Experience the Big Island from the Sky
A BIRDS-EYE VIEW OF THE ISLAND’S STUNNING LANDSCAPES
Helicopter Tours are a great family sight-seeing activity! Hawaii has so many stunning yet inaccessible features; from waterfalls and steep cliffs along the coast to the peaks of the five volcanoes that make up the Island. Helicopter tours let you see these amazing, unforgettable sights from the sky and are a great family activity. With 5 volcanoes, the Big Island has a huge variety of scenery to offer, such as waterfalls, lush rainforests, lava fields, and stunning coastlines.
Helicopter is one of the best ways to see the Island and capture the moment with your camera. Photograph isolated parts of the Island that would otherwise be unreachable, even by drone. Preserve the memory of soaring over this beautiful landscape in stunning images!
Tour Operators
There are several great options for Helicopter Tours on the Big Island, departing from Waikoloa Village, Kona, and Hilo. All four of these tour operators offer tours of the major volcano sights.
Paradise Helicopters – Kona or Hilo
Paradise Helicopters have a variety of tour packages covering many different views and activities from their Kona and Hilo locations. You can see the volcano sights from both locations. Their Kona location offers unique packages combining longer helicopter tours of the Island with a Zipline tour in Hilo or Kohala. If you are planning to head over to Hilo, their Volcano and Waterfalls tour is shorter in duration but focuses on the main attractions like volcanoes, lava, and waterfalls!
Paradise Helicopters offers a ‘Doors-off’ Tour. This option is great for the adventurous and for photographers – just remember to bring a strap for your camera! This option is only available out of Waimea or Hilo on the Big Island. Waimea is a convenient place to reach from our Kohala Coast vacation rentals and is one of our favorite towns.
Blue Hawaiian – Waikoloa or Hilo
Blue Hawaiian Helicopters offer several Big Island tours with different flavours. At the Waikoloa location you can do a tour of the whole island, including a trip over to Volcanoes National Park, or stay closer and tour the stunning Hamakua coast around Kohala mountain with the stunning Waipi’o Valley. This tour operator also departs from Hilo for a tour featuring Volcanoes National Park sights and some of the beautiful waterfalls in the Hilo area.
Sunshine Helicopters – near Hapuna Beach
Sunshine Helicopters is based just up the highway from our legal vacation homes in Mauna Lani and offers two tours on the Big Island. In addition to their Volcano Deluxe Tour, which crosses the island to the volcano, they also offer a tour that explores the deep and lush valleys of the scenic Kohala and Hamakua coasts.
Safari Helicopters – Hilo
Safari Helicopters’ Big Island operations specialize in the sights around Volcanoes National Park and Hilo, including lava forests, Pu’u ‘O’o, and waterfalls. This tour operator has been running tours for over 2 decades and has some great reviews.
Discounts and Tips
Some tour providers offer discounts if you call and book a couple of weeks in advance.
Some tour operators are based close to Mauna Lani, however the volcano and lava themed tours departing from Hilo can be over $100 cheaper than those departing from the west side of the island. This is because they have a much shorter flight time to reach the main volcano sights. So, if you are planning to spend a day exploring the other side of the island you can save a bit of money by booking a helicopter tour out of Hilo. However, leaving from Kona or Waikoloa means you get to see more of the Big Island!
If you have a Costco membership, you can sometimes find discount cards for Helicopter Tours at the Costco store in Kona.
