The Big Island Private Helicopter Experience

Overview

For those of you who want it all, the Full Island VIP Adventure Tour is for you! Volcano, valleys, waterfalls and coastline! It’s all of our helicopter tours of the Big Island rolled into one plus an active volcano!

Departing from Kona International Airport, we head straight to Kilauea by way of the saddle running between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, Hawaii’s tallest mountains.

City: Big Island of Hawaii

Wed 26 Feb

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $670.94

Make a reservation

Wed 26 Feb

Starting at $670.94

Make a reservation

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What's Included

All taxes, fees and handling charges

Fuel surcharge

Airport/Departure Tax

Additional Info

Wheelchair accessible
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Children must be accompanied by an adult
Minimum age requirement of 7 years old
Requires minimum of 3 passengers and maximum of 4 passengers
Individual weight limit cannot exceed 285lbs
Group total weight limit cannot exceed 700lbs. If exceed $200 fueling fee will be added.
Tour is done with the Doors ON only.
Regularly sanitised high-traffic areas
Gear/equipment sanitised between use
As a helicopter operator, we affirm that our highest priority is the safety of our customers, our crew, and the public. We are committed to ensuring that our passengers are protected in every possible manner.

What To Expect

Kilauea

Kilauea is one of the most active volcanoes on earth and has been continuously erupting since 1974. Here we will explore the East Rift Zone of Kilauea, including Kilauea Crater, Pu’u O’o Vent and it’s lava flows that are currently entering the Pacific Ocean. The tour will then fly north up the windward side of the island passing Hilo town, the wettest town on earth and the heavenly Hamakua Coast. Then we will whisk you up north to explore the seven windward valleys of Kohala. First stop is the windward side of the Kohala Mountains where we will fly the coastline of Waipio Valley and then move westward to Waimanu Valley. Waimanu can experience annual rainfall of up to 200 inches, fueling 1500+ ft waterfalls, some of the tallest in all of Hawaii.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (69)

dlrdmd

Mar 2018

We took the longer helicopter tour, 2-2-1/2 hours. We were not rushed and it ran about 2 hours, 20minutes. Our pilot was easy going and maneuvered wherever we needed to go for the view. He was very knowledgeable about the island. The Rangers did not allow a Park flyover access for the day we took the tour but we flew very close and saw huge areas of steam and several rivulets of lava flowing down the mountain slopes. Highly recommended.

Response from Host

Mar 2018

Aloha! Thank you for your kind words about your Full Island tour on the beautiful Big Island. We are so happy you enjoyed your flight and got to see some Lava. What a memorable trip to cherish always. Mahalo for your review! The Mauna Loa Helicopters Tour Team

CookieNeenah

Mar 2018

This was my bucket list and Ben our pilot did an amazing job.I so appreciate Helen who set my dream up .Highly recommended this flight seeing red hot lava, the whole island and to top it off whales 🐳 what an excellent experience

Response from Host

Mar 2018

Aloha! Thank you so much for your kind words, Ben really enjoyed flying with you and I'm happy I could help set up your tour with Mauna Loa Helicopters. It was such a joy sharing the breathtaking sights of the Big Island. I'm glad the request for Lava was granted and you were able to check this off your bucket list. Mahalo for the review! The Mauna Loa Helicopter Tour Team

Anders A

Jan 2018

The highlight of our honeymoon trip was a Full Island Adventure on Big Island of Hawaii with Mauna Loa Helicopter Tours. We had never tried to be in a helicopter before, so we were a bit concerned about getting nausea - especially because the trip was 2+ hours, but we just wanted to see it all now that we had the chance. Before the helicopter flight, we had already been hiking around in Vulcanoes National Park and been to the Mauna Kea summit and we were excited to see the places from above and hopefully spot some lava. The staff (I am really bad with names) were very kind and answered all of our newbie questions and made us feel 100 % safe and excited before getting out to the helicopter. We got a good introduction to our helicopter flight, a easy to understand security briefing and even got many great tips on what to see at Hawaii. To avoid nausea, we were told to not focus too much on some object near the helicopter but also remember to look out in the distance. We were also told to tell the pilot ASAP if any of us got nausea, then he would try to help us by flying in a different way or direct our attention to something else than nausea. It made us feel extra safe that the Mauna Loa Helicopter Tours is also training helicopter pilots - then they must know what they are doing. Based on the advice, we made sure to drink some water to avoid dehydration. We had already opted-out from flying doors-off based on recommendation from Mauna Loa Tours - that was a good idea because on the "Full Island Adventure" we fly high between the mountains and then it gets a little chilly as I was just wearing shorts and T-shirt. We reduced the cold by closing a small ventilation window. It was never too warm or too cold in the helicopter and we did not have any problem with the door glass affecting our photos. We got some great noise cancelling headsets, so the helicopter noise was reduced much. The pilot also played some nice music in the headset, so we were not at all bothered by the helicopter noise. The pilot was very good at explaining the various landscape and helicopter features during the flight and we felt really encouraged to ask questions which we did. It was also interesting to hear how the pilot communicated with other helicopters and traffic control. The flight itself was awesome. The liftoff was much more comfortable than takeoff in an airplane. We went between Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea and could easily see the telescopes on Mauna Kea and ice cap on both mountains. There were also many interesting craters and lava flows in between the mountains. We then went on to Vulcanoes National Park. Unfortunately, it was pretty cloudy that day but our pilot managed to find a hole in the cloud so we could see the lava in the lava lake of Kilneau crater. We then tried to see if we could see the Pu'u Oo lava vent, but we had to give up after multiple attempts due to too many clouds. We then went to Kohala Valleys and saw some amazing waterfalls that are very hard to access from ground. This was actually more exciting than the vulcanoes, because each valley kept showing more and more amazing waterfalls. To complete the great adventure then we saw humpback whales on our way back to Kona - that was much more impressive than far away in a boat. We never felt nausea in the helicopter, we only felt it when we went on a boat tour later. Recommandations: 1. Buy a GoPro. Watching the video afterwards is an amazing memory. 2. I can highly recommend getting a private helicopter ride rather than sharing - we had our own little adventure and everything was focused about us and not other participants. This is especially the case for honeymoon :) I have a small suggestion for improvement: We drove early to Kona airport and was a bit confused about whether we had to pay for parking or not. Once the staff arrived then we were told that we could just park in front of Mauna Loa Helicopter Tours - it would be great with a "customer parking" sign to avoid this confusion in the future.

Response from Host

Jan 2018

Aloha Anders & Ruby! Thank you so much for your fantastic review! We really appreciate your kind words and strive to ensure our guests have the best Helicopter experience possible. It warms our hearts knowing this was accomplished for your flight. Private Helicopter tours are found at Mauna Loa Helicopters, the best way to tour the Big Island by air. You have great recommendations and also appreciate the suggestion for improvement which I've sent on to our Management Team. Lava Lake, Waterfalls and Humpback Whales....what a memorable Honeymoon!!! Mahalo for your review! Mauna Loa Helicopters Tour Team