Modern Helicopter! Great tour ! been on lots of Helicopter tours and some pretty rickety old army Helios so nice to climb in aNice clean modern machine .i mean i am picky wont get on a prop jet .even the wife felt safe 2 years earlier she flat out refused a 40 yr Jet Ranger in Peru with flaking paint . I mean flew a Chinook off the Pan Am building have jumped out of UH1 like 50 times and can judge a Helicopter operator pretty much on the spot. 5 stars great tour

Highly recommend this experience. Our pilot was also a great tour guide. It really made me feel more connected to the island seeing what it is going trough, as well as the people of Hawaii. Would 10/10 go again.

I am sooooooooooo excited to do this trip last minute and it’s one of the most unforgettable experience in my life so far!!! Amazing pilot and good job, Wesley! He’s been explaining everything during this whole trip and I would definitely recommend my friends who plan to visit Hilo to do it again!

My fiancée and I took this tour back in the week of August 18, 2019. Our pilot was great and showed real knowledge of the area we toured. Making sure everyone was able to catch every detail we can see from the sky as possible in the amount of time allowed. He maneuvered the helicopter with great elegance. Communicated with everyone on board making sure everyone was having a great time. We purchased the video to have for our memories of our first tour of the volcano in Hawaii from over head and to share with family and friends. The next time we are out in Hawaii doing our island hop we will book another tour forsure and recommend Blue Hawaiian Helicopters to whoever is heading out to the Big Island. Mahalo! And Aloha! Till next time Hawaii! We miss you!

After the safety briefing, we were given the all clear to take off. There were several groups in total with around 6 passengers in each helicopter. Our pilot was excellent! He told us a little bit about the history and then pointed out key sights like the 1960s lava flow. We started our journey along the coastline where we could see previous lava flows and the beautiful lush vegetation. The tour began at the point where the lava river meets the ocean. It’s just incredible the amount of stream that’s created! You can actually see the river of lava coming from high up. Then we headed to Fissure 8 which was currently dormant! Honestly, you can’t describe the beauty of it and the news don’t do it justice! We circled around the fissure a couple of times and then headed over some waterfalls before continuing up the coast and back to the airport. The flight lasted about 50 minutes and it honestly was just incredible!This flight was just as impressive, all the staff were extremely pleasant and efficient, however, the pilot was way up there, his personality and piloting skills, his knowledge and his total demeanour was remarkable, he was one of those individuals who go the extra yards. So the pilot was great and the flight was fun and the ground staff friendly and think its a good option I can recommend for Hilo.

Great experience. We got right up close to the craters, as low as 500 feet! Its impossible to get closer by road, so its the only way to see it. The helicopters have excellent visibility, and the windows are nice and clean with no scratches. If you are wearing a light colored top, theyll lend you a black t shirt to minimize reflections. There is a good safety presentation, and they have strict procedures (which is reassuring). The staff, especially the pilot, is very knowledgeable, and keep you entertained during the whole flight.

We very much enjoyed our helicopter tour - it allows you to see parts of Kilauea and nearby waterfalls that are otherwise inaccessible. Our pilot was affable and knowledgeable and the support crew also did a great job getting us prepped. We were comfortable and felt safe and were able to enjoy the amazing views!

Our pilot (Jeremy) was awesome. We were able to see the lava flow and the lava stream going into the ocean- with bonus of a 360 rainbow. Also go to see some water falls. Recommend this tour. The staff at the airport was friendly and the pilot was great. Thanks for adding to our amazing vacation!

We did the Volcano Tour, in the A-Star with their sister company Hawaiian Helicopters. This was definitely a unique way to see the volcano, both the sea entry and the crater itself. The pilot was great - and very informative. Theres no guarantee of which seats you get, but he did a great job of circling each location several times to make sure everyone got a great look. We didnt see as much lava as I was expecting, based on some of the promotional pictures and videos you see of Big Island helicopter tours, but it was still a very unique way to see the island.

Amazing experience flying over the lava and the waterfalls in a helicopter. Highly recommended if you can afford it.

I am a pilot so I am taking this time to state my personal bias: I love flying!!! I had an amazing time! Our pilot was informative and fun!Now that that is out of the way I think it is important to inform customers that the tours can be canceled at any time due to unforeseen changes in weather. The staff did a decent job in keeping us informed on the situation once we got there but wouldn’t it be better to keep us in the loop the whole time? With an activity that could make or break someone’s hard earned vacation I would have liked to have had more information. Weather is unpredictable, I get it... I fly too however if you know a day in advance why not tell people a day in advance? They could cancel... yea yea it’s bad for business but if you can’t fly you can’t fly, we get it. Going up and not being able to see anything? Now that’s just a shame. That is the same as not going up at all.Moral of the story: this tour was amazing however I’d rather know a day before that the weather is bad and that we may not fly. I’d like to be able to make the decision myself rather than getting there and having to worry whether or not they will cancel 5min before we are about to leave. This tour was not cheap... a little bit more courtesy to that fact as well as the fact that most people are looking to this as the highlight of their trip would be appreciated.

