Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product
Pass By: Banyan Drive, Island of Hawaii, HI
Drive through quaint Hilo Town along magnificent Banyan tree-lined streets along Hilo's coastline known as the "Hilo Walk of Fame".
Stop At: Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Island of Hawaii, Hawaii
Home to Hawaii's active volcanoes, Kilauea and Mauna Loa. Kilauea's latest eruption in June 2023 spewed fountains of lava up to 50 feet high.
Duration: 2 hours
Pass By: Chain of Craters Road, Island of Hawaii, HI
Chain of Craters Road is a 19-mile (31 km) long winding paved road through the East Rift and coastal area of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the island of Hawaii. Some areas are inaccessible.
Stop At: Kilauea Volcano, Island of Hawaii, HI
Active shield volcano housed in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Last erupted in June 2023 when vents spewed lava from within Halema'uma'u, a pit crater in the volcano's summit caldera.
Duration: 20 minutes
Stop At: Steam Vents, 1 Crater Rim Drive, Pāhoa, HI 96778, USA
See and feel the power of the volcano through the steam vents, where ground water seeps into volcanic rock.
Duration: 20 minutes
Stop At: Nahuku - Thurston Lava Tube, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Island of Hawaii, HI 96718
Tropical forest area featuring a long, subterranean cave formed by ancient flowing lava.
Duration: 20 minutes
Stop At: Akaka Falls State Park, End of Akaka Falls Road Off Hwy 220, Hilo, Island of Hawaii, HI 96728
Beautiful waterfall, easily viewable from a lookout point and surrounded by a verdant jungle.
Duration: 20 minutes
Stop At: Blue Hawaiian Helicopters, Hilo, HI 96720, USA
Mandatory 45 minute safety briefing at 3:00 PM and 45 minute helicopter tour at 3:45 PM. Kilauea fly-over is not guaranteed; dependent on existing weather conditions.
Duration: 1 hour 40 minutes
See Availability.
1: Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, 300 Rodgers Blvd, Honolulu, HI 96819, USA
2: Hilo International Airport, 2450 Kekuanaoa St, Hilo, HI 96720, USA
12 hours(approx.)
Returns to original departure point
Not wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed
Infants must sit on laps
Most travelers can participate
Passengers must provide full name as shown on ID, date of birth, and gender at the time of booking per TSA requirements
Once reservation is made, tour is non-refundable and non-changeable
Interisland flight times and routes are subject to change
Special needs requests must be called in to the local supplier at least 1 week prior to tour date
Weight Restrictions: Due to FAA regulations, all passengers and bags must be weighed at check-in for the helicopter tour. Each passenger weighing over 240 pounds will be contacted and assessed a 'comfort seat' charge for an additional seat, payable directly to the tour operator. This is for the safety and comfort of all passengers. It is important to provide accurate body weight at checkout.
The interisland airfare may fluctuate based on flight availability. Additional fees may be required to be paid by the customer in these cases.
Passengers with asthma and other respiratory problems should please consider other tour offerings to avoid potential health problems resulting from exposure to fumes
Lava sightings not guaranteed
IMPORTANT: The name you enter at the time of booking must exactly match what appears on your valid government-issued I.D. photo I.D. that you will use during travel. This is a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and FAA requirement and there is no flexibility with this policy. A valid government-issued ID (passport for non-US citizens) is required on the day of travel. If a passenger is denied boarding, there will be no refund.
If the helicopter tour is cancelled by the provider, you'll receive a refund for the helicopter portion (at a rate determined by the tour provider) and be welcomed on an extended sightseeing tour. If you choose to abort the sightseeing portion of the tour and would like to return to Honolulu earlier than your return flight is scheduled, you will be responsible for all flight change fees with the airlines. A refund for the sightseeing portion of the tour is not guaranteed. Before aborting the tour, you are required to contact the tour provider.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travelers
Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Posted By : DayTrip39468447954
We booked the trip up as part of our holiday in Hawaii, and it didn't disappoint.
The tour bus was waiting for us once our plane landed and once we had a full coach we departed. Dexter the tour guide was fantastic and told us so much about Big Island. The helicopter trip was also fantastic.
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Posted On : 2024-04-30
Posted By : T445WHmichellew
FANTASTIC!! so well organised, with easy instructions and everything went smoothly! THe ground tour was great, lovely guide that was very knowledgeable and went out of his way to accommodate all. the Helicopter just took the tour to new heights and really help take it all in! Not to be missed
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Posted On : 2024-03-23
Posted By : marileemohr
Kimokeo was a wonderful tour guide. Very Knowledgeable about the history and so kind. Find him you will really enjoy his tour! Mahalo.
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Posted On : 2024-03-21
Posted By : 209anissat
Mahalo was the best diver and guide has the best 3 days ever and would def recommend to all my friends and family
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Posted On : 2023-12-09
Posted By : pablog619
Great experience. We did not do the helicopter part. Our guide Dexter was the best! If you go in this tour, ask for him. What a treat!
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Posted On : 2023-07-30
Posted By : lorilijacobs
Wesley was our Blue Hawaiian chopper pilot - awesome soundtrack he put together for us plus knowledgeable and humorous commentary as we flew over the 2 "active" volcanoes and saw down into many craters from volcanoes past! Most recent eruption was June 2023 so there was no red lava to see.
