Kilauea Volcano Doors-Off Helicopter Tour - Lava & Waterfalls Flight from Hilo reviews, Big Island tours & activities, fun things to do in Big Island (With pictures only)

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Kilauea Volcano Doors-Off Helicopter Tour - Lava & Waterfalls Flight from Hilo

Do it!

Reviewed by: Tish, 2024/04/02

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.

Rating:
Attended as:	Solo Travelers
Activity Date:	2024/03/31
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Absolutely amazing experience!

Reviewed by: Balazs P., 2023/12/22

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!

Rating:
Attended as:	Solo Travelers
Activity Date:	2023/12/17
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AMAZING flight!

Reviewed by: Yes to Hawaii, 2023/08/25

This was the BEST flight I've ever done on Big Island. The doors-off was the way to go. It was a 4-seater with only 3 of us on-board so we each got a window seat.

Tips:
-Bring/wear a windbreaker. It gets VERY chilly with the wind.
-Sunglasses are a must
-Cameras or cell phones for photos must have a wrist strap

This view...10 out of 10

Rating:
Attended as:	Friends
Activity Date:	2023/01/10
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Eye opening

Reviewed by: GingerBeardNYC, 2019/02/07

We intend to do this everywhere we travel now. We loved it that much.

Both above and below the clouds we flew

Reply from activity provider

Aloha GingerBeardNYC,

Mahalo for your review! We are happy to hear you enjoyed your Doors off Lava & Rainforests Adventure. Our Doors-Off flights are definitely one of our most popular flights, it is an indredible way to see the landscape from a new perspective.

Thank you for choosing to fly with us, we hope to see you back soon!

Mahalo,
Paradise Helicopters

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
Activity Date:	2019/02/03
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An awesome doors-off experience

Reviewed by: Mr.Anonymous, 2018/06/05

The cool thing about this helicopter flight is that you get to see a lot of volcanoes national park in a relatively little amount of time. Especially since the lava wasn't flowing a lot that day, flying over the greyish lava wasteland made it a lot easier to spot minor lava flows (see picture).

Since it was raining that day, there was too much steam for us to fly directly over the caldera, but otherwise the flight was great. If conditions are stable, I definitely recommend a helicopter flight as the best way to see the volcano. There's a lot you can only see from up in the sky.

Rating:
Attended as:	Solo Travelers
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Fantastic

Reviewed by: Deborah, 2018/05/16

WE were very fortunate to have our tour just after the eruption. An unforgettable experience that lasted not long enough

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
Activity Date:	2018/05/03
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Open door laba helicopter tour

Reviewed by: Bengisu, 2017/08/07

It was an amazing experience to see the beautiful view of big island from above and observing the bubbling lava inside the crater of an active volcano together with a great crew before during and after the flight.

Silver lava

Rating:
Attended as:	Friends
Activity Date:	2017/07/30
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AMAZING

Reviewed by: BOB W, 2017/07/03

MY 12 YEAR OLD GRANDSON AND I WENT ON A DOORS OFF VOCANO TOUR WITH ROBERT AS OUR PILOT. AN ABSOLUTELY AMAZING EXPERIENCE, TOTALLY UNIQUE AND WORTH EVERY SINGLE CENT OF THE COS, FROM CHECK IN TO DEPARTURE. SOMETHING THAT BOTH OD US WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER. THANKS FOR A DELIGHTFUL EXPERIENCE!!!

Rating:
Attended as:	Families with Young Children
Activity Date:	2017/06/29
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Awesome pilot and fabulous flight!

Reviewed by: Darcy S, 2017/02/08

My husband and I loved the doors off heli ride over the Kilauea volcano lava flow! Would highly recommend it!

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
Activity Date:	2017/01/31
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Kilauea Helicopter tour

Reviewed by: Vicki Wales, 2016/04/07

We took this trip on monday with our pilot Pete and it was totally awesome! We saw bubbling lava and were indeed able to 'feel the heat'! Pete tailored our tour to us and made us feel very welcome. Many thanks! Highly recommended!

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
Activity Date:	2016/04/04
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Aaaaamazing!

Reviewed by: G from GA, 2016/02/06

An unforgettable experience! Viewing flowing lava burning trees, the spots where the lava begins to flow, the breathtaking coastline of the Big Island with its many waterfalls, humpback whales from overhead, and the wonders of the island with the unbelievable views of every hue in the ocean's water= memories that will last a lifetime! Add a fabulous staff and the best pilot ever, and that's what you can expect.

One of the lava vents.

Rating:
Attended as:	Friends
Activity Date:	2016/02/03
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Doors off is the only way to FLY!!!

