Big Island: Discover Hilo Helicopter Tour

Absolutely incredible experience from the very beginning to the very end! We went for a Big Island tour with our three little kids and they had best time ever. A special thank you to KJ, amazing pilot and guide, and to our ladies assistants on the ground. You made our day truly unforgettable!

We booked the **Big Island: Discover Hilo Helicopter Tour for Sunday, October 4, 2026, specifically because the Viator description heavily promotes the volcano experience. The listing says guests will get views of Kilauea and Mauna Loa, and the itinerary describes flying above Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, including views of Halemaumau Crater. The promotional photos and the introductory video shown before the flight also created a very clear expectation that seeing the volcanic areas from the air was a major part of this tour. Unfortunately, that was not the experience we received. During the flight, I specifically asked the pilot why we were not getting closer to the volcanoes. He explained that because of altitude requirements and cloud conditions, we could not fly over that area. I want to be clear that I do not blame the pilot for following aviation rules or making a safety decision. What disappointed me greatly was what I learned afterward: under the current FAA/National Park Service Air Tour Management Plan, commercial air tours are not permitted within the regulated Hawaii Volcanoes National Park area on Sundays. This was not a sudden weather issue. It was a restriction that was known before our tour was ever sold to us. If Sunday operations require a substantially different route—or require flying at a much higher altitude in order to get anywhere near the volcanoes—that should be clearly disclosed before a customer pays more than $500 per person for a tour marketed around Kilauea, Mauna Loa, craters, steaming vents and glowing lava. The weather that day was actually very pleasant and mostly clear. The very next day, while at the airport, I saw other travelers excitedly showing photos from their helicopter ride near the volcano. They told me they had flown at approximately 9,000 feet. That made our experience even more frustrating. Had we simply been told in advance that Sunday was a restricted day and that another day would offer a better opportunity to see the volcanic areas, we absolutely would have changed our reservation. Even more disappointing, neither the Viator listing nor the preflight presentation made this Sunday limitation clear to us. The listing does mention that sights may vary depending on weather, but a known Sunday regulatory restriction is very different from unpredictable weather. The helicopter itself was comfortable, the flight was smooth, and the pilot was professional. My issue is with the lack of disclosure and the way this Sunday tour was marketed. For a tour whose advertising places Kilauea, Mauna Loa and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park at the center of the experience, customers booking on a Sunday deserve to be told clearly—before booking—what they will realistically be able to see. Had we known, we would have booked another day.

They ruined my visit to the big island. EXTREMELY disappointed that they canceled the day before our flight. We booked our tour ~4 weeks before our visit to Hawaii. Of course, we read the fine print and knew our tour could be canceled due to weather or equipment issues, etc. Our tour was canceled because Blue Hawaii wasn't making enough money. There were only 2 in our group and now they said they needed at least 4. We could go as long as we paid $1100pp instead of the $550pp contracted rate. They offered an afternoon book (reviews say morning is best) for the following day - but again, we would have been the only ones booked and probably had the same problem. The same was true for our last day (the day we were flying home) and the same possibility. Poor customer service with limited options to rebook and not much of an apology. Really sorry we didn't get to go or have much time to book with another tour group. Be forewarned.

Great fly over of the Kilauea volcano. Lots of time for picture taking from the air.Our pilot Chewy gave us a lot of information and answered all of our questions. We saw the other major volcanoes but focused on Kilauea because of its activity. An excellent excursion and money well spent.

It is a fantastic experience, once in a lifetime. Viewing the local farming land, volcanoes and waterfalls was a pleasure. The pilot was humerous and knowledgeable of the island.

Our helicopter tour with David was a fantastic experience! Smooth flight, great commentary, and amazing scenery!

Tour didn’t cover what we expected after paying $2000 for family of 4. We expected to see volcano summit and some water falls and none of that basic stuff was covered.

Very fun, great pilot, great experience. We were able to see where the law flows from recent eruptions were close to the rim of the active crater… It was a very cool way to see the . Thanks Ryan!

Amy the pilot was awesome. She was so knowledgeable and did a fantastic job highlighting the sights.

Great team! We enjoyed the flight and the pilot was awesome. Thanks to all for a great memory.

Staff was very nice & informative. The driver tries to get the best possible views of the volcano and gives great history of the land.

Brilliant trip, worth the cost for the sights alone, great experience and great service from everyone.