Fantastic experience at this place. Staff is super nice, sincere and welcoming. The helicopters are well maintained and the pilot did best to get us lava view, explained local points and history of flow from the crater. The souvenirs shop is rightly priced and offered discount for Expedia members.

This was our families first helicopter ride, we did the circle of fire and waterfalls. We did get a good view of the volcano but we were so high up the waterfalls were about 2 cm big. We did see 2 and even with my camera on full zoom that falls were extremely small. The pilot said we were about 1/2 mile up. Not sure why we were flying so high. But it was extremely disappointing. In the pictures and reviews it looked like we would be much closer. The ride itself was very rough. Our family all agreed that we were glad we tried it but we would never do it again, we could have had the same view from a small plane with a nicer ride and cheaper price.

Booked tour: circle of fire + waterfalls in the Eco-star (309$ + tax) from HiloCould have been a great experience if I would have seen anything.The seats will be assigned to you, if you are flying as a couple you might end up not sitting next to each other due to weight balancing.We had 6 passengers, with one free seat (next to the pilot).I ended up on seat 6, which is the middle seat on the left, seat 7 is the left window seat. 70% of the tours interesting views are on the right.This means on seat 6 and 7 you will only briefly see the beautiful coastline, for the volcano you will have a little more time though, probably 2 minutes..As seat 6 is a middle seat the view through the right window will be obstructed by two passengers and the view through the left window by one. Who could blame them, they paid the same money.I’m sure the passengers in the two front seats (who paid the same price) had a totally different experience.But for only 25$ you can buy a dvd with the nice view you could have had on your flight.

Do NOT patronize this tour company. They show no consideration for safety or quality of life of local residents. They constantly fly back and forth over peoples rooftops, our keikis schools, in direct violation of AC-91-36D, an FAA rule that tells operators to avoid overflights of residential and noise sensitive areas! MY REPLY TO YOUR REPLY: I do not FEEL you are a danger and nuisance to residents, I KNOW it. Your overflights happen any day at any time, so go check them out. Regarding following the rules, that is a LIE. You do NOT follow the AC-91-36D which states you should avoid overflight of residential noise sensitive areas. It is a FACT you do not avoid us, you fly right over residences. You are NOT a local company your address is Colorado... PLEASE STOP FLYING OVER OUR HOMES AND SCHOOLS, and be truthful! And you are UNSAFE. There have been 250 helicopter accidents in Hawaii by FAA records!!!

Incredible way to see the island. 45-50 min flight plus prep time. Very skilled pilots give you a tour. Only downside, If there is one, is that 2 people will not have window seats. I had a middle seat and it was still spectacular. Staff is friendly and helpful. Even if you’re afraid of heights, this is one tour you want to hit, especially if the lava is flowing.

Thank you Scott! You made the trip unforgettable! Amazing knowledge and flying skills, keep up the good work. Definitely take a ride over the volcano with this guy and pay attention to the theme music he plays along the way. Mike & Shannon 10/18/2017

There were 4 of us that took both the volcano and waterfall tour. All of us agreed that they were both our favorite things to do on ANY vacation we have ever taken. They were not only beautiful tours they were also such a “rush”!!! We all think the waterfall tour was the better of the 2. But would absolutely recommend them both. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!! LOVED THEM️️️

I am beyond happy that we took the plunge to do this.We booked through our hotel and lemme say... it aint cheap!!! But if you save up to do anything here... its this! Beyond worth every penny!!We booked the volcano and waterfall tour.From the beautiful drive, arriving at Hilo airport, parking and check-in... couldnt have been less stress free. The staff is super friendly!!They do weigh you, so no point fudging. If youve eaten too many cookies lately, be honest! They will find out, ha! There is an extra charge for over a certain weight.No bags allowed, they will lock them up for free.Our pilot was pat, and he was awesome!! Very fun, made sure to tell us what we were seeing, where and what to look for. Seemed to thoroughly enjoy this!Now, to the flight. My goodness...i just cant put into words what its like to be flying over a volcano, seeing lava flow, the pure majesty of it is overwhelming. Pat made sure to take his time, communicate with us what we wanted to see and make it memorable!The waterfalls are spectacular as well. You are not going to see any of these things unless youre in the air.We will definitely do this again!! A top notch company that assures moments youll never forget!!They offer several different copters and sites. Ours offered a USB flash drive for us to keep of the whole flight, $40, totally worth it!! We can show all our family and friends what we saw. The gift shop has cool souvenirs and priced great! Be sure to bring cash to tip your pilot!Cant wait to go back!

We had a great time on the Blue Hawaiian Helicopter tour! Our 10am flight was cancelled due to weather, but we were able to reschedule later in the day - it actually worked out much better. The pilot was very insightful and we learned a lot. It is well worth the cost and a great way to see the volcanoes on the big island.

