Big Island
I participated in a helicopter tour of the Big Island! The pilot was Toshi, who recently became a grandfather and has semi-retired. I felt very lucky to meet Toshi on this trip!
From the moment we headed to the helicopter, my excitement soared, and it reached its peak during takeoff! I was moved by the breathtaking natural beauty of the Big Island spread out below me.
The landing and takeoff at the cliffs of Kohala Coast and the 365-meter drop of Punalu'u Falls were absolutely thrilling!
As I flew, reflecting on the history from the birth of the Big Island to the present, I was reminded of how short and precious life is.
It was truly priceless! I highly recommend it!
ビッグアイランドのヘリコプター遊覧ツアーに参加しました!パイロットはToshiさん、お孫さんが産まれて、セミリタイアされたとの事。今回、Toshiさんにお会い出来たのは、非常にラッキーでした!
ヘリに向かう時からテンションが上がり、テイクオフでMAXに到達!眼下に広がるビッグアイランドの大自然に感動しました(^^)
特にコハラ海岸の断崖絶壁と、落差365mのプナルルの滝へのランディング&テイクオフは迫力満点でした!
ビッグアイランドの誕生から今に至る迄の、歴史に思いを馳せながらのフライトは、人の一生が如何に短く、如何に大切か、改めて感じる事が出来ました!
正にプライスレス!!お勧めです(^^)
The pilot was Toshi Mochizuki! With his warm and passionate guidance, we discovered the true charm of the Big Island of Hawaii! Thank you so much, Toshi!
パイロットは望月トシさんでした!
彼のあたたかく、そして熱い案内で、わたし達はハワイ島の本当の魅力を知りました!トシさんホントにホントにありがとうございました!!
They got us on early to get a great view with the clear morning skies! wonderful and safe flight
This was such an amazing experience that I hardly know where to begin.
I can't say enough about Jen, who was our guide. From the moment we met her at 7:30 am (she was early to pick up near our residence) until she dropped us back home ~12 hours later, she made the trip such a positive experience. She was very personable and easy for my husband and I to chat with us as we made the ~1.5 hr drive to pick up the rest of the passengers in Hilo.
She was constantly pointing out areas of interest and sharing background information and context so that we could fully appreciate the sights of the Volcano park.
The 3 mile hike was great, and it was so interesting to spend time on the caldera floor, although I will admit that the trek back up truly tested my stamina!
All in all, an amazing day!
Great experience. Our tour guide Grant is top notch. His knowledge on the everything the big island and particularly the volcanoes was impressive and he makes it so much fun. Highly recommend if never have explored the big island before.
Wonderful island and volcano views from above, they make sure to take you up when sights will be great!
I ask others to go with me, and get...
'is it a big helicopter? must be stable'
'need a seat in the middle up front or I'll barf'
'doors off, are you nutz?'
Don't let them ruin it for you. Small copter with doors off is the full woohooo. The ride is smooth and stable enough. The view out the open door is wondrous. Accept nothing less. Watch a video in the comfort of your couch or get the whole experience.
While it may be a lack of research on my part, I would like to see a review of the tour promotion that prominently features nighttime photos of volcanic craters. It would be helpful to clearly inform participants that this is a tour where you generally won't see magma erupting from the volcano. Although it seems there is a note mentioning this, it only states that "it may not be visible," which gives the impression that it's a minor possibility. However, upon arriving at the site, it becomes clear that the chance of actually seeing it is quite rare and would be considered very lucky.
下調べ不足といえばそこまでだが、夜間の火山火口の写真を前面に出したツアー募集は見直して欲しい。基本的には火山からマグマが出るなんて見れないツアーということは通知しておいて欲しい。注意書きにその旨を書いているようだが、注意書きだけ見ると「見れない場合がある」程度の表記だか、現地に来ると「見れたら相当にラッキー」という確率の話。
We got a great morning, very clear skies and gorgeous views of the volc nat park!
Awesome to get to see the volcano from above to understand it much different then walking through
Great trip with Tyler being our pilot. Not only was he a great pilot he was very knowledgable about the Big Island and about things a vacationer would not know. Saw many whales and spinner dolphins.. Circle Island tour was a great experience! Support staff was great and gave us all the information needed to make the trip great, but also safe!
On the day, it rained, and it was cold, making the conditions terrible. The woman in charge explained everything clearly and patiently, providing instructions on handling the bike and setting up the navigation for us, who do not understand English. I would like to try again on a nice day.
当日は雨が降り、寒くなりコンデションは最悪でした。
担当した女性の方は分かりやすく、英語のわからない私達にバイクの取り扱いの説明、ナビの設定など丁寧に説明してくれました。
天気の良い日に再度チャレンジしたい。
I felt like I got to see all the best spots of Big Island on this 1 day tour!
This is one of the best tour I had, the driver always take care of you even if you Re late lol.
But it was an amazing experience you can meet new people and have a great time, I would do it again when I come back to kona!