Staff was friendly and very informative! The helo was safe and instructions prior to flying were clear and concise. David (chuy) our pilot had so many great points and ensured right and left side of the copter got plenty to see. It was a beautiful day and the experience was well worth the time and money

Had a wonderful flight and great information about the area. Would highly recommend. The staff was very friendly and safety information was well presented.

Experienced, enjoyable, and worth it. They were easy to communicate with and gave us recommendations on the island.

Rain cancelled our trip a few hours before scheduled. Too late to set up alternate plans Recommend you have a plan B.

They cancelled my flight and I'm waiting for my refund. Where is it? Do I get it from you or does the helicopter company refund the money.

We had a great flight. Our pilot (Ryan) was a veteran with many years of helicopter experience, we felt very safe with him at the controls. We were lucky to have good weather all day, bad weather could've limited our flight area, or even gotten our flight cancelled.

Did not take us to see kilauea as advertised. The pilot said it was because it was not erupting. I also booked a land tour to the crater it was beautiful. Would have been nice to see it from above even though it wasn't erupting. I uploaded pictures I took from my ground tour! So you can see how beautiful it can be even though it's not erupting.

We had booked the Discovery Tour for September 12 departing at 7:45am for three adults. We left Waikoloa at 4:30am in order to arrive at the Hilo airport prior to departure time. At 7:00am I received a call from Eric confirming our arrival time. Once we arrived at the Blue Hawaiian office, we watched the safety video and was informed that the pilot was on his way from the hanger. At 8:00am Eric receives a call from the pilot that he had a family emergency. We were given the option to wait till 10:30am in hopes that another pilot could take us. I asked Eric if we could do the tour from the Waikoloa base and he said yes but only for the amount of time we had already paid for therefore we would not get the tour they had purchase and no compensation was offered. This is very disappointing and poor customer service. I understand there may have been a family emergency but Blue Hawaiian should have another pilot on stand by or find a solution for the tour we missed out on.

We took a helicopter tour with Hawaiian Ryan. Ryan is a former Blackhawk pilot, which put me at ease right off the bat. I've never done this before. I didnt have any idea what to expect. I just knew I wanted to do it. The scenery was fantastic. Ryan was also friendly and witty, and he has a pretty good playlist, too.

Loved this experience!!! Highly skilled and knowledgeable pilot took us on a breathtaking tour. Right off the bat we saw a pod of spinner dolphins…and then we saw the craters! Ground crew was super helpful and made lunch and other site seeing recommendations. I was a little nervous before the flight, but would encourage anyone on the fence to go for it.

Although they are safety conscious and professional, don’t waste your money on this tour. They just cruise around a lot of very local old flows and don’t take you anywhere near the summit or activity there. We did the longer tour that actually took us to the summit of the volcano before and it was great. This tour was a waste of time and money and over too quickly.

Was worth every penny, including paying premium for front seat. Bastian is superb guide and pilot. Christian was great helping finalize the booking. The entire experience was fantastic from start to finish. Do it.

Due to the rain, our pilot did not want to take us to the volcano. The other group and us still wanted to see the volcano, so the pilot agreed. The weather got better and he showed us the destruction from previous volcano, but never took us to see Kilauea nor maunaloa craters. Very disappointed in this pilot. He did drive by waterfalls but not up close. The receptionist was very helpful. Wasn't with the money.

Excellent experience, easy to find with a friendly check in experience. Chewy was very knowledgeable and a pro pilot! Very safe and smooth :)

We thoroughly enjoyed our tour. Our pilot, “Chewy” was fantastic and very informative. We were lucky to visit during the eruptions. Your team adapted to this event, and it made our tour that much more exciting. Mahalo!

Worthwhile experience but not jaw dropping like expected. Juliana checked us in and was very friendly. Tim was a great pilot and tour guide - couldn’t have asked for better - but we didn’t get close to the sites as expected. Cloud cover limited our views on some things, and we had to maintain a very high altitude. We used this same company several years ago on Maui, and that experience was better. No minimum altitudes required there I guess. Verify exactly what you’ll be seeing and how close you’ll be before booking this particular tour.

We had a beautiful almost clear day to fly over Hilo Bay and surrounding volcanos. The pilot was quite knowledgeable and provided a lot of information. The office lady was especially kind in helping us navigate the check in process. The Viator contact person didn't indicate we were to arrive 45 minutes before the flight and we almost didn't make it from the cruise ship in time.