Great tour, open friendly and very informative, Highly recommend them.

I really liked the blue Hawaiian helicopter ride. We had a great guide and she was very informative. The view was spectacular and looking at the range of the volcanoes really made you realize how much lava there really was.

We had a great time. We felt safe the whole time and the pilot was really fun and engaging. Prepare to get physically close to other tourists while on the ride. I would have given it 5 stars but we didnt get all that close to any waterfalls. We chose to do the Waterfall and Volcano tour and although we did see a few waterfalls, they were pretty far away.

Flew from Fl and a 19 second sprinkle cancelled all flights, all while Paradise Tours recommended that clients wait 30-45 min to fulfill tour while giving discount cards for places to have lunch while waiting.Big Disappointment to 9 year old son who has been waiting and watching Blue Hawaiian videos via YouTube for months.

August 2018 (days after the hurricane).It was awesome. Great visibility and wonderful weather. Sun shining, cool temps. Where able to see the new land that formed, lava flows, waterfalls and nice view of the island. Sad to see all the lost homes. Be aware where you get to go is based on weather so a planned/scheduled flight may no go where you want.

Just home from HI -- Our helicopter excursion was a delight. Knowledge filled smooth ride. Corey is an excellent pilot and we saw #8 blow. He called us lucky the whole ride. His enthusiasm was infectious. Highly recommend this once in a lifetime event. AAA+ from a retired educator.

Staff is very friendly. Tour with Wesley was informative and a smooth ride. Breathtaking views on the circle of fire tour leaving out of Hilo. Unforgettable!!

Incredible views from the above on heavenly Hawaiian beaches and landscapes. You have y seen Hawaii unless you seen it from the sky. Unforgettable memories.

Incredible experience! It is expensive but I felt it was worth it. Our helicopter sat 6 people plus the pilot. Every seat was a good seat with a great view. They do a safety video beforehand, so you feel very secure. It is very windy outside and be sure to wear dark colors. Our pilot was so nice and funny! He made us feel very safe and honestly it was easy to forget we were in a small helicopter so far up in the sky. Everyone wears big headphones and you can talk to everyone by pushing a button. its hard to hear, so talk loudly. We flew over the old lava fields, the ocean, a huge vent and a waterfall near Hilo. The pilot said that its difficult sometimes because it rains so often in Hilo, which means they may not be able to fly, but if its sunny and no rain, then the waterfalls wont be as big. So just be happy with what you get! We had a wonderful time and would do it again.

It’s $100 extra for a front row seat but the tour is well worth the money. I think it offers the best view of the volcano.

It was a great tour with amazing views of the island

Our first time on a helicopter and it was amazing. The ride was smooth and enjoyable and the pilot let us know what we were seeing. We saw lava flowing from the volcano, waterfalls and the rainforest. I cant wait to come back again.

We flew with Scott on the Fire and Waterfalls tour in Hilo! He was a great pilot and very knowledgeable he answered all our questions with gusto! It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the lava flow both in the crater and flowing into the ocean! The entire staff at Blue Hawaiian is very friendly and truly wants you to have an amazing experience! I live on Maui and would fly with them on every helicopter tour in the future! Thanks again Scott for an awesome tour!!

We were sold and shown tat we would go close to the falls Our piper said, from 3000 feet, look at the falls, there are hundreds of them. Then off to the volcano.We didn’t go below 5000 feet because he said their was a restriction. When shown all other helicopters were below clouds there was no responseTalking with others that went with other companies,I am disappointed I didn’t choose them.Two star at best for this trip and pilot

We just had an amazing tour with a very chatty pilot! It was a once in a lifetime thing! I think it depends on how the weather conditions are.. But we were lucky today!!

We took the Island Spectacular Tour. Might be the most amazing tour weve ever been on. Over two hours of the most amazing sites possible. Water falls, lava flowing into the ocean, volcano craters, lava fields ... our pilot, Greg, was informative, friendly and gave us a ride that was like floating over the island. We were a little hesitant to spend that much money on a single tour but worth every penny!

Thank you, Ian; you are a fantastic tour guide! This tour was amazing! The highlights were seeing flowing lava (apparently fortunate to see that) and the waterfall stop (chose to take that longer flight). The tour was the highlight of our visit to the island and the latter waterfall was definitely worth the extra cost. My whole family thoroughly enjoyed it. Again, many thanks to Ian for dispelling my fear of flying in a helicopter and sharing your knowledge of what we were seeing, as well as your sense of humor and perfect music selections.Doreen Lee

Helicopter ride was fantastic and the views of the big island were amazing. We saw flowing lava, craters, and waterfalls. Out pilot Wesley was very knowledgeable and friendly. He gave us great tips for our visit in Hilo.The guides could be a little clearer. They should also enforce the dark clothing policy better as the person in front of me was wearing a light blue shirt and ruined most of my photos.