Reviewed by: Alan, 2016/02/02

The doors off tour was incredible and well worth the price! I highly recommend this tour to anyone that wants to get a real helicopter volcano tour!

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
Activity Date:	2016/01/09
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Awesome, Breathtaking, Not Enough Great Words to Describe

Reviewed by: DWAungst, 2015/09/21

The flight was amazing, but we did not fly from Hilo. When our scheduled time (from Hilo) arrived, the weather was below minimum at the volcano. This was very disappointing since Hilo weather was nice. But, Hawaii weather is very volatile.

We rescheduled for the next day as a "reserve flight" (needed more people to "confirm" the flight). Before the scheduled time, Paradise Helicopters called to say the flight was still only "reserved", but they had an opening in a different, circle the whole island, flight from Kona. They would upgrade me for no additional cost to take that one. We jumped at it.

The flight was amazing. We got to see the whole island, in addition to the volcano and real, live, flowing lava. Our pilot was Koji and he was awesome. The weather over the volcano was mixed, but he was able to navigate through the clouds enough to maintain the FAA rules for height and get us over the actual volcano caldera. Then, we headed for the current eruption points on the southern slopes and saw even more lava in the second vent. Moving further to the new lava fields, he located some live, flow lava. "WOW!!!" is all I can say.

The rest of the flight was great, too. Flying low up the valley on the north shore was wild. Seeing all the waterfalls was also terrific.

"Captian Cook", his initial landing point on the Big Island.
Green Sand Beach
Main Volcano Laval Pool on the Caldera
Lava pool in the second vent on the southern slopes of the volcano.
Flowing Lava - we were hovering only about 50 feet off this, the heat wash from the lava made the ride bumpy but worth it.
More Flowing Lava, Oozing Out of a Crack
North Shore Cliffs
One of Many Waterfalls
Intrepid Adventurers (us), Post Flight

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
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Excellent Tour

Reviewed by: John Johnson, 2011/10/26

I took the doors off flight and I was totally amazed.
This is the best experience you could even imagine.
Ranks equal to or even better than riding my Harley through the Rocky mountains in Colorado.
Of coarse you can tell that I highly recommend this flight and especially with the doors off.
The pilot on my flight (Dillon) (hope I spelled your name right) was skilled and competent and ready to answer all questions with knowledge and completness.

Just do it!!! A. L. (John) Johnson Englewood CO

Rating:
Attended as:	Friends
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Thanks again

Reviewed by: Aimee and John, 2010/06/10

John and I wanted to send this email thanking everyone at Paradise for a once in a lifetime experience on our vacation. We took one of your newer trips which flew out of Kona, over the valleys, drop off in Hilo for the day (with paid rental car), then over the Volcanoes, and back to Kona. We really enjoyed the entire day. In fact we hadn't originally thought we would get to visit the Hilo area since the drive from Kona is a couple of hours. So not only did we get to see beautiful valleys, waterfalls, and running lava from air but we got to explore the Rain forest national Zoo, The Volcano national Park, Rainbow Falls, and Akaka Falls all by land as well. Also our pilot Steve was so informative and friendly he really helped make our day just that much more special. I'm sure he flies the same routes every day, yet you couldn't tell. His passion for the land, and surroundings was contagious. Thanks again, we included some of our amazing trip photos.

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
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Open Door Experience with waterfall

Reviewed by: Mr. Anonymous, 2009/05/15

We took the open door with landing at Jack's lava house. It was a very neat experience getting to walk on the lava rock. Be prepared for being wind-blown on the open doors, and take a jacket as it can be chilly in the air. Overall a very nice experience, but don't expect big "red lava flows" as that is not realistic. You can't exactly "feel the heat" and the waterfalls are not close up views they are more from a distance and thrown in at the end, But still pretty spectacular scenery!

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
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Untitled

Reviewed by: Gina, 2009/01/27

Awesome experience, best pictures I could ever have from the off doors helicopter. The view was spectacular and the staff was awesome. Thank you!!! Cant wait to be back :)

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
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Fantastic Experience

Reviewed by: Rene, 2008/06/19

We had a FANTASTIC experience on the Paradise Helicopter tour!
We would do it again, the next time we travel to Hawai'i.
I've included some of my favorite pictures from the tour.
Had a GREAT time!
Aloha,

Rating:
Attended as:	Families
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Helicopter Tour

Reviewed by: Eric, 2007/06/19

The helicopter ride with the doors off was very cool! You can feel the heat from the lava! This tour gives you a great view of the different features of the island. It's a bit on the expensive side, but I'd recommend it if you've never done it before.

Rating:
Attended as:	Couples
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