Helicopter blades were out of balance. The noise from the blades was overwhelming and the entire helicopter shook. The staff and crew were more interested in providing safety information than making you feel welcome. The pilot was mediocre in what we were shown and not very informative on the caldera and craters which is why we choice this tour. They give you the hard sell to watch the video of the flight and purchase pictures from them.

Amazing bucket list experience!! Worth every penny! Very knowledgeable pilot Chuey, we went up the day before with Dale and had to cut it short.

These guys are great. Efficient and professional. The flight was perfect and our pilot, Ryan was outstanding.

Upon arrival at the heliport we had the option to just take a helicopter ride or not, the weather that day brought low clouds and the pilot says he could not promise us views. The were gracious to offer a refund or rebook. We opted for a refund.

I was hoping to at least see the crater at Kilauea volcano. I would have gladly given up 60% of the tour to fly there. A longer flight would have been great to see more. Pilot was awesome and very knowledgeable

Pilot was very informative about the volcano and various lava flows/eruptions. Flew over a beautiful waterfall. We were lucky to see whales too!

The helicopter was truley a remarkable machine to travel in. The staff are kind and affectionate. The Pilot was kind and knowledgeable. If you want to experience the best of Big Island, just pay the price and do what you have to do and book the tour…

Our pilot David did an excellent job of taking us over the active volcano. We flew through rainbows. David gave an amazing commentary through out and had a fantastic playlist for the trip. Kudos to David.

Our pilot was Wes and he provided us with an awesome experience. He made sure that we all saw the rainbows, volcano and waterfalls. The flight was very smooth. This was our first helicopter tour and we felt at ease with Wes and Blue Hawaiian.

This company and this experience was one of a lifetime. The hour we spent in the air, the service and professionalism before and after our flight was outstanding. I cannot express how wonderful this was. Wesley and the staff were outstanding. Julie at the front desk was wonderful. Our time spent doing this is something we will always remember.

The pilot did an excellent job telling us what to look for and what we were looking at. He gave us lots of historical information, which we loved!

David the pilot was amazing - friendly and informative. The whole experience was professional and well run. And the views!!!! Amazing.

This was absolutely the best thing I have ever done! Amazing and spectacular! So much to see that is impossible to see from just the ground.

Really so beautiful and amazing to see what really you could never see from the ground. Your was amazing!

It was an amazing tour! My tour guide was the best giving me so much knowledge of the Big Island. He went beyond my expectations! I lived every bit of it!

This was an incredible journey that my wife and I could not recommend more highly. Our pilot was friendly and knowledgeable and the flight provided a unique view of the island!

This is a much smaller set-up than Blue Helicopters in Maui. Basically a shed shared with another helicopter tour group. We only saw the one helicopter in use while we were there, maybe they have others in busier times. We had our scheduled Saturday tour cancelled for lack of people, so was rescheduled for the following Monday, which sort of dented our plans a bit. We were staying on the west coast of the island, so the drive over to Hilo is a bit of a slog, especially though rain and fog. Allow yourself a good hour and a half if you are making this drive. Staff at the terminal were very friendly and make you feel welcome, as did our pilot Mike. This was only our second time in a helicopter, and Mike made us feel welcome and comfortable, I had no trepidation like I had with my first flight! He was a fountain of knowledge and explained the history and back stories of all that we saw. Although we were flying over lava fields and run-offs into the sea, everything is dormant, so all rather barren. I suspect tours of the waterfalls might be more interesting. One thing… they ask you to wear dark clothes, and this is important. The girl sitting in the front seat had shorts and a light colored tank top on. In nearly every photo my wife took from the back seat on her side of the helicopter has the girl’s reflection in the glass. Something to keep in mind.

This was a highlight of our Hawaii vacation. There are no bad steaks in these helicopters, and our pilot was so great at pointing out sights and getting us the best views.

Excellent helicopter ride tour. Well worth the costs. The above view was spectacular and breathtaking. The captain was great in showing the sights we have seen before. Friendly staff. Everything was exactly as advertised and much more. Highly recommended.

Awesome sights pilot Wes was a great host and a great pilot. Ride was very smooth . Friendly staff at the hanger! Easy to get to.