There were six in our group could not have been better flight waterfalls ,and then lava from fissure 8 .then to lava entering the ocean . unforgettable trip all we hoped would be.casey was great.we enjoyed so much took another flight when we got to Maui flying over Molokai was even more breathtaking. Michael was our pilot there great memories I would say is a must

As our first helicopter ride, my husband and I chose Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. We were excited to see a live volcano with lava coming out, and we were not disappointed. In fact, we had a great time.The ground crew is all very friendly, and you can tell they enjoy their jobs. Safety is clearly their priority. They are ready to answer all questions.The Hilo Airport is a nice, open-air facility where food and beverages are available. Parking is easy. When you go, park in the main parking lot, though. The instructions on the confirmation email are a little confusing about parking.Our pilot was James, and he shared his enthusiasm for the island, its inhabitants and its wildlife with us. We went on the Circle of Fire plus Waterfalls tour. We flew over Pu`u `O`o, a volcano with lava visibly flowing out of a vent. James circled over several times to allow all the occupants to get pictures and enjoy the view. We also flew by where the lava is pouring into the ocean before hovering over beautiful waterfalls. It was very interesting, and I recommend Blue Hawaiian.

My wife and I took a helicopter tour with Blue Hawaiian on Kauai and it was one of the best experiences of our trip. Our pilot was great. He was knowledgeable about the island and its history and was fun to talk with. I would definitely recommend them for anyone looking to do a helicopter tour of the islands. It was well worth it.

Our tour for 3pm was cancelled at 2:25pm due to “weather conditions” around the volcano. However, other helicopter tours were on schedule (safari and paradise). We weren’t accommodated on another tour, nor was this tour rescheduled as a whole. It’s really sad because people come to the big island for one reason - to see the volcano!!!What’s even worse is, it’s 2:50pm and the sun is shining bright as ever!!!

Don’t take helicopter ride to watch lava. There in no active lava flow that you can see. You can’t get close enough to any area due to flying restrictions. View of falls was great but not worth money.

I have gone out with Blue Hawaiian twice (Maui and the Big Island) both experiences were really good. The long tour on Maui where they land on Haleakala is amazing. Pilot was very nice and showed us everything. Big Island Volcano tour was incredible. Wish I had gone with Blue Hawaiian more. Will visit them again for sure. By the way spend the extra money to go on the Eco Star - it is a great helicopter- quiet and great views.

Great tour with our pilot, Jason. He was informative but didnt fill every second with information. Got great views of the lava flow into the water and of the crater. We flew in the eco star and had great visibility. Be sure to wear dark clothing as this helps tremendously with the glare.

Thank you for RUINING my vacation! Apparently you choose to overbook your helicopter tour, realize your extra helicopter was having mechanical issues but didnt bother to let us know and fly us over from Honolulu, have us watch the safety video, watch everyone else take off, and then tell us we werent going to be able to go and sorry for the bad luck. I understand putting safety first and I appreciate that, but you could have saved me from wasting an entire day flying over just to tell me the only thing I wanted to do was going to be canceled and that there were no options to reschedule.

We booked 2 flights at 10:00 and 11:00 but arriving there this morning for check in (9:15) they told us we have both been delayed to 11:30. So we have been 2 1/2 hours early and only one of was supposed to have a window seat.After waiting over 3 hours they came and said the flight was canceled.If you are visiting Big Island try to book not Blue Hawaiian!

Really enjoyed the flight. Our pilot Patrick was fantastic. Minor tech glitch prevented the flight from being recorded on their internal and external camera network. Fortunately I got fantastic GoPro video. If you dont own one, its probably worth renting one at around $50.

While on our honeymoon my wife and I took the Circle of Fire plus Waterfalls in an Eco-Star helicopter. We really enjoyed the tour especially as we got a chance to see lava, volcanoes, and sights that we otherwise wouldnt have seen. Our pilot was fantastic, friendly, and informative. This tour is a must see.

An awesome experience. Our pilot, Dale, did a great job showing us all the lava flows and stopping to circle something we saw, whether it was a whale or a violent vent. Oh, and the valley and the beautiful waterfall! Dale let us feel we can touch the waterfall and the grass.! Amazing! And the turbulence wasnt even that bad! We highly recommend for everyone!

Worst experience. My headset didnt work during the tour. I was glad there was no accident, but I was very scared of how to escape in case of an accident. Also, it was not a satisfactory service for the cost I paid. I told the manager this after the tour, and the manager said he was sorry and suggested that he provide me with a video shoot. I wanted a partial refund but I accepted the managers offer. Later, when I came back home and played the video, it was someone elses. It is a company that deceives consumers, and especially the manager of souvenir shops is the worst person to fool consumers.

What a fantastic ride! Thank you Ian for being such a great pilot. You gave us the perfect ratio of guided tour and quiet moments - which allowed us time to take in and admire these natural phenomena - the lava break-outs around the Volcano and the surreal untouched canyons. A most memorable tour!