Since we did this the day before leaving, it was really fun to see lots of places we'd visited on the ground from the air, and to get a better view of crater road through the park. The kids loved having the headsets and microphones, and asked lots of questions. The pilot was very patient with them and had taken the trouble to learn their names and really interact with them. He also accepted requests for minor deviations from his flight plan to see particular things, flying into clouds so that we could get a better view of a rainbow. They also take video of the whole trip, and we wound up paying for that too since it seemed reasonably priced compared with the cost of the overall experience.
We really enjoyed this tour. It is a long one so be prepared. But they keep you hydrated and fed. I loved the black sand beach, and the sea turtles and the stop along the shore the most. But all of the events were really fun. They packed so much into one day. it was a great tour and we had a lot of fun. The picnic, the stop at the bakery, and the dinner, you were all excellent quality as well.
Took this tour 6 years ago and had the most amazing experience. So I had to do it again. This tour offers the best of Big Island because you get to see Akaka Falls and Rainbow Falls. We saw lots of turtles at black sand beach and an actual rainbow at Rainbow Falls! Our guide Brent was very informative and helpful.
An absolutely fabulous experience, feeling the wind while the endless lava fields pass by below our feet. Photos without glare, a dream!
High safety, perfect pax care, highly recommended to anyone.
Many thanks!
It was a great days long adventures around the island. I would highly recommend it!
The tour was very well organized and very well planned. I felt I saw so much and learned a lot about the culture and history of the island. Jim was full of interesting information and made the trip memorable Fun group.
The tour guide ( Dexter) from Polynesian Adventure Tour picked us up from the hotel on time. Very knowledgeable and very informative . He knows all the places and history of the Big Islands (Hilo). Patiently waiting for us to finish the tour. We really had a great time. We will use the Polynesian Adventure Group again.
The perfect experience for first time visiting Kona! Loved the Coffee farm, black sand beach, and stargazing the most on this full-day excursion!
This tour was the highlight of my families trip. The tour was amazing and our guide was knowledgeable and friendly. He was happy to answer all of my children's questions.
We had the best pilot and best tour ever, amazing scenery
MUST DO!
This was a great tour - really educational and fun. Be prepared for rain, you are in the rainforest and it rains a lot. Our guide came prepared with umbrellas and rain jackets, flashlights for the lava tube, water and snacks.
Andre, our tour guide was amazing, experienced and incredibly knowlegable of the volcanoes, land, plants and trees, Hawaiian culture, plus more, and the history of all mentioned. He made sure we were always entertained during the approx. 8 hour trip.
Would recommend shorts, closed toed shoes (sneakers fine) suntan lotion, somewhat water repellant light jacket (in case your tour does not provide).
You hit it all and you do not need to drive and miss views along the way!
I couldn't book the same tour I wanted, so I chose this one with an English guide as a second option. My elementary school daughter also enjoyed it without much issue. For stargazing, I always book two sessions during the trip considering weather conditions, and since I had a Japanese explanation the day before, we were able to enjoy the stars. However, compared to a full-fledged stargazing tour, this part felt more like a bonus, with less explanation and no use of a telescope. There were new discoveries as well, as the places I visited for the first time and the Kīlauea crater had changed significantly due to the eruptions.
行きたかった同じようなツアーの予約が取れず、次善の策として英語ガイドでしたが選びました。小学生の娘もさほど問題なく楽しめました。星空観察は天候の問題などを考慮して旅行中いつも2回予約するのですが、前日に一度日本語の解説をしてもらっていたので、星空も楽しめました。ただ、本格的な星空観察ツアーに比べるとその部分は「おまけ」みたいな感じで説明も少なく、天体望遠鏡を使用することもありませんでした。初めて訪れた場所や、キラウエアの火口も噴火により依然とだいぶ変わっていたり、新しい発見がありました。
Incredible tour but our Tour guide, Anson really brought the island and the tour to life. Honestly enjoyed the tour to the max but we would pay to just hang out with Anson again. Lol. I'm sure all the guides are great and extremely courteous.
All the jokes we made he would rebuttal and be involved all while still maintaining his poise and professionalism. It's the little things guys and this tour has it all. Thank you From the bottom of our hearts.
We had a lot of fun on the tour Ridge was amazing and gave us a lot of good local history and knowledge. If he didn't know the answer to a question he found it out for us. We'd highly recommend this tour to anybody looking for a great day on the island.
Aloha, Barbara!
Thank you for sharing your positive experience! Ridge is indeed a fantastic guide, always eager to provide local history and insights. We're thrilled to hear you had a lot of fun and enjoyed the tour. Your recommendation means a lot to us, and we hope to welcome you back for another great day on the island in the future! Mahalo again!
Good tour! Aaron was our guide and he did a perfect job! I only wish the volcano was erupting so we could see more activity. The meals were good, the views were good and we learned a lot.