we saw no waterfalls along the coast.

[cruiser123cba]

One one thing that hasn't been mentioned is the time of year you are cruising. Some waterfalls in Hawaii dry-up in the late dry season. I know that the waterfalls in the Na Pali coast dry-up. During our cruise in December 06 we saw no waterfalls along the coast.

 

Has anyone done both of these tours? If so, please help!!:) We have read the descriptions of both heli rides and both sound wonderful. It seems like there is more to do in Kauai than Hilo in general so perhaps the heli ride in Hilo would be better for that reason...to allow more time in Kauai for other activities. The scenery in Kauai though looks amazing and would be incredible via helicopter!

[boulders]

I've done helicopter trips in both Kauai and the Big Island. My favorite was the Big Island. There is a lot of diversity in the scenery - mountains, waterfalls, greenery, desert, volcano.

 

Kauai was just green, green, green. Other than the Napali coast, which we had seen earlier from sea level, there really wasn't too much of interest. I prefer the Napali coast from sea level. I have a slight fear of heights and the helo pilot hovered at Napali for quite a while. It was windy there and every so often, the helicopter would drop like a stone. :eek: I was so glad when we started moving again. With a boat ride on Napali, the height of the cliffs is more spectacular than from the air, imo.