They were really good on Kauai. The weather turned bad they rescheduled. Given the good experience we went with the same company at the big island. They cancelled our tour for no reason. Weather was fine. Previous people were really happy with tour. Paradise was still flying!!

Best memory of my Hawaiian trip with my dad thanks to our pilot, Scott, and the great staff.Thinking of them now and hoping everyone is ok. Sending lots of love.

The entire experience was perfect. Fantastic service all-around including our pilot who doubled as an excellent guide with lots of information. The 45-min tour of the falls and volcano was a great length. Views of the volcano was absolutely astounding!

Amazing views not possible to see anywhere else in the American!

Brian our guide was amazing! Great personality and friendly interaction with our two families. Brian went out of his way to ensure each of us had great views and we never felt rushed. Amazing experience , great crew, would highly recommend this company and guide!

That was an amazing experience! I highly recommend to everyone who visit Hawaii to try the helicopter ride. Its an unique experience; 55 minutes of flying and watching the beauty of Kauai . Capitan Brody was definitely an important part of our experience. He talked about the history of each part of Kauai, which made our ride more enjoyable. The ride was very smooth with no turbulence.The helicopter has two (or three) cameras on front and side to record the video of your trip. You can buy the flash drive of your trip at the end for $40, so, dont record lots of videos, just enjoy the journey :)

What a wonderful way to see the islands volcanoes, coastline and waterfalls. Our pilot Greg was fantastic and provided great context and information about the landscapes, the lava flows, etc. I was really worried about motion sickness but with a Dramamine an hour before, and wristbands, I had no issues whatsoever. I look forward to our next excursion with Blue Hawaiian! Everyone was so friendly and helpful and professionally run. Could not recommend more highly!

A must do! Awesome helicopter, friendly and professional pilot (Coleen) who knew our names, totally worth it. We did the Circle of Fire tour and got to see a great lava flows from about 1000 ft, which is really close considering its active. You get a better view from the helicopter than a boat since you dont have all the steam in the way, plus everyone on either side gets to see. Big comfy seats in the helicopter, super quiet, and we got to keep a dvd of our visit. 10/10 Would fly again.

The helicopter tour seems awesome in general, but their services and the knowledge of how to handling things is terrible. The manager and the employees working there seem to barely have a brain and must not know what common sense is. When my aircraft had a small issue with the headphones, but the helicopter itself was working fine, they told me to wait and so I waited for an hour. They told me that they dont know how to fix the issue, so they just sent me off without even rescheduling my flight. But the worst was when I looked back while driving away, my aircraft that wasnt working properly was loaded with other people and was about to take off.

Constant Noise over my property. They dont care. If you support this company with your dollars you are just promoting horrible noise pollution on a beautiful quiet island. How would you like it if I took a helicopter tour over you house 10 times a day? Dont do it to us!

It was an amazing experience and the weather was sunny. We were able to see the lava in the pots and fire, of course the lava fumes from the active lava mountain too. Saw some beautiful waterfalls. Had an wonderful pilot, Coleen did a great job! Well done:) 29th Dec 2014 Happy New Year!!

My wife and I did the Big Island Spectacular last year and it was not the experience that we thought it would be. If you want to see the island from the air I would recommend one of the smaller helicopter tours! The company spends a lot of money on advertising to get your business and to keep all those pretty blue helicopters flying. The reason for the delay was that I forgot about it till some friends were asking about taking a flight when in Hawaii and im just putting in my 2 sense. Good luck on your decision! Aloha

I went here yesterday-drove 2 hours to get there ...then had to sit and watch a video about the scenes and tours that the helicopter will be going through then after that the safety rules had to be explained to use which was fine and they had us sit and wait for a few minutes just to tell us bad news that we were not going to fly due to the weather...then tried to make us feel better about the situation by making us try to book another trip with them later telling us it depends on the weather for that day if we will be traveling on the helicopter or not! My thing is this- if they knew the weather was going to be bad and not inform us before hand and make us sit through that corny video then explain the safety rules why even continue to waist our time? Poor excuse of a company to scheme more money out of tourist!

A video might cost more than you think. The easy-to-see sign next to the register advertising a video for $25 is not of your ride. That price is for a montage video of other flights, the likes of which are readily available on the Internet. Your ride video will cost over $40 and 15 minutes more of your time (they must use the slowest media possible). Despite the cashier referring to your video as a DVD, it is actually either a file on an 8GB flash drive or Blue Ray disc., the latter being snail-mailed to you at a later date.

Guest attendant Jason and Pilot Eric were most awesome. Everyone truly seemed to enjoy what they were doing and friendly and smiles all around.I would do it again in a minute and will use Blue Hawaiian again in Kauai for a tour up there on my next trip to HI.

This was a waste of time and money. Half of the tour was spent in the clouds. The windows do not allow for good photography as the glass presents a glare. The tour states that there will be emphasis on the most current areas of volcanic activity, however this in no way includes the volcanic activity in the Kilauea Caldera -which currently is active, leading one to believe it would be included. Not so!! I was doing my best to stay awake during the tour.

