I was very sad at the end of the helicopter tour. I spent a lot of money to fly out to see the erupting volcano and splurged on this helicopter tour to get a closer up view of the Mauna Loa eruption. Although the pilot was nice and I felt safe the entire flight, I was shocked that we didn’t even go near the eruption. We went to the Kilauea caldera and then went and saw a waterfall. Although it was pretty, I feel like I was led on a bit. Our pilot never told us we were going to see the eruption, he didn’t even try to go over there. He said the weather was great that morning so I am still at a loss for why we didn’t see it. I spent my savings and time off work to go see this historic volcano and feel incredibly hurt and disappointed that there was no communication or attempt to see the lava flow. Everyone on our tour was confused afterwards and also feeling a bit down and frustrated. When I asked one of the tour operators why we didn’t attempt to even see it, she couldn’t really give me a clear answer and said it was good enough I saw Kilauea which has no active lava viewing spots at the moment. I left Hilo very sad yesterday and want to warn others who may have had the same hope I did to see the eruption.
Response from Host
Dec 2022
Aloha Calista, We are also saddened to hear that you were disappointed in the Volcanoes National Park Safari tour covering the Kilauea Volcano. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to say that no where in any of our advertisements is Mauna Loa guaranteed. Safety is always our first priority. Weather was good for the Kilauea Volcano and falls but there was no way for us to reach Mauna loa and it's flows safely. These Mauna Loa flows are very high in elevation and not always possible for us to get to from Hilo.