See Kauai's Unreachable Sites with These Amazing Helicopter Tours
The Discover Kauai Tour with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters
Well-regarded in the local tour scene, Blue Hawaiian Helicopters, based out of Lihue and Princeville, offers tours to some of Kauai’s most stunning sights. You’ll have the chance to visit the Na Pali Coast, marked by its massive 3,000-foot sea cliffs that run 17 miles along the island’s northern shore. Or, visit the Waimea Canyon in the southwestern section of the island, which has been called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.
On their Discover Kauai tour, you’ll depart Princeville and fly past Manawaiopuna Falls and then over the Hanapepe Valley, the Olokele Canyon and Waimea Canyon, and finish off by exploring the Na Pali Coast and Hanalei Bay.
Alternatively, from Lihue you can take the Kauai Eco Adventure tour, which visits some of the same sites as well as Mount Waialeale, a dormant volcano that is draped with emerald green vegetation and is often covered in mist, with waterfalls at every bend.
The pilots here are also tour guides certified by the State of Hawaii. They narrate the whole way so you’ll know what you are looking at as you explore Kauai’s hidden secrets. They also offer an early morning tour called Rise and Shine, a Happy Hour tour and private charters.
Blue Hawaiian’s Discover Kauai tour is priced at $349 USD per person whereas the Kauai Eco Adventure is $269. You’ll save a bit of cash if you are an early riser as the Rise and Shine tour is priced at $229 a person. Alternatively, book a private charter and you can have input in designing your custom itinerary. These are priced by the hour starting from $2,320 an hour for the whole group.
90-Minute AStar Tour with Jack Harter Helicopters
Jack Harter Helicopters has been in the tour business longer than most of the other tour companies on our list and they have earned quite the reputation over all of those years. They’ve been offering tours on Kauai since 1962 and have seen many changes in Kauai’s tourism.
Book a 60- or 90-minute tour and you’ll get to enjoy some of the best views in Hawaii from the comfort of a luxurious, air-conditioned AStar helicopter equipped with floor-to-ceiling windows and the capacity to carry six passengers. Or, you’ll take to the sky in a Hughes 500 flown with the doors off and feel really close to nature.
They have special permission from the FAA to fly at the lowest permissible altitudes of any tour operator in Hawaii, offering you unmatched views.
There’s no prerecorded narration accompanying this flight. Instead, the helicopters are equipped with two-way intercoms that allow the passenger and pilot to converse throughout the flight. This means that the narration is a bit different on each flight and able to be tailored to each group’s unique interests.
The tours depart from Lihue Heliport and visit such sights as Nawiliwili Harbor and Menehune Fishpond, Kipu Kai and the Tunnel of Trees, Manawaiopuna Falls in Hanapepe Valley, Olokele and Waimea Canyon, Na Pali, Mount Waialeale and Wailua Falls.
The 60- to 65-minute AStar Tour is their most affordable, priced at $289 with online specials saving you even more. Alternatively, the 60- to 65-minute Hughes 500 Tour is $309 per person. The longer 90- to 95-minute AStar Tour is priced at $434 — this tour is flown at slower speeds and the pilot is able to set up fantastic photo ops.
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The Ultimate Kauai Adventure Tour with Sunshine Helicopters
Sunshine Helicopters is a family owned and operated business started by two veterans, including a former army helicopter pilot who received a Purple Heart. Their 50- to 55-minute Ultimate Kauai Adventure Tour will take you to all the amazing, and otherwise unreachable, spots you’re dying to see in Kauai such as the Na Pali Coast, Wailua Falls, Waimea Canyon and Mount Waialeale.
The tour narration will teach you all about the history and myth surrounding the different sites you will see.
They offer a couple of seating options on their tours. You can book the Open Seating option if you are hoping to save a bit of money, or the First Class Seat if you want to splash out and ensure you have the best seat on the tour. They also offer a discounted early bird tour for early risers.
After your tour, you’ll have the option to purchase a video of your actual flight with narration by the pilot so you can experience it over and over again and show your friends back home. Sunshine Helicopters offers a portable lifting device that makes their tours handicapped accessible.
There are several seating and pricing options on each Sunshine Helicopters Tour. However, the Ultimate Kauai Adventure Tour starts at $254 USD per person, and you’ll save a bit if you book online. Fly before 8:30 a.m. or anytime after 2 p.m. and you’ll save $50 per person on the price of the tour, which makes this an incredibly good value. We’d suggest you put that extra cash toward a nice post-flight dinner.