Amazing trip to the eruption of Kilauea - worth every penny!

Buyer beware in dealing with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. Maybe you will get the magical journey documented by so many satisfied customers. But maybe you will get the garbage experience of screaming children that my wife and I experienced in Kauai. By then, it’s too late to do anything. Blue Hawaiian will just take your money; explain that the kids did fall asleep and that they did fly you around after weeks of trying to find some who actually cared about the customer experience. Blue Hawaiian has a policy of too bad suckers. Buyer beware when you patronize sleazebags.

Great tour! Greg was our pilot out of Hilo and did a great job taking us out over the lava fields, the ocean, and waterfalls, all the while explaining the geography and working hard to get us all great views. Highly recommended!

There are some, not many, miserable people on here complaining about not being able to fly because of the weather. Wow. To travel to Hawaii with them must have been the most insufferable experience ever.My girlfriend and I took the volcano and waterfall ride and were absolutely delighted. Captain Chad was fantastic. Very polite and kept us informed at every turn. Couldnt believe how close we flew above the lava.This was the highlight of our trip!!

Cold not ask for a better tour. If you get the chance, go for the tour that lands by the water fall. totally worth it. The view during the trip is second to none. Tom our pilot is one of the most skilled pilots I have ever flown with. He really knew what he was doing, and was full of intresting information about the trip and the Big island in general.

While the helicopter ride stunning. We werent too impressed by the customer service by Blue Hawaiian. After we completed we waited for almost 1 hour to receive our recorded video. The lady at the counter gave us excuses for the delay. Interestingly they had not gotten the video from the helicopter and gave us lame excuses. They later realized they will still take longer to process the DVD so they provided to ship it to us. But they gave us ZERO dollars in credits. I wanted to buy their Blue Ray DVD of Hawaii. They ensured they get every penny. Their staff was not well trained to say the least. They were overstaffed, inefficient and ineffective.

Top Notch! Our Pilot, Tim, was incredible. He was very knowledgeable and entertaining. Id absolutely do another tour through this company

Very cool! Hawaii is so beautiful and the ride was nice and relaxing. The pilot put on music from Jurassic Park because they filmed some of the scenes there.

Awesome! This was a great tour. The pilot was very knowledgeable & made sure both sides of the helicopter got a good view of each landmark. Very professional. Id love to use them for a tour of another island when we visit again.

We booked our tour a few months in advance, called twice that morning to confirm as the vog seemed pretty bad but were told it was definitely going to happen. After a brief safety video, 7 groups of 7 people were lined up on the turmac only with umbrellas but no shade or water provided. We waited 30 minutes, and just when I felt lightheaded from the heat and dehydration, everyone was told to go back in and get some water. It was then the employees went around and told people individually that the tour was cancelled due to the weather. They said pilots only let them know 15 minutes prior to the scheduled tour. My suggestion is you DO NOT line up customers under the sun until they know they are boarding! No alternative tour was offered, and they just said they were all booked that week. Someone must have suffered severely as we saw an ambulance as we left. I asked if we were to pay our own parking (for standing in the sun for 30 minutes), and they said yes. For such a big company (maybe too big now and they make too much money to care?), they should offer some sort of compensation for such an awful experience. Weather is unpredictable, yes, but operate accordingly and accomodate your customers who are paying at least a couple hundred dollars per person. Go with other helicopter companies that actually care. Some of my family went with another helicopter tour where they had people wait in the shade, pilots explained the safety and tour themselves, and took extra care of their customers. Blue Hawaiian apparently needs more competition in the market.

I was very excited to go on this helicopter ride for my birthday but it was a total fail. DO NOT BOOK THIS TOUR, IT IS A WASTE OF MONEY AND TIME. This is a scam. The expectations were not met at all, not even the slightest. When we booked this tour, we were told that we would get close to the volcano and experience the lava flow. We were also told that if the weather does not permit that they will call us and cancel. Before the tour I called to make sure that were still set because no one called us. When we got there, they said 15 minutes prior to flying they will let us know if the weather will be okay. They went ahead and fly us. We end up not seeing what we paid for which was the volcano with the lava flow. You might as well rent a car and do a self guided tour because there is no good tour company so far from my experience from our trip in Honolulu and Oahu. THIS TOUR SUCKS!

Wesley did a great job as our pilot and tour guide. We got to see some awesome scenery!! Thanks for a great tour!

Excellent trip, as geologist we really enjoyed seeing the active volcano and flows, Eric the pilot was very knowledgeable regarding the flows. Awesome warerfalls and nice flight over the harbour. We did the north trip last year and it was equally excellent.

Hilo lava and falls tour. Most reputable helicopter company and very friendly. Hope for a window seat!