Dexter was our coach driver who guided us around Volcano National Park to reveal ground level views of volcanoes and waterfalls. Lots of information from this guy who has lived on Hilo all his life.
Long day out from Honolulu to Big Island (aka Hilo) for this Volcano tour but well worth it. My favourite part was 45 minutes in the helicopter and coach stop to walk through a lava tube.
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Posted On : 2023-07-27
Posted By : shannonjA2508EY
Lets start with AMAZING! The experience with Polynesian Adventure was “Top Shelf” from day 1. The day I booked our tour on line, confirmation was sent and our trip was set. We continued to receive reminder emails and details of our adventure over the next several weeks. Three days and two days before our adventure we received phone calls to confirm everything and received more details to help us through the process of getting there. The staff on the phone was extremely helpful and was able to answer every questions I had. Very professional, courtesy and easy to talk to. You could tell they had a smile on their face just by the sound of their voice.
Between their detailed information and my research of the information they gave me, the movement from our hotel to the Honolulu airport, to the Hilo airport went seamless.
Now, we get to the best part. The tour / adventure.
We met Dexter (Dex) at the bus and he checked us in and let us know he would be our tour guide for the day. We couldn’t have gotten a better tour guide than Dex. The amount of time he has spent on Hilo played a significant role in his knowledge of the island. That amount of time just happens to be his entire life. Born and raised. I don’t want to insult Dex, but I venture to guess he is, at a minimum, in his mid 60’s. He was such a pleasure to spend the day with and his knowledge is invaluable. Such a great person. Thank you Dex!
After the bus tour, the “thrill” part of the adventure was about to begin. The Helicopter Tour with Blue Hawaiian. On behalf of my family, let me just say, “Awesome.” My family had never ridden in a helicopter before. Being the military for 28 years (now retired) I have ridden in many helo’s. For their first and my 1000+ in a helo, we got spoiled. This helicopter was the Lamborghini of helicopters. The EC130 Eco Star seats 7 (including the pilot) and there’s not a bad seat in the house.
Our pilot, Wesley, was outstanding. Great knowledge, personable and a pleasure to talk to. He has over 20 years of helicopter flying experience and you can tell he’s right at home in the driver’s seat. He gave us some spectacular views of waterfalls, Kilauea and Mauna Loa, other craters, lava fields and many others. You just can’t get the full picture of the power of a volcano walking on the ground. Seeing if from the air at 1500 feet gives you a perspective like no other.
Thank you to the rest of the staff and crew at Blue Hawaiian. You all played a significant role in the whole tour experience. From the time we arrived, your professionalism did not go unnoticed.
I know there’s a significant cost involved in a tour like this, but if you get the chance, it’s worth the price. If you do the Oahu to Hilo day trip with helicopter tour like we did, you will be worn out buy the time you get back to your room. The next day you will wake up and say, “Damn! That was awesome.”
My hats off to everyone at Polynesian Adventure and Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. Another special thanks to Dak and Wesley. You two are great and wish nothing but the best for you and your families.
Mahalo to everyone!
Sincerely,
Team Johnson
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Posted On : 2023-07-23
Posted By : Katherine S
We were promised buses with restrooms. I asked for a “luxury” trip. The bus not only had no restroom on board but was an old bus and had no phone chargers available. I would like to have taken more video and photos but ran out of battery. I will NEVER book a trip with this company again.
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Posted On : 2023-07-14
Posted By : sharonaZ1799YQ
We did a day trip to Hilo from Oahu and everything was smooth sailing from start to finish. Communication was spot on from Polynesian Adventure having received emails, text messages and a personal phone call a day (or 2 I can't remember) prior to my booking. Due to that I felt very comfortable/confident and assured with my booking. As for the experience itself I felt that I lucked out in regards to my tour guides: Ethan from Blue Hawaiian Helicopters was superb-he was beyond entertaining, super funny/witty and very knowledgable about the terrain we flew over; Dexter was our land tour guide and driver. He is Hilo born and raised so I could tell that he was very proud and passionate in sharing his home with us. He took us on extra stops that weren't listed on the website's itinerary which made the trip feel even more personalized and unique. These extra stops were some of the parks close to the black sand beach and a tiny town called Honomu. Although the helicopter tour was rad, we didn't get to go over the Kilauea crater due to current weather conditions. I am just thrilled we got to fly as I know there are possibilities of not flying at all because of weather hazards. Unfortunately we also missed the eruption too by 1.5 days! UGH! But overall it was still a memorable and enjoyable experience. My favorite was Akaka Falls-the lush landscape totally made you feel like you're in another world. I HIGHLY recommend this tour if you're looking for a quick getaway or something additional to your Oahu vacation.
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Posted On : 2023-06-25
Posted By : W5033JHmelissaa
The tour guide was amazing, he kept it fun. However, our whole day revolved around those that were taking the helicopter tour so our visits were cut short. Everything had to be done before their tour which was by 2:45 (our tour was until 5:45) After dropping off those taking the helicopter tour, we had a few hours left to “figure out what to do next” until our flight. I paid a lot of money for this tour and was very disappointed in the planning. I would keep the groups separate, those doing the helicopter tour and those who are not. It’s not fair to lose time because everything needs to be done prior to the people doing the helicopter tour.
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Posted On : 2023-06-17