Not worth it! (At least right now). Disappointed! Could not get anywhere close to the volcanos due to flying restrictions with the erupting volcanos. Though this is understandable for safety concerns THIS NEEDS TO BE COMMUNICATED BY THE COMPANY. There isn’t a clear notice posted anywhere with a description of what the actual conditions are like at that time, just advertisements showing helicopters flying right over lava flows and waterfalls.Or 50 minute “Ring of Fire” tour consisted of ~20 minutes traveling to and from the airfield, 10 minutes flying by some waterfalls along the coast, and 20 minutes driving back and forth over the ocean by one of the lava flows into the ocean. We were at a relatively high altitude and could only see steam, and some flows exploding as it reached he water and some red lava WAY off to the distance. I understand there are restrictions in place, but would have liked to know what that meant exactly before spending over a grand for my family to participate.

We made a reservation of Circle of Fire plus Warterfall tour in Big Island, the reservation service over the phone was clear and kind, especially for us non-native English speaker. But after we arrived in the counter at Hilo airport and checked in, we were then told to wait aside for the safety instructions before departure. Our departure time was scheduled at 3pm. By 2:45pm, there still no staffs coming to us for any safety briefing and instructions, so we went to the counter again and checked, then the staff founded out that we were being left behind! The other passengers have finished the safety briefing and being guided to the helicopter pad ! The staff then quickly gave us an oral briefing and told us to catch up the others, which let us felt very unpleasant !The helicopter captain did great job introducing basic information about big island volcanoes and lava, and we did see lava flowing down,so quite exciting for us.so overall rating is balanced to 2 stars

Took a ride for our honeymoon. It was awesome. It was really neat seeing the volcanoes from above. I would highly recommend this.

The tour was fantastic! Worth every penny! Our pilot, Jeremy was informative, funny and is the primary reason I would recommend this company for a helicopter tour. My family flew December 27th 2011 and we saw the active lava flow from the Pu`u `O`o vent. Jeremy flew us over the location where the lava was flowing into the ocean several times. He made sure that everyone was able to get a good look before moving on to the next location. Our guide book stated that the pilot would either make or break the tour and they were right. Jeremy not only was a good pilot, he was a top notch guide.

Hilo/Tour Of Volcano and Waterfalls... We were Very Disappointed. 90% of the 45 minute flight time was spent cruising to the volcano, then on to some inland waterfalls. Saw no flowing lava at the volcano, only steam and smoke from smoldering brush and a few trees. The waterfalls we saw were very small, nothing at all like their photos and videos. Nice helicopter, and the pilot did his best to make the trip interesting, but this was the (only) low spot in our 8 day visit to the Big Island.Definitely would NOT Recommend this tour to a friend.

We tried booking the volcano tour and after 2 cancellations due to poor weather, we ended up with a refund. Their helicopters seem to be state of the art and the lounge is very comfortable. I do agree that weather is not in their control, especially in a high altitude area that gets lot of rain. However, I wish they were transparent about it. since the weather is fluctuating in nature, they dont release the go/no-go decision until about 30 min prior to the flight time. We booked for a 8am tour on day-1 and had to check in by 7:15am. The tour was cancelled and rebooked the following day at 10am. Not seeing much change in weather, I called up to ask if they are flying today and was told that we wont know until 9:30. I asked if they ran the 8am and 9am tours and they said yes only to find out when I arrived at 9:15 that they didnt run any tours for the day. Our 10am was cancelled as well. I found that to be very dishonest. Luckily we stayed at a place 10 min away, but there were people who called in from places 45 min away and they were asked to come in person to get the decision or forfeit their money

PHYSICALLY ASSAULTED BY A BLUE HAWAIIAN HELICOPTER PILOT!!!!Booked a ring of fire and waterfalls tour for June 13th, 2018.Our helicopter pilot was Jeremy Taylor.My husband was sitting in seat 1, next to the pilot, my 3yr old daughter and I sat in the back with other family members.In the midst of staff buckling us in and putting on our headsets, the pilot shoved - not accidentally bumped into - SHOVED my husband so roughly that it literally caused pain not once, not twice, but THREE times - all to my husband’s great surprise and frustration, without an OUNCE of provocation.1. Within moments of my husband sitting down, the pilot roughly shoved his knee over.2. A minute later, as my husband (careful to stay out of the surly A-hole’s space) reached behind him to pull a seatbelt shoulder strap out from behind his back as the staff needed it to buckle him, the pilot elbowed him and literally reached over and forced his hand down.3. A couple minutes after that, while my husband sat still WITH HIS ARMS CROSSED doing everything he could could stay out of the pilot’s way, the pilot AGAIN violently shoved at his knees. The pilot didn’t say a SINGLE WORD to my husband in the midst of this, though before the third shove he had already introduced himself to us over the headsets - AND he switched off all passengermicrophones until several minutes after takeoff, so with the engine roaring there was no way for my husband to ask why the pilot was being so outrageously aggressive (although, he sure as heck shouldn’t have HAD to ask why he was being assaulted by a pilot who hasn’t said a single word to him!!)Finally my husband was over it, and pushed back at the pilot’s knee, saying “stop pushing me, man!”The pilot turned livid, went off on my husband and demanded ground staff take him off the helicopter saying MY HUSBAND was making him uncomfortable and he didn’t feel safe flying beside him (!?!?!?!?). The ground staff offered my husband the chance to switch places with a backseat passenger, and when my husband, steaming, began to explain to her what had happened, Mr. Taylor again turned around and started screaming that he could just get off the helicopter and stay on the ground if that was what he wanted. So that’s what my husband did.I was on the verge of tears and wanted to get off as well with my toddler, but was told straight up that I wouldn’t be receiving a refund on the $600 for our tickets so I should stay if I didn’t want to waste my money. Cue the most miserable tour of my life. My husband spoke with management as soon as he got back to the front desk, and suggested they take a look at video footage. Turns out it doesn’t start til after takeoff, surprise, surprise. We spoke with the manager, Lei, again after I got back from the stupid tour, and she put us on the phone with the Pilot Chief, Darl, who also took down my husband’s account and promised to call him the next day to start resolving the horrific experience. No call came. I tried to call Lei near the end of the business day for an update and was told she’d call me back in 15 minutes - didn’t get a call til 2 hrs later when I’d already stopped hoping for a callback and stepped away from my phone.Clearly Blue Hawaiian’s pilots assaulting innocent paying passengers doesn’t rank as a big concern on their list.If my husband was unknowingly in the pilot’s space somehow, fine, it would be totally appropriate for him to VERBALLY let him know and OBVIOUSLY my husband would have been happy to accommodate. Instead, something we had all been looking forward to all week turned into a violent, disturbing, traumatizing fiasco for our family that was shrugged off by management. I wish I could give negative stars. One star is five too many.Do yourself a favor and spend your money elsewhere.

Took the flight this morning. The pilot didnt speak. We stayed over the ocean the whole time. Something was wrong. The company did refund the price. Very disappointed that we only got to see the lava from way off. Other flights had the same problem. Really bad that you come to Hawaii to see the lava and the tour company screws it up.

Had a great time! What a great experience! Staff is great. Our pilot Jeremy is awesome, very knowledgeable about the area and the history.

Our pilot Tom wouldnt stop talking about welfare, and the government during our ride. He was pretty bad. It really dampened the beauty of the tour. Tour guides arent supposed to be cynical and depressing, theyre supposed to show you around and talk about the history of the place...Im giving the tour 2 stars because the sites were amazing, but being stuck listening to him complain about the government and welfare kind of ruined it a bit for me... It greatly affected my experience the video recorded sucks too... because I he wont stop. Sorry, the pilot just REALLY hampered my experience.My tour was the Experience tour on Hawaii (Big island) It was at 8AM or so on July 12th 2016 and I was with my wife, and her family. Cynical tour guides suck... It was made all the worse that this was my first experience for something like this... Ive never gone on a vacation before, and it ruined the natural beauty of the tour.

Very Very Disappointing. We hovered around one area close to the airport most of the time and then saw a few waterfalls. I understand that if the lava isnt flowing on the surface, then there is nothing they can do. But, why not see more areas? Why not go toward Kilauea? I dont know what other helicopter services are doing. For the tour I got, I wouldnt recommend this company.

Amazing experience seeing spewing lava and beautiful waterfalls! Well worth the $$

Worst flight ever, if you have Adolf as a pilot, he was just going through the motions and hardly talked and didnt have much knowledge about the area. He also flew us very high and said that he had too then we could look down and see other helicopters, including a Blue Hawaiian a lot closers and having a great view. Total waste of money.

Well organised company with a very friendly pilot . We saw a great deal of Oahu on the flight and enjoyed the spectacular scenery . Seeing a lot of the places we had driven to certainly added a new perspective to this beautiful place and was well worth the cost of the flight .

Amazing flight the pilot flew that thing incredibly the views were impressive. Just wish he was more knowledgeable and interesting.

The whole tour was outstanding. Highly recommend this group. Starting with tha pick up in Kona to the Zip line crew in Hilo. The helecopter trip was breathtaking. The pilot was not rushed and great views of out flow into ocean and up into top of volcano to see source. Everyone was great, no problems the people we met were friendly and sincere. Highly recommend this tour. THANKS TO ALL. John and Kelly , Buffalo NY

Very friendly staff. Comfortable ride in the bigger eco model. Didnt get as close as I was expecting to get. Did get to see the lava

Wasted our time. We drove an hour and a half from Waikoloa to the Hilo airport where we sat through a 30 minute safety briefing. They proceeded to escort us to the runway and then told us right before we were about to board that the trip was canceled to due to lack of visibility.I get it. Weather is unpredictable and it comes with the nature of the business; however, they could have called the night before or the morning of the flight to cancel instead of dragging us all the way out to the airport.Every hour we get to spend on the island is valuable. We wasted half a day and gas money on this tour. We could have spent our time fishing or chilling on a beach if they had just notified us ahead